A professor admits she faked her racial identity

[Caracal]

Huh.  Anyone see her picture online?  How did she pull this off? 

I wouldn't mind hitting the job market one more time (now that things are very, very bad) but there's no way my skin tone can pass for anything other than whitey white white.

Sigh. "She pulled if off," because race, while very real, is a social, not a biological or phenotypical, category. The classic example is Walter White, who was a black man, and head of the NAACP, but had pale skin and blue eyes. There are lots of people, who identify as black, have parents who both identify as black, but who if you took them out of their social context, would not be indentifiable as black. As Para shows, it can work the other way too.

[Parasaurolophus]

"Getting away with it" doesn't mean that "others fell for it." It is much more likely that in public statements, most people (such as myself) do not say what we believe to be true but what is required to avoid getting fired. This is exacerbated when there is absolutely no upside to commenting either way. You'd have to have rocks in your head to bring up race unnecessarily as a white person in the workplace no matter how unlikely someone's claim.

I would think that most people's default attitude is, instead, to simply accept what we're told by someone about their heritage. People don't normally lie about that, and they're not normally terribly mistaken, either, so it's perfectly normal, when someone makes a claim that seems surprising, to just shrug and say "Huh!".

Speaking from experience, I can tell you that when someone doesn't take your word for it, it's pretty fucking rude. When it happens to you most days, it's infuriating. I would hope that most people implicitly understand that, and aren't so invested in stirring up trouble that they stew over it forevermore and fantasize about saying it out loud. It seems to me that we have pretty good reasons to avoid that sort of conflict, starting with the fact that we'd usually be in the wrong.

As a side-vent, I have a colleague who persists in calling me "Papasaurolophus", even immediately after other colleagues correctly call me "Parasaurolophus" (although I have to say that when they write to me, they still fucking call me "Parasaurolophuse"), and after I've corrected him any number of times. Why is he so invested in the mistake? It's not actually a particularly unusual name in this country, and he's from a part of the country where it's more common than it is here. I guess I should be thankful that it's not the usual error ("Parasaurolophuse"), but honestly, it bugs me a lot more.

[Diogenes]

I wonder if her pronouncing to the world was really all that helpful. If she wants to absolve herself of the guilt she's been feeling all over the years, a discussion with her HR and publisher could have gotten her book and job pulped.

It's like I heard they say in AA you are supposed to apologize to people from your past unless that apology will hurt them more, opening healed wounds and such.

But now she dumps her guilt onto the public discourse to deal with and create drama about.

Just a thought experiment I suppose...maybe the world (especially the academics familiar with her work) have a right to know it all.

[bacardiandlime]

I wonder if her pronouncing to the world was really all that helpful. If she wants to absolve herself of the guilt she's been feeling all over the years, a discussion with her HR and publisher could have gotten her book and job pulped.

It seems she was about to be rumbled. She wanted to get her side out first.

[Parasaurolophus]

I wonder if her pronouncing to the world was really all that helpful. If she wants to absolve herself of the guilt she's been feeling all over the years, a discussion with her HR and publisher could have gotten her book and job pulped.

It seems she was about to be rumbled. She wanted to get her side out first.

Yeah. A junior scholar was on the scent.

[marshwiggle]

I wonder if her pronouncing to the world was really all that helpful. If she wants to absolve herself of the guilt she's been feeling all over the years, a discussion with her HR and publisher could have gotten her book and job pulped.

It seems she was about to be rumbled. She wanted to get her side out first.

Yeah. A junior scholar was on the scent.

From that string of tweets:

She made a living & a whole life out of parroting Black Rican trauma and survival. As a Black Rican I am PISSED.
The other thing is that, let historians tell it, her work is actually good, chick is smart- so why lie?
why chase the extra clout of being a hood raised Black Boricua?

Unintentional 4th wall break?

[mahagonny]

"Getting away with it" doesn't mean that "others fell for it." It is much more likely that in public statements, most people (such as myself) do not say what we believe to be true but what is required to avoid getting fired. This is exacerbated when there is absolutely no upside to commenting either way. You'd have to have rocks in your head to bring up race unnecessarily as a white person in the workplace no matter how unlikely someone's claim.

I would think that most people's default attitude is, instead, to simply accept what we're told by someone about their heritage. People don't normally lie about that, and they're not normally terribly mistaken, either, so it's perfectly normal, when someone makes a claim that seems surprising, to just shrug and say "Huh!".

Speaking from experience, I can tell you that when someone doesn't take your word for it, it's pretty fucking rude. When it happens to you most days, it's infuriating. I would hope that most people implicitly understand that, and aren't so invested in stirring up trouble that they stew over it forevermore and fantasize about saying it out loud. It seems to me that we have pretty good reasons to avoid that sort of conflict, starting with the fact that we'd usually be in the wrong.

As a side-vent, I have a colleague who persists in calling me "Papasaurolophus", even immediately after other colleagues correctly call me "Parasaurolophus" (although I have to say that when they write to me, they still fucking call me "Parasaurolophuse"), and after I've corrected him any number of times. Why is he so invested in the mistake? It's not actually a particularly unusual name in this country, and he's from a part of the country where it's more common than it is here. I guess I should be thankful that it's not the usual error ("Parasaurolophuse"), but honestly, it bugs me a lot more.

that is insulting. Your name is you own property, like your hairstyle, tattoos (or none) and clothes. Should be respected, learned and pronounced to the best of one's ability. Including if you change it. Maybe especially then.

[apl68]

As for "diversity hires" it will be interesting to see how this particular case shakes out. Since they can't legally say that being black was a job requirement, they can't fire her for not being black.

They can surely find a pretext if they look hard enough.  Should it even become necessary.  After this revelation I would think that her position will become so untenable that she'll soon be pressured into resigning.  Students will be protesting, colleagues in her field will ostracize her, she'll get all manner of hate mail and probably some death threats.  Resignation and seeking refuge in obscurity will be her only hope of making all that go away.

Question.  Not trying to troll here, I'm honestly curious.  Is it possible in practical terms for a white person (who's honest about it) to get a position in Africana studies and be accepted?  I really don't know.

[mahagonny]

I don't know the answer, but I'll pose this. Is it possible for a black man to sing country music? A Japanese person to play 'the World Is Waiting for the Sunrise' on the banjo? I've seen both, and they were as authentic as it gets. I thought the idea of education was you could master that which has been 'foreign' to you. If you've mastered it, why couldn't you convey it?
These days I am running into white colleagues who are calling out other whites for racist behavior. They've never been black. They don't feel the sting of the insult. They've been learning. Although in a few cases they've been learning how to be a jerk.

[Caracal]

As for "diversity hires" it will be interesting to see how this particular case shakes out. Since they can't legally say that being black was a job requirement, they can't fire her for not being black.

They can surely find a pretext if they look hard enough.  Should it even become necessary.  After this revelation I would think that her position will become so untenable that she'll soon be pressured into resigning.  Students will be protesting, colleagues in her field will ostracize her, she'll get all manner of hate mail and probably some death threats.  Resignation and seeking refuge in obscurity will be her only hope of making all that go away.

Question.  Not trying to troll here, I'm honestly curious.  Is it possible in practical terms for a white person (who's honest about it) to get a position in Africana studies and be accepted?  I really don't know.

I know lots of white people in Africana studies departments.

[hmaria1609]

This story was on the 10 pm local newscast. One of her previous students who was interviewed thought something was off about her last year.  Two members of GWU's Black Student Union weighed in too.

[Caracal]

"Getting away with it" doesn't mean that "others fell for it." It is much more likely that in public statements, most people (such as myself) do not say what we believe to be true but what is required to avoid getting fired. This is exacerbated when there is absolutely no upside to commenting either way. You'd have to have rocks in your head to bring up race unnecessarily as a white person in the workplace no matter how unlikely someone's claim.

I would think that most people's default attitude is, instead, to simply accept what we're told by someone about their heritage. People don't normally lie about that, and they're not normally terribly mistaken, either, so it's perfectly normal, when someone makes a claim that seems surprising, to just shrug and say "Huh!".

Yes. If you really think that you can look at someone and know what their "real" racial identity is, you're very much mistaken.

[Parasaurolophus]

Question.  Not trying to troll here, I'm honestly curious.  Is it possible in practical terms for a white person (who's honest about it) to get a position in Africana studies and be accepted?  I really don't know.

Yes, totally. And there are men in women's studies departments, too.

Is it possible for a black man to sing country music? A Japanese person to play 'the World Is Waiting for the Sunrise' on the banjo?

There are real, important questions to be asked about cultural appropriation and cultural property, and when appropriation causes profound offense or harm. I think it's fair to say that, generally, it's accepted that the appropriation of an artistic element (like a style, genre, etc.) is perfectly fine--indeed, it's a cornerstone of artistic practice--although the way one goes about doing so may be morally wrong, insensitive, harmful, or profoundly offensive.

[mahagonny]

You can deny you're black and 'get away with it.'  A former girlfriend of mine said that her father was doing it. She never said she was doing it. Well, at that point, let sleeping dogs lie i guess. This is how I found out I love black women. Well, certain ones especially.

Is it possible for a black man to sing country music? A Japanese person to play 'the World Is Waiting for the Sunrise' on the banjo?

Is it possible for a black man to sing country music? A Japanese person to play 'the World Is Waiting for the Sunrise' on the banjo?

There are real, important questions to be asked about cultural appropriation and cultural property, and when appropriation causes profound offense or harm. I think it's fair to say that, generally, it's accepted that the appropriation of an artistic element (like a style, genre, etc.) is perfectly fine--indeed, it's a cornerstone of artistic practice--although the way one goes about doing so may be morally wrong, insensitive, harmful, or profoundly offensive.

If you heard the two people I'm thinking of I think you'd conclude they earn their place at the table.

[bacardiandlime]

From that string of tweets:

She made a living & a whole life out of parroting Black Rican trauma and survival. As a Black Rican I am PISSED.
The other thing is that, let historians tell it, her work is actually good, chick is smart- so why lie?
why chase the extra clout of being a hood raised Black Boricua?

Unintentional 4th wall break?

Could you explain? She was claiming to be a Puerto Rican (Boricua) woman from the "hood" (Bronx)....