By Nelson A. King
Caribbean American United
States Vice President-elect Sen.
Kamala Harris Sunday night
recognized the contributions
of Caribbean Americans in a
virtual message commemorating
her expected, historic inauguration
on Wednesday.
“Those contributions are
reflected in the lives of so
many Americans with Caribbean
roots — from Eric Holder
and Colin Powell to Shirley
Chisholm,” Harris, the daughter
of a Jamaican father and
Indian mother, told the starstudded
virtual concert that
was pioneered by Guyaneseborn
entrepreneur, advocate
and journalist, Felicia
J. Persaud, and presented by
Persaud-owned Invest Caribbean
and the Caribbean American
Action Network, (CAAN).
Persaud is also founder and
chief executive officer of the
online news outlet New Americas,
and Invest Caribbean, the
global private sector, investment
agency of the Caribbean.
Holder, a former US Attorney
General, traces his roots to
Barbados; Powell, an erstwhile
US Secretary of State, is the son
of Jamaican immigrants; and
the late Chisholm – a former
US congresswoman representing
Brooklyn, who was the first
woman to seek the nomination
of a major party (Democratic
Party) for US president — was
the daughter of Barbadian and
Guyanese immigrants.
Harris told viewers that she
was “proud to be with you, as a
vice-president elect with roots
in the Caribbean.
“President-elect Joe Biden
and I look forward to working
with you every step of the way
to usher in a brighter future for
Caribbean Americans and all
Americans,” she said.
“Thank you for the efforts
that so many of you have many
of you have made throughout
the course of the campaign
to get us to this moment,”
she added. “You did the work.
You helped lay the groundwork
for this historic occasion. Now,
because of you and so many
others, our country is on a path
to heal and rebuild.”
In her introductory address,
Been Told You Have to “Live with the Pain?”
Caribbean L 6 ife, JANUARY 22-28, 2021
Persaud hoped that Harris,
“the US’ first Black Caribbean
American vice-president,
makes it possible for the Caribbean
region to take its rightful
place as a strong partner with
these United States.
“We are here to resolve
tonight that Caribbean immigrants
in these United States
will no longer be taken for
granted; will no longer be
ignored and left behind; will
no longer have our votes taken
and then dismissed like we are
nothing,” she said.
“Our challenge to you, dear
vice-president-elect, is that you
become a fighter for the Caribbean;
that you use your Caribbean
ancestry and your Caribbean
heritage to make a mark
in history — and not simply be
just another US vice-president,”
she added. “Kamala Harris, we
celebrate you, but we are also
going to be watching you.”
Harris, a former California
attorney general officially
resign on Monday from her
US Senate seat in California,
culminating her four-year US
Senate career.
U.S. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris makes a speech after
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden announced their nominee
for secretary of education, Miguel Cardona in Wilmington,
Delaware, U.S., Dec. 23, 2020. REUTERS/Leah Millis,File
California Gov. Gavin Newsom
has already named the
state’s Secretary of State, Alex
Padilla, as Harris’s replacement.
US Supreme Court Justice
Sonia Sotomayor swore in
swear Harris on Wednesday as
US vice president.
Sunday night’s gala ceremony
featured, among others,
Jamaican dancehall and reggae
stars Flourgon and Nadine
Sutherland, respectively, and
Barbadian soca star Edwin
Yearwood.
Kamala Harris recognizes
contributions of Caribbean Americans
!"
# $
!"
#$
%
&'
()(*"+,,
-.%
!
& '#( )
*
#$
NEUROPATHY BREAKTHROUGH!
'/0#1
-$2 , /3
, %
0 %5###"5
6
Brooklyn, NY – Breakthrough for
Peripheral Neuropathy Sufferers!
, 5+
7
$ 2
$2
,- *
"" "
*
"$ .$/$
$,/,01/2#/12,13
,-7
"
+ 4546#(
7 *!
In this Cutting-edge FREE
Seminar You’ll Learn:
$
"
! (
$ 8 9
( (
7/$!
8
"
# ( 8##
"
6
(
" (
#(
"
8
#
( 8
7
8
"
"
%5####8#&"#55#"#%5"/# 3
3#8&#"#9""%#53# 5:3
3#7 8"/;")<)=)(
>7*=$
3#5#7"
#$
'&'
()(*"+-./
7 %5##6&' $ 2 +,
5?7
5?2;
)*,
$,
@7
,
. 28 ,
' &$,@#+
"&&7 *<ABCD>B=C(E"/6
REGISTRATION IS FREE, BUT SEATING IS LIMITED DUE
TO COVID-19 PRECAUTIONS.
(
"