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Kamala Harris鈥� identity as a biracial woman is either a strength or a weakness, depending on whom you听ask

Who is Kamala Harris?

Though Harris has had a very public life in politics for decades, speculation about who exactly she is and what she stands for has circulated across social media platforms and news stories for several years.

Many of these conversations focus on the听, since she is a mixed-race, Jamaican and Indian woman who does not have biological children and who was born to two immigrant parents in Oakland, California.

As I鈥檝e previously written about听, some have questioned how听听or Asian identities are. Interest in Harris鈥� familial background and race was reignited on July 31, 2024, when Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump falsely suggested that Harris has misled voters about her racial and ethnic identity.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 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. So, I don鈥檛 know,听鈥� Trump asked during an interview with the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago.

By saying this, Trump tapped into the long history of racism in America, where some white people have听听and policed the boundaries of race.

More than听听and likely see themselves reflected in Harris鈥� layered background. But many Republicans are also trying to use听听against her.

For ardent Trump supporters, Harris may seem to represent all that they oppose, including woke politics and Democrats being 鈥渃ontrolled by听,鈥� as Trump鈥檚 running mate JD Vance has said.

For Democrats, Harris represents the U.S.鈥檚 multiracial, feminist future.

Which means, what people believe about Harris largely depends on the party they already plan to vote for more than who the Democratic presidential nominee really is.

Harris and her many firsts

Many political observers and听听迟丑补迟听听into the Democratic Party, precisely because she is a Black-South Asian woman. Many听听see elements of themselves in Harris: the celebration of her ethnic cultures, her achievements as a person of color, and her unprecedented and pathbreaking model being a woman of color who is the nominee of a major party seeking the highest office in the country.

础听听in July and August centered on the identities of those who support Harris.

, Black men for Harris,听, white dudes for Harris,听, LGBTQ+ people for Harris, among others, have all gathered in Zoom meetings that had tens of thousands of attendees鈥�. These online gatherings have jointly听听for Harris.

The number and diversity of people rallying for Harris shows her widespread appeal. Harris鈥� white male supporters 鈥� a key voting demographic for Democrats鈥攁lso show how Harris鈥� candidacy is inclusive to many different kinds of people.

Inclusivity may be a keyword of Harris鈥� campaign, especially in opposition to her rival鈥檚 campaign. Vance鈥檚听听has spawned endless memes听听of people who recognize the insensitivity and ignorance of such a remark.

Harris鈥� supporters have responded to the GOP鈥檚 critiques of her and turned them into听听celebrating her identity, attesting to Harris鈥� popularity with a younger, media-savvy electorate.

Using Harris鈥� identity against her

Republicans, meanwhile, are questioning Harris鈥� qualifications precisely based on her ethnic and racial identity, calling her a 鈥淒EI鈥� candidate. This is a reference to the term 鈥渄iversity, equity and inclusion.鈥� The听, but in workplaces or school settings it can look like treating everyone equally and fostering a culture where all people, regardless of their background or identities, feel welcomed. DEI policies intend to respond to the historic oppression that marginalized people have faced.

As the scholar听, 鈥淭he term 鈥楧EI hire鈥� actually implies that only heterosexual, white men are qualified for such high leadership positions.鈥�

Some in the GOP have renamed the DEI acronym听.鈥� U.S. Reps.听听both have disparaged听, with Hageman going a step further by saying that Harris is听听of the barrel.鈥�

The gender factor

Harris is the second woman major-party presidential nominee, following Hillary Clinton鈥檚 candidacy in 2016. So far, Harris doesn鈥檛 seem to be facing persistent questions about whether听,听听诲颈诲.

But Harris has faced both sexist and racist comments, particularly online.听听found that 78% of disparaging sexist and racist comments on Twitter, now called X, during November and December 2020 were directed at Harris.

Some Republicans have continued making sexist attacks on Harris in this election campaign. In a听,听, the head of the group Pastors for Trump, called Harris a 鈥渉o,鈥� or whore, riffing off a right-wing meme of 鈥淛oe and the Ho.鈥�

Christian nationalist听听took to social media on July 22 to call Harris a representative of the 鈥渟pirit of Jezebel.鈥� Other听听have claimed that听, citing an early relationship she had with Willie Brown, a prominent Democratic politician from San Francisco and later speaker of the California State Assembly, as the reason for her success.

This false story of Harris鈥� romantic past aligns with old听, rooted in the rape of Black women by white slave owners during antebellum slavery.

And the tactic of questioning Harris鈥� authentic racial background could apply not just to Harris but to nearly all multiracial people.

Yet there are听听and see in Harris their own story.

Top image: Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally in West Allis, Wisconsin, July 23.听(Jim听Vondruska/Getty Images)

Jennifer Ho is a听professor of Asian American studies听in the听Department of Ethnic Studies听at the听.

This article is republished from听听under a Creative Commons license. Read the听.

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