A US civil rights activist resigned Monday from a post at the leading African-American advocacy group amid allegations she is white but has masqueraded for years as being black. Rachel Dolezal's resignation from her job as president of the Spokane, Washington chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People came as her parents, who are white and says she is too, urged her to seek counselling.
The Washington state chapter of the NAACP posted Dolezal's resignation letter on its Facebook page. In it, she writes that her commitment to the "racial and social justice movement" is undiminished but that "the dialogue has unexpectedly shifted internationally to my personal identity in the context of defining race and ethnicity." Dolezal, 37, built a career as an activist in the black community of Spokane. She rose to become the president of the city's branch of the NAACP and served as an independent mediator for the city's police force.
Neither position required that she be black, but media reports said Dolezal identified herself in application forms and in various public appearances and writings as black. She apparently resigned under pressure from the civil rights group. "I have always deferred to the state and national NAACP leadership and offer my sincere gratitude for their unwavering support of my leadership through this unexpected firestorm," Dolezal wrote.
Her parents insist their daughter, from whom they are estranged, is white. Since the story went national last week they have provided local media with a birth certificate and photographs of Dolezal as a blonde, fair-skinned child. Now, as an adult, she is tawny skinned and dark haired. Speaking on Monday on ABC News, prior to the resignation, parents Lawrence and Ruthanne Dolezal said they were baffled by what their daughter has done. They said they have known for years but kept quiet until reporters came to them recently and asked about their daughter. "Rachel is trying to reject her own reality, her own identity, and by doing that she does not alter reality," Ruthanne Dolezal said.
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