The meaning behind Kamala Harris’ white suit
After nearly five days of ballot counting, news outlets began reporting Joe Biden did, in fact, win the 2020 Presidental Election, Kamala Harris changed history becoming the first woman, first Black person, and first South Asian person to become Vice President. During her first official Vice Presidental appearance on Nov 7th, Harris opted to wear a white suit by Carolina Herrera, which not only looked beautiful but also held significant meaning.
Accompanying her white suit, Harris incorporated a satin pussy-bow blouse, Manolo Blahnik nude pointy-toe shoes, and her American flag pin. White is often considered a symbol for the suffragette movement during the early 20th century, a time in history when women fought for the right to vote. As a feminist seeing that this year marks the 100th anniversary of the movement, it is even more meaningful to now see a woman as the Vice President. Harris isn’t the first woman to wear white in honor of the women’s movements and acknowledge the suffragettes. Hillary Clinton often wore white during her presidential run. The blouse style, also called a lavalliere, became popular during the 1980’s as women started entering executive office positions.
It is also telling Harris elected to wear Carolina Herrera, a female immigrant originally from Venezuela. Some fashion theories even suggest Harris’ pussy-bow has underlying symbolism. Harris wore the same style during Amy Coney Barrett’s hearings, while others believe the blouse is a subtle dig at Donald Trump regarding his leaked Access Hollywood tapes where listeners can hear him supposedly bragging about sexual assault. The blouse is now more than just a blouse, it is becoming a symbol for women’s solidarity against sexual assault.
While it is important to acknowledge the symbolism in Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris’ outfits, we must remember she is a politician. If the media is not writing about President-elect Biden’s outfits, we shouldn’t solely write about Harris’. Instead, writers and media producers should focus on what she does for our country and what she says because while Harris is the first woman in the white house “she won’t be the last.”