Here we go again.
Kamala Harris, former U.S. Senator and Attorney General of California and Vice President to Joe Biden, is the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for this year’s upcoming presidential election. She will face former president and convicted felon Donald Trump. And the best talking points conservative lawmakers, media and commentators can generate to criticize Harris is that she’s simply a “DEI hire.”
I’ve heard this sad old dog whistle before.
It was Aug. 13, 2020, my mother’s birthday, when Variety announced I had been tapped to join the century-old publication as its new awards editor to lead coverage of the Academy Awards and other kudos races. The Bible of Showbiz, like most other news media outlets, has traditionally lacked writers of color in editorial and senior-level positions. However, with 12 years in the awards game under my belt, with a brand I funded, built and curated with a team of other passionate cinephiles, I was offered the chance of a lifetime. It was a moment that was overwhelmingly gratifying and humbling for a person who was born in the Bronx and didn’t major in journalism in college. But my celebration was sometimes clouded by the many pointed responses shared on social media and through email.
“Well, Variety found their George Floyd,” one person directly messaged me, referring to the murder that shocked the nation in May 2020 after a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes.
Another snidely asked, “Do you have other credentials besides your race?”
The accusations of “not deserving” this position still rear their ugly head from time to time, as one described me recently as “a DEI beneficiary run amok” in a Reddit post. Further writing, “All he does is low-key hate on white talent and try to promote people of color.”
Hate is something I do not partake in nor condone. But promoting POC? Guilty as charged, your honor.
And when I write anything pointing out the lack of representation for underrepresented artists, rest assured comments follow with a similar theme as this one commenter placed on my “Please Consider These 15 Latino Actors Before Voting” piece: “Just nominate whoever deserves it, damn it. Race shouldn’t be a decisive matter,” with another adding, “Merit, merit, merit!”
I’m sure the party that invited celebrity influencer Amber Rose to speak at the Republican National Convention did so purely on the “merits” of her deep knowledge of public policy and entrepreneurship, right? Perhaps it was when Rose was followed by speaker Linda Fornos, who was introduced as “Latino American Linda Fornos.” All are rooted in merit, undoubtedly. I am still eagerly awaiting word on what exactly defines a “Black job,” as Trump has repeatedly stated on the campaign trail.
Fast-forward to this past weekend, when Harris stepped up to the plate in the hopes of sparing our country a second Trump term in the White House. I often feel pessimistic about our world and admit that I initially didn’t want Harris to run. Not because I thought she is unqualified; on the contrary, it’s because I’m doubtful that some won’t look beyond her skin and gender and instead choose to elect someone who has proven himself, again and again, to be unfit to hold any office, let alone the presidency.
By midday on Sunday, I began to believe, as I did in 2008 when Barack Obama was elected, that change is gonna come.
Far-right conservatives, however, wasted no time making up their minds about Harris. Just as I experienced on a much smaller scale after being hired by Variety, angry voices fighting any effort to create true inclusivity began to shout with gleeful ferocity.
U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) called Harris, an extraordinarily accomplished Black and Asian woman, “a DEI hire.” He doubled down in an interview with NewsNation, which he shared on his X account: “The incompetency level is at an all-time high in Washington. The media propped up this president, lied to the American people for three years, and then dumped him for our DEI vice president.”
Trump called Harris “dumb as a rock” on his Truth Social account — showcasing his “new and improved unifying message.” JD Vance, the Ohio senator who is Trump’s VP running mate, said Harris should be more “grateful.”
Diversity is the new F-word.
The anti-DEI initiatives have intensified over the last year. It’s being weaponized to discredit the accomplishments of women, people of color and others who are starting to make inroads in institutions that were previously bastions of white male power. The demonizing of DEI underscores the view — codified last year by the Supreme Court decision that ended race-conscious admissions programs at colleges and universities — implies that people of color can only succeed when we are needed to fill quotas, and not because of merit, hard work or talent.
Earlier this month, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) called White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre a “discredited DEI hire.” The only good thing to come from her ugly comment was how quickly so many others came to Jean-Pierre’s defense. “DEI hire vs a GED hire. You have a lot of nerve, nasty lady,” wrote Mike Harvey, a Democrat running for a Florida state senate seat, on X. Jean-Pierre is a graduate of Columbia University and has served as a communications executive for Democrats since 2004. Boebert, first elected to Congress in 2022, obtained her General Educational Development degree (aka high school equivalency) in 2020.
What Harvey provided for Jean-Pierre is what we need to see the remainder of this election cycle and the every day moving forward: Support. We can’t allow Jean-Pierre, Harris and any other person who becomes the target of racist and misogynistic attacks to do battle alone. There is strength in numbers in the fight for equality.
At the same time, we must not exploit the pain, as many did in 2020 after the shock of Floyd’s murder. The attacks already being lobbed at Harris should not create an opportunity for a corporate image-burnishing press release, or a “pledge to do better.” Even in liberal Hollywood, some publicity reps will pitch stories on their movies and TV shows with manipulative spin such as “This show has such a diverse cast… there is no other diversity in competing shows.” Or “this person is Black and didn’t get nominated. That should make you angry.”
Harris’ ascension in the Democratic Party, her selection of “Freedom” by Beyoncé as the soundtrack to her first public event post-Biden dropout, and the inspiration she will provide to women and people of color for generations will be well-documented in the weeks to come. As a nation, we should scrutinize Harris based on the quality of her ideas and her long record in public office.
I was fortunate to be part of the “Win With Black Men” live discussion on Monday night. The online gathering featured many prominent speakers, such as former U.S. Rep. Bakari Sellers (D-North Carolina), who was moved to tears during the call when he learned that $600,000 had been raised in the first 45 minutes. The evening ended with over 50,000 participants raising $1.3 million — one day after a similar “Win With Black Women” gathering raised $1.5 million from its 44,000 attendees. More of this type of unity, please.
Black women were the key to Joe Biden’s win in 2020, saving the country from more Trump at a time when the pandemic reminded us that protecting health and safety are Jobs One and Two for public servants. In this bonkers election cycle, the burden on Black women will only grow, particularly for one who has already scaled unprecedented heights. Black women are America’s true superheroes—their collective strength has moved this nation forward more than once—and they are nobody‘s DEI hires.
Source Agencies
