History will be made on Wednesday when Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris is sworn into office by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. Harris, the first Black, South Asian and female vice president will take her oath of office from Sotomayor, who is the first Latina Justice. The Howard alum will become the 49th vice president of the United States of America.
According to a source, Harris handpicked Sotomayor for this event
because she admires her. Harris and Sotomayor worked as prosecutors and Sotomayor once referred to Thurgood Marshall, the first Black Supreme Court Justice as one of her greatest heroes, just like the vice president-elect.
On July 2, 2020, Harris posted a video to Twitter where she called
Marshall her “childhood hero and inspiration.” She added “our nation is stronger because of his powerful voice for civil rights and social justice.” She even credits Marshall, a graduate of Howard University, as the reason she attended the institution.
During Harris’ swearing-in ceremony, she plans to use two Bibles. One Bible belonged to Marshall and the other belonged to Mrs. Regina Shelton, who acted as a second mother to Harris and her sister Maya. While growing up Harris and her sister visited Shelton’s home daily and became close to her daughter and her foster children. This will be the third time Harris uses Shelton’s Bible. The first two times were when Harris was sworn in as California Attorney General and into the United States Senate in 2017.