Trump Questions Kamala Harris’s Racial Identity; White House Slams Comments as ‘Insulting’
“I only discovered she was Black several years ago when she happened to present as Black,” Trump said during a panel discussion at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in Chicago.
Donald Trump raised questions on Wednesday about whether Kamala Harris’s racial identity is genuine or politically motivated, making a controversial statement during an interview that reverberated through the 2024 presidential race.
“She was always known for her Indian heritage, and she only promoted her Indian background. I didn’t realize she was Black until several years ago when she suddenly appeared to be Black,” Trump remarked during a panel at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in Chicago.
“And now she wants to be recognized as Black. So, I’m unsure whether she’s Indian or Black,” he said, referring to Harris, who is the first Vice President of the United States with Black, female, and South Asian heritage.
“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 became a Black person,” Trump said.
The remarks by the Republican presidential nominee, 78, are the latest in a series of personal attacks on Kamala Harris. This week alone, Trump has accused Harris, who is married to a Jewish-American, of being anti-Semitic.
The White House, under President Joe Biden, quickly condemned Trump’s comments, labeling them as “insulting.”
“No one has any right to tell someone who they are or how they should identify,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, the first Black woman to hold the position, told reporters.
