When I learned Vice President Kamala Harris would be setting up her election night headquarters at Howard University — her alma mater and mine — my feelings alternated between pride and skepticism. One of our own would be coming home for what could not only be the biggest night in her life, but also one of the most transformative moments in American history.
I was worried that her telegraphing that she’d be at Howard could be seen as a publicity stunt or a final act of pandering.
But like most Howard Bison, I’m aware that our list of noteworthy alumni reads like a call sheet for Black American history and aware that multiple presidents have spoken on the campus we lovingly call the Mecca. I am neither moved by symbolism for symbolism’s sake nor easily starstruck. And in a race that has at times been about whether Harris has given enough attention to the concerns of Black voters, I was worried that her telegraphing that she’d be at Howard to watch election returns — and, she hopes, declare victory —could be seen as a publicity stunt or a final act of pandering.
But I had to admit that Harris watching the results at Howard is not only an authentic choice, but it is also, perhaps, the only choice. Her taking in the results from there will juxtapose the promise of American democracy with the accomplishments of HBCUs that continue to produce our country’s finest leaders. But there’s something else, too.
America is at a crossroads. On the one hand, there are those who would reserve power to a select few whose beliefs are rooted in exclusion and a focus on the past. Opposite them are those who see greater possibilities and who want to create room for people who reflect what the nation looks like today.
The country was at a similar crossroads when Howard was founded in 1867. Would America live up to its promise or remain committed to the ways of its past?
Throughout the ages, even as its alumni have led the fight in the face of the worst that America could dish out, they still pressed forward with the belief that not only “America can be better” but also, “I can do something about it.” As the nation wrestled with how to move forward after emancipation and to what extent forward movement was desirable, Howard University stood, along with many institutions of its kind, demanding more from American democracy and believing in the ideals of its promise.
The idea that a woman of color stands positioned to become the leader of the free world is as bold as anything we can imagine.
That spirit of optimism and determination fueled many of the change makers who helped to fertilize the ground from which Harris’ flowers have already blossomed. Stokley Carmichael (Kwame Ture), Amiri Baraka, Vernon Jordan, Elaine Jones, Elijah Cummings, Thurgood Marshall and Shirley Franklin didn’t just visit Howard, they went to Howard.
To Bison, the idea of a Harris presidency would not signify simply an ascension of a single, exceptional graduate but rather would illustrate the standard of excellence that arises out of the school’s motto: “Veritas et Utilitas, Truth and Service.” When history books are banned and women have been stripped of bodily autonomy, the idea that a woman of color stands positioned to shatter the glass ceiling and become the leader of the free world is as bold as anything we can imagine. The proposition that our possibilities are infinite not only characterizes what our country could be, but it also unmistakably the mindset of a typical Howard Bison. It’s only appropriate, then, that Harris experience this hugely historic moment in a safe space where she is deeply rooted in the tradition of truth and service. If one didn’t know any better, it might be easy to think it was something of fantasy or a scripted fairy tale. But don’t be surprised if you find some Howard alums who’ve been taught to expect that we can do anything, playing it cool. If you ask why, you are likely to get some nonchalant version of “It’s an HU thing. You wouldn’t understand.”
Charles F. Coleman Jr.
Charles F. Coleman Jr. is a civil rights attorney and a former Brooklyn, New York, prosecutor. He is an MSNBC legal analyst. Follow him on Twitter @CFColemanJr. 
