Civil rights icon Ruby Bridges said she feels a “sense of pride” after seeing a viral image of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris walking with the shadow of her 6-year-old self.
Bridges spoke with People Magazine regarding her new book, “This Is Your Time,” commemorating the 60th anniversary of her historic walk into William Franz Elementary School in 1960 to enforce desegregation in New Orleans.
She was asked about the viral print, which shows Harris alongside Norman Rockwell’s famous 1964 work memorializing Bridges.
The activist said she had been “rooting for” Harris, who made history as the first woman, Black person and Indian American elected to the vice presidency as Joe Biden’s running mate.
Bridges said the picture “made me feel a sense of pride to be a part of that journey.”
“But I also felt a responsibility to all of those who came before me. Because I’m also standing on the shoulders and in the shadows of people who made huge sacrifices for all of us,” she told the magazine.
The Bridges-Harris print was created by artist Bria Goeller for Good Trubble, a San Francisco-based political satirical design company owned by Gordon Jones.
It is entitled “That Little Girl Was Me,” a reference to Harris’s clash with Biden during a Democratic primary debate about integrating her public school.
The image has gone viral, something Goeller wrote on Instagram was a “collective celebration of empathy triumphing over shortsightedness and greed.”
“Your messages and comments have shown me that this has been, by and large, a piece of art that spoke truth to a moment and brought strength and solidarity into our communities. As an artist, I could not dream of more. As an advocate, I could not be more grateful,” she wrote.