November 4th 2024.
The US Presidential Election of 2024 is in its final hours, and the whole world is eagerly awaiting the results. Will it be Democratic nominee Kamala Harris or her rival Donald Trump who will take on the presidency? As the candidates wrap up their campaigns, one of the tasks that may lie ahead for Harris is educating people on how to properly pronounce her name.
Harris is no stranger to having her name mispronounced. In fact, during a recent appearance on Saturday Night Live, she took the opportunity to poke fun at the various mispronunciations she has heard. Comedian Maya Rudolph, who was portraying Harris on the show, jokingly pronounced her name as "palm-ala", "dram-ala", and "step-mamala". Harris then suggested "Legally Blond-ala" before the two ended with the catchy phrase "Keep Calm-ala and Carry On-ala".
But in all seriousness, Harris has been actively trying to educate people on the correct pronunciation of her name. In 2016, when she ran for the US Senate, she shared a campaign video on Twitter featuring children demonstrating the correct way to say her name. "It's not CAM-EL-UH. It's not KUH-MAHL-UH. It's not KARMEL-UH," they explained. The correct pronunciation is "COM-mah-la", with emphasis on the first syllable. When pronounced correctly, her name sounds like "comma-la".
However, despite her efforts, mispronouncing Harris' name is still a common occurrence. At the Republican National Convention, almost half of the speakers got it wrong. And some, like Goya Foods CEO Bob Unanue, have even openly mocked her name by comparing it to the Spanish phrase "que mala", meaning "so bad".
This mispronunciation is often seen as a sign of disrespect, and when New Hampshire's governor Chris Sununu was questioned about it, he denied doing it intentionally. Journalist Eugene Daniels asked if it was a tactic or just a tough name to pronounce. Sununu, looking visibly taken aback, apologized and explained that he always pronounced her name as "Kuh-MAL-a". Daniels then corrected him with the proper pronunciation of "Comma-la".
As the world eagerly awaits the results of the 2024 US Presidential Election, let us not only pay attention to the candidates' policies and promises, but also take the time to learn how to properly pronounce their names. Because at the end of the day, it's not just a name, it's a part of their identity and deserves to be respected. This article was originally published on July 22, 2024.
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