Rachel Dolezal Has Stepped Down From NAACP

On Monday, through a statement released by the NAACP, Rachel Dolezal formally resigned as president of the Spokane NAACP chapter. In a lengthy response posted to the Spokane NAACP's Facebook page, Dolezal wrote that the story posited by her parents — that Dolezal, a white woman, had been posing as black or biracial for years as a civil rights activist — was not "the full story," but that she was resigning her post out of respect. The statement was defiant in the face of her opponents, but supportive of NAACP.

"This is not me quitting; this is a continuum," Dolezal wrote.

In spite of what Dolezal called an "unexpected firestorm" after her parents' press conference Thursday with local TV network KREM 2, NAACP pledged to support Dolezal and indeed all of their supporters, black or biracial or otherwise. "NAACP Spokane Washington Branch President Rachel Dolezal is enduring a legal issue with her family, and we respect her privacy in this matter. One’s racial identity is not a qualifying criteria or disqualifying standard for NAACP leadership," the organization said in a statement.

The bizarre case of Dolezal, who had referred to herself as black or biracial as part of her longtime work as a civil rights activist, captured the United States and beyond. Many questioned whether Dolezal was "transethnic," e.g. identifying as a racial minority different to her ethnic heritage, but others warned of the risk of referring to her as such when she hadn't said so publicly. Indeed, until releasing the Facebook statement Monday morning, Dolezal had said nothing publicly about the controversy, leaving critics to speculate furiously about her motives.

Dear Executive Committee and NAACP Members,

It is a true honor to serve in the racial and social justice movement here in Spokane and across the nation. Many issues face us now that drive at the theme of urgency. Police brutality, biased curriculum in schools, economic disenfranchisement, health inequities, and a lack of pro-justice political representation are among the concerns at the forefront of the current administration of the Spokane NAACP. And yet, the dialogue has unexpectedly shifted internationally to my personal identity in the context of defining race and ethnicity.

I have waited in deference while others expressed their feelings, beliefs, confusions and even conclusions - absent the full story. I am consistently committed to empowering marginalized voices and believe that many individuals have been heard in the last hours and days that would not otherwise have had a platform to weigh in on this important discussion. Additionally, 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.

While challenging the construct of race is at the core of evolving human consciousness, we can NOT afford to lose sight of the five Game Changers (Criminal Justice & Public Safety, Health & Healthcare, Education, Economic Sustainability, and Voting Rights & Political Representation) that affect millions, often with a life or death outcome. The movement is larger than a moment in time or a single person's story, and I hope that everyone offers their robust support of the Journey for Justice campaign that the NAACP launches today!

I am delighted that so many organizations and individuals have supported and collaborated with the Spokane NAACP under my leadership to grow this branch into one of the healthiest in the nation in 5 short months. In the eye of this current storm, I can see that a separation of family and organizational outcomes is in the best interest of the NAACP.

It is with complete allegiance to the cause of racial and social justice and the NAACP that I step aside from the Presidency and pass the baton to my Vice President, Naima Quarles-Burnley. It is my hope that by securing a beautiful office for the organization in the heart of downtown, bringing the local branch into financial compliance, catalyzing committees to do strategic work in the five Game Changer issues, launching community forums, putting the membership on a fast climb, and helping many individuals find the legal, financial and practical support needed to fight race-based discrimination, I have positioned the Spokane NAACP to buttress this transition.

Please know I will never stop fighting for human rights and will do everything in my power to help and assist, whether it means stepping up or stepping down, because this is not about me. It's about justice. This is not me quitting; this is a continuum. It's about moving the cause of human rights and the Black Liberation Movement along the continuum from Resistance to Chattel Slavery to Abolition to Defiance of Jim Crow to the building of Black Wall Street to the Civil Rights and Black Power Movement to the ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ movement and into a future of self-determination and empowerment.

With much love and a commitment to always fight for what is right and good in this world,

Rachel Dolezal