On Monday (July 29), more than 140,000 people signed up the “White Dudes for Harris” Zoom fundraising and organizing rally, raising more than $2 million for the event.
The event, scheduled for 8:00 pm, will feature comments from several potential Democratic running mates for Vice President Kamala Harris.
The initial goal was to see 10,000 signups, which was set by organizers several days ago for the event.
The call is the male version of a “White Women: Answer the Call” Zoom fundraising meeting that drew more than 160,000 women to support Harris last week.
“For too long, Man Box culture has positioned white men at the top of a bullying and rigid dominance -based culture of masculinity which teaches us that the only power that matters is power we create over others,” founder Mark Greene wrote. “The result has been an economic, political and environmental disaster.”
“White Dudes for Harris” is hoping to play a “positive role” in Harris’s election efforts.
Historically, there’s been a gap between white men and white women when it comes to political affiliation. As of 2017, 48% of white women identified with the Democratic Party, compared to 37% of white men who considered themselves to be Democrats.
LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman and the film director J.J. Abrams during the call each promised to match $50,000 in donations raised from attendees.
“Ninety nine days from now we have an opportunity to help Kamala Harris make some history, we also have the opportunity to change some minds, to have some tough but fair conversations, to meet other white dudes where they are and to address some things that, well frankly, just haven’t been addressed,” the organizers of “White Dudes for Harris” said in a statement.
“We are honest, open, and ready to support our first black woman president.”
Among the scheduled speakers for the 8 p.m. ET Zoom event are U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, all of whom reportedly are being considered as possible running mates for Harris.
“The vibes right now are incredible … the momentum is extraordinary,” Buttigieg said on the call about Harris’ candidacy.
“Donald Trump’s unfitness for office is clear, and nobody is better positioned to prosecute that case than Kamala Harris,” Buttigieg said.