Self-Segregating for Kamala

• Kamala Harris hosted a Zoom meeting with “White dudes for Harris” and “Karens for Kamala”

• Her desire to segment her supports by skin color and sex misses the mark in gaining much-needed swing state voters

• The online fundraiser was still a success, having brought in over $4 million

Identity politics in the Kamala campaign

Identity politics is taking off in Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign with huge Zoom fundraisers that brought in millions of dollars and were attended by hundreds of thousands of supporters.

The fundraiser was different affinity groups, including, black women, black men, LGBT people, South Asians, and in a surprising show of “inclusivity,” white “Karens” and white men. The inclusion of white affinity groups is a new move for the left, which is traditionally suspicious of white identitarianism.

Republicans often attack President Biden’s decision back in 2020 to intentionally select his running mate based on her race and sex. The left asserts it is racist and sexist to acknowledge this. However, Biden said he would “pick a woman to be vice president” in 2020, and the New York Times finally acknowledged Biden as having said, “I am going to pick a black woman” as VP.

With Harris herself a beneficiary of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policy, it is no wonder she sees her supporters not as Americans, but as hyphenated Americans.

The Harris campaign further realizes the Democratic Party is hemorrhaging white voters. The organizer of “White Dudes for Harris,” which raised $4 million and was attended by 200,000 people, explained, “If white men…organize on behalf of VP Harris, she’s got a real shot at winning.”

The media response

Breaking Points’ left-wing host Krystal Ball discussed the “cringe” nature of the “Karens for Kamala” Zoom, describing one of the race-obsessed presenters as “extremely irritating and off-putting” for her remarks about white women’s “privilege” and the need to “learn from and amplify” marginalized voices.

Conservative commentator Ryan Girdusky remarked that the call opened "a new door," as discussing policies that benefit white men is typically off-limits.

One observer writing in The Guardian also noted that instead of Harris dividing her supporters by sex and race, Democrats should strive to bring voters together based on “shared class interest,” “regardless of their skin color, nationality, or ethnic heritage.”

The California progressive side of Kamala Harris is showcased in her attempts to view people through their innate characteristics. But, to stay relevant with the messaging coming from the Trump/Vance campaign, she could actually benefit from highlighting the policies that unite voters; perhaps most importantly, their shared economic interests.

Missing the mark

The event featured hours of college-educated men self-castigating about “white privilege” and “toxic masculinity,” something other identity groups do not do, and something that pushes away the middle America voters Harris needs to win.

Still, “White Dudes for Harris” aimed to address the “crisis of loneliness in this country,” as one attendee described it, to appeal to white working-class voters in swing states who may resonate with JD Vance’s focus on their societal and economic concerns.

Despite talk about reviving the Obama Coalition by trying to coalesce every American minority group into a single voting block, Harris’ election path looks much like Biden’s would have, with the Biden coalition of college-educated voters, city dwellers, suburban families, and the large number of minorities who still vote for Democrats.

Because Democrats' enthusiasm had been so low with President Biden at the top of the ticket, Harris now has an opportunity to showcase herself to swing state voters as a viable alternative to Trump. She is having to backtrack on her previously more radical stances to present herself as a harmless moderate.

To prove to voters that she is insistent on moderating, she is set to choose her running mate next week, who will likely be a politically centrist white male. As of now, her main choices are Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, both of whom underscore a more sober, pragmatic choice, in stark contrast to what was on display during her Zoom meeting.

Why it matters

What was on display during Kamala Harris’ massive virtual fundraiser betrays the colorblind vision of the Civil Rights movement. The event did not bring Americans together; it demanded self-segregation based on skin color and sex, even demeaning white women by labeling them “Karens.”

Left-wing identity talk is often only “real” when it directly benefits the Democratic Party. According to her defenders, Kamala Harris was not a “DEI hire” for the same reason she was never the “border czar:” because she is now running for president, and the media needs to protect her image against accusations of incompetence to ensure she wins, regardless of the truth.

Instead of winning over voters with her ideas and record, she is set on appealing to voters on anything but the policies that matter. She will push back against Donald Trump on issues like abortion and portray him as a threat to women, as she has no strong record to defend on economic, immigration, or foreign policy matters.

As Harris knows, to win the presidential election requires the Rust Belt states, where she will need to win the votes of the very people often disparaged by her party.