Anna Wintour Urges Joe Biden to Select a Woman of Color as Running Mate

"And he should do it soon."

Anna Wintour
Anna Wintour wants to see a woman of color in office.
Marco Piraccini/Archivio Marco Piraccini/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images

While Joe Biden has previously pledged to select a woman as his running mate, Anna Wintour has a more specific request for the 2020 candidate. Over the weekend, as the country’s race crisis came to a boiling point in response to the unjust killing of black Americans, the Vogue EIC penned an op-ed urging Biden to add a woman of color to his ticket — and soon.

“Vice President Biden has already spoken with feeling and empathy about the death of George Floyd, but he has to do more: assume the mantle of president in waiting, raise his voice, and become the national leader we so desperately need,” Wintour wrote. “He must surround himself with the best and the brightest minds who represent all of America—and that means he should choose a woman of color to be his vice president, and he should do it soon,” she said, calling such a prospective VP “an important symbol” for a country in desperate need of new leadership.

While the Biden camp was rumored to be considering former candidate Amy Klobuchar, recent reports claiming the senator failed to prosecute a fatal shooting in 2006 by the officer responsible for the death of George Floyd suggest Klobuchar might not pass the camp’s vetting process.

Wintour, who announced her support for Biden in March, urged the candidate and others of privilege to take action in response to the “shared tragedy” of violence against black Americans. “The need for change should fall especially on those of us who enjoy incredible privileges,” she wrote. “We need to listen and learn and take action to ensure social justice and basic human rights for people of color in this country.”

According to Jezebel, women of color including Kamala Harris, Tammy Duckworth, Stacey Abrams and Val Demings are all possible VPs who may claim the open position on Biden’s ticket.

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