Donald Trump will return to the White House in a few monthsand he will do so with great power after securing the votes of the decisive states and the Senate at the polls. On the other hand, Kamala Harris falls flat on her face with a reality that we did not expect: the African-American and Latino vote did not play as much in his favor as he thought.
At present, many experts analyze the reasons why the Democratic candidate did not have the expected successbecause the results in some states are overwhelming. They allude to his loss popularityto his lack of proposals, to his late entry into the campaign, to his few economic policies… In short, to a set of factors among which there is also what is called glass cliff.
“Yes, there was a part of North American society that I didn’t trust an African-American woman to take the reins. of the presidency of the United States, but it was not a determining circumstance in deciding who would win”, explains Moisés Ruiz, expert in communication and leadership.
The truth is that, until now, no reason has been known to be decisive as to tilt the scales towards the Republican sidebut all the aspects mentioned above took their toll on Kamala. And the glass cliff too. Would he have been another victim of this inequality?
The glass cliff
This term, perhaps unknown to many, was born 20 years ago led by the University of Exeter and researchers Michelle K. Ryan and Alexander Haslam. They invented it based on “glass ceiling”since they demonstrated through a survey of companies that women have more likely to break it in crisis situations. But why does this happen? Because behind the roof, the cliff still appears.
Kamala Harris on the presidential plane.
This “glass cliff” refers to the trend which indicates that women tend to achieve a leadership position in times of instability. This is only a simple tactical maneuver, since, in times of crisis, leaders are exposed to a higher probability of failurein addition to being subjected to more pressure, higher expectations and less structural support compared to men. It is, according to researchers, an invisible barrier, a “systematic and implicit biases this prevents them from reaching leadership positions in their work environment.
On the other hand, many studies claim that women are perceived by their colleagues as natural leaders when forced to deal with crisis situations. One of these studies is the Harvard Business Review carried out in 2020. This analyzed the data collected during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic March 2020 and effectively determined that the image of a working woman In times of instability, it is better received.
Kamala Harris is reportedly one of the women who recently “fell off the glass cliff.” Or rather they pushed her. However, it is neither the first nor the last, since the list grows over the centuries, the different countries of the planet and the political or commercial organizations. However, if there is a group of women who are more affected by this invisible barrier, are the racialized.
The double inequality
If the glass cliff is already unfair, is doubly baited when it comes to black women. In this case, the gap becomes longer and this is what different studies confirm. For example, according to researchers Alison Cook and Christy Glass, who led the Strategic Management Journal report, “White Women, and Men and Women of Color are more likely that white men from being promoted to CEO in underperforming companies“.
And, if we focus on racialized womenthey face “a particularly high level of surveillance and aggression, as well as a lack of empathy“, according to the study The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.
However, while it may seem curious, there are also reports that argue that “black women leaders They are more ambitious than other women at their level” and, therefore, “they are more likely to have their skills questioned and to be subjected to degrading behavior“. These statements refer to the McKinsey’s 2022 Women in the Workplace Report, which also notes that the racialized showed themselves to be more ambitious, since 88% want to be promoted.
A complicated campaign
In the case of Kamala Harris, the candidate was confronted an electoral campaign strewn with pitfalls. Despite this, he was able to manage the difficulties stand up to Donald Trumpwho did not miss the opportunity to discredit her on numerous occasions through sexist and misogynistic insults and comments.
Kamala Harris began the electoral campaign in July 2024, a few months after the start of the Republican candidate’s campaign. Furthermore, he did so after Joe Biden withdrew due to his obvious decline and disastrous performance in the presidential debate. At that time, two-thirds of Democrats, and even Barack Obama, called on the president to end his campaign and Morale within the Democratic Party was very low..
Kamala Harris, at a campaign rally.
Furthermore, at that time Kamala’s reputation has been greatly damaged due to criticism of the management of the war in Gaza and Israel, and for his role as prosecutor in San Franciscowhere more than 1,900 people were convicted of crimes related to marijuana possession and use.
Kamala, a victim?
To all the difficulties of the campaign, it must be added that “Kamala was not the chosen candidate by the Democrats until Biden pointed the finger at it”, as he explained Moises Ruizexpert in political leadership. “If there had been a primary, I probably would never have been elected as a candidate because This was the great disappointment of the Democratic quadrennium during her vice presidency, and now they put her like a great illusion. It’s difficult for North American society to assimilate,” Ruiz explains.
He further adds that “even if part of American society that I didn’t trust an African-American woman to take the reins. of the country, the defeat cannot be attributed solely to this gap, because most of the time it depends more on talent, experience or a good campaign approach.
For his part, Ana Lamasthe president of WomenCEO, believes that, although there are many other aspects that could have influenced, “the glass cliff Yes, it could have affected Kamala. Also It’s a problem of culture itselfwhich also takes its toll on us. Lately, many women are joining companies and institutions, but there is still a lot to be done. We need to overcome the obstacles and make this prosper. 51% of talents are female“.
It is for this reason that he affirms that “we must emphasize the consequences of the methacrylate cliffsince this material is much more difficult to break than glass; as is the case in life itself“And the Lamas advocate doing so.”without fear, without laziness and without shamelike Kamala Harris did against Trump. »
