Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise drop-in at the Capitol Pride Walk and Rally in Washington, D.C. on Saturday. She walked for about a block and spoke to people along the route. Although she wasn’t there for long, it was enough to turn her into the first sitting vice president to march in a Pride event. During her brief appearance, Harris called for the approval of the Equality Act, and said President Joe Biden’s administration is determined to move forward on LGBTQ+ rights. “We need to make sure that our transgender community and our youth are all protected. We need, still, protections around employment and housing,” Harris said. “There is so much more work to do, and I know we are committed.”
Harris took part in the pride event alongside the second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, and they both wore supportive T-shirts. The vice president wore a T-shirt with the words “LOVE IS LOVE” and a pink blazer while Emhoff’s T-shirt read “Love first” in a rainbow of colors.
While Harris and her husband were well received by the crowd, on social media much of the attention focused on a Secret Service agent who didn’t seem all too happy the vice president had decided to join the Pride event. “Secret service clearly not happy about protectee going for a walk,” lawyer George Conway wrote on Twitter. Others had a laugh at how the agents tried to blend in with the crowd wearing casual looks.
