Laphonza Butler, who had just been appointed to represent California in the Senate, was elected president of the largest labor union in California at age 30.

years old,

almost 15 years ago.

I know we had to focus on it

What

she is, because governor. Gavin Newsom promised to have a Black woman fill the seat left vacant when Sen. Dianne Feinstein died last week, but that doesn’t mean we can’t also talk about what she did and when.

Think about this: Through August, more than 300,000 workers have gone on strike across the country, affecting a wide variety of industries. The writers have a new contract, but the actors still have to choose. Last week, the United Auto Workers

UAW

The Michigan strike became the site of an unofficial campaign halt in 2024.

There was even one in Chicago this spring

a work stoppage of 13 days

in the cannabis industry about unfair labor practices.

In Chicago, there was even a 13-day work stoppage in the cannabis industry in the spring due to unfair labor practices.

In this environment, Newsom sent the former president of the largest labor union in his state to the Senate. It feels like a statement.

But because he previously promised to send a black woman to fill that role temporarily, her race and gender are the explanation that gets the most attention.

Our culture had the same fixation when Ketanji Brown Jackson was nominated as a Supreme Court justice, even though she was given the highest ranking for qualification than the American Bar Assn. has to offer. President Biden fulfilled a promise similar to Newsom’s for the second time. The first was obviously the selection of Kamala Harris as his running mate.

Coincidentally, Butler worked on Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign and will be sworn into the Senate by her. It will be a great moment for them.

It should be a moment of reflection for the rest of us.

What these three incredible women of color have accomplished in their careers is remarkable and should be celebrated.

But can Democratic men now stop appointing Black women, even though they are a charity that needs just as many contributions?

Black women have never needed an electoral quid pro quo, a vote for me, and I’ll point out one kind of thing. Shirley Chisholm went from being the first black woman elected to Congress in 1968 to running for president in 1972, winning 10% of the vote in the primaries. This despite little money and a lot of hospitality from her own party.

We can cut the song and dance, right?

There is an established core within the Democratic Party that intertwines anti-blackness and misogyny

That

leads to a mentality where black women are qualified enough to carry democracy, but are somehow unqualified to earn their place in the highest offices of the land.

Qualifications have never been the main barrier for black women in Congress or any other position in politics, right? We could celebrate the fact that there is a black woman in the Senate, or lament the fact that the only woman had to be appointed instead of elected. We can celebrate that California’s governor kept his promise, or we can lament the fact that a black woman has never been elected governor here

over there

or in another state.

Instead of promising to appoint Black women, the national party and Democratic leaders should promise to elect more.

Shortly after Butler was named chair of the political action committee Emily’s List in 2021, she shared a story with Politico about how her then-7-year-old daughter influenced her to take the job. (Butler became the first mother to lead the organization in its nearly 40-year history.)

Apparently her daughter was upset because her class was holding a mock election, with different animals making different campaign promises. The winner was a wolf. Butler’s daughter was the only student to vote for the turtle.

He wanted to be fair to everyone, said Butler of the Turtles platform. And he wanted everyone to have what they needed.

The wolf promised everyone sweets.

Hey, that’s the game, right? Say what voters want to hear.

The cynic in me wonders how many more times the Democrats can promise to appoint black women before it all becomes white noise. Because let’s face it: the party could seriously support black female candidates and make history across the country. Or white male candidates could keep talking about making history while dangling promises about black women.

It feels as manipulative as promising candy to schoolchildren. We don’t want to hear it. We want these qualified women to appear on the ballot and get the party support they need to win and exercise their power.

@LZGranderson