Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stirred controversy by challenging Vice President Kamala Harris’ racial identity, falsely suggesting she had been minimising her Black heritage.
Trump’s remarks, made during a panel at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Chicago, Illinois, were met with strong criticism from Harris, who is of Indian and Jamaican descent. Harris condemned Trump’s comments as “the same old show of divisiveness and disrespect,” according to Reuters.
Trump claimed, “She was always of Indian heritage and she was only promoting Indian heritage. I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black.”
He continued, “So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black? But you know what, I respect either one, but she obviously doesn’t, because she was Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden she made a turn, and she went – she became a Black person.”
Harris, who identifies as both Black and Asian, is the first Black and Asian-American person to serve as Vice President. She launched her presidential campaign on July 21, after President Joe Biden’s exit from the race.
Since announcing her candidacy, Harris has faced numerous sexist and racist attacks online, with some far-right accounts questioning her racial identity.
Despite Republican leaders advising against personal attacks on Harris and suggesting a focus on policy differences, Trump has indicated he will not temper his rhetoric. “I’m not going to be nice!” he declared at a campaign rally.
Trump’s appearance at the NABJ was part of a broader strategy to attract Black voters, a traditionally Democratic stronghold. In the 2020 election, Black voters supported Biden over Trump by a margin of 92-8, according to Pew Research.
Trump’s campaign was buoyed by recent polls indicating a drop in support for Biden, who withdrew from the race following concerns about his age and mental fitness. However, Black voters and other communities have shown renewed enthusiasm with Harris’s presidential bid. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday shows Harris leading Trump 43-42 per cent, within the margin of error.
