Heard this on the Hard Line this afternoon- Soooo busted.
(CNN)The race of one of the most prominent faces in Spokane, Washington's black community is under question after her estranged mother claimed she is white but is "being dishonest and deceptive with her identity."
Rachel Dolezal, 37, is the head of the local chapter of the NAACP and has identified herself as at least partly African-American. But her Montana birth certificate says she was born to two parents who say they are Caucasian. The parents shared that document and old photos with CNN.
"We are her birth parents," Lawrence Dolezal told CNN on Friday. "We do not understand why she feels it's necessary to misrepresent her ethnicity."
CNN tried to reach Rachel Dolezal for comment by emailing and calling her, but was unsuccessful. The Spokane Spokesman-Review. newspaper reported, though, that she has framed the controversy surrounding her racial identity in the context of litigation over guardianship of her adopted brother.
According to court documents obtained by CNN, Rachel Dolezal's adopted brother, who is black, sought emancipation from Ruthanne and Lawrence Dolezal in 2010. The adopted brother, now 21, said the Dolezals used "physical forms of punishment" and had sent his brother and sister away to group homes because they didn't cooperate with the couple's religion and rules.
The adopted brother wanted to live with Rachel Dolezal "in a multiracial household where black culture is celebrated and I have a connection to the black community," the court papers said. The papers did not specify Rachel Dolezal's race.
The petition for emancipation was dropped. In a separate legal action in 2010, the court appointed Rachel Dolezal to be the adopted brother's guardian with the consent of Ruthanne and Lawrence Dolezal.
On Friday, the Dolezals told CNN they didn't want to comment on a possible "legal dispute" their daughter or the NAACP had mentioned.
One organization that appears to be standing behind her is the NAACP. The group, historically one of the most prominent in supporting causes important to the African-American community, said Friday that Dolezal is "enduring a legal issue with her family" and that "we respect her privacy in this matter."
"One's racial identity is not a qualifying criteria or disqualifying standard for NAACP leadership," the group said. "The NAACP Alaska-Oregon-Washington State Conference stands behind Ms. Dolezal's advocacy record."
Challenged about her race
Dolezal represented herself as African-American -- along with several other ethnicities, including white and Native American -- in an application for a Spokane police ombudsman commission.
And she has presented the public with a different family photograph posted to the local NAACP chapter's Facebook page. When she announced her father was coming to town for a visit, she showed herself standing next to an older African-American man.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/12/us/washington-spokane-naacp-rachel-dolezal-identity/index.html#
NAACP official's race questioned 01:00
Dolezal's public racial identity came under scrutiny on Thursday, when a reporter from CNN affiliate KXLY held up that photo asked her if it showed her dad. She replied that it did.
Then came a follow-up question: "Are you African-American?"
"I don't understand the question of -- I did tell you that, yes, that's my dad. And he was unable to come in January," Dolezal responded.
"Are your parents -- are they white?" came the next query.
Dolezal walked away from the microphone, leaving her purse and keys, and took refuge in a nearby clothing boutique.
Heres the video:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/12/us/washington-spokane-naacp-rachel-dolezal-identity/index.html#
(CNN)The race of one of the most prominent faces in Spokane, Washington's black community is under question after her estranged mother claimed she is white but is "being dishonest and deceptive with her identity."
Rachel Dolezal, 37, is the head of the local chapter of the NAACP and has identified herself as at least partly African-American. But her Montana birth certificate says she was born to two parents who say they are Caucasian. The parents shared that document and old photos with CNN.
"We are her birth parents," Lawrence Dolezal told CNN on Friday. "We do not understand why she feels it's necessary to misrepresent her ethnicity."
CNN tried to reach Rachel Dolezal for comment by emailing and calling her, but was unsuccessful. The Spokane Spokesman-Review. newspaper reported, though, that she has framed the controversy surrounding her racial identity in the context of litigation over guardianship of her adopted brother.
According to court documents obtained by CNN, Rachel Dolezal's adopted brother, who is black, sought emancipation from Ruthanne and Lawrence Dolezal in 2010. The adopted brother, now 21, said the Dolezals used "physical forms of punishment" and had sent his brother and sister away to group homes because they didn't cooperate with the couple's religion and rules.
The adopted brother wanted to live with Rachel Dolezal "in a multiracial household where black culture is celebrated and I have a connection to the black community," the court papers said. The papers did not specify Rachel Dolezal's race.
The petition for emancipation was dropped. In a separate legal action in 2010, the court appointed Rachel Dolezal to be the adopted brother's guardian with the consent of Ruthanne and Lawrence Dolezal.
On Friday, the Dolezals told CNN they didn't want to comment on a possible "legal dispute" their daughter or the NAACP had mentioned.
One organization that appears to be standing behind her is the NAACP. The group, historically one of the most prominent in supporting causes important to the African-American community, said Friday that Dolezal is "enduring a legal issue with her family" and that "we respect her privacy in this matter."
"One's racial identity is not a qualifying criteria or disqualifying standard for NAACP leadership," the group said. "The NAACP Alaska-Oregon-Washington State Conference stands behind Ms. Dolezal's advocacy record."
Challenged about her race
Dolezal represented herself as African-American -- along with several other ethnicities, including white and Native American -- in an application for a Spokane police ombudsman commission.
And she has presented the public with a different family photograph posted to the local NAACP chapter's Facebook page. When she announced her father was coming to town for a visit, she showed herself standing next to an older African-American man.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/12/us/washington-spokane-naacp-rachel-dolezal-identity/index.html#
NAACP official's race questioned 01:00
Dolezal's public racial identity came under scrutiny on Thursday, when a reporter from CNN affiliate KXLY held up that photo asked her if it showed her dad. She replied that it did.
Then came a follow-up question: "Are you African-American?"
"I don't understand the question of -- I did tell you that, yes, that's my dad. And he was unable to come in January," Dolezal responded.
"Are your parents -- are they white?" came the next query.
Dolezal walked away from the microphone, leaving her purse and keys, and took refuge in a nearby clothing boutique.
Heres the video:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/12/us/washington-spokane-naacp-rachel-dolezal-identity/index.html#
