# Local NAACP Leader Fabricates Black Ethnicity **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 12, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357 "2015-06-12T13:35:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/1 "2015-06-12T13:35:57Z")
One of these bizarre stories. Widely reported, but [Sample here](http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/06/naacp-leader-accused-of-pretending-to-be-black.html?mid=google&google_editors_picks=true) > [@](#): > > Rachel Dolezal, the head of Spokane, Washington’s NAACP chapter and an Africana studies professor at Eastern Washington University, is under investigation after her own parents publicly alleged that she has been “disguising herself” as black for many years. In interviews this week, Dolezal’s parents said their 37-year-old daughter is actually of Czech, Swedish, and German descent, with “faint traces” of Native American heritage. Earlier this year, Dolezal posted a Facebook photo of herself with an African-American man she identified as her father, but on Thursday Larry and Ruthanne Dolezal produced a Montana birth certificate and childhood photos to prove she’s their daughter. She went in whole hog too, no half-way measures for her. > [@](#): > > KXLY4 was interviewing her about the eight hate crimes she claims she’s been the target of in the past few years. The network could only find three police reports, and there was insufficient evidence to prosecute in each case. Some have alleged that Dolezal fabricated the incidents. > [@](#): > > The Easterner reported: “According to Dolezal, the object her mother and stepfather used to punish them was called a baboon whip, used to ward baboons away in South Africa. These whips would leave scars behind, ‘They were pretty similar to what was used as whips during slavery.’” (Ruthanne says her daughter was not abused, does not have a stepfather, and has never lived in South Africa.) Strange. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/2 "2015-06-12T14:03:50Z")
It’s a pretty weird story. It’s also worth remembering that Spokane is an overwhelmingly white town, with about a [2.3% African American population.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spokane,_Washington#Demographics) I mention this to say that the NAACP in Spokane is likely not a major organization with a ton of involvement or a significant role in the community; while this weirdo’s issues are fun to mock, we should be careful not to extrapolate her craziness to other, more active, NAACP chapters. (For myself, our NAACP used to be headed up by [this nutjob](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._K._Edgerton), who regularly marched around town waving a Confederate flag and hung out with white supremacists and posed for a photo with a napkin on his head folded to look like a white hood. My impression is that local chapters of NAACP have some serious autonomy going on. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/3 "2015-06-12T14:09:22Z")
I think this comes in to play here. Maybe. "Dolezal’s mother, Ruthanne Dolezal, told the Spokane Spokesman-Review that after she and her husband adopted four African-American children, Rachel Dolezal began to “disguise herself.” ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/4 "2015-06-12T14:14:31Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > I think this comes in to play here. Maybe. > > "Dolezal’s mother, Ruthanne Dolezal, told the Spokane Spokesman-Review that after she and her husband adopted four African-American children, Rachel Dolezal began to “disguise herself.” “You mean I’m going to _stay_ this color?” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/5 "2015-06-12T14:29:56Z")
Move over, transgender. this woman is obviously “trans-racial”. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/6 "2015-06-12T14:34:18Z")
I find this story fascinating, I want to know everything. When exactly did she start? Who all knew? Those who knew she was faking, what did they think? Why did she get started? Did she just wear wigs, or put huge amounts of effort to get her hair to look different? Why are the parents making an issue of it now? How many people suspected she was faking? > [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > It’s a pretty weird story. It’s also worth remembering that Spokane is an overwhelmingly white town, with about a [2.3% African American population.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spokane,_Washington#Demographics) I mention this to say that the NAACP in Spokane is likely not a major organization with a ton of involvement or a significant role in the community; while this weirdo’s issues are fun to mock, we should be careful not to extrapolate her craziness to other, more active, NAACP chapters. > > (For myself, our NAACP used to be headed up by [this nutjob](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._K._Edgerton), who regularly marched around town waving a Confederate flag and hung out with white supremacists and posed for a photo with a napkin on his head folded to look like a white hood. > > My impression is that local chapters of NAACP have some serious autonomy going on. Right, I hope that people realize this is just one person acting crazy for unknown reasons. Just like people sometimes fake that they have cancer doesn’t mean that everyone with cancer is faking for money or sympathy. I don’t worry as much about NAACP chapters being mocked as I worry about real light skin black people being questioned more and asked to prove themselves. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/7 "2015-06-12T14:42:31Z")
> [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > I find this story fascinating, I want to know everything. When exactly did she start? Who all knew? Those who knew she was faking, what did they think? Why did she get started? Did she just wear wigs, or put huge amounts of effort to get her hair to look different? Why are the parents making an issue of it now? How many people suspected she was faking? > > Right, I hope that people realize this is just one person acting crazy for unknown reasons. Just like people sometimes fake that they have cancer doesn’t mean that everyone with cancer is faking for money or sympathy. > > I don’t worry as much about NAACP chapters being mocked as I worry about real light skin black people being questioned more and asked to prove themselves. [Inquiring minds want to know!](http://jezebel.com/i-have-questions-about-that-white-lady-who-maybe-preten-1710807777) [Check out her wedding pic and surrounding relatives.](http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/1293403366024841541.png) ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/8 "2015-06-12T14:48:44Z")
In recent American society, being a ‘victim’ can actually be a bonus. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/9 "2015-06-12T14:48:59Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > “You mean I’m going to _stay_ this color?” > > 😃 🙂 I may be trying too hard to give her the benefit of the doubt. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/10 "2015-06-12T14:49:55Z")
The poor woman is obviously a bit emotionally troubled. I too, am more than a bit curious as to why it’s only now her family, or for that matter anyone else, is saying “You know, this lady in the NAACP saying she’s black is not at all black.” I’ll grant some thing just sort of creep up on you but a person who is white, and who LOOKS white even when pretending to be black, is kind of a striking weirdness. If one of my white friends permed their hair and starting saying they were black (or one of my black friends straightened their hair and started saying they were white) I would be immediately making inquiries. I would be very concerned for their mental health. It’s kind of like those people who dress themselves up as super duper special forces/Navy SEALS/JTF 2/SAS outfits and claim to be veterans who were never soldiers at all. They’re all quite nuts. But at least they can take off the phony uniforms when family is around who know better. All of this is assuming there isn’t part of the story we aren’t getting, such as the distinct possibility Dolezal has never actually claimed to be black. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/11 "2015-06-12T14:51:10Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Move over, transgender. this woman is obviously “trans-racial”. She absolutely is. She fabricated nothing. She’s been black since she was a child. If Caitlen Jenner is female, then this woman is most definitely black. And so is everyone else who identifies as black. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/12 "2015-06-12T14:52:19Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The poor woman is obviously a bit emotionally troubled. > > I too, am more than a bit curious as to why it’s only now her family, or for that matter anyone else, is saying “You know, this lady in the NAACP saying she’s black is not at all black.” I’ll grant some thing just sort of creep up on you but a person who is white, and who LOOKS white even when pretending to be black, is kind of a striking weirdness. If one of my white friends permed their hair and starting saying they were black (or one of my black friends straightened their hair and started saying they were white) I would be immediately making inquiries. I would be very concerned for their mental health. > > It’s kind of like those people who dress themselves up as super duper special forces/Navy SEALS/JTF 2/SAS outfits and claim to be veterans who were never soldiers at all. They’re all quite nuts. But at least they can take off the phony uniforms when family is around who know better. So… being a different race than the one you were assigned at birth is a mental disorder, but being a different gender than the one you were assigned at birth is not? ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/13 "2015-06-12T14:53:50Z")
Ironically, lots of NAACP staff are white, which has been the case from its inception. My experience with NAACP chapters is that their quality varies widely. I have been very unimpressed by a few I have worked with or encountered, but have heard good things about others. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/14 "2015-06-12T14:59:28Z")
Here’s some more hot takes for you **adaher** : [https://twitter.com/AdamSerwer/status/609329390254718976/photo/1](https://twitter.com/AdamSerwer/status/609329390254718976/photo/1) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/15 "2015-06-12T15:00:08Z")
> [@astro](#): > > [Inquiring minds want to know!](http://jezebel.com/i-have-questions-about-that-white-lady-who-maybe-preten-1710807777) > > [Check out her wedding pic and surrounding relatives.](http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/1293403366024841541.png) There seems to be some conflicting info online, or at least confused. I’ve seen the wedding picture, but some people said that was her first husband and she’s remarried. Even if she remarried, I would think someone she was married to would have to know what was going on. > [@RickJay](#): > > The poor woman is obviously a bit emotionally troubled. > > I too, am more than a bit curious as to why it’s only now her family, or for that matter anyone else, is saying “You know, this lady in the NAACP saying she’s black is not at all black.” I’ll grant some thing just sort of creep up on you but a person who is white, and who LOOKS white even when pretending to be black, is kind of a striking weirdness. If one of my white friends permed their hair and starting saying they were black (or one of my black friends straightened their hair and started saying they were white) I would be immediately making inquiries. I would be very concerned for their mental health. I read something, maybe on Jezebel, that apparently her parents had lost touch with her, so that might explain why it’s blowing up now. Or maybe they’ve known for a while but thought it was silly nonsense, but they recently had a fight and the mom decided to go nuclear and blow up her operation. It sounds like the woman is a compulsive liar, I’ve also seen that apparently she said she lived in a teepee growing up, foraged for food and used a bow and arrow to hunt, lived in South Africa for a while, and claimed that her adoptive siblings were her own children. So I’d guess that either some close friends knew that she was constantly lying and just overlooked it, or were taken in by it all. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/16 "2015-06-12T15:03:04Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > If Caitlen Jenner is female, then this woman is most definitely black. I think she has to notify Diane Sawyer and get a magazine cover before it’s official. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/17 "2015-06-12T15:04:09Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > So… being a different race than the one you were assigned at birth is a mental disorder, but being a different gender than the one you were assigned at birth is not? Save yourself the outragery. This is already being beat up here. [Charlamagne Tha God Compares Rachel Dolezal To Caitlyn Jenner: ‘You Can Be Transgender In America & Not Transracial?’](http://www.gossipcop.com/charlamagne-tha-god-rachel-dolezal-transracial-caitlyn-jenner-transgender-tweets-twitter-rant/) I think main difference is that there is relatively little evidence for racial disphoria as a condition. This an attention mongering scam by someone who has been making a LOT of stuff up, not a tortured soul living a lie. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/18 "2015-06-12T15:09:10Z")
I liked this quote: [QUOTE=Rachel Dolezal] Later she noted that as a species, “We’re all from the African continent.” [/QUOTE] “I was born a poor, black child.” ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/19 "2015-06-12T15:13:37Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by Rachel Dolezal > Later she noted that as a species, “We’re all from the African continent.” I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a larger blanket used to cover someone’s ass. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/20 "2015-06-12T15:16:09Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > The poor woman is obviously a bit emotionally troubled. > > I too, am more than a bit curious as to why it’s only now her family, or for that matter anyone else, is saying “You know, this lady in the NAACP saying she’s black is not at all black.” I’ll grant some thing just sort of creep up on you but a person who is white, and who LOOKS white even when pretending to be black, is kind of a striking weirdness. If one of my white friends permed their hair and starting saying they were black (or one of my black friends straightened their hair and started saying they were white) I would be immediately making inquiries. I would be very concerned for their mental health. In this case it sounds like she always identified with African-American culture and society, even as a kid. As she grew older she pushed it further and further. It’s not like she woke up one day and decided to pull a scam. > [@Richard\_Parker](#): > > Ironically, lots of NAACP staff are white, which has been the case from its inception. I believe the original heads of the NAACP were mostly whites. AFAIK there’s no technical reason why a white person couldn’t be the head of an NAACP chapter, though I guess it would be unlikely to happen in practice. Not sure what the rest of the local leadership will do now. IMO this is just a strange story, nothing more. (To the extent that there is anything serious about it, it would probably be the hate crimes reports. And of course, whatever personal issues that family might be going through.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357.md?page=2)