Robin Givhan
Fashion critic, Washington Post:
The warning from Kamala Harris and the convention’s third night: Our house is on fire
“Each of us needs a plan, a voting plan,” said Sen. Kamala D. Harris, the vice-presidential nominee. It has come to this. She was urging Americans to plot their strategy for accessing the polls because the pathway may be blocked.Her words were reminiscent of the sort of warning an emergency worker might give to a complacent family: Have an escape plan in case your home should suddenly go up in flames.
How will you all get out? Do you have a fire extinguisher? What will you save? Where will you meet to make sure everyone is safe and accounted for? Will you be able to repair the damage?
Voting is this country’s escape plan from a house that’s engulfed. That was the message. The planet is burning. The immigration system is charred wreckage. Racial justice is a smoldering firestorm. Wednesday evening, women — and former president Barack Obama — led the way in both sounding the alarm and pointing out how to get beyond the smoke and ashes.
Joe Biden is the calming water. The cause of the conflagration is President Donald J. Trump.
