MPR News with Angela Davis

Kamala Harris, women in leadership and the ‘glass cliff’

portrait of a woman speaking at a podium
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on July 22 during an event with NCAA college athletes.
Susan Walsh | AP

Vice President Kamala Harris is vying to be the first woman to serve as president.

She’s already broken boundaries in her current position — as the first woman, first Black woman and first South Asian American to serve as Vice President.

MPR News host Angela Davis and her guests talked about women in leadership and the Black women leaders who paved the way for Kamala Harris’ candidacy.

Two people posing for a portrait
Duchess Harris (left), a professor of American studies at Macalester College and member on the project advisory board for The Kamala Harris Project, and Cheniqua Johnson (right), St. Paul city council member representing Ward 7 on the city’s East Side, pose for a portrait in the Kling Public Media Center in St. Paul on Monday.
Nikhil Kumaran | MPR

America has gone nearly 250 years without a woman in the top job. But systemic barriers still remain.

Guests:  

  • Duchess Harris is a professor of American studies at Macalester College and is currently on the project advisory board for The Kamala Harris Project, which is tracking all aspects of her tenure as the nation’s first woman of color to serve as Vice President.

  • Cheniqua Johnson is a St. Paul city council member representing Ward 7 on the city’s East Side.

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