# 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:** 4
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/61 "2015-06-12T22:04:27Z")
Anyone else think that [as a young girl](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/06/12/12/298E481A00000578-3121061-_Rachel_is_very_good_at_using_her_artistic_skills_to_transform_h-m-8_1434107482179.jpg), a nose job would have made her look quite a bit like Jennifer Lawrence? ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/62 "2015-06-12T22:18:13Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > What I meant (and said in the part you omitted) was that she likely thought no one knew who her parents were, so her claim to have been whipped as a child would’t have been something anyone would associate with them. Well, I omitted it just for brevity, but I don’t think her behaviour is really a matter of innocent little tales or a “masquerade”, harming no-one. She knows that the internet exists, and her second name is still the same as that of her parents, so she ought to have realised it might be unwise to go around telling lies that might be found out. Unwise, and also pretty nasty. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/63 "2015-06-12T22:21:56Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > … , so she ought to have realised it might be unwise to go around telling lies that might be found out. Unwise, and also pretty nasty. I guess this must be one of those 1950s values that **SA** thinks we should return to. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/64 "2015-06-12T22:33:21Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > As for Dolezal, I actually feel kind of sorry for her. Her case goes far beyond her simply being a pathological liar; she is _living_ the lie! I actually do think of her in much the same way I’ve come to regard transgender people: she’s identifying as black, living as black, and working for the betterment of black lives. If she’s lied about being a victim of hate crimes, she working against black people. I’m just glad she’s being outed as white at the same her claims are coming under scrutiny, because otherwise people would be seeing her dishonesty as emblematic of corrupt racist black leadership or some such. I find it humorous that she is eliciting _pity_ from so many people instead of outrage. If that’s not evidence were dealing with a white person, I don’t know what is. Lol. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/65 "2015-06-12T22:36:48Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > I guess this must be one of those 1950s values that **SA** thinks we should return to. Of course it is. One of the best things about the 50s was the way everyone lied about the race of their parents. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/66 "2015-06-12T22:43:19Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > If she’s lied about being a victim of hate crimes, she working against black people. I’m just glad she’s being outed as white at the same her claims are coming under scrutiny, because otherwise people would be seeing her dishonesty as emblematic of corrupt racist black leadership or some such. > > I find it humorous that she is eliciting _pity_ from so many people instead of outrage. If that’s not evidence were dealing with a white person, I don’t know what is. Lol. I think most people feel she’s dealing with a deep-seated emotional issue, ala Michael Jackson, where someone desperately wants to live as a person of another race. It’s got to be a very unpleasant way to live when you have to get up each day and put on makeup and different hair to make you look like you’re someone you know you aren’t and then have to go out and present that false image to the world. Good point about the hate crime reports though. However I think they’re a rather minor issue. Al Sharpton has done worse by orders of magnitude and he’s considered a leader and spokesperson for the black community. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/67 "2015-06-12T23:00:10Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > I think the thing most people here don’t understand with regard to the jibes being made in regard to transgender/transracial people is that the funmaking isn’t aimed at transgender people themselves so much as it is at the social justice warriors hellbent to make sure everyone else conforms to their ideas about how to think about and deal with transgenderism and their hostility toward anyone who doesn’t. Bullshit. The overwhelming majority of the “jibes” made about transgenderism is directed at transgendered people. And the people who are doing this “funmaking” are exactly what you describe: _social justice warriors hellbent to make sure everyone else conforms to their ideas about how to think_. With a full helping of _hostility toward anyone who doesn’t_ on the side. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/68 "2015-06-12T23:00:54Z")
**Timmy!** ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2015, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/69 "2015-06-12T23:03:54Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > If she’s lied about being a victim of hate crimes, she working against black people. I’m just glad she’s being outed as white at the same her claims are coming under scrutiny, because otherwise people would be seeing her dishonesty as emblematic of corrupt racist black leadership or some such. I agree that she seems to be trying to live the life of a black stereotype rather than the life of an actual black person. ---
**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, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/70 "2015-06-12T23:36:33Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > Gosh, I wonder what she would accuse them of if she _did_ want to “cast aspersions” on them. This made me laugh… out loud even! ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/71 "2015-06-13T00:18:03Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Bullshit. The overwhelming majority of the “jibes” made about transgenderism is directed at transgendered people. And the people who are doing this “funmaking” are exactly what you describe: _social justice warriors hellbent to make sure everyone else conforms to their ideas about how to think_. With a full helping of _hostility toward anyone who doesn’t_ on the side. I think this has more to do with social justice warriors realizing that people changing their gender helps the cause, whereas people changing their ethnic identity would just ruin everything. But science doesn’t back up the social justice warriors. Race is a social construct and thus it is what we say it is. So if she says she’s black, and she’s living as a black woman, then she’s a black woman. I believe that sincerely, not just as a way to rib social justice warriors, even though it’s fun. As for living a stereotype, isn’t this exactly what transgendered people attempt to do? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/72 "2015-06-13T00:19:03Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > What about her claims of child abuse by her parents? Or the claims that her adopted brother is her son? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/73 "2015-06-13T00:20:06Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > I think the thing most people here don’t understand with regard to the jibes being made in regard to transgender/transracial people is that the funmaking isn’t aimed at transgender people themselves so much as it is at the social justice warriors hellbent to make sure everyone else conforms to their ideas about how to think about and deal with transgenderism and their hostility toward anyone who doesn’t. Bruce/Caitlyn him/herself has been pretty mellow and unconcerned with whatever pronoun people want to use, but plenty of other people here and elsewhere have been damned determined to make sure everyone else immediately adopt their view or be damned forever as unremitting assholes. > > As for Dolezal, I actually feel kind of sorry for her. Her case goes far beyond her simply being a pathological liar; she is _living_ the lie! I actually do think of her in much the same way I’ve come to regard transgender people: she’s identifying as black, living as black, and working for the betterment of black lives. To me, that’s far different than someone lying just to fool people into thinking they’re someone they’re not and don’t even try to be, or to bask in reflected glory as in the case of people who’ve never been in the military but dress up in military gear, etc. > > I haven’t read anything so far to indicate that she’s a bad person, and it seems she’s trying to do good things with her life. I don’t think she intended to cast aspersions on her parents with her tales of being whipped and so forth. I think she just figured they were out of the loop and nobody knew who they were anyway, and the stories gave her street cred that she probably felt the need to establish as a result of the masquerade she’s engaged in. I stop reading anything that uses the term “social justice warrior”. If it were paper, I would toss it in the trash like the trash that it really is. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/74 "2015-06-13T00:23:13Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > As for living a stereotype, isn’t this exactly what transgendered people attempt to do? Um…no. I hope this fights your ignorance. It’s worth trying anyhow. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/75 "2015-06-13T00:26:40Z")
This whole thing is very strange. I do understand how you can have an affinity for a certain culture, buy why go this far? > [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > This is a fascinating story. > > It seems as if there’s evidence that she’s lied about being black, but the interesting question is what if she hadn’t? False hate crimes aside (which is disturbing and infuriating), would this still be a story if this had been more of a case of lying by omission? > > There are plenty of black people who look like her, so I’m not so much intrigued by _how_ she was capable of fooling people as much as I’m intrigued by her desire to do so. Perhaps she has always gravitated towards black people socially, and then realized that being seen as a light-skinned black person afforded her more acceptance than being perceived as a white woman who simply enjoys black culture. It wouldn’t be a story, but I do think people who saw her original paler blonder straight haired look might wonder why she was suddenly tan with coily hair. People tan and curl their hair all the time, but I do think some people would have been a bit taken aback and wondered if it was nothing more than a stylistic choice or if she was trying to pass. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/76 "2015-06-13T00:36:41Z")
Don’t blame me, **Rick kitchen** , I picked it up from some of the board’s posters here speaking admiringly of their efforts. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/77 "2015-06-13T01:40:23Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Possibly the most clueless thing you’ve posted here. I think the question **adaher** and others raise is interesting. Why is it so improper for her to call herself black, if she truly feels like she was born black in a white body? What distinguishes her situation from that of a transgendered person? Another poster said it was that race is a cultural construct rather than biological, but I don’t see how that is pertinent to the issue at hand. Another person suggested that the distinction may be that of quantity; i.e. feeling as if you were born to the wrong race is not an issue that effects many people; she is probably an isolated example. I think this is makes sense, but what if suddenly lots of people start wanting to experiment with presenting themselves as a different race? What is the meaningful distinction? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/78 "2015-06-13T01:53:32Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > I think the question **adaher** and others raise is interesting. Why is it so improper for her to call herself black, if she truly feels like she was born black in a white body? What distinguishes her situation from that of a transgendered person? How about the reams and reams of studies demonstrating that gender disphoria is a genuine medical condition that has a serious impact on the person’s quality of life? Is there any evidence at all that “racial dysphoria” is an actual thing, or that it causes measurable harm to anyone? Any evidence at all? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/79 "2015-06-13T02:26:07Z")
Gender disphoria is a thing, but the issue of whether or not it’s a disorder or whether people with the condition should indulge themselves is not settled science. It’s only settled politics. Racial disphoria cannot be a thing, because race doesn’t exist. Therefore, it’s outside the realm of medicine. But it is still within the realm of politics, and the urge to reject it seems to me mainly based on the need of the social justice set to classify people by race. Letting people be any race they feel they identify with most ruins everything. In the case of this particular person, she has lived as a black person since she was very young and has changed her appearance so that she was accepted as black in appearance for years. The NAACP has rushed to her defense and the only people that really seem to have an issue are her parents and some Twitter denizens. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357/80 "2015-06-13T02:38:55Z")
In this article she mentions W.E.B. Dubois, and race being cultural. I know that when I taught, children were allowed to mark whatever race they wanted on their standardized tests, and we were told not to question it. I can’t say that I ever looked at what they marked except to scan the answer documents to make sure everything was filled in. But then I just skimmed to make sure each bubble was filled, I didn’t actually read them. [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3122205/White-NAACP-leader-pretended-black-pictured-time-scandal-broke-responds-atatcks-saying-don-t-two-sh-ts-gusy-think.html](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3122205/White-NAACP-leader-pretended-black-pictured-time-scandal-broke-responds-atatcks-saying-don-t-two-sh-ts-gusy-think.html) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/local-naacp-leader-fabricates-black-ethnicity/722357.md?page=5)