Kamala Harris' bizarre attempt to redefine 'culture' elicits mockery



Kamala Harris, whose net approval rating was recently found to be the worst for a vice president in NBC News polling history, has elicited a new wave of criticism and mockery with her latest so-called "word salad."

The vice president joined Sunny Hostin, co-host of ABC's "The View," and pro-abortion activist Monica Simpson on Friday to discuss race-specific "reproductive health" at the 2023 Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans.

After touting the forum as the "epicenter of black culture," Simpson asked Harris how important she reckoned culture to be.

Harris appeared keen to first define the term, stating, "Well, I think culture is — it is a reflection of our moment in our time, right? And — and present culture is the way we express how we’re feeling about the moment."

"And — and we should always find times to express how we feel about the moment that is a reflection of joy, because every — you know, it comes in the morning," continued Harris. "We have to find ways to also express the way we feel about the moment in terms of just having language and a connection to how people are experiencing life. And I think about it in that way, too."

Merriam-Webster defines "culture" thusly: "The customary beliefs, social forms, and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group"; or "the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations."

Harris appeared to have confused the hosts and her audience with her unique definition. Nevertheless, she persisted.

"And we also — I think, is very important that — that leaders — anyone who considers themselves a leader — really understands how anything they say would affect a real human being, as opposed to — you know, otherwise be a poet and write poetry," she added. "But if you want to understand — I don’t mean to dismiss poetry at all. But if you want to understand any concept, you have to ask questions like, 'How would this affect a child?' to have a real understanding of what it is that you’ve proposed."

Harris attempted to elaborate further, but Hostin noted, "We're really almost at the end of our program."

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The official Twitter account for the Virginia GOP reacted to Harris' answer, writing, "Kamala Harris is that kid in your freshman English class who forgot about the assignment until the night before it was due and is desperate to meet the word count."

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) suggested Harris' response called to mind a scene from "Billy Madison," wherein the principal disparages the titular character for a wrong answer.

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Actor James Woods wrote, "Artificial Intelligence Czar explains 'culture,'" alluding to how the vice president was recently tasked with tackling what some experts regard as the greatest existential threat facing the species.

YouTuber Ranting Monkey tweeted, "Kamala will go down in history as the most quotable woman to even be a woman who makes quotes about quotes a woman might quote."

Other commenters expressed concern that the orator presently occupying Number One Observatory Circle is next in line for the presidency should anything befall 80-year-old President Joe Biden — a concern presidential candidate Nikki Haley recently expressed, telling "Fox & Friends" last month, "Kamala Harris that's going to end up being president of the United States if Joe Biden wins this election."

Harris' remarks about culture are hardly the first public comments she has given in recent memory that have inspired doubts and prompted ridicule.

In one of numerous instances, Harris raised eyebrows during a pro-abortion rally at Howard University in Washington, D.C., when she said, "I think it's very important ... for us, at every moment in time and certainly this one, to see the moment in time in which we exist and are present."

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'This is not the land of the free, but the home of the slave': Jill Scott performed her rewritten rendition of 'The Star-Spangled Banner' at Essence Festival



Jill Scott recently performed her original version on "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Essence Festival.

While her rewritten lyrics begin exactly the same as the national anthem, she swiftly veers off in a very different direction.

"Oh, say, can you see by the blood in the streets that this place doesn't smile on you, colored child, whose blood built this land with sweat and their hands? But you'll die in this place and your memory erased. Oh, say, does this truth hold any weight? This is not the land of the free but the home of the slave," Scott sings.

Scott, 51, wrote the lyrics at the age of 19, she has previously noted, claiming that her "home of the slave" lyric is not meant to be divisive — she said "we are in a place that makes us slaves to consumerism" and to social media, and lies. She spoke of enslavement to "negativity" as well as "bulls***" which she said does not "benefit us as a people," "culture," or "society."

ESSENCE declared when sharing the clip of Scott's recent performance at the festival, "Everyone please rise for the only National Anthem we will be recognizing from this day forward. Jill Scott, we thank you!"

A piece on essence.com described the performance as "appropriate for upcoming observation of July 4th on Tuesday."

"I felt this in my soul. I feel like Our ancestors in their unmarked Graves would approve," one person wrote in response to Essence's tweet of the performance.

"The Democrats have successfully caused, what I believe is, irreparable racial division. One group feels like the forever victim and the other group is furious for being blamed for something they did not do. Untenable," Carmine Sabia tweeted.

"Only in America can you be rich, famous and still a SLAVE," tweeted "Fearless with Jason Whitlock" contributor Shemeka Michelle.

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