She faced questions familiar to women in politics, particularly women of color, about her ambition.
Harris faced both the scrutiny of her personal life and the resistance to her rise as she raced past rivals from more well-connected families.
Years later, when she ran for California attorney general and needed support beyond her liberal home base, Harris tempered her stance on capital punishment.
She knew that her adopted homeland would see Maya and me as Black girls, and she was determined to make sure we would grow into confident, proud Black women," Harris wrote of her mother.
At Howard, Harris joined Alpha Kappa Alpha, the nations oldest sorority for Black women.