Abstract:
The case of Rachel Dolezal was brought to the attention of the public, mass media and popular culture in June
2015. Rachel Dolezal was white women who identified herself as a black, and, until her parents identified her
as white, presented herself as African-American. As a black woman, Rachel Dolezal justified her appearance
by stating that she came from a mixed-race family, and rose to the top of the hierarchy of the National Association
for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) in the USA. While photographs reveal her to be
Caucasian, black culture had influenced her personal life, as she had siblings who are black, her husband was
black, and she had studied at Howard University for blacks. The case of Rachel Dolezal is highly complex,
and has been discussed by many multicultural educators, focussing on the issue of her ability to identify herself
as a black, including issues related to her biological identity. This case gave rise to many questions relating
to the ability to change by race.
