DONALD TRUMP PLAYS THE RACE CARD AND KAMALA HARRIS TAKES THE HIT

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris’ ‘Indian heritage’ is being questioned while her allegedly flyby-night ‘Black American heritage’ is being seen as for “convenience’s sake” only. Fact is,
while Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is being berated by the media for introducing the “race card” in the presidential election, a sense of insensitivity, and “anything goes to win”, has come to settle down on the Kamala Harris presidential campaign which, in the initial flush of President Joe Biden’s abdication, was forging ahead from the word go.

Donald Trump, sought to dent Kamala’s campaign by highlighting Kamala’s attempts to “downplay her Indian heritage”. Now, Kamala Harris is being asked, “Why is Kamala Harris doing a favour to the Jamaican side
of her family while hiding her Indian identity?” Donald Trump is to blame. Trump dug Kamala’s life-story out and spread it out for everybody to have a go at it.

For those who haven’t cared to Google, Kamala’s parentage is Indian-Jamaican, her mother the Indian, and her father, the Jamaican. Both of them had migrated to the USA and both took up jobs in the United States before becoming citizens.

Shortly after President Joe Biden left the race and made way for Kamala Harris to make a splash, the New York Times noted that Harris ensured her Indian heritage remained “little advertised”, while the “Black-American” Kamala was breaking glass ceilings!

Kamala was feted for being the “first black American” to become a “black woman Senator”, and the “first black American woman” to become Vice President – not once was it mentioned or hailed that she was also “Indian-American.” Silence!

Today, she’s the “first black American Presidential candidate”, also first “black woman”. And but for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump telling a trio of black American female journalists how after being Indian- American, “Kamala turns black” one fine day, Kamala would have remained “black American” and there would be no brouhaha.

Trump was turning the tables on Kamala, as part of his campaign strategy. Trump wouldn’t care two hoots if the entire Indian diaspora voted for Kamala. What will hurt him is majority black support dodging “White Trump” and voting for “Black American Kamala”. Willy-nilly, whether Donald Trump liked it or not, whether he planned it or not, the race-card was in play in the election for the 47th President. Donald Trump doesn’t want black lives to matter only for Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris’ black- American identity makes Donald Trump feel just that much vulnerable.

And now, after Trump turned it into an issue, there are Indian- Americans who are calling out Kamala Harris’ “Indian identity”, accusing her of using her Indian heritage when it is “convenient to her”. When she was Vice President and now, as presidential candidate, Kamala Harris and her democratic party took a calculated,
sober decision, to highlight her black American identity at the expense of her “Indian heritage”.

Thus, Kamala Harris’ African-American identity has submerged her Indian-American identity and Donald Trump hopes he has dogwhistled her chameleonic-quality to people who would be concerned. For the Harris
campaign, it is very important that the African-American vote does not waver. The black-American has always stood by the Democratic Party even after reading about Republican Abraham Lincoln and the
American Civil War to end the horrors of slavery.

President Joe Biden was the “original black vote favourite”. In 2020, Biden won the democratic primary, after outperforming Kamala Harris and others. Today, after Donald Trump called out her Indian and African identities into deeper scrutiny, Kamala Harris’ game-plan to lean into only certain aspects of her ethnic background, has brought the spotlight on her fair and square.

In the process, her stance on issues that roil the electorate has taken centre-stage. Kamala is being asked questions; questions about whether she will continue to be a diehard “Border Czar”; what’s her position on energy, on “fracking”, and on sanctuary cities, etcetera, and etcetera? News also breaks that Kamala Harris has ditched President Joe Biden’s policy stands and has embraced “freedom, freedom”. Also, after the initial
pushback, Kamala is back to be a “Diversity Equity Inclusivity” candidate.

Kamala Harris’ policy positions won’t necessarily convince Indian-Americans, most of whom believe Kamala’s policy positions would be “nightmarish” for both black-Americans and Indian- Americans,  especially those Americans who want to keep their jobs and protect their small businesses. Democrat Party
candidate Kamala Harris is a progressive and very left-liberal one at that.

Post the Trump expose of Kamala Harris’ Indian and Jamaican heritages, Americans are asking her uncomfortable questions, like wasn’t she the “second black woman” to be elected to the Senate and wasn’t it a fact that she has remained in focus only because of the historic discrimination against black people?

Not once was it mentioned, or corrected, that Kamala Harris was also the “first Indian-American” to be elected to the Senate; and the “first Indian-American woman” to become Vice President. Kamala never questioned the omissions and the media couldn’t care less. Will there be a change, will her Indian heritage also be honoured, as it should be, when the 47th POTUS takes charge?