Kamala Harris' ancestral village in India cheers for 'daughter of this land'

If they could vote for her, they would.

If they could vote for her, they would. 

The people of Thulasendrapuram, a village in southern India that calls Kamala Harris its own, knew little about her until she became the U.S. vice president. Now they display banners of Harris, whose maternal grandparents were born in the village, and are planning celebrations for if and when the Democratic nominee wins the presidential election.

“We are very proud of her,” said Kadir Kathiravan, who owns a printing press in the village of several hundred people, where a billboard shows a smiling Harris and refers to her as a “daughter of this land.”

The village in Tamil Nadu state had already celebrated in 2021 when Harris became the first woman, first Black American and first Asian American to be sworn in as America’s second in command. But her run for the top job is stirring even more excitement in the village and among Indian Americans — a reflection of the pride that India, as well as its vast diaspora, is feeling over its burgeoning economic and geopolitical clout.

“This is really a moment where in just about every sector of American life, we have found success,” said Chintan Patel, executive director of the voter engagement organization Indian American Impact.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/kamala-harris-ancestral-village-india-rcna165313

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