In a panel discussion at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in Chicago, former President Donald Trump criticized Kamala Harris, questioning her racial identity. Trump remarked that Harris “happened to turn Black a number of years ago,” according to CBS.
When asked by ABS News Black journalist Rachel Scott about the term “DEI,” Trump said, “I’ve known [Harris] a long time indirectly, not directly, very much. And she was always of 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. So, I don’t know, is she Indian, or is she Black?” He added that he respects both identities but suggested that Harris’s change was sudden and questioned its legitimacy.
Trump later criticized the discussion on social media, describing the questions as “rude and nasty” but claiming his responses were strong.
Harris, whose mother is Indian and father is Jamaican, responded at an event in Houston for Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority. She condemned Trump’s remarks as divisive and disrespectful, emphasizing that the U.S. deserves a leader who speaks truth and embraces diversity as a source of strength.
Harris noted her achievements, including her leadership of the Black Law Students Association at the University of California, and her education at Howard University, a historically Black institution.
