The Kamala Harris coconut tree meme, explained as best we can

Caption

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to members of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center on July 10 in Dallas. / Getty Images

In the weeks before President Biden announced he would not be seeking reelection, some Democrats online rallied behind Vice President Kamala Harris to become the party’s new nominee. And their symbol became the coconut tree.

Not long after Biden announced on Sunday he was dropping out of the race, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis tweeted out just three emojis: a coconut, a palm tree and an American flag. EMILYs LIST, the PAC focused on electing Democratic women, explicitly endorsed Harris in a tweet and, in a more subtle show of support, also added the tree and the coconut to its username.

So how did the coconut tree emerge as the emblem of Harris's most devoted, or at least most-online followers? It's a story more than a year in the making.

Why are we even talking about coconut trees?

The “coconut tree” meme originates from a May 2023 speech Harris gave at a White House event for advancing opportunities for Hispanic Americans.

At one point near the end of her remarks, Harris talked about how the initiative's work would be focused on young people, but it should also take into account the needs of their families, teachers and communities, "because none of us just live in a silo."

"Everything is in context," Harris said, before launching into the now-famous anecdote.

"My mother ... would give us a hard time sometimes, and she would say to us, 'I don’t know what’s wrong with you young people. You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?' " Harris said with a laugh. "You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you."

The moment was first meme’d in earnest in February of this year, when for a period of time, one could not open X, formerly known as Twitter, without seeing clips of or oblique references to those remarks.

But the meme tookon new life this summer, after President Biden’s disastrous debate performance fueled speculation that he might step aside as the Democratic nominee. Harris’s supporters, also known as the KHive, were waiting in the wings.

Since then, the moment has been remixed into Charli XCX’s “Von Dutch” and Britney Spears’ "Gimme More." Democratic operatives have spoken of being “coconut-pilled.” The meme flourished into 2028 debate fan fiction. Google searches for "coconut tree" started climbing in the U.S. in early July.

Like all of us, the coconut tree moment exists in the context of all in which it lives and what came before it. Which is to say, it’s part of a larger set of memes surrounding Kamala Harris’s political persona. Harris has been spawning memes longer than she’s been vice president. We Did It, Joe, is likely the most well-known. But her laugh, her bus, her dance moves and her love of Venn diagrams have all become social media fodder.

So why did the coconut tree break through?

It's impossible to say why any particular meme — political or otherwise — catches fire over another. But all of the Harris memes embrace what detractors might consider a gaffe, highlighting the vice president's loud laugh and sometimes awkward sense of humor.

Former President Donald Trump, for instance, has dubbed Harris "laughing Kamala," saying the laugh makes her seem "crazy."

Take another example, which grew out of one of Harris's go-to lines dating back to her 2020 presidential run: “I can imagine what can be, unburdened by what has been.”

The RNC compiled a supercut of Harris being "unburdened" and shared it on social media, arguing that it shows she is “unoriginal, annoying, and highly incompetent.” But her supporters have taken ownership of the line.

Another explanation is that young Democrats — who were among the most dissatisfied with President Biden as a candidate — are also among the most online. So their desire for more choices and Harris's meme-able presence were a perfect combination.

As Washington Post internet culture reporter Taylor Lorenz wrote: "Harris’s new online prominence could help give the Democratic Party new prominence with young people — including major content creators — who are hesitant to vote for Biden again due to his climate policies, support of Israel’s war in Gaza, mishandling of the ongoing pandemic, and signing a bill that could ban TikTok."

And, the push for Biden to "pass the torch" has, in some cases, galvanized progressives in the party behind Harris, who they criticized in 2020 over her criminal justice record.