CHICAGO — Donald Trump questioned Kamala Harris’ race during an appearance before the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago that quickly turned hostile on Wednesday.
The Republican former president claimed that Harris, the first Black woman and Asian American to serve as vice president, that she had in the past only promoted her Indian heritage.
“I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black and now she wants to be known as Black. So, I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump said while addressing the group’s annual convention.
As an undergraduate, Harris attended Howard University, one of the nation’s most prominent historically Black colleges and universities, where she also pledged the historically Black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha. As a U.S. senator, Harris was a member of Congressional Black Caucus, supporting her colleagues’ legislation aimed at strengthening voting rights and reform policing.
Trump has repeatedly attacked his opponents and critics on the basis of race. He rose to prominence in Republican politics by propagating false theories that President Barack Obama, the nation’s first Black president, was not born in the United States. During this year’s Republican primary, he once referred to former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, the daughter of Indian immigrants, as “Nimbra.”
Trump’s appearance at the organization’s annual gathering immediately became heated, with the former president sparring with interviewer Rachel Scott of ABC News and accusing her of giving him a “very rude introduction” with a tough first question about his past criticism of Black people and Black journalists.
“I think it’s disgraceful that I came here in good spirit. I love the Black population of this country, I’ve done so much for the Black population of this country,” Trump said.
The former president’s invitation to address the organization sparked an intense internal debate among NABJ that spilled online. Organizations for journalists of color typically invite presidential candidates to speak at their summer gatherings in election years.
But Trump’s acceptance of NABJ’s invitation prompted at least one high-profile member of the organization to step down as the co-chair of the convention. Others expressed concerns that Trump would be given a platform to make false claims or give the impression he had the group’s endorsement.
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Price reported from New York. Associated Press writer Gary Fields in Chicago contributed to this report.
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