A political awakening: How Howard University shaped Kamala Harris' identity

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The campus during her time was a cauldron of activism and black pride at a moment in history, like now, when most black Americans were feeling alienated and unrepresented by the White House.

Running for student office “was hard core,” said Sonya Lockett, a college friend of Harris. “It was not like, ‘If I win, we’re going to get a water fountain for the student center.’

“Students demanded to know how you feel about what is going on in this country, and where is our place in it,” said Lockett, now an entertainment industry executive. “We saw ourselves as integral to the city and the country and the world. If you did not have an idea of where we were in that ecosystem, you weren’t getting far.”

Campus politics were not always gentle. There were fights over where voting machines would be placed, and the hours they would be open. Student leaders tangled over how aggressively to confront a college administration perceived as too cozy with the Reagan White House.

With the campus located in a Washington neighborhood with a high crime rate and student safety a major issue, the student council race also marked the first election in which Harris, who would go on to become a prosecutor, had to confront the nuances of criminal justice.



https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-kamala-harris-howard-university-20190319-story.html

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