Washington
First Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris on Monday officially launched her campaign for the US presidential election in 2020, saying she was “honoured” to announce her bid on a day when Americans celebrate Martin Luther King Jr Day who sought inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi. “I love my country. This is a moment in time that I feel a sense of responsibility to stand up and fight for the best of who we are,” she told the ABC News.

Explaining the significance of announcing her presidential bid on Martin Luther King Jr Day, Harris said the icon of American civil rights movement, who sought inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi, has always inspired her.

“The thing about Dr King that always inspires me is that he was aspirational. He was aspirational like our country is aspirational. We know that we’ve not yet reached those ideals. But our strength is that we fight to reach those ideals,” she said.

“So today, the day we celebrate Dr King, is a very special day for all of us as Americans and I’m honoured to be able to make my announcement on the day we commemorate him,” said the Indian-origin Senator whose mother was born in Tamil Nadu and African-American father from Jamaica.

Both came to the US to study and then settled here. Their parents divorced later. Her sister Maya Harris was part of the Hillary Clinton’s campaign in 2016. “The American public wants a fighter, and they want someone that’s going to fight like heck for them and not fight based on self-interest, and I’m prepared to do that,” Harris said.

“Truth, justice, decency, equality, freedom, democracy. These aren’t just words. These are values we as Americans cherish and they are all on the line now,” she said.