Elizabeth Rosner

Because the American dream is a palpable source of inspiration and possibility

As a daughter of two Holocaust survivors, I learned early that it was a privilege to have been born in the United States, a country in which freedom of religion and basic human rights were woven into the Constitution and the fabric of daily life. Listening to the harrowing stories of my parents and their many friends who had come here as postwar refugees, I came to understand that the so-called American dream wasn’t an abstraction but a palpable source of inspiration and possibility.

Also a daughter of immigrants, Kamala Harris reminds me of what my father used to call himself: a “realistic optimist.” In her tenacious commitment to a life of service, she sees where imperfections can be remedied and where her fierce intelligence can be used for the greater good. She actively practices the principles of giving back and also paying forward.

I see decency and empathy on display in Kamala Harris’s and Tim Walz’s interactions with people from all backgrounds; they clearly recognize the essential dignity and humanity in all those who are striving to improve their lives and the lives of their children. Day by day, I hear them amplifying this message: the shared values of mutual respect and kindness are fundamental to a thriving multicultural society.

In contrast, the manipulative fearmongering and dehumanizing rhetoric of the GOP (not only evident recently but increasing in volume for many years) reminds me that the experiences of my parents and their friends are not far behind us at all. I am not merely voting against hatred, cruelty, and divisiveness, but for goodness, compassion, and sanity. I am voting for a collective vision of hope.

Elizabeth Rosner is the author of six books, including Third Ear: Reflections on the Art and Science of Listening and Survivor Café: The Legacy of Trauma and the Labyrinth of Memory.