Janet Jackson’s Lies About Kamala Harris’ Race

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Janet Jackson showed how misinformed she is about Kamala Harris’ identity when she repeated a false claim about the Democratic nominee’s race in a recent interview with The Guardian.

“Well, you know what they supposedly said? She’s not Black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian,” Jackson said in response to reporter Nosheen Iqbal’s remark about America possibly voting in its first Black female president. (For the record, Harris is both Black and Indian.)

Jackson seemingly doubled down on the mischaracterization when she repeated another falsehood she said she’d heard about the vice president: “Her father’s white. That’s what I was told. I mean, I haven’t watched the news in a few days. I was told that they discovered her father was white.”

It’s unclear who exactly “told” Jackson these untrue details about Harris, and the singer has been unavailable to clarify her comments as she mourns the death of her brother Tito Jackson. A man named Mo Elmasri, claiming to be Jackson’s manager, issued an “apology” on her behalf Sunday, telling BuzzFeed the singer made remarks about Harris “based on misinformation” and that she apologized for “any confusion caused.” But Jackson’s representatives later stated that Elmasri was not, in fact, her manager, and was not authorized to speak on her behalf.

The whole sequence of events left fans baffled, but what’s especially troubling was Jackson propagating right-wing lies of the sort spewed by former President Donald Trump.

Regardless of whether Jackson was aware of what she was doing, it shows how celebrities can play a dangerous role in the age of misinformation, especially amid the current election cycle. However, there’s blame to go around for the singer’s misstep. She clearly got her info from the wrong place, and the source of those lies is what’s most important here.

Some may remember when Trump spoke at the National Association of Black Journalists convention this summer. While on stage with a panel of Black reporters, he incorrectly claimed that Harris had “all of a sudden” become a Black person, and falsely suggested that she’d misled voters about her race. Trump questioned the vice president’s identity again during their first presidential debate on Sept. 10. These are just a few of many instances where he and others on the far right have used racial attacks against Harris. Republicans and conservative media have baselessly called Harris’ Blackness into question in recent months, criticizing her for using “different accents” on the campaign trail and even calling her a “DEI hire.”

Folks like Whoopi Goldberg said people should give Jackson “a little grace” for making a mistake. Sure. However, per The Guardian, the singer received pushback for her comments during her interview and was even given another chance to acknowledge that Harris is indeed a Black woman.

The bottom line is that Jackson should have taken a moment to pause and walk back her fumbled statements. Instead, when asked if America is ready for Harris to become president given her racial identity, the singer replied: “I don’t know. Honestly, I don’t want to answer that because I really, truthfully, don’t know. I think either way it goes is going to be mayhem.”

It’s fair to say that, at some point, Jackson should issue her own apology to Harris and acknowledge the harm of repeating inaccurate information during a crucial moment in American politics. Considering her history as a pop icon, she can be expected to know better than to speak about something she’s not sure of in an interview. Moreover, as someone who’s been on the receiving end of unfair controversy, Jackson should have been more careful than to stir up trouble for Harris, especially by raising doubt about her identity.

No one wants to vilify Jackson for speaking out of turn. But it’s OK to be a fan and still hold a grown woman accountable for her actions. Hopefully, Jackson learned a lesson here, and will think twice next time before questioning what’s already been proven true.

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