Users on social media make the claim that US Vice President Kamala Harris did not place her hand on the Bible but on a purse or glove when she was sworn in on January 20, invalidating her oath. This is false, as other angles show that she had her hand on a Bible.
Reports with this claim can be seen here, here and here. Comments include: “Let me curse on my handbag instead of the Bible!” and ‘She could not even bring herself to touch that Bible. Her hands not on it. Look beautiful. ”
Most iterations include a cropped side photo of Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff during the ceremony (similar to this one here). The confusion may have stemmed from the zipper visible on one of the two Bibles Harris used during the ceremony, with a black leather bag.
This angle does not clearly show that she rests her hand on a bible, but other imagery does (here, here l). Here’s a closer look at Reuters.
Kamala Harris used two Bibles during the ceremony. One that belonged to Regina Shelton, a close family friend (here) and another owned by the late Judge Thurgood Marshall, the first black American Supreme Court justice (here).
As reported here by ABC News, Harris also used the Bible of Shelton when he was sworn in for the Attorney General of California (youtu.be/WyG1A_L8YhY?t=402, here) and the U.S. Senate (see timestamp 00:59 here ).
VERDICT
Untrue. Footage shows Kamala Harris resting her hand on the Bible when she was sworn in as vice president.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our work to actually check social media posts.