Earlier this week speaking to a gathering of black journalists former

President Donald Trump questioned Vice President Kamala Harris's

racial identity. And now she wants to be known as black. So I don't know is

she Indian or is she black? She is always identified as a black. So I don't know, is she Indian or is she black?

She is always identified as a black.

I respect either one.

I respect either one, but she obviously doesn't.

Because she was Indian all the way and then all of a sudden she made a turn and she went she

became a black person. It's not the first time Mr. Trump and other Republicans have

accused a politician of color of not knowing their own race or ethnicity.

Trump's comments on Wednesday echoed his lies about Harris in 2020 and Barack Obama during his

presidency, that they were not natural born American citizens.

Peneel Joseph is the founding director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy

at the University of Texas at Austin.

He's also author of the Third Reconstruction, America's Struggle for Racial Justice in the 21st century. I want to first note that back in 2020, Donald Trump's campaign spokesperson said that

Kamala Harris is a black woman and pointed to donations that Trump had made to her

earlier campaigns as evidence that he is not racist.

But again, these are not the first instances

of Trump questioning Harris's identity and her race.

What is behind this?

I think this is a longstanding tradition

of questioning the citizenship, the dignity,

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