Haley talks of a ‘New South’ at award presentation.
By Raif Karerat
Nikki Haley, the Indian American governor of South Carolina, was honored by the Harvard Foundation for intercultural and Race Relations on October 1 in appreciation of her contributions regarding social justice.
Harvard Foundation Director S. Allen Counter presented her with an award of appreciation for her calls to remove the Confederate flag from the South Carolina state capitol this past summer.
During the dinner ceremony, Haley talked of a “New South” that was tackling historical problems of racial and economic inequality, the Harvard Crimson reported.
She also posted a defense of the Republican Party and its values in solving problems for low-income people and people of color in her state.
“I would not have won the Republican primary if this were a racially intolerant party,” said Haley, who is Indian American.
Reflecting on her choice to call for the removal of the flag, Haley said Thursday that “the State House belongs to all people, and it needed to be welcoming to all people.”
Following her acceptance of the award however, Haley was immediately thrown into a literal storm of epic proportions, with South Carolina being hit with record breaking deluge of rain and flooding.
In the aftermath, several local leaders throughout South Carolina were highly critical of Haley’s response and accusing her of being ill-prepared for the downpour.
“This is like Jim Hodges all over again,” one Republican lawmaker told Fitsnews, referring to the botched evacuation of Charleston, S.C. during the 1999 Hurricane Floyd scare.
“Resources should have been prepositioned to deal with this,” another GOP lawmaker told the local news outlet.