African American Policy Forum Holds Town Hall To Discuss Kamala Harris's Historic VP Nomination
During this AAPF town hall, Black women discuss the racism and sexism that Harris faces—and what it means that a Black woman will be a heartbeat away from becoming president of the United States.
During a dynamic panel on Thursday morning, From the Base to the Face of the Democratic Party: Kamala Harris, Black Women & Misogynoir, six Black women joined together for a robust conversation breaking down a historic night for Sen. Harris (D-CA), the first Black woman to be nominated for vice president of a major political party.
Harris accepted her nomination Wednesday night—day three of the Democratic National Convention—standing behind a podium at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Delaware. Reporters stood the appropriate social distance away documenting the moment for posterity, but Kimberlé Crenshaw, executive director of the African American Policy Forum, noticed something missing in the post-Convention coverage: Black women’s voices.
“Already a pattern has developed in which Black women who are journalists, elected officials and academics serve as informants to conversations in which they are underrepresented,” Crenshaw said in statement. “It was past time to bring Black women together to discuss the politics, the election, Kamala Harris’s historic run and the intersections of race and gender playing out in the presidential campaign.”
Crenshaw, the creator of the #SayHerName campaign, gathered Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Barbara R. Arnwine (president and founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition), Donna Brazile (veteran Democratic political strategist, adjunct professor and author), Kimberly M. Foxx (state’s attorney for Cook County, Illinois) and Kirsten West Savali (executive producer at ESSENCE magazine) to discuss.
TOPSHOT – Senator from California and Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris speaks during the third day of the Democratic National Convention, being held virtually amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Delaware on August 19, 2020. (Photo by Olivier DOULIERY / AFP) (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)
The dialogue, situated firmly within the historic and future implications of the senator’s nomination, ranged from the misogynoir that Harris faces to the progressive critique of her candidacy to a deep dive into the politics of representation.
Each woman brought her unique perspective—on topics from the Combahee River Collective to Shirley Chisholm to the isolation that Black women in power too often feel—to a conversation that was long overdue.
.@sandylocks: “If Black women don’t reclaim this moment, if we don’t counter-galvanize against a mainstream discourse that would make Harris’ candidacy nothing more than a symbol, then this moment is a loss. We are determined to have our say.” #whenblackwomenenter#DNC2020
— African American Policy Forum (@AAPolicyForum) August 20, 2020
The Trump administration has given schools and universities across the country just two weeks to eliminate diversity initiatives or risk losing federal funding. In a memo issued Friday, the U.S. Department of Education ordered institutions to stop using “racial preferences” in admissions, financial aid, hiring, or any other areas. Schools have 14 days to eliminate any practice that considers race as a factor, a move that could dramatically reshape campus life.
Educators across the country are scrambling to assess their risk, weighing whether to fight for policies they believe are legally sound. The sweeping directive could upend everything from college application essays to faculty hiring and student organizations.
The memo frames the crackdown as an effort to combat discrimination.“With this guidance, the Trump Administration is directing schools to end the use of racial preferences and race stereotypes in their programs and activities—a victory for justice, civil rights laws, and the Constitution,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor.
“Schools have been operating on the pretext that selecting students for ‘diversity’ or similar euphemisms is not selecting them based on race. No longer. Students should be assessed according to merit, accomplishment, and character—not prejudged by the color of their skin,” Trainor added.
The backlash from civil rights groups and higher education leaders was swift. Many argue the vague language is designed to have a chilling effect, pressuring schools to abandon any programs touching on race—even those that could hold up in court.
“Creating a sense of risk around doing work that might promote diverse and welcoming campuses is much more of the goal than a clear statement of existing law,” Jonathan Fansmith, senior vice president of government relations at the American Council on Education, an association of college presidents told the Associated Press.
The directive builds on Trump’s previous executive order banning diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and cites the 2023 Supreme Court ruling that struck down race-conscious college admissions.“Put simply, educational institutions may neither separate nor segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race,” the memo states.
The Education Department is also slashing $600 million in grants for teacher training programs that promote concepts like DEI, critical race theory and social justice activism, calling them “divisive.”
Uncertainty over how far this anti-DEI order will reach was evident during last week’s confirmation hearing for education secretary nominee Linda McMahon. When asked whether courses on African American history would violate the president’s order, McMahon admitted she wasn’t sure.
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Despite the pressure, some education leaders are urging schools not to overreact. The School Superintendents Association has reminded members that the new guidance is not legally binding, and any funding cuts would require lengthy investigations.
“We’re not certain a district should do anything beyond reading the guidance, talking to their legal counsel, and gauging community interest in keeping existing programs,” said Sasha Pudelski, the group’s director of advocacy.
At the heart of the memo is a direct challenge to college admissions policies. The guidance warns that schools cannot use essays as a way to infer an applicant’s race—a key concern since the Supreme Court’s ruling left room for students to discuss race in personal statements. Chief Justice John Roberts acknowledged this possibility but cautioned that colleges could not use essays as a loophole to achieve racial diversity.
The memo also targets schools that have eliminated standardized testing requirements. It argues that dropping SAT and ACT requirements to increase racial diversity is unlawful, even though many universities have moved away from standardized tests over concerns that they favor wealthy students.
Longstanding practices—such as recruiting in underrepresented areas or obtaining lists of potential students based on academic and demographic factors—could now be seen as legal risks. Scholarships for students of specific racial backgrounds are also under scrutiny. While legal experts continue to debate whether the Supreme Court’s decision extends to financial aid, some institutions have already removed racial criteria from certain scholarships.
The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators is working to understand the memo’s implications. “The last thing students need when making plans about how to pay for college is uncertainty over when or whether they will receive financial aid they’ve been relying on,” the group said in a statement to the Associated Press.
Trump has called for eliminating the Education Department altogether, and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has already slashed dozens of federal contracts it deemed wasteful.