A Washington Post columnist questioned in an op-ed Sunday why Kamala Harris doesn't talk more about her father, but Dr. Donald Harris explained it all in 2019.
Washington Post reporter Matt Bye attention Outside of her speech at the Democratic National Convention, Harris has rarely spoken about her father, economics professor Dr. Donald Harris.
There are probably two reasons for this.
First, as Dr. Harris has written at length about his family's Jamaican roots, the two are essentially estranged: “The initial phase of interaction with the children came to an abrupt halt in 1972,” he wrote in a 2019 paper. editorial JamaicaGlobal.com reported on the “fierce custody battle in family court in Oakland, California.”
The second, and perhaps more important, reason is that Kamala's only surviving parent, Dr. Harris, is not very proud of the way Kamala has spoken about her family's Jamaican heritage.
In a 2019 interview with “The Breakfast Club,” Harris scoffed at the idea that as a California politician she would oppose marijuana legalization.
“That's not true,” she told host Charmagne Tha God. “Look, I'm joking about it. I'm half joking. Half my family is from Jamaica. You're kidding me,” she laughed.
She also admitted to smoking marijuana while listening to Snoop Dogg in college (Harris Graduated He graduated from Howard University in 1986 and released his first mixtape, “First demo tape' was published in 1989.
Jamaicans, particularly her father, took issue with her portrayal of Jamaicans. (Related article: Peeling back the lies reveals Kamala Harris to be a pretty bad person)
“My late grandmothers (whose incredible legacy I wrote about in a recent essay on this website) and my late parents must be writhing in their graves right now, seeing their family name, reputation and identity as proud Jamaicans linked, joke or not, to the false stereotype of marijuana-smoking hedonists and the pursuit of identity politics,” Dr Harris told JamaicanGlobal.com in a statement. Deleted articles“On behalf of myself and my Jamaican family, we wish to firmly distance ourselves from this tragedy.”
The website went on to cite other Jamaicans who felt her comments diminished their heritage and made them the target of racial stereotypes.
“I'm from Jamaica so soon I'll be the only one drug tested at work,” wrote one internet commenter quoted by the website.
The website also pointed out the irony in Harris' comment, pointing out that marijuana's importance in Jamaican culture actually comes from the other half of Harris' family tree.
“The practice of cultivating, smoking and otherwise consuming marijuana is believed to have been popularized by Indian indentured labourers who arrived from 1845 onwards. The local name 'ganja' is of Indian origin. Ganja is regarded as a sacred herb with Hindu roots,” the website writes, citing Oliver Senior's Encyclopedia of Jamaican Heritage.
Harris' mother, a Tamil Indian born in British India, is often said to have influenced her father, while ignoring his role in her upbringing altogether. According to To the LA Times.
During her time as San Francisco's district attorney, Harris' prosecutors convicted more than 1,900 people of marijuana-related crimes. According to This was reported to the Associated Press.
She repeatedly opposed legalizing the drug for recreational use while running for California attorney general, according to the Associated Press.
She then reversed her position, tell “No one should go to jail for just smoking marijuana,” late-night TV host Seth Meyers said in a 2022 interview.
