2 months ago
19
US vice president Kamala Harris has faced numerous misleading claims linking her to
socialism
or
communism
since she became the Democratic presidential candidate, according to Factchequeado, US's largest Spanish-language fact-checking organisation. Experts believe these allegations exploit fears among voters who fled repressive regimes in countries like Cuba and Venezuela, according to
BBC News
.
A viral video showed
Harris
and her running mate
Tim Walz
appearing to pose for a selfie in front of a sign for a far-left group, Revolutionary Communists of America. However, the video was manipulated by supporters of Donald Trump, known as the Dilley Meme Team. Despite revealing that the video was fake, it had amassed over 420,000 views and was widely shared among Spanish-speaking people.
“It’s everywhere, this doubt: ‘Is this person a communist?’” said Evelyn Pérez-Verdía, a cultural strategist from south Florida. She recalled hearing discussions about the meme on the Spanish-language radio station La Nueva Poderosa in Miami. While the station clarified the story was “not true,” the hosts maintained their belief that “Kamala is a Marxist.”
Samantha Barrios, a Venezuelan-American in Miami, accused right-leaning Spanish media of frightening immigrants, saying, “the main reason that we left our countries was to escape these regimes.”
Some immigrants express frustration with the Democrats for not properly addressing their concerns about political repression in their home countries. However, Barrios warned against the way these legitimate fears are weaponised through false claims about Harris. Pérez-Verdía criticised the Democratic campaign for not taking these fears seriously. “Don’t laugh off people’s fears. It’s really disrespectful,” she said.
The Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas (DDIA) has reported that notable right-wing figures have propagated a “fear of socialism” since 2020. The volume of AI-generated and doctored images related to Harris has reportedly surged to unprecedented levels.
Elon Musk
shared an altered image of Harris in a red uniform featuring the communist hammer and sickle on X, which received over 83.9 million views. Former US President Donald Trump further intensified the narrative during a presidential debate by branding Harris a “Marxist” and warning that she would turn the US into “Venezuela on steroids.” Following the debate, the term “Marxista” trended on social media, with Google searches for "Marxist" surging by 1000% in just 17 hours.
