One of the most powerful moments following President-elect Joe Biden’s victory on November 7th, 2020 was when Vice President-elect Kamala Harris posted a video to her Instagram: “We did it, we did it, Joe,” she said on a phone call with Biden with a huge smile on her face.
She’s right--they did it. Their win over Donald Trump marks the defeat of a president who is sexist, xenophobic, racist, fascist--I could go on. His policies and actions over the past four years have been disastrous. He failed to condemn white supremacists after a deadly neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. He repeatedly pushed away crucial allies--for instance, he pulled the US out of landmark international agreements like the Paris climate accord--and left a palpable impact on the US’ reputation abroad. He separated at least 5,500 families at the US-Mexico border under his “zero tolerance” policy. He dismantled parts of the Affordable Care Act--his tax bill included a rollback of the tax penalty for those who did not enroll in healthcare--but failed to produce any legitimate alternative. And with hundreds of thousands of Americans dead and millions unemployed, his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic will likely go down in history as one of the biggest disasters in US history.
I have faith that Biden will do better. He ran on a platform of unity--which was more evident than ever at the Democratic National Convention, filled with diverse speakers and even Republicans--and he has declared that he stands for two things: the workers who built this country, and values that can bridge its divisions. With Biden’s election come the promises of increased minimum wage, investments in green energy, criminal justice reform, and expanded Obamacare, among others.
But such changes take time. So although I smile each time I watch Harris say, “We did it,” I also wonder, “We did what, exactly?” Biden and Harris’ election is not the end goal; it is merely the catalyst of what will hopefully be a long but fruitful journey towards progress.
Part of the burden also lies on our shoulders, as citizens, voters, and residents of this country. Biden is far from the platonic ideal of the next president. He has upheld white supremacy, expanding the racist system of policing that we are now trying to cut down on; he is certainly not a climate denier, but he is opposed to the Green New Deal that was introduced by Senator Ed Markey and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (a progressive, trail-blazing queen more than deserving of an article of her own); he refuses to back universal health care; and when it comes to voting out an alleged rapist, Biden isn’t squeaky clean himself. I don’t mention these things because I don’t support Biden; I do, and, especially now that he will be our president, I’m rooting for him--we share our victories. I mention these things because we must hold Biden accountable and push for progressive policies.
Many argue that, although Biden and Harris are not perfect, we don’t need perfect politicians. I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, it’s true. We’re living in a nation that was built by slaves and feeds off of social inequality. We may never find a candidate who can fully uproot us from that unjust foundation. But on the other hand, I’m tired of settling for presidents and policies that are less than satisfactory. Essential and frontline workers, who have been working non-stop since March, deserve more. Black organizers, who delivered Biden and Harris’ win, deserve more. Indigenous voters, who showed up despite a surge in COVID cases in the Navajo Nation (not to mention the countless times throughout history that their government has failed to show up for them), deserve more.
So, did we do it? Kind of. We won the election, and it’s undeniably a big deal. We deserve to celebrate this victory.
But maybe the message isn’t so much “we did it and it’s done,” but rather, “we did it … for now.” After all, the journey is only beginning. Now is not the time to sit back and relax; now is not the time to place our fate in the hands of our leaders; now is not the time to stop the protests. Now is the time to get our hands dirty and push harder than we ever have. Because we better be saying “we did it” many more times in the next four years.