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by Rita Lady
During the Vice-Presidential debate, I observed familiar behaviors from Kamala Harris. This behavior, I believe, has slipped under the radar of many conservatives. Media pundits contributed her abrasiveness to a display of decisiveness and strength in the face of Mike Pence’s “man-splaining.” Others thought she was acting like a tyrannical school teacher as she repeatedly smiled and said “I’m speaking.” They attributed her behavior to playing identity politics of being a woman. I saw much more than that. What I saw was pandering. That’s right. Kamala was busy appealing to tribalism and trying to prove her blackness. Let’s be honest. Kamala has not been a favorite among black folks. As a matter of fact, many said they would never vote for her during the Democratic debates. Kamala implemented Joe Biden’s crime bill that some say imprisoned black men in California disproportionately for minor drug related offenses. Not only that, but blacks like myself are not impressed by phony smiles, conjured laughter, and claims of getting high while listening to Tupac in college...in the 80s. A 2019 Politico piece pointed out that voters see a lack of authenticity in Harris. In the same article, a black state representative in South Carolina said she just “couldn’t find a true connection...” when discussing Harris and the Democratic debate. The woman opted for Cory Booker since she detected a bit more...eh-hmm...blackness, if you will. What do I mean by blackness? It’s what Harris, in all her pandering, was acting out the night of the VP debate. Head rolling, neck popping, and repeating, “I’m speaking!” was her rendition of a strong, no-nonsense, black woman. Reasonable blacks and people outside of the black community more aptly identify this incorrigible behavior as the ‘angry black woman syndrome’ that is wrought with insecurities, not strength. As a self-proclaimed Indian-American, Kamala has astutely studied and identified such behavior as an acceptable show of what it means to be a black woman, at least to those who base every life decision around race. She even attended an HBCU and pledged to a black sorority; one that historically used the 'brown paper bag' test to determine if one were light-skinned enough for admission. It is therefore fitting that Harris would be condescending and use the stereotypical caricature of the angry black woman or even the fiery Latina to appeal to her colored constituents. My mom is part of a group chat with ladies from her church. Here are some of the comments during the debate: “OMG!!! 6...7...8...She’s taking it to him! That Afro-Caribbean is coming out!” “How is it a fly on Pence head. Lol” “Right, checked him a number of times. Telling him she’s not the one.” “Didn’t she...I said only black folks know those nonverbals.” “Did ya’ll see that hard side-eye Kamala was throwing tho?” These women did not pay any attention to the content of the debate and were not at all perturbed by Harris’ shuck-and-jive moves away from answering the question about packing the court, which would nullify the voice of the people. Their voices. They were also not at all bothered by my mother's interjection of Harris' pro-late term birth abortion stance. They were too busy high-fiving Kamala's disrespectful side-eyeing and all-around, unseemly attitude. These ladies and many like them simply affirm that pandering to blacks for votes by using stereotypes and caricatures is effective, and Democrats have known this for decades. The smug insincerity and blatant lies that many of us jaw-droppingly watched from Kamala Harris was lost on those who watched only to see a strong black woman “take it to” an old white man. I heard a conservative YouTuber point out that Kamala was damaging her cause by being so abrasive during the debates. I do not agree with his assessment. For Kamala, this debate was not about etiquette, policies, or even the American people. She knows that her base, to their detriment, is largely more interested in how “down with the black/brown struggle” she can be and will likely not thoroughly investigate anything she says. This debate was focused on emotions, being a woman, and proving her blackness i.e. finger-snapping pandering. So, did she win over her base and pull off this ‘I’m a black woman just like you,’ shtick? Based on social media chatter and my mom’s church ladies' comments, I would say she did, indeed.
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