Joe Biden, the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party in the upcoming U.S. presidential race, finally picked Sen. Kamala Harris as his vice presidential running mate. She praised the former vice president, saying “Joe Biden had the audacity to choose a Black woman to be his running mate.” She may be right. Some in Tokyo, however, may not take her words at face value.
In Japanese newspapers, a typical headline for articles about Biden’s choice was “What kind of person is Kamala Harris?” Despite the media frenzy in the United States, in Tokyo only one major daily quickly carried an editorial about her, partly because the announcement came during Japan’s mid-August summer holidays.
The editorial was titled “A Black woman vice presidential candidate, a choice to restore diversity.” It commended the historic selection, saying “the decision was aimed at sending a message of reconciliation and change to the United States divided by COVID-19 and racial discrimination.”