As a woman of Caribbean descent, I know exactly what Kamala Harris' victory means

I remember it was around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday when the voice coming from the TV announced, "Joe Biden is the President-elect."

Given the anxiety of the prolonged process of tallying ballots to see who will become the next president, everyone was pleasantly surprised by the sudden declaration.

My grandma, mother, and father's exuberant claps radiated throughout the household and shouted their relief at who the winner was. I among them was equally as cheerful. Not only because of Donald Trump's defeat, but the Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is the epitome of the new direction the nation is embarking on— one of diversity and inclusion.

Harris is not only the first woman to be elected to this position in government, but she is also the first Black and South-Asian woman of Jamaican descent. As someone who is of Jamaican descent, this gave me a lot of hope for the community and the nation.

Even though she appealed to me as a Caribbean-American woman, she is also an example for other underrepresented groups of ambitious women overlooked because of their race. Growing up, when fellow peers in school found out about my Jamaican heritage, they immediately would tell me to "say something in Jamaican" (it's Patois) or address me with "yeh mons," which became overwhelming.

I felt like my culture wasn't celebrated in a productive manner.

For the longest time, people associated Caribbean people - especially Jamaicans - as heavy marijuana smokers or staunch Bob Marley enthusiasts. Bob Marley is a gifted legend, but we are so much more than just a destination to get-away from important matters.

Harris is among the first to pave the way out of this generalization.

All in all, America is a land of many different cultures and faces, all capable of achieving their wildest dreams and amounting to success, just as Harris has shown. Anyone, regardless of their cultural background, race, or gender, has the ability to break the glass ceiling.