Much hilarity has followed the revelation that a white Jewish teacher with family in Israel, Hannah Gann, presented herself to fellow Philadelphia activists as “black” and of Palestinian descent. According to the account now emerging, she invented Palestinian relatives, claimed to send them money and received financial help from people who believed her.
When her deception eventually unravelled, two activist groups expelled her and, in an Instagram confession, she acknowledged lying about her background. According to a former classmate, she used make-up and fake tan to darken her appearance. It is a bizarre, troubling story, inviting obvious comparisons with Rachel Dolezal, the white woman who pretended to be black about ten years ago.
There are many disturbing things about this story, but perhaps the worst is what it says about society. Or, to put it another way, the social exchange rate it exposes...
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