US VP Kamala Harris Accused of Bullying Daughter of Late Singer, Nina Simone
The granddaughter of late American singer Nina Simone has accused U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris of causing the family to lose control of Simone’s estate while Harris was California attorney general.
Nina Simone died in 2003 at her home at the age of 70.
Ms Harris, who was California’s top prosecutor between 2011 and 2017, led a legal battle against the singer’s daughter, Lisa Simone Kelly, who was in charge of her late mother’s estate and charitable trust.
The state of California accused her in 2013 of “breaching her fiduciary duty,” alleging she used up to $2m from the funds, including a $1.5m deposit into her personal company, according to The Daily Beast.
Harris’s office sought to surcharge Ms Kelly nearly $6m, as well as more than $2.5m in interest.
But in the end Ms Kelly agreed to relinquish the rights to her mother’s work as well as the title of estate administrator, reported The Daily Beast.
ReAnne Simone Kelly, granddaughter to Nina Simone has now gone on social media to defend her mother.
“Nina’s granddaughter here,” ReAnna Simone Kelly wrote on Twitter.
“My family doesn’t run her estate anymore. It was taken away from us [and] given to white people. Our family name was dragged in the media. We get NO royalties, nothing. Wanna hold someone accountable? Ask Kamala Harris why she came for my family.”
“As I said before, ask her why she separated my family,” she continued. “Ask her why my grandmother’s estate is in SHAMBLES now. Ask her why we as her family no longer own the rights to anything. Ask her why she bullied my mother in court and my mom almost killed herself from the depression.”
ReAnna Simone Kelly added that there is “a lot of slander” about her mother Lisa Simone Kelly.
“I’m going to leave it at that for now. Do your research if you like, but know that there is A LOT of slander out there on my mother. There was a lot of false information put out there that is NOT TRUE. Listen. WE LIVED IT. We are still living in the aftermath of this,” she wrote.
“OH WAIT, While we’re asking Kamala questions, ask her why after all of this pain and suffering she put us through a Nina Simone song that was sung at the inauguration to swear her in as VP? She knew what she was doing,” ReAnna Simone Kelly continued.
Singer John Legend performed Nina Simone’s classic “Feeling Good” during a televised celebration of the 2021 inauguration of Harris as VP.
Harris, who is already embroiled with heavy criticism from Democrats and Republicans about her handling of the US southern border crisis, is yet to respond to the allegations.
