Some conservatives are attempting to draw connections between Vice President Kamala Harris’ historically Black sorority affiliation and the outcome of the recent presidential debate — but people on social media aren’t having it.
Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, is a part of the same historically Black sorority — Alpha Kappa Alpha — as ABC News anchor Linsey Davis, who served as one of the moderators of Tuesday night’s debate in Philadelphia.
Various right-wingers have tried to suggest that Harris received preferential treatment from Davis due to the fact that they are both affiliated with the oldest Black sorority, which was founded in 1908.
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., comprises more than 360,000 initiated members, according to its website . Some of its notable members include actor Phylicia Rashad, the late writer Toni Morrison and the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.
But despite its vast membership, right-wing social media accounts such as Libs of TikTok, run by Chaya Raichik, have sought to emphasize Harris and Davis’ connections to AKA.
“So it turns out the totally unbiased ABC moderator Linsey Davis and Kamala Harris are sorority sisters!” Libs of TikTok wrote Wednesday on X , formerly Twitter. “Interesting.”
“Fox & Friends” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy wrote on X that the moderator’s affiliation with AKA was “not right.”
“There’s no way #ABC would let a Trump frat bro moderate last night’s #debate!” she added, referring to Harris’ GOP rival, former President Donald Trump.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) said on X that ABC was “shameless” for allowing Davis to moderate the debate.
“The left’s near-complete domination of broadcast TV couldn’t be more obvious,” he wrote. “Perhaps it’s time to re-examine the laws that make this possible.”
Former President Donald Trump, left, and Vice President Kamala Harris are seen during an ABC News presidential debate on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia.
But a wave of social media users have since pushed back on the complaints over Davis’ sorority affiliation and her involvement in the presidential debate.
On Thursday, New York University law professor Melissa Murray called out the weaponization of Harris and Davis’ sorority ties, noting that there are endless ways in which people can share common experiences.
“That’s like saying a UPenn alum couldn’t moderate that debate because DJT is an alum too,” she wrote on X , referring to Trump’s past attendance of the University of Pennsylvania. “I don’t think the bonds of sorority sisterhood (or college affiliation) are so profound that you’d risk your professional credibility and reputation.”
In another post , Murray pointed out that Harris and Davis did not join the organization at the same time. They also did not attend the same college or join via the same alumnae chapter.
Harris joined the Greek-letter organization while studying at Howard University, where she graduated in 1986. Davis joined the sisterhood as an undergraduate at the University of Virginia. She graduated in 1999 .
Trump and a chorus of Republican pundits have expressed their frustration with the moderation of the debate, amid widespread criticism of the former president’s performance.
“I thought the moderators were very unfair,” Trump told reporters in the spin room after Philadelphia event. “It basically was three-on-one.”
Both Davis and fellow ABC News anchor David Muir fact-checked Trump in real time on several occasions during the debate.
At one point, Davis challenged Trump’s lie that Democrats support “abortion in the ninth month.”
“There is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it’s born,” she said.
Check out more responses to conservatives’ sorority gripes below:
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