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Janet Jackson‘s reported “apology” for claiming that Kamala Harris is not Black, which echoed a false claim made by Harris’s White House rival, Donald Trump, was not authorised by the singer, it has emerged.
The singer, 58, whose brother Tito died aged 70 last week, made the shocking comments about the Democratic candidate when asked how she felt about the US having its first female Black president.
Less than 24 hours after Jackson’s comments were published in an interview with The Guardian, a statement sent to Buzzfeed by Mo Elmasri, apparently claiming to be her manager, said she apologised for her remarks.
The statement shared by Elmasri, which was reported on by multiple outlets including The Independent, said: “She deeply respects Vice President Kamala Harris and her accomplishments as a Black and Indian woman.
“Janet apologises for any confusion caused and acknowledges the importance of accurate representation in public discourse. We appreciate the opportunity to address this and will remain committed to promoting unity.”
However, it has since been reported that Jackson is in fact managed by her brother, Randy, and that the unusually worded “apology” was not authorised.
Elmasri told Variety: “I no longer work for her. I was fired by Janet and Randy, after attempts to improve her image in front of public opinion and her fans, and this is something I do not deserve.”
The Independent has contacted Jackson’s representatives for comment.
The “All for You” singer had previously said: “She’s not Black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian. Her father’s white. That’s what I was told.”
Jackson then admitted she hadn’t “watched the news in a few days” but was told somebody had “discovered” Harris’ father “was white”.
Harris was born to Shyamala Gopalan, an Indian cancer researcher and Donald Harris, a Black economics professor from Jamaica, in 1964.
Gopalan died of cancer aged 70 in 2009. Donald Harris, 86, is a professor emeritus of economics at Stanford University.
Jackson’s comments echoed those made by Trump during a speech at the National Association of Black Journalists’ convention in Chicago in July.
The former president claimed: “[Harris] was always of Indian heritage, and she was only promoting Indian heritage. I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black.”
He questioned: “So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?”
Trump added: “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. I think somebody should look into that too.”
Harris has spoken openly about how she grew up appreciating both backgrounds. She attended Howard University, a historically Black college in Washington, DC, and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, one of the first Black sororities in the nation.
In 2021, she recalled her father taking her and her sister to see Bob Marley and the Wailers in 1978 – her first concert ever. “We sat up top in the back of the theater and, as I watched the performance, I was in complete awe,” Harris told the Washington Post at the time. “To this day, I know the lyrics to nearly every Bob Marley song.
“My father, like so many Jamaicans, has immense pride in our Jamaican heritage and instilled that same pride in my sister and me,” Harris told the outlet. “We love Jamaica. He taught us the history of where we’re from, the struggles and beauty of the Jamaican people, and the richness of the culture.”
