Why Kamala Harris is attacked as DEI hire, and what does it mean?

All is fair in love, war and elections. Politicians do not miss an opportunity to stir the pot during the election season. In the latest salvo against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris, Republicans are calling her a "DEI hire"— a diversity, equity, and inclusion hire. What exactly is a DEI hire, and why are Republicans using the term to attack Harris, a politician of Indian-Jamaican origin.

Tennessee Republican Representative Tim Burchett called Kamala Harris a DEI vice president.

“The media propped up this president, lied to the Americans, plied to the American people for three years, and then dumped him for our DEI vice president.”

He also said in an interview with CNN that Biden picked Harris because she was a black woman.

"100% she is a DEI hire," he said.

WHAT DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION HIRE MEANS?

Former Trump adviser Sebastian Gorka took the same route to attack Harris while speaking to Britain's GB News.

"This disaster whose only qualification is having a vagina and the right skin colour.”

Harris has been at the receiving end of such racial slurs due to her Indian and Jamaican heritage. She is also the first woman to become the US Vice Presisdent. Now, she is the first woman of colour to lead a prominent party's presidential ticket in the US.

But what exactly is a DEI hire in the US?

A DEI hire is an individual who is hired to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in an organisation.

This is ensured to bring diverse perspectives into the workplace and in the leadership role. Corporations, NGOs, educational institutes, healthcare and governing agencies all have DEI hiring practices in some form.

But Harris is not the first DEI target for the Grand Old Party of the US. Since last year, 85 anti-DEI bills that will impact college programs have been introduced in the US Congress, according to a tally by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

People have come in support of Kamala Harris on social media and said her qualifications are more that than anyone in the Republican Party and that her journey should be respected.

HARRIS UNDER ATTACK FROM REPUBLICANS AND FAR-RIGHT

As for Kamala Harris, 'DEI hire' is part of a series of comments she has faced in the US Presidential campaign.

Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance also sparked controversy when he called Harris the part of "childless cat ladies" with "no direct stake" in America.

Harris does not have biological children, but she is a stepmother to her husband, Doug Emhoff's two children.

This comment led to a wave of support for Harris, including from the famous actress Jennifer Aniston.

On Sunday, Kamala Harris received the support of several prominent Indian-Americans, including author Salman Rushdie.

Harris was the only person, said Rushdie, who would be able to prevent Donald Trump from turning the US into a more authoritarian country.

Not just Republicans but right-wing conspiracy theorists have also attacked Harris. They have spread fake photos of Harris with convicted sexual offender, Jeffrey Epstein, reported the Washington Post.

Others have sprung up conspiracy theories about Harris's rise.

Harris is a woman, of Indian and Jamaican origin, and she is campaigning to become the President of the US. Her political opponents and her critics are not going to be easy on her in the US elections. But she has it in her to fend off all the attacks.

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