Vice President Kamala Harris dropped an f-bomb while dishing out advice during the annual Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) Legislative Leadership Summit in Washington, DC, on Monday.
Harris spoke to the crowd about breaking down barriers and handling opportunities and instances in which an individual is the “only one that looks” like themself.
Harris added that, in certain instances, they would “need to kick that f**king door down.”
“So, here’s the thing about breaking barriers. Breaking barriers does not mean you start on one side of the barrier and you end up on the other side,” Harris began. “There’s breaking involved. And, when you break things, you get cut, and you may bleed. And it is worth it every time, every time.”
.@VP Harris on breaking barriers at @APAICS Summit: "We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open. Sometimes they won't, and then you need to kick that fucking door down." pic.twitter.com/ripV146zOW
— CSPAN (@cspan) May 13, 2024
Harris added that young people should walk into rooms with their chins up and shoulders held high, whether the room be “a meeting room, a board room, a courtroom” or even a hearing room.
“We have to know that, sometimes, people will open the door for you and leave it open,” Harris added. “Sometimes, they won’t, and then you need to kick that f**king door down.”
After Harris’s comments, she began laughing and responded by saying, “Excuse my language” as the audience cheered.
The vice president’s comments came after comedian and actor Jimmy O. Yang, known for his role as Bernard Tai in Crazy Rich Asians, asked Harris to talk about her experience being the first black American and South Asian American to be vice president, according to the Hill.
Harris was also asked to talk about how her heritage and background helped to shape her views as vice president.
“We gotta make t-shirts with that saying, ‘Kick the f**king door down,'” Yang said.
