A lot has changed in the past few weeks. Right after Biden was finally forced to drop out of the presidential race and endorsed Kamala Harris as his successor, the Democratic Party received a jolt in the arm. They have been able to create some new buzz around Harris. The media is less critical of her, and there has been more support for her on social media. As a result, the Democrats have received a boost in fundraising, bringing in around $200 million dollars in the first week of Harris’s campaign.
Many Democratic Party leaders and supporters in the media are trying to build up excitement now that Harris is in the race. Compared to Biden, who is obviously struggling physically and mentally, there is no denying that Harris is younger, more energetic, and much sharper. If she were to win, she would be the first female and woman of color to be president in a society that is deeply plagued by sexism and racism.
And so, it’s understandable why some people may feel enthusiastic about Harris’s candidacy. But does Kamala Harris really represent a big change? Does Harris really represent something different than just business as usual? In fact, Harris is not being put forward as the next Democratic candidate because she represents a shift away from the policies of the Biden administration. No — she is being put forward precisely because she represents a continuation of these policies. She is business as usual.
Will Harris represent a shift for the millions of Palestinians being bombed by Israel with U.S. weaponry? Of course not. She is just as complicit as Biden in supporting Israel’s genocide. Just like Biden, she has paid lip service for a ceasefire, offered a few words about the lives of innocent Palestinians, but does this at the same time her administration transfers Israel all the weapons it needs to carry out this massacre.
And for the rights of immigrants, undocumented workers, and refugees desperately seeking survival at the southern border, she has nothing to offer. She doesn’t even have kind words to say. As vice president, she made headlines early on for telling migrants, “do not come” to the U.S. because they would be captured, detained, and have no chance of settling in the U.S.
Harris might be able to deliver a clearer message than Biden, but she represents the same party and the same policies. This is not a change.
There’s nothing to be excited about in this election. For that to happen, we would have to start seeing the interests of working people actually defended. This would mean taxing the enormous profits of banks and corporations, and the wealth of billionaires, and using that money for things like food, housing, health care, and education. It would mean taking the trillions of dollars wasted on the military and spending it on things people actually need, like free mass transit for everyone. It would mean putting an end to the destruction of the environment. It would mean an immediate end to U.S. support for Israel. It would mean all of this and a lot more.
But the truth is, none of what we need will come from either party. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans represent the interests of working people. They may have their differences and try to cater to different sections of the population. But they have much more in common. They defend the same system, which represents the interests of a small minority of the population, those who own the banks and big corporations. Trump and the Republicans try to blame the problems of this system on scapegoats, and pass legislation attacking immigrants or LGBTQ+ people, or others. And the Democrats may criticize these policies from the sidelines, but they diligently defend the very system that attacks all working people. When it comes to defending the right of the rich to exploit the working population, to dominate and control every aspect of our society, and to use the military to uphold U.S. economic interests around the world, they couldn’t agree more.
What we need will never come from them. Despite this new buzz for Harris, we can’t put our faith in either party. The only ones to defend our interests, the interests of working people, are ourselves. Working people are the majority of society, and together we have the capacity to change society in our own interests and put an end to this society ruled by the rich. And that would be something to be excited about.
