Vice President Kamala Harris has countered the claims of GOP presidential candidates Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who both deny America’s history of racism, asserting that for a better future, this past must be acknowledged.
What Happened: VP Harris highlighted America’s past marred by racism in a recent interview with ABC News. Her comments, as reported by The Hill on Thursday, were a response to Haley’s denial of America’s racist history during a Fox News interview. Although Haley’s campaign later clarified that America has indeed experienced racism, it is not a racist country, a sentiment echoed by DeSantis.
“There is no denying that we have, in our history as a nation, racism,” said Harris in an interview with ABC News, according to the report.
“It's unfortunate that there are some who would deny fact, or overlook it, when in fact, moving toward progress requires that we speak truth,” said the Vice President.
As the first Black vice president, Harris uses her platform to address America’s history of racism. She has criticized the GOP’s attempts to modify historical curriculum as efforts to erase the past and has publicly disagreed with DeSantis’s views on slavery.
Why It Matters: On Tuesday, Haley told Fox News in an interview, “We've never been a racist country.”
"Our goal is to make sure that today is better than yesterday. Are we perfect? No. But our goal is to always make sure we try and be more perfect every day that we can."
The exchange marks the continuation of a contentious discourse on racism in America. Haley had previously criticized President Joe Biden over his comments on the Civil War, accusing him of lecturing her on the topic.
In an interview last year, Harris said “democracy was on the line” in the 2024 election and expressed confidence that she and Biden would win in the polls.
Former President Donald Trump suggested that Harris would make a better president than Biden, indicating that a vote for Biden equated to a vote for Harris.
This ongoing debate on America’s history of racism underscores the polarized views within the American political landscape, with potential implications for the upcoming 2024 presidential elections.
Photo Courtesy: Shutterstock.com
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