I watched the growing spectacle surrounding Rachel Dolezal, the now ex-Spokane NAACP president and outed white woman in black face, and became more incensed by each new fact revealed by the media. Forget the fact Dolezal appropriated an identity that took up space for authentic women of color and academics when she could have been more effective as a white ally. What really took me over the edge was when Dolezal began referring to herself as transracial.
The notion of being transracial, like a Transcontinental flight, suggests that one can travel both ways, but that is not the case with race. Dolezal and folks who think like her believe they can take on certain black cultural signifiers like hair, music, fashion and speech, but most brown folks can never assume enough mainstream signifiers to mask their racial identity and grant them access to white privilege.
Race is a social and political construct supported through laws, public policy and social practices. It is structural and systemic, which means the ugly truth is that race is less about what I call myself but more about how I am perceived and, ultimately, treated.
The other issue with Dolezal’s use of transracial is that it trivializes the real experiences of those that do not have the luxury of shedding her cultural props like a Halloween costume. Dolezal seems to have a warped view from her seat on Transracial airlines.
We should trade seats so she begins to see the world through a more authentic experience, one where black folks are being consistently targeted, harassed, brutalized and killed for being black.
Last call for Transracial flight 411.
Our first stop is Baltimore, where we would usually tour wonderful and exciting destinations like the National Aquarium, Oriole Park or Harborplace. Instead, let’s spend some time with locals who were demonized and assaulted after the majority of citizens organized to peacefully protest after the funeral of Freddie Gray, another young black male who died while in police custody. Also pay close attention to how these mostly young and peaceful protestors are characterized by society as “thugs” while their mainstream counterparts who riot over sporting events are labeled as “passionate.”
The next stop on Transracial flight 411 is the great state of Texas. They say everything is bigger in Texas and being born in Houston I can attest that everything is bigger except for empathy regarding black youth. Something the good folks in McKinney, Texas, can attest to as apparently the new craze of beating the summer heat is to beat and terrorize young swimsuit-clad black girls at the pool.
You see, the real black experience involves the ugly truth that black youth are not seen as children, they go from being toddlers to menacing personas in the eyes of many in the mainstream. Brutality that was once reserved for young boys and men is now being perpetrated upon young black girls.
Got enough of the Texas heat? You might enjoy our next travel destination — the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina; a city steeped in history and regional flavor. But, as a black person, this beauty is overshadowed by other forces, such as a 50-year-old father of four gunned down by a police officer and painted as a threat only to have a video surface to reveal the officer shooting a fleeing man and then manipulating the scene to corroborate his report.
While in Charleston, we have one more historic site to visit: the Emanuel AME Church. This is where a young white male filled with malice designed a plan to engage the congregation during Wednesday night Bible study, announce his disdain for that racial group and then kill nine people based on his irrational hatred and fear of that race.
Apologies for any turbulence you may have experienced but as we prepare for our final dissent of Transracial flight 411, please exercise caution when opening overhead bins or your mouth as it relates to boldly speaking about the experiences of black folks. Because no amount of spray tans and ethnic hair can prepare you for the realities of being brutalized by police, seeing your children assaulted, being falsely accused by authorities and now targeted and executed in a house of worship.
Trust me, Dolezal, you don’t want any part of this, Ms. Thing. I hear you are being courted for your own reality TV show, maybe the title should be “Black Like Me.”
This article appears in Jun 24-30, 2015.
REALITY!!! You have her a hard smack of the truth. She don’t want none of this! I admire her for her fight for injustice of black people but do it as a white woman.
Our culture is a trend for mainstream America to put on and take off when it so choose; while simultaneously denying those same human beings the dignity and right to live and love freely. You hit on the head Charles, I don’t think we fallen for this one.
Man Easley, you are way off base. It’s not called the National Association for the Advancement of Black People, it’s called the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Every picture I’ve seen of Dolezal clearly shows that while definitely not black, she’s not exactly white either. Kind of a burnt orange, rust color. So technically, her advancement within that hallowed organization was completely in line with their mission. I hope a white kid does this and wins the United Negro College Fund next year.
Getting all of this double standard, nonsensical hypocrisy out in the open is the only way to start fixing it.
Excellent piece… excellent perspective!
@ebony 1216 yes she could have been and still could be a much more effective advocate as her authentic white self. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
@shannise you are correct it is sad that black culture has been reduced to fashion trends in the eyes of some folks. Thank you for reading and sharing!
@HardTruth the NAACP was founded by some sympathetic white allies. It has always been inclusive of who can support their mission and Dolezal by her own voice admits her white heritage. Also you seem to gloss over the more important part of the article which is the historical and consistent brut alizarin of black folks. Thank you for reading.
@uniqueAugust. Thank you for reading !
“Thank you for flying Transracial Airlines, Flight 411… you may or may not find your bags at terminal “whatever” because we did not bother hiring enough personnel to give you great customer service… that is reserved for Lilly-White Airlines. Thank you and enjoy your destination.”
@Ms. Durden….Funny way of continuing the analogy….LOL
Great work as usual, Charles!
The Dolezal spectacle did not rile me like it did others. I simply can not be moved.
Mr. E, we agree that we don’t have access to white privilege through signifiers nor can we abandon signifiers at our choosing. For me, there’s more to racial identity or claiming blackness than that.
Let’s pivot for a moment to focus on the markers of authentic blackness. If we believe skin color, hair and speech are the main markers, we’d have to conclude there are traitors to our race among us. These traitors are the ones that Giants (King, Hosea Williams, Medgar Evers, etc.) marched and died for; who live in brown skin, kinky hair, locks; have ‘ethnic’ 2/3/4-syllable names; hug Big Mama at the annual family reunion somewhere down south; wolf down plates of greens on the regular; can Wobble & Electric Slide like nobody’s business; and flaunt all the so-called signifiers of blackness but do not live up to the ‘calling’, the responsibility of their blackness. Many are not politically engaged– they don’t position themselves to hold political office nor do they vote and if they do, they lack command of the issues to make an informed decision at the ballot box so when hysteria over the confederate flag (essentially a middle- finger salute to our ancestors on government property) ensues they don’t understand their role in bringing into power policy makers who vote against their interests. They are the pants sagging, gun-toting, gun-shooting folk yelling “Black Lives Matter” only when the offender does not look like us though black on black crime is more prevalent and likelier to claim our lives on a daily basis. These traitors produce and spew soulless reality shows, films, videos and lyrics laced w/ the n-word under the guise of art and entertainment. Truancy, ‘breaking and entering’ my home while I’m at work or my car while I sleep, and robbing the local pizza spot/barber shop/gas station (all recent crimes in my South Fulton neighborhood) are their vocations along with their battle cry of “lack of employment opportunities.” They are the baby mamas and daddies who fail at raising and providing for their own precious seed and preparing them for Pre-K, yet criticize celebrities, whites and gays who adopt black kids. They are the ones who litter and don’t report criminal activity in our communities, don’t keep up their yards and homes (letting property values fall) then turn around and complain about how run down everything is, how no businesses will invest in predominantly black areas. These traitors complain about failing schools but won’t fundraise or volunteer at these schools to make things better for our children. What about the black leaders and preachers who defraud naive supporters or sell out our interests to corporate America and corrupt African or island governments in exchange for titles, prestige and money? Traitors!!! They are the “brothers” passing by in a car who disrespected me by calling me a bitch when I refused their advances in my college days while walking near Morehouse’s campus to my car. These traitors are the jealous girls at my public middle school who told me as a 6th grader attending public school in SW Atlanta, I ‘talked white’ because I used correct grammar, and that I was trying to be white when I was one of 2 students who wore braided extensions. And so, yes, I have come to see race as this construct of loyalties, my kinsmen as the keepers of my people’s collective progress. Race traitors need not apply.
As far as I’m concerned, Dolezal has served our community and proven her commitment to the advancement of colored people. According to online research, she taught “The Black Woman’s Struggle”, “African and African American Art History”, “African History”, “African American Culture”, and “Intro to Africana Studies” at Eastern Washington University on a quarter by quarter basis until her dismissal this month; adopted black children; and advocated for racial and social justice on our behalf. I have no doubts about where her loyalties lie, however, I respect that some do. For them and those who also acknowledge the loyalties of traitors of the black race, I offer one parting question. Wanna trade?
There are so many layers to this. Use of term transracial adds another sobriquet to the rampant social, racial and cultural names for theft for which our folk has endured more than four centuries here. The kind of identity infringement of the sort to which Ms. Dolezal’s has engaged is rather interesting in light of its concurrent derision and adoration of the black woman and its real latent white fragility or denial of racism it too brings.
She is ironically thrust right into the vanguard of the kinds cases that groups such as the one she directed takes up. Of course, they cannot for obvious reasons here. But you understand my point. There has been considerable racial and social trespass. But most important, I think, are the issues of laws for which she is in violation and should be expected to face a day or days in court. A clear and present message must be sent that what she has done is unacceptable AND that there are binding legal consequences now that she has.
@Tameka I hear your argument and it is a legitimate one but I also caution that the folks and conditions you describe were not created in a vacuum and a system of historical and consistent oppressive systems are key contributors. Thank you for reading and sharing your thoughts.
@Kimberly thank you and I miss you
@Tony-Tony Stark You bring up an excellent point about the legal concerns regarding the decision she made to perpetrate a fraud. Thank you as always for your learned input!