Social media blew up Friday with news that a local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People leader Rachel Dolezal is not, in fact, an African-American.
She is very much a white person, as discussed this week by her very white parents.
Dolezal has for years paraded as an African-American, claiming a false heritage on several official documents. She even went so far as to upload photos of herself with a black man to social media, claiming falsely that he is her father.
On Friday, CNN hosted a bewildering and uncomfortable interview wherein the Spokane, Wash., woman’s parents said they have no idea why their daughter is calling herself a black woman.
“She has not explained to us why she is doing what she is doing and being dishonest and deceptive with her identity,” Ruthanne Dolezal said of Rachel.
Larry Dolezal said that he and Ruthanne are the NCAACP leader’s parents, adding, “We do not understand why she feels it’s necessary to misrepresent her ethnicity.”
Ruthanne Dolezal said they saw hints of their daughter “becoming” an African-American back in 2007, but they had no idea how far she took it until only recently.
“She has never claimed to be biracial or African-American in our presence,” she said.
The NCAACP, for its part, has defended Rachel Dolezal, saying in a statement, “One’s racial identity is not a qualifying criteria or disqualifying standard for NAACP leadership. The NAACP Alaska-Oregon-Washington State Conference stands behind Ms. Dolezal’s advocacy record.”
