Villagers in the Indian ancestral home of Kamala Harris have flooded their village with messages of support to the Democratic presidential nominee.
The Thulasendrapuram community painted slogans on roads wishing her and her running mate, Joe Biden, victory. Harris’s maternal grandfather was born in Thulasendrapuram more than a century ago.
“From yesterday, we are excited about the final result,” said Abirami, a resident of the village via AlJazeera. “Now, we are hearing positive news. We are waiting to celebrate her victory.”
Harris’s grandfather P.V. Gopalan moved his family to Chennai nearly 90 years ago. He retired there as a high-ranking government official.
Harris was born to an Indian mother and a Jamaican father who both immigrated to the United States to study. She had recalled visiting Thulasendrapuram when she was five.
Speaking at the US Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Wilmington, Delaware, Harris praised the women who have inspired her throughout her life as she accepted the nomination for vice president.
“There’s another woman, whose name isn’t known, whose story isn’t shared. Another woman whose shoulders I stand on. And that’s my mother—Shyamala Gopalan Harris. She came here from India at age 19 to pursue her dream of curing cancer,” said Harris.
“My mother instilled in my sister, Maya, and me the values that would chart the course of our lives,” said Harris. “She raised us to be proud, strong Black women. And she raised us to know and be proud of our Indian heritage. Even as she taught us to keep our family at the centre of our world, she also pushed us to see a world beyond ourselves. She taught us to be conscious and compassionate about the struggles of all people. To believe public service is a noble cause and the fight for justice is a shared responsibility.”
