Collection

Did U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris Say 'White Lab Coats Are a Sign of Doctors' Racism'?

The former U.S. vice president has frequently been misquoted and targeted by parodies of her unique style of speaking.

by Nur Ibrahim, June 19, 2019


Image courtesy of Leigh Vogel/Getty Images


As the former U.S. vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, Kamala Harris has frequently been the subject of misinformation, particularly surrounding statements she may or may not have made. 

Some of our fact checks have tackled fabricated quotes that parody Harris' real and unique style of speaking — specifically her tendency to use phrases like "What can be, unburdened by what has been." This delivery has spawned memes featuring broad, meaningless statements of support that are incorrectly attributed to Harris. For example, in 2024, we fact-checked a false claim that she said, "The problem of solving a problem is not a problem, but when a problem solves a problem without any problem, then the problem is not at all a problem." 

Other claims have focused on her policies and misrepresented her actual words. For example, during the 2024 presidential election, Harris announced she would pass universal background checks, red flag laws and an assault weapons ban — not a complete "gun ban," as many people claimed. In other instances, users have shared fabricated social media posts falsely attributed to Harris, including a 2020 claim that used a fake tweet to suggest she supported defunding the police.

Below is a list of fabricated, incorrectly attributed and misrepresented Harris quotes that we've examined:


By Nur Ibrahim

Nur Nasreen Ibrahim is a reporter with experience working in television, international news coverage, fact checking, and creative writing.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a podium in front of a backdrop that reads “State of the People Power Tour.”

Harris didn't say 'If we elect Trump, we will be at war within six months'

June 25, 2025

The popular social media rumor circulated as tensions rose over U.S. involvement in the Israel-I ...

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False Rumor Alleges Harris Said She Won't Attend Trump's 2025 Inauguration

Nov. 7, 2024

The rumor spread as votes started to show Donald Trump's win over Kamala Harris on Nov. 6, 2024.

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Video Showing Harris Saying She Will 'Snatch' Patents Lacks Context

Aug. 20, 2024

A remark made by then-U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris in November 2019 about "snatching" patents resurfa ...

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A Black Asian woman in a blue suit stands next to a white man wearing a gray blue suit. Both look happy and are standing in front of a large crowd.

Harris and Walz Announced Assault Weapons Ban, Not Gun Ban, During Rally

Aug. 9, 2024

Throughout her career, Kamala Harris has supported the reinstatement of the 1994 assault weapons ...

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Harris' 2017 Remark 'We Have to Stay Woke' Stripped of Context. Here's the Transcript

Aug. 7, 2024

We transcribed then-U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris' remarks after some online users shared context-free ...

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No, Kamala Harris Didn't Say 'We Celebrate the Olympics Because Olympians Are Olympic'

July 30, 2024

It's more important now than ever to check your sources.

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Online memes and posts wrongly claimed US Vice President Kamala Harris once said the words today we celebrate the 4th of July and the reason we celebrate the 4th of July is because this is July and the 4th of July is in July.

No, Kamala Harris Didn't Say, 'The Reason We Celebrate the Fourth of July Is Because This Is July'

July 25, 2024

We looked for the origins of a fake quote appearing to first circulate online in July 2024.

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Online memes and posts wrongly claimed US Vice President Kamala Harris once said the words the problem of solving a problem is not a problem.

No, Kamala Harris Didn't Say 'the Problem of Solving a Problem Is Not a Problem'

July 24, 2024

The purported quote continued, "but when a problem solves a problem without any problem, then th ...

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kamala harris

Did Kamala Harris Say Jan. 6 Attack Was 'Worse Than' 9/11, Pearl Harbor?

Jan. 7, 2022

Right-leaning critics found fault in the vice president's remarks on the first anniversary of th ...

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Audience, Person, Crowd

Did Kamala Harris Tell Biden 'You Will Do Whatever the Chinese Tell You' During Dem Debate?

April 29, 2021

Harris attacked Biden during a June 2019 Democratic primary debate, but not for this.

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Did Kamala Harris Call American Churches 'Propaganda Centers'?

Oct. 12, 2020

Unsourced Facebook posts are not known for providing accurate information.

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No, Kamala Harris Didn't Tweet, 'We Need to Focus on Defunding the Police'

Oct. 6, 2020

The tweet boosted a false claim about the 2020 Democratic vice presidential nominee.

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Did Kamala Harris Say Joe Biden Is 'Trash to Me'?

Aug. 24, 2020

A quote lifted from a blog post about Harris and Biden was misattributed to Harris.

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Did Kamala Harris Say Young Voters Are 'Stupid'?

Aug. 14, 2020

There's some important missing context in this claim.

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Did Kamala Harris Say She 'Believes' Joe Biden's Accusers?

Aug. 13, 2020

Right-leaning websites jumped into action after Biden announced Harris as his vice-presidential ...

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Did Kamala Harris Call Joe Biden a Racist?

Aug. 12, 2020

Following the announcement of Biden's 2020 running mate choice, critics seized on a past exchang ...

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Did Kamala Harris Say 'Our Military Are Soulless Cowards'?

Sept. 12, 2019

A routine review of content labeled satire.

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Did Kamala Harris Say 'After Trump's Gone, We'll Be Coming for You Next'?

Aug. 7, 2019

A routine review of content labeled satire.

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Did U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris Say 'White Lab Coats Are a Sign of Doctors' Racism'?

June 19, 2019

Perhaps not surprisingly, Harris' 2020 presidential campaign is not focused on the color of lab ...

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