The world watched as Kamala Harris made history Wednesday – becoming the first woman to serve as Vice President of the United States.

Harris, an African American, Asian American woman raised by immigrants, was sworn in at the United States Capitol, surrounded by a field of flags.

After being sworn in, Harris hugged her husband – the United States of America’s first Second Gentleman – and then fist bumped newly inaugurated President Joe Biden as a small crowd cheered.

WDIO spoke to Northlanders and a local professor about the historical significance of Harris’ new role as Vice President of the United States.

Stacey Hewitt Orobona said she was pleased to see a woman in office.

“I'm so happy and excited," Hewitt Orobona said. "She’s a great role model for women and especially for young women in the country."

Jonathan Morgan shared in the excitement of the historic first.

“Having the first female is a huge movement in history,” Morgan said. “It’s sort of touching.”

While, Payton Boe said he looked forward to seeing something new.

“It's pretty new. I think it's a change we needed for our country,” Boe said.

Dr. Kathryn Haglin, Assistant Professor of Political Science at UMD, said Harris’ position as Vice President is a huge step for women.

“It was just over 100 years ago that women got the right to vote when the 19th Amendment was passed, so it’s pretty amazing to see how much things have changed in the last 100 years,” Haglin said.

Haglin added that Harris’ position as Vice President is significant for future generations.

“I think it sends a really strong message to little boys and girls who might aspire to these sorts of things in the future,” Haglin said.

Going forward, Haglin foresees more women running for office and winning—also noting that she was happy to see America’s first Second Gentleman take on his new position in such a positive manner.

“It’s great to see a man embracing this role because it does challenge traditional gender norms and its awesome how supportive he is,” Haglin said.

Additionally, Haglin foresees America being seen in a new light on the world stage.

“Since we often are on the world stage trying to promote gender equity and racial equity in other countries, showing that we have put somebody of color and a woman in the Vice President seat, I think, helps with that,” Haglin said.

As Harris takes on her new role, Haglin hopes to see her bring new perspective and positive change to the White House.

“There’s the famous quote from the now deceased Justice Ginsburg: ‘Women belong wherever decisions are being made’ and so now, we’ve got a woman who’s in an office where lots of decisions are being made for the first time ever and so hopefully that will only bring positive change to our government,” Haglin said.

After making history herself Wednesday, Vice President Kamala Harris also helped make history for others by swearing in California’s first Latino Senator, as well as, Georgia’s first Black and Jewish Senators respectively.

At the swearing in ceremony, Harris received a standing ovation when she walked onto the senate floor for the first time as the Vice President of the United States.

To see the original report and related stories, follow this link to the WDIO-Tv website.  https://www.wdio.com/duluth-minnesota-news/northland-reacts-to-kamala-harris-making-history-as-first...