Demonstration by ‘white guys’ to elect the first female president

Some famous “white dudes” — including the guy who played “The Dude” — rallied behind Vice President Kamala Harris, who would be the first female president if elected, at the inaugural event for a new group called White Dudes for Harris in Monday at night.

The name may be a little facetious, but the star-studded setting Zoom call drew more than 180,000 attendees and raised nearly $4 million, according to organizers, who are themselves a group of white Democratic political operatives.

During the nearly three-and-a-half-hour call, they said, they sold more than 5,700 white guys for Harris trucker hats — “not the pointy ones,” joked Ross Morales Rocketto, one of the organizers, referring to fewer white-guy gatherings in the PC like the Ku Klux Klan.

“Throughout American history, when white men organized, they often wore pointy hats,” Rocketto said before adding how proud he was of this group of white men, who he said are rarely heard from.

Actor Jeff Bridges, who played “The Dude” in the cult classic “The Big Lebowski,” was excited when he heard about the reunion of his white colleagues.

“I qualify, man! I’m white, I’m a guy, and I’m for Harris,” Bridges said. “A female president, man, how exciting!”

Guests included several of the white guys Harris is considering as her vice presidential running mate, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Carolina Gov. of the North, Roy Cooper, who announced he was withdrawing from consideration. moments before the call starts.

“The vibrations are incredible,” Buttigieg said.

Walz, who has risen up the charts of progressives’ favorite white guys in recent days as he’s made the rounds on TV, said he’s excited about the idea of ​​Harris defeating former President Donald Trump.

“Have that bastard wake up later and know that a black woman kicked his a– and sent him out on the road and you know that’s something that guy has to live with for the rest of his life,” Walz said.

In a world where representation matters, white people showed up in force.

There were white singers like Josh Groban and Lance Bass. White actors like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mark Hamill, Josh Gad, Paul Scheer and Sean Astin. And his boss, director and Hollywood executive, JJ Abrams.

There were also plenty of white guys from the world of Democratic politics, like White House infrastructure czar Mitch Landrieu, Rep. Adam Schiff of California, former Sen. Doug Jones of Alabama and Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, who pledged a donation equivalent to US$50,000. .

“What a variety of whiteness we have here,” said actor Bradley Whitford of “West Wing” fame. “It’s like a beige rainbow.”

The “white guys” call came after similar calls directed at Black women It is White women carried out in recent weeks.

There were plenty of self-deprecating jokes about Monday night’s meeting — as well as opening remarks from a black man, Working Families Party national director Maurice Mitchell, who helped reassure any uncomfortable attendees that it was okay to be there.

But despite all the jokes, the men also spoke candidly and movingly about their conflicted feelings about masculinity, how difficult it can be to open up emotionally, and how alienated they feel from other white men who are the core of their support. of Trump.

“Black women have been showing up to vote for progressive white guys for generations, and it’s time we showed up for them,” said Broadway actor Rory O’Malley, who originated the role of Elder McKinney in “The Book of Mormon.”

Some said they felt a rare sense of community and catharsis at the event.

“White people are really tired of the endless parade of weird MAGA Republicans trying to push our democracy to its breaking point,” Brad Bauman, a longtime Democratic communications consultant who helped organize the conference call, told NBC News.

“They think they’ve got us, but they don’t,” Bauman added. “And honestly, their bleak vision for our future is only holding us back. That’s why we decided to start White Dudes for Harris.”