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“I’m so sad. The courage you’ve all shown is extraordinary,” Harris replied, as tears welled up in the studio audience of around 400 people. (Photo: PTI)
A star-studded virtual event hosted by Oprah Winfrey on Thursday night to build enthusiasm for Kamala Harris’ campaign was marked by tearful moments and celebrity endorsements, drawing hundreds of thousands of viewers across social media.
Winfrey hosted a “Unite for America” event with activist group Win with Black Women, aimed at supporting Harris by registering to vote in states that will decide the Nov. 5 election, including Pennsylvania, Georgia and Michigan.
“What you’re seeing is a mother, a mother broken, experiencing the worst pain a parent can feel,” Shannette Williams, the mother of Amber Nicole Thurman, a 28-year-old Georgia woman who died in August 2022 after hospital treatment delays linked to Georgia’s strict abortion laws, told the audience.
“I’m so sad. The courage you’ve all shown is extraordinary,” Harris replied, as many in the studio audience of about 400 people shed tears.
Natalie Griffith, a 15-year-old student at Apalachee High School in Georgia, who was shot twice during a math class two weeks ago, sat in the front row with her parents.
“What are we doing?” asked Natalie’s mother, Marida Griffiths. “We have a job, and that’s to protect our kids.”
“We have to stop it,” she said, bringing her and some in the online and on-site audience to tears.
Harris and Democrats have pledged to restore abortion rights nationwide affected by a 2022 Supreme Court decision and to pass a ban on assault weapons, which are often used in mass shootings.
Celebrities including comedians Chris Rock and Ben Stiller, and actors Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep and Bryan Cranston attended the event to give their reasons for supporting Harris and field questions.
“I want to take my daughters to the White House and let them meet this black woman president,” Locke said.
Winfrey noted Harris’ rapid transformation after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in late July, praising her for “stepping up to power.”
“You know, there’s always a time in life when you have to stand up,” Ms. Harris said. Before Mr. Biden was forced to step down, Ms. Harris’s strength as a presidential candidate was questioned by some Democrats in Washington, including Mr. Biden, but she brought new fundraising and enthusiasm that revived the Democratic Party’s chances of victory.
Winfrey appeared to catch Harris off guard when she said she didn’t know she owned a gun until the debate with Republican opponent Donald Trump.
“If someone breaks into my house, they’re going to be shot,” Harris said. “I probably shouldn’t have said that,” she added.
The livestream had about 200,000 subscribers and about 100,000 viewers on YouTube by the end, according to Harris campaign advisers. The event was also featured on both Winfrey and Harris’ Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Twitch accounts.
In the days since Harris became the Democratic nominee, dozens of grassroots groups, including Latinas for Harris, White Dudes for Harris and Win with Black Men, held virtual organizing and fundraising calls, with Thursday marking the first time they all gathered together for one event.
A recent Reuters poll showed Harris leading Trump 47% to 42%.
According to the FiveThirtyEight polling average, Harris is leading in battleground states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and North Carolina, while Trump’s support is growing in Georgia and the two are neck and neck in Arizona.
“Despite the extraordinary level of enthusiasm we’re seeing all over the place with the Vice President and Governor Walz, the race remains within the margin of error. It’s a tie. It’s a tie here in Michigan. It’s a tie in every battleground state,” campaign manager Jen Marie Dillon told the crowd.
The Unencumbered State Movement, a pro-Palestinian grassroots organization with a large presence in Michigan, announced earlier in the day that it would not endorse Harris, although it said it also opposed Trump and did not encourage voting for third-party candidates.
(Only the headline and photo of this report may have been modified by Business Standard staff. The rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First Published: 20 Sep 2024 | 10:44 AM IST
