“The hallowed venue made Vice President Kamala Harris’s call to protect freedom and democracy ever more powerful. Here, workers sacrificed their lives for the right to organize. Here, steel was made to support the war against fascism in Europe.”

I wanted a day off from driving. But Kamala Harris’s rally in Pittsburgh was too close to miss. Her campaign had moved the event from the center of Pittsburgh to Carrie Blast Furnace National Historic Landmark to prevent confrontations with MAGA followers who were rallying at PPG Paints Arena. Thousands of attendees, including many first-time voters, parked in the lot of famed Kennywood Amusement Park and then took shuttles to the location, walking a healthy distance on a gravel path to the furnaces. 

The location was deeply moving. The blast furnace, illuminated by lights on cranes, was once part of the Homestead Works of U.S. Steel where, in 1892, brave strikers, organizing against Carnegie’s wage cuts, battled the company’s Pinkertons and the National Guard. The militant legacy of USW Local 1397 in Homestead continued into the 1970s.  

I was honored to meet and know some of the leaders there. After the mill’s shutdown, they helped push for the national landmark where I now stood. The hallowed venue made Vice President Kamala Harris’s call to protect freedom and democracy ever more powerful. Here, workers sacrificed their lives for the right to organize. Here, steel was made to support the war against fascism in Europe. Would the workers of Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania defend this birthright tomorrow? Would the hopes and aspirations of the young folks, waving our nation’s flag before this furnace be temporarily (or permanently) dashed? Or will they be encouraged and reinforced? Amidst the joy and hard work that brought folks there, these hovering questions carried solemnity and purpose.

After the Vice President’s speech, our exit was delayed by police as her motorcade departed. I watched the black limousines move out. And I tried to weigh the acute personal sacrifice it takes for one to accept a challenge of this magnitude. Whatever the election results this momentous evening, Thank You, VP Harris and Gov. Walz for working so hard to define today’s choices.

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