Yahoo Lifestyle Reps For Janet Jackson Say Man Claiming To Be Manager Was Not Authorized To Make Statement (UPDATE)
UPDATE: 1:52 a.m. — Representatives for Janet Jackson have dismissed Mo Elmasr’s statement to BuzzFeed, stating that he was not authorized to speak on her behalf.
The original story is below.
Janet Jackson has apologized after facing backlash for inaccurately claiming Vice President Kamala Harris is “not Black.”
On Sunday, the singer’s manager Mo Elmasri, told BuzzFeed in a statement that Jackson’s words were “based on misinformation.”
“She deeply respects Vice President Kamala Harris and her accomplishments as a Black and Indian woman,” the statement continued. “Janet apologizes 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.”
Jackson’s apology comes after she made the erroneous comment about Harris’ racial and ethnic identity in an interview with The Guardian.
Her comments about Harris, the daughter of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, caused a massive stir on the internet. Many X users (formerly Twitter) criticized the crooner for “repeating lies” and spewing out “foolish and super ignorant” statements.
“Well, you know what they supposedly said? She’s not Black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian,” she told the outlet in an interview published Saturday.
After the reporter clarified that Harris is mixed, Jackson doubled down on echoing the right-wing conspiracy theory captained by Harris’ presidential opponent Donald Trump.
“Her father’s white. That’s what I was told. I mean, I haven’t watched the news in a few days. I was told they discovered her father was white,” she responded.
Last month, Trump, who has attacked Harris’ race and gender on multiple occasions, claimed to journalists that she ”happened to turn Black” for political gain.
“She was only promoting Indian heritage,” the former president said while speaking at the National Association of Black Journalists convention. “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.”
“Is she Indian or is she Black?” he then questioned.
