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Trump’s Questioning of Harris’ Race Shows Ignorance About Code-Switching

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Kamala Harris has the range. She can grill Supreme Court candidates or meet with foreign dignitaries, then move on to hosting a Diwali celebration or a rapturous dance with an HBCU-style marching band.

Harris, the primary Black and Asian American woman to function vp, has developed a knack as an individual of color that enables her to navigate the halls of power or Main Street in a rustic where race and identity impact how someone is perceived and accepted.

Harris, the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants, is a talented code-switcher, which may involve deliberately altering her speaking style and expression to reinforce the impact of her message and ensure her message is conveyed.

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Former President Donald Trump, during a controversial interview session on the National Association of Black Journalists, showed no familiarity with the concept. He suggested that Harris was inauthentic because she embraced all facets of her heritage. His inability to acknowledge code-switching also speaks to the widespread belief that whiteness, often correlated with speaking plain English, is the default in our politics and democracy.

“We need to celebrate all of us, and that means we need to celebrate all of our identities,” said Christine Chen, co-founder and executive director of APIAVote, a nonpartisan civic engagement organization focused on the Asian American Pacific Islander community.

From left to right: Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. (Photo: Getty Images)

“I think the more a candidate can embrace his multiple identities, the easier it is to connect with different communities and different people who identify with the different issues he supports,” added Chen, who’s Chinese American.

Trump, who falsely suggested at an annual gathering of black journalists that the vp was misleading voters about his race, waded into even murkier waters by insinuating that Harris couldn’t be trusted because she “turned black” after promoting her Native American heritage.

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Harris doesn’t need to alter the source code to prove she’s a black American of Indian descent; she was born that way.

Shereen Marisol Meraji, former co-host of NPR’s award-winning podcast “Code Switch,” said Harris’ identity is complex and might still be difficult to navigate in a rustic that when encouraged multiracial people to favor one identity over one other.

“If you go through the world like I do, where I try really hard to accept both sides of myself, it’s like you’re being put through an authenticity test,” said Meraji, who’s of Iranian and Puerto Rican descent.

An assistant professor of race and journalism on the University of California, Berkeley, Meraji added: “The ability to code-switch and enter into different communities … is a huge asset. And I think for people who are competing against Kamala Harris, it’s also quite threatening.”

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Many politicians are changing the colour code to make sure that key information is conveyed to voters and constituents with cultural resonance. It’s a well-recognized concept amongst Americans of color, including the 33.8 million individuals who discover as a couple of race, in line with the most recent U.S. Census.

Code-switching is nothing latest, and it’s not a skill entirely foreign to white people. But it stays one of probably the most effective communication tools that politicians of color use to exert influence and gain power in places where they’ve historically lacked it.

Code-switching can increase the likelihood of people who find themselves disadvantaged or ignored as a consequence of systemic racism receiving fair treatment, receiving high-quality services, or finding employment.

When Trump questioned Harris’ race in response to an issue about his own rhetoric on diversity, equity and inclusion, ABC News host Rachel Scott responded by citing elements of the vp’s biography that might prove she is black.

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Scott noted that Harris attended Howard University, one of probably the most outstanding historically black colleges and universities within the country. At Howard, Harris pledged the historically black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha. And most significantly, her Jamaican father and Indian mother each immigrated to the U.S. within the Sixties throughout the Civil Rights Movement.

It can be unfaithful that Harris accepted her Black or Native American sexual orientation or switched between them only when it benefited her politically.

In 2003, when Harris was elected district attorney of San Francisco, she told an area newspaper chain that many individuals weren’t used to her identity. “My Native American heritage is just as strong as my African-American heritage. One does not exclude the other,” Harris said.

As a candidate for California attorney general, she spoke of her late mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who taught her and her sister to “share pride in our culture.” In 2009, Harris told India Abroad, “When you think about it, India is the oldest democracy in the world—so that’s part of my background, and it’s definitely had a huge impact on what I do today and who I am.”

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During the 2012 re-election campaign of Barack Obama, the primary black U.S. president, Harris addressed being an outsider in races wherein her opponent could outspend her on ads and endorsements. “I overcame the odds and became the first black female attorney general,” she said, referring to her 2010 election in California.

Trump’s questioning of Harris’ identity, which drew groans and laughter, was reminiscent of his role as a number one proponent of the false theory that Obama is ineligible to change into president because he was not born within the U.S. Trump’s Republican vice presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, joined Trump on Wednesday in suggesting that Harris is “a fake person who caters to whatever audience is in front of her.”

“I don’t know if you saw this, but earlier this week… she went to Georgia and started speaking in a fake Southern accent,” Vance told the audience at a rally in Glendale, Arizona, referring to Harris’ campaign event in Atlanta, which was attended by a mostly black audience.

Vance, a white man whose wife is Indian American and whose three children are of mixed descent, is just not the primary American politician to concentrate on the speech and accents of politicians of color. In 2010, the late Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid got here under fire for comments he made years earlier suggesting that Obama appealed to voters because he was a light-skinned black man “without any Negro dialect unless he wanted to have it.”

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White politicians have also been known to code-switch when talking to mostly black or Latino audiences, and lots of have done so with various degrees of success. In 2006, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was criticized for adjusting the rhythm of her speech while delivering the eulogy at Coretta Scott King’s funeral at Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once preached.

The difference is that within the not-so-distant past, white politicians’ profession survival didn’t rely upon their ability to code-switch. Harris still has a special life experience.

Chen said politicians of any race or identity can construct healthy relationships across communities in the event that they show compassion and are attentive to the needs of their constituents.

“Whether you’re white, black or some other identity, how you present yourself in the community will determine whether it’s an authentic relationship,” she said. “You’ll be able to address their concerns more effectively because you’re more educated and you understand what they’re going through.”

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This article was originally published on : thegrio.com

Politics and Current

Rep. Lamonica McIVE accused of assaulting after a skirmish in ICE Center, says the prosecutor

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The democratic representative of Lamonica Mciver is accused of assaulting a skirmish with federal officers who arrested the mayor of Newark before immigration arrest, was announced on Monday by the Federal Prosecutor in New Jersey.

The temporary US prosecutor Alina Habba in social media announced an allegation of assault, difficulty or disturbing law enforcement agencies, but court documents providing detailed information haven’t been immediately released or publicly available online.

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At the same time, Habba announced that her office was rejecting the offense against the mayor of Newark Ras Barakie, who was arrested after he tried to affix MciBER and two other members of the Congress delegation in New Jersey, checking the facility as part of their supervision. Habba said that the decision was made “because of progress” and said that she invited the mayor to explore the prison in Delaney Hall and would join him.

“New Jersey citizens deserve united leadership so that we can work to ensure the safety of our state,” said Habba in a statement.

MciTER’s lawyer, Paul Fishman, a former US prosecutor for New Jersey, issued a statement entitled to charging Mciper “spectacularly inappropriate”, saying that she went to Delaney Hall “to perform her work” and bears responsibility as a member of the congress for supervising American immigration and customs.

“Instead of facilitating this control, ICE agents decided to escalate something that should be a calm situation of chaos,” said Fishman. “This accusation is an try and transfer guilt for preserving ice to the MciRER Congress.

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The almost two -story clip issued by the Internal Safety Department shows MciBER on the side of the chain fence object just before the mayor’s arrest on the fence side. She and uniformed officials undergo the gate and join others, shouting “surround the mayor”. The film shows Mcivera in a strictly packaged group of people and officers. At one point, her left elbow, after which the right elbow presses into the officer in covering the dark face and the olive green uniform decorated with the word “police”.

Rep. Lamonica McIVER, Centrum, demands the release of the mayor of Newark Ras Barak after his arrest during the protest before the ice prison, Friday, May 9, 2025, in Newark, Nj, (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

McIVER and the other two Democrats – Bonnie Watson Coleman and Robert Menendez Jr. – They denied all offenses and accused federal agents of escalating the situation by arresting the mayor.

“There is no video that supports me with the body that strikes anyone,” said McIVER in the last interview with CNN. “We were just to do our work. … It was a very tense situation. Unfortunately, it did not have to be like that. They created this confrontation. They created this chaos, and then finally went to arrest the mayor.”

In a post on the subject of X Internal Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that McIVE was accused after a “thorough review of video material” and an investigation conducted by the investigation into internal security.

“Federal law enforcement agencies will not be tolerated,” said Deputy Prosecutor General Todd Blanche in a post about X. “This administration will always protect those who work tirelessly to ensure the security of America.”

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38 -year -old Mciver got here to Congress for the first time in September in a special election after the death of Rep. Donald Payne Jr. He left a free place in the tenth district. Then she was elected for full term in November. Departing from Newark, she was the president of the Newark City Council from 2022 to 2024 and previously worked in public schools in the city.

Doj Trump orders prosecutors to seek the death penal

(Tagstransate) @AP

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Politics and Current

Kamala Harris, to provide Trump’s “curled criticism” in the first serious speech since leaving the office – the essence

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Kamala Harris to be delivered

Nowy Orlean, La – July 6: Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Essence Festival in Essence in Ernesus N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, July 6, 2024 (photo of Christian Botic for Washington Post through Getty Images)

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The former vp of Kamala Harris returns to the National Center for attention – and comes with a message of courage and collective actions.

In his first serious speech from leaving the office after the election in 2024, Harris will give a speech in Gala on the twentieth anniversary In San Francisco on Wednesday, April 30, Essence discovered.

Emerge, founded in 2002 in California, I’m training candidates for democratic women to apply for a public office, specializing in historically marginalized – including black, brown, indigenous and lgbtq+women.

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During the Harris gala, he honors Emerge’s heritage, helping to select more democratic women, while providing something that was described as “pointed criticism” of the administration of President Donald Trump. He is anticipated to call what he considers “a reckless Trump’s economic policy” and “escalating crisis in the face of American institutions and global leadership.”

The former vp may even emphasize America’s everlasting promise, develop his message that “courage is contagious” and calls Americans to find strength in collective activities. This is the Harris motif in recent months – in particular on leading women defined at the top of this month, where she provided short but powerful comments.

“There were many things we knew,” said Harris at the top, referring to the second presidency of Trump. “I’m not here to tell you,” she added, difficult the room filled with black women’s leaders to meet courage.

Wednesday’s speech appears when Trump approaches its hundredth day in the office – a milestone marked by the breakdown of world stock markets, massive protests throughout the country, wide cuts of federal expenses and mass layoffs of federal employees.

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The recent ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos survey shows Trump from The lowest 100-day assessment of labor approval Any president over the past 80 years, of 55% of Americans didn’t approve of his previous results.

It is anticipated that Harris will provide a call to act, emphasizing what she often described throughout the entire political profession as the final power “we, people”.

Her appearance at the Emerge gala also brings her a full circle. In 2003, Harris began her first campaign for the District Prosecutor in San Francisco with the help of Andrea Dew Steele, who will later be a co -founder of Emerge California. This bottom -up campaign helped Harris, who began this campaign with just 6 % recognition of the name, defeated his inclined boss with 56 percent of the votes, establishing it on the road to becoming the prosecutor general of California, US senator and ultimately the vp.

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This article was originally published on : www.essence.com
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Default student loans Spike – Black borrowers hit the most difficult

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Student loans increased, in accordance with the latest household debt report in New York, published on May 13, after the Trump administration decision to finish the break from the Biden era regarding the notification of failed payments.

According to the Fed, a serious federal crime of a student loan occurs when the borrower skips payments for 90 days or longer. This rate increased from 1% in the first quarter of 2024 to almost 8% in the same period 2025, which coincides with the resumption of crime reporting.

Daniel Mangrum, research economist at New York FedHe noticed the growth In their comments to the report in a press release.

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“The transition rates to serious crime have equalized in the case of credit loans and car loans over the past year,” said Mangrum. “However, the first party from previous student loans was reported in the first quarter of 2025, which caused a large jump in serious borrowers.”

During the growth of the pandemic in 2020, student loans and crime tracking were detained, and the borrowers received the annual transition period after resuming the payment at the end of 2023, which offered them some protection, but the renewal of reporting from student loans helped to acquire a consumer debt to the highest level in five years.

Black who’re guilty of the debt of the student loan are superpressed in relation to their participation in the population.

According to the education initiative, Black College graduates are on average USD 25,000 greater than white university graduates; Four years after graduation, black students are guilty of a mean of 188% more in the debts of a student loan than white graduates; Black borrowers of black student loans are most likely financially fighting due to the debt of the student loan, because their average payments are USD 258 monthly.

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In addition, half of all borrowers of black student loans indicated that their debt loan’s debt exceeds their net value, while 52% of Asian and white borrowers reported the reverse of this relationship, one other number that indicates socio -economic conditions that color every discussion on funds and wealth in the United States of America.

According to Donna Rasmussen, executive director of the Consumer Credit Advisory Service in northern Illinois, the average amount of the federal debt of a student loan, including each private and federal student loans, is around USD 38,500.

Rasmussen also pointed to competitive increases in the cost of living For many explanation why they decided to stop repayment of student loans.

“I think that at that time they prioritized various important elements. Renches increased to a crazy amount. Car insurance, all things increased,” said Rasmussen. “We hear a lot from people who say:” We would like to be indebted than homeless. ” So they prioritize their food, they will not lose their home.

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Rasmussen continued, describing intimately what is generally happening when the borrower is officially considered in the non -fulfillment of the student loan: “Well, if you may have not made a payment inside 90 days, it is best to probably know that you simply are in the default. You get a notification that you may have a mail or we -we -in, supplying you with options about what to do. Required to go to court that you may have a notification that your wages.

According to this result, the borrowers are encouraged to contact the Undersetetable Department of Education Solving a monthly payment to make a monthly payment, to enroll in a repayment plan based on income or join for the rehabilitation of the loan. However, on account of accidental budget cuts of the Trump administration, Some have difficulties with access to the education department to assist.

Despite the reduction of employment in the education department, which currently affect the borrowers of student loans, the education department still warns society to contemplate fraudsters who will attempt to feed on desperation and get in touch with loan entities for help.

“If the company contacts you, asking you to pay” registration “,” subscription “or” maintenance “that will help you get out of non -performance of the commitment,” says the Education Department in your website, “you should leave. Your loan holder will help you with a default loan for free.”

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(Tagstotransate) New York Fed (T) Education Data Initiative (T) Consumer debt

This article was originally published on : www.blackenterprise.com
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