Claim: Media perpetuates the fake narrative that Kamala Harris isn't Black

Question

As right-winged celebrities are making up insane lies about Kamala's origins, the media is furthering these stories with attention grabbing titles alluding to the fact that the Vice President is not Black, when in reality the article debunks this false claim. However, in an era of short attention spans, readers view the title and run with the claim.

Answer 1

Yes, despite her official White House biography that she is Black and South Asian, the media has perpetuated the false narrative that Kamala Harris is not Black, which has also been fact-checked by Reuters. It is important to note how this misinformation was sparked. On August 1, Donald Trump said in a Black journalists' convention: "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." In a 2016 New York Times archival, Harris recalled her mother's "choice of community" and her mother raising "two black babies" to be "two black women." Harris graduated from the historically Black college Howard University. Harris has long self-identified as South Asian and Black.

Comments

Nice fact check. Choosing an archive from 2016 supports this claim and especially with it being 8 years ago. I would have maybe have added another source about how she used her identity in her campaign that started the narrative could give more context.

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I really like how you referred back to several sources and used quotes to strengthen your argument. Providing context to the misinformation and how it started really helped to paint a picture of the situation and how it has been twisted. I think commenting on how this narrative has been used for/against her during her presidential run and who it benefited would really strengthen your claim. Nice job!

Answer 2

I think overall this claim is fairly true, but the idea of Kamala Harris being "black" I feel is taken a bit out of context. Yes the right wing media may put out messages that can be taken this way, but this angle is not addressing the other side and other perspectives in general. The idea that Kamala Harris inauthentically tries to shift her personality to appeal to different voters demographics in my view is very much true. In this article by the New York Post, it highlights how Kamala Harris is trying to act a way to appeal to Black voters comes off as inauthentic. 

  

Answer 3

Yes, the media has pushed the narrative that Kamala Harris is not black. Trump has attacked Harris' identity, claiming recently "she became a black person". Other celebrities such as Janet Jackson have claimed Harris is not black, but white and Indian. Kamala Harris' mother is Indian and her father is black.

https://www.billboard.com/culture/politics/janet-jackson-kamala-harris-not-black-indian-1235781235/

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c06k07dn1zjo