Howard University, a historically black university in Washington, DC, is known as the “Mecca.” Since 1867, this has been a gathering place for black people in America and from around the world. Among the school’s alumni are former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and Vice President Kamala Harris. That’s the location Harris chose for her concession speech on Wednesday.
I was there to cover the event, but it wasn’t my first time visiting Howard’s campus. While attending college at Syracuse University in New York, my friends and I took annual trips to Howard’s hometown, which had just celebrated its anniversary. 100th anniversary in October. But the jubilant atmosphere that usually surrounds events in The Yard, the main courtyard on campus, was replaced by somberness Wednesday as crowds gathered to hear the concession speech hers.
People of all ages and races stood on campus, where remnants of election night were still visible. Many were black women who attended Harris’ watch party Tuesday night and returned despite not getting much sleep.
“I felt like if I was here to celebrate with her, I should also be here as she came to terms with her loss in this case,” said Gaelyn Smith, 26, a DC native.
This type of support is available boosted Harris’ campaign since its inception when about 44,000 participants joined a Zoom call hosted by Win With Black Women founder Jotaka Eaddy. That call and coincident calls raised $1.6 million in a single evening.
Smith said she also voted for Clinton in 2016 and the feeling of losing was similar. “At some point, maybe I will feel hopeful, maybe I will feel different,” Smith said.
Sheryl Estrada
Deborah, (who did not share her last name), a Black woman in her 70s and a second-generation Washington native, was also present at Harris’s concession speech.
“I feel like this is a good way to get closure,” she told me. She also brought her young nephew, making this his first political event. “The ability to have Kamala Harris as our president means a lot to me,” she said.
As for the next four years, Deborah said she has both hopes and fears.
“I hope that we can see something different than what we saw during Donald Trump’s campaign,” she said. “But because of the way he ran his campaign and the people around him, it gave me a little sense of fear about what could happen.”
Waiting for Harris to go on stage, I also heard “Skee-Wee” called a member of her sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc hello each other. Founded in 1908 in Howard, it now has more than 1,000 branches in 11 countries and all 50 US states.
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When Harris took the stage and began his speech shortly before 4:30 p.m., the somber crowd began cheering loudly, but many were also in tears. Harris said accepting election results is “a fundamental principle of American democracy,” along with allegiance to the Constitution, America’s conscience and God.
“I know many people feel like we are entering dark times,” she said in her speech. “But for all of our sakes, I hope that doesn’t happen. But here’s the thing, America, if that’s the case, let’s fill the sky with the light of billions of bright, brilliant stars – the light of optimism, of faith, of truth and service.”
While taking notes, at one point I put down my pen and pad to comfort a young fan who was starting to cry. Attendees surrounded her with comforting words: “Everything will be okay” and “We got this.”
Even though supporters are grappling with the expectation that Harris’s presidency is coming to an end, there is a sense of resilience leaving The Yard and a sense that the history-making process there will only continue.
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