NAACP Leader and Activist Outed as White Woman

originally posted by: Jaellma
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes
Ok, all jokes aside, this kind of stuff happens more often than one would think.

Quite a few "black" folks pass themselves off as white, especially in the corporate world. People would think they are white when they are not. I am sure this happens a fair bit for white folks as well (or any race). People feeling the need to identify with another race for whatever reasons.

Since the NAACP has said they are standing behind her, no matter what, I wonder if she will continue to wear her perm, braids and fake tan as she gives speeches up on the podium. Ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!

She's a plastic Kwazi!

originally posted by: Khaleesi
Apparently the NAACP is waiting till Monday to make their decision on the issue, at least according to Rachel Dolezal.

www.msn.com...

"I support their decision to wait until Monday to make a statement. The Executive team asked that I also release my response statement at the same time, which will be during the 7-9 p.m. monthly membership meeting."

Some prominent African Americans are not happy.

www.nationaljournal.com...

From an interview with the former editor of Jet and Ebony Mitzi Miller:

"It takes more than a haircut to be Black. It takes more than being married to a black man to be Black. You can be empathetic and respectful of a culture without appropriating and impersonating it."

There's something wrong here. There's no need to impersonate a black person to be empathetic. She has negated all the work she ever did while at the NAACP by the revelation that she was masquerading as a black woman. She could have accomplished the same things by being herself and collaborating in the efforts she believed in. Her deception creates a veneer of falsehood that cannot easily be removed.

To be fair, African American communities are very diverse. There's isn't a single one of us who can speak for all of us, any more than any one German American can speak for all of them.

There are some African Americans who hate being African American because they don't identify with Africa. There are African Americans who hate being called black. And there are even African Americans who let their non-black friends call them the n-word (as long as it has the "a" on the end).

Just pointing out that while the people you referred to are entitled to have their opinions, they're speaking for themselves. Others may or may not agree with them.

originally posted by: enlightenedservant

originally posted by: Khaleesi
Apparently the NAACP is waiting till Monday to make their decision on the issue, at least according to Rachel Dolezal.

www.msn.com...

"I support their decision to wait until Monday to make a statement. The Executive team asked that I also release my response statement at the same time, which will be during the 7-9 p.m. monthly membership meeting."

Some prominent African Americans are not happy.

www.nationaljournal.com...

From an interview with the former editor of Jet and Ebony Mitzi Miller:

"It takes more than a haircut to be Black. It takes more than being married to a black man to be Black. You can be empathetic and respectful of a culture without appropriating and impersonating it."

There's something wrong here. There's no need to impersonate a black person to be empathetic. She has negated all the work she ever did while at the NAACP by the revelation that she was masquerading as a black woman. She could have accomplished the same things by being herself and collaborating in the efforts she believed in. Her deception creates a veneer of falsehood that cannot easily be removed.

To be fair, African American communities are very diverse. There's isn't a single one of us who can speak for all of us, any more than any one German American can speak for all of them.

There are some African Americans who hate being African American because they don't identify with Africa. There are African Americans who hate being called black. And there are even African Americans who let their non-black friends call them the n-word (as long as it has the "a" on the end).

Just pointing out that while the people you referred to are entitled to have their opinions, they're speaking for themselves. Others may or may not agree with them.

I agree and I never said otherwise. I was just posting what I had found. Nothing more. Nothing less.

This woman has some serious personality/mental issues - race was but one lie of many she was living - her entire life seemed to be a farce. How she didn't get exposed earlier is just a testament of how gullible people are. There are many, many, just like here out there in the world, I know I've met my fair share of people who are living a lie, yet for some reason, the majority of people don't call them on their obvious BS.

originally posted by: Syyth007
This woman has some serious personality/mental issues - race was but one lie of many she was living - her entire life seemed to be a farce. How she didn't get exposed earlier is just a testament of how gullible people are. There are many, many, just like here out there in the world, I know I've met my fair share of people who are living a lie, yet for some reason, the majority of people don't call them on their obvious BS.

Many AAs of a certain age ,say over 50-60 or so will understand her, although in a twisted manner, because they would understand the principle of passing, that's when a person lite enough to be indistinguishable from "white" because of the stupid one drop rule, still legal and accepted by most Black folks and white alike to pass into the white community mainly for social, professional and economic benefits that came with being white, whites Passing for Blacks is rare as there are no real benefit beyond the cultural

Charlie "Bird" Parker and Robert "Red" Rodney watching Dizzy Gillespie
Albino Red was a white male born legally so . but because of his profession as a Jazz man he could not be in mixed company in strictly segregated communities down south especially playing on the chitlin circuit , accommodations together with fellow black musicians proved near impossible so they passed him of as an albino Black with none being the wiser, such is the craziness of American racial laws.
But this lady do have issues as socially there is no pressure for her to assume an AA identity and belatedly so at that to dis own one's parents.

Not the first time.

What's wrong with her being WHITE? NAACP = National Association Advancing COLORED People. Last time I checked, WHITE is a COLOR! Geeesh.. We Americans are too rich, fat and have too much time on our hands.

a reply to: carewemust
Nothing wrong with her being white. The problem would seem to be in her claiming to be another "color."

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: carewemust
Nothing wrong with her being white. The problem would seem to be in her claiming to be another "color."

Maybe in her heart and mind, she's Brown. Oh well, NAACP isn't a big powerful organization like it once was. She should just resign and move on with her life. We'll all be fine..and so will she.

Yes, communities are diverse. No, it's not wrong for whites to participate in civil rights. Yes, she was seen as doing a "good job," whatever that means.

But......

She Lied.

And she built her career on those lies. She "gained entry" by pretending to be something she had no right to claim, and

1. She blatantly lied about her father, claiming one Black man was indeed he when they weren't even related.
2. She claimed discrimination as a child, when in fact she was sporting blonde hair and freckles.

She lied.

Period.

a reply to: kosmicjack

No, she doesn't.

By all accounts she's done good work on behalf of the NAACP. Did she misrepresent herself? Yep.

So does the misrepresentation outweigh the good she's done?

I don't know.

a reply to: schuyler

Exactly. When most companies find out that an applicant lied on their application, the employee gets fired. It's a reflection of the persons character.

"I dream that one day people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character".

Epic fail on her part, as she obviously doesn't know that a lie constitutes a character flaw which, in turn, trumps the importance of the color of her skin. Per Kings dream. What else has she lied about. She's 37. This isn't the first time she's lied. The question is, how important are those lies?

I've heard this story on radio for a few days now, and it seems to me that she had an issue of sorts when her parents adopted 3 black children. There were internal problems with the whole family because of these adoptions, and Rachel chose to take up the cause with what her brothers wanted rather than side with her parents.

Dysfunction Junction Montana I believe is where they are from.

She is right about one thing though, this is a personal matter. BUT.....when she lied on her application to head the Spokane division of the NAACP, she took her personal issues public.VERY public. If want to live in a bubble of delusion and pretend you're black, that's your prerogative. But don't take that delusion public and expect people to accept it because, what it really boils down to is, you're not acclimating well into the society in which you live. You're just screwing it up more, and complicating matters more.

www.krem.com...

www.cnn.com...

I don't have a link for this one, but I heard on the radio part of an impromptu interview with Rachel where the reporter asks her "Are you African American?" Silence for 5 seconds and she responds "I don't understand the question".

I sincerely hopes she gets the help she needs, because it's obvious that she needs help.

And the NAACP has just lost whatever credibility it used to have IMO.

originally posted by: seagull
a reply to: kosmicjack

No, she doesn't.

By all accounts she's done good work on behalf of the NAACP. Did she misrepresent herself? Yep.

So does the misrepresentation outweigh the good she's done?

I don't know.

I'm not sure if there is a way to quantify that. I do think that the fact that she misrepresented herself will negate any of the good she's done. She works, quite literally, in a social capacity. Socially people will judge her and the work that she has done based upon her sincerity, or lack thereof in this case.

a reply to: schuyler

But lying isn't bad any more.
Bill and Hillary broke the ground for that.
Lying is a merit now.

a reply to: butcherguy

Bill and Hillary broke the ground for that.

Hardly.

a reply to: butcherguy

Afraid they weren't even remotely ground breakers... Been lots of 'em before, and since. Hardly unique.

Ignorant to the existence of this thread I attempted to start my own. Fortunately it was denied rather quickly. Anyway I think if the NAACP backs her and says they are cool with it then hey no harm no foul. It does seem like an odd story, more of a tabloid distraction really. Far be it for me to judge someone who identifies differently than what the average person would believe orthodox.

She is not hurting anyone and if she fulfills her employment requirements then good on her. My friends tease me sometimes and say I'm like a black girl and my ex-wife is black so I know what it can be like to relate heavily to another culture. I grew up going to predominately black schools and always had way more conflict with the white kids because I tended to favor hip-hop and sports as opposed to grunge and drugs.

originally posted by: seagull
a reply to: butcherguy

Afraid they weren't even remotely ground breakers... Been lots of 'em before, and since. Hardly unique.

Have many proceeded to keep shining on as someone to look up to.... and to vote for?
They are unabashed and they are still celebrity politicians.
Hillary told us they they were poor.
I think she could tell us she was black too, and those same people would eat it up... and vote for the poor black woman.

a reply to: butcherguy

Truth.

But again, they aren't the only ones looked up to, who've been proven to, shall we say, stretch the truth.

I'm not really disagreeing with you...just pointing out, they're not unique in this.

originally posted by: Khaleesi

originally posted by: enlightenedservant

originally posted by: Khaleesi
Apparently the NAACP is waiting till Monday to make their decision on the issue, at least according to Rachel Dolezal.

www.msn.com...

"I support their decision to wait until Monday to make a statement. The Executive team asked that I also release my response statement at the same time, which will be during the 7-9 p.m. monthly membership meeting."

Some prominent African Americans are not happy.

www.nationaljournal.com...

From an interview with the former editor of Jet and Ebony Mitzi Miller:

"It takes more than a haircut to be Black. It takes more than being married to a black man to be Black. You can be empathetic and respectful of a culture without appropriating and impersonating it."

There's something wrong here. There's no need to impersonate a black person to be empathetic. She has negated all the work she ever did while at the NAACP by the revelation that she was masquerading as a black woman. She could have accomplished the same things by being herself and collaborating in the efforts she believed in. Her deception creates a veneer of falsehood that cannot easily be removed.

To be fair, African American communities are very diverse. There's isn't a single one of us who can speak for all of us, any more than any one German American can speak for all of them.

There are some African Americans who hate being African American because they don't identify with Africa. There are African Americans who hate being called black. And there are even African Americans who let their non-black friends call them the n-word (as long as it has the "a" on the end).

Just pointing out that while the people you referred to are entitled to have their opinions, they're speaking for themselves. Others may or may not agree with them.

I agree and I never said otherwise. I was just posting what I had found. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Understood. I didn't mean it as a slight. I just wanted to point out that there are a lot of people speaking for and against her right now, and for a lot of different reasons.