Nov. 7, 2020 was a historic day in America as President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were victorious in the competition for the White House. When I heard the news, my friend and I were sitting in a physics lab going through archives, feeling dreadful. It was 11 in the morning and we had a rough week ahead. The moment the words “HE WON!” hit the air, however, we both gained new-found energy and screamed at the top of our lungs. November 7, 2020 was a perfect day signaling a new era of love and prosperity, in stark contrast to the four dreadful years that had preceded. A day victorious for all people of color, LGBTQIA+ community, women, men, elderly, and children.

This election will most likely be considered the most important one of the twenty-first century. Not only was the spirit of America, democracy, and equality at stake in the 2020 election, but of-age Americans came out to vote in record numbers: over 159.8 million Americans reported to the polls or sent in their mail-in ballots according to CNBC. President-elect Joe Biden also ended up breaking the popular vote record, beating even Barack Obama, with a whopping 75,260,264 votes. On top of that, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris made history as the first-ever woman to reach higher office.

Americans and people all over the world celebrated the victory. People flooded the streets of New York City, California, Pennsylvania, Minneapolis, and other Democratic cities, cheering, dancing, banging pots, and honking their cars. Later that night, millions of people tuned in to Vice President-elect Harris and President-elect Biden’s speech. I was one of the millions of girls who were sitting at home, in awe of the woman that stood in front of me talking about her life story. As a member of a first-generation immigrant family, Kamala Harris, a South Asian woman, built her career and life, and got to where she so rightfully deserves to be. During her speech, not only did the Vice President-elect ensure that there will be more girls following in her footsteps, but she encouraged them to “Dream with ambition, lead with conviction, and see yourself in a way that others might not see you, simply because they’ve never seen it before. And we will applaud you every step of the way,” instilling a new-found hope and ambition in millions of girls around the world, and in the American public. Harris also mentioned many pressing issues that plague the United States of America that far too often get ignored, including persistent racism. According to

The Indian Express

, she mentioned the inequities that exist in access to education, health care, housing, job security, and transportation, and pointed out the inherent prejudice within the broader criminal justice system. Her attention to these pressing issues makes us hopeful that many of these will get addressed and fixed during her and President-elect Joe Biden’s time at the White House.

For many people, it was a beautiful moment to see President-elect Joe Biden fulfill the wish of his late son Beau Biden of running and successfully becoming president . Although he has made many questionable decisions during his time in office with President Barack Obama, he has paved the way for the LGBTQIA+ community during his term as vice president, helped improve the economic situation of the country after the recession of 2008, and in general, implemented many socio-political changes that helped improve this country in many ways. He is a man that listens to science; President-elect Biden plans to invest $2 trillion to combat the soon-to-be permanent effects of climate change. Additionally, he has many plans to mitigate COVID-19, reduce gun violence, help young Americans, women, improve the economy, put an end to ongoing racism, and assist educators. All this alongside Jill Biden, soon to be the country’s first lady, who is an educator.

Although we now have hope and feel things are looking up, we must not forget that there is a lot that needs to be fixed in this country. We must continue to fight for the recognition of these issues. We need to ensure that our country becomes a haven for all, where everyone is protected and treated equally. No one should be discriminated against simply because of the color of their skin. We have to implement economic and social policies that help bring the American people up, not leave them to fend for themselves. We have to abolish ICE and free the children and adults that Donald Trump has harassed and jailed. With that, we have to provide the resources to help optimize their lives and their opportunities.

We must also pay attention to the increasing number of Native American women disappearing and the increasing suicide rates among them. Furthermore, we must develop some sort of reparation system.. This country has stolen and executed a cultural genocide against Native Americans, for which they only received an apology and statement of acknowledgment, as if that would reverse the centuries of harassment. They have hurt and ignored the very people that this land belongs to; that is unacceptable on every level.

Just because we have achieved this one small victory does not mean that all of these issues will now be magically solved. We must keep fighting, use our voices, and do whatever we can and speak and fight for those that cannot.