Rachel Dolezal Lied, but the EDGES don’t Lie: A Look at White Privilege In Black Face

Abstract

Rachel Dolezal broke the Internet by affirming her Black womanhood, and the most obvious problem with this was that she is not Black; and that is part of the sad irony that accompanies her story. No Black women could ever hope to affirm her Black womanhood in such a way, and achieve the same level of media attention. The media blitz of #WhiteGirlsRock, a backlash to #BlackGirlsRock, particularly Michelle Obama’s words delivered at the show, exemplify what typically happens when Black women and girls attempt to affirm their beauty and talent, make themselves visible, or dare to remove themselves from the marginalized spaces – off to the edges – that society expects them to occupy. Thus, a response to Rachel Dolezal’s performance of Black Face and mocking caricature of Black womanhood was inevitable.