Wednesday's Democratic debate will be the first time the majority of participants aren't white
For the first time in presidential campaign history, the majority of the candidates on Wednesday night's debate stage in Detroit won't be white, Politico reports. That's all the more impressive considering the crowded stage will consist of 10 candidates.
Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), who are black, will be joined by former Housing Secretary Julián Castro, the only Latino in the race, as well as Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), and entrepreneur Andrew Yang, who are of Pacific Islander and Asian descent, respectively.
Politico reports that the "timing couldn't be more striking," as the Democratic Party is currently undergoing an internal reckoning as its members examine the party's role in implementing policies that have historically contributed to racial inequality in American society. Racial identity could very well end up being discussed at length during Wednesday's debate.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Former Rep. Bakari Sellers (D-S.C.), whose father worked on Jesse Jackson's presidential campaign in 1988, said that the 2020 primaries, with their emphasis on race, are an example of Jackson's efforts coming to fruition. "Black voters are no longer allowing you to give lip service, are no longer allowing you to do photo-ops or show up at the church the weekend before," Sellers said. "There's a lot of parallels to '88 and what Jesse attempted to do." Read more at Politico.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
The vast horizons of the Puna de AtacamaThe Week Recommends The ‘dramatic and surreal’ landscape features volcanoes, fumaroles and salt flats
-
Asylum hotels: everything you need to knowThe Explainer Using hotels to house asylum seekers has proved extremely unpopular. Why, and what can the government do about it?
-
Sudoku medium: November 16, 2025The daily medium sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
Hungary’s Krasznahorkai wins Nobel for literatureSpeed Read László Krasznahorkai is the author of acclaimed novels like ‘The Melancholy of Resistance’ and ‘Satantango’
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
