An advocate and “inclusion officer” for Muslim and LGBTQ issues resigned this week after it turns out the Islamic Arab/Latina/South Asian activist was actually…a white girl.
And if you’re thinking, “Rachel Dolezal?” No, not her - but yes, like that.
Raquel Evita Saraswati, previously known by the much less exotic Rachel Seidel, according to her mother, Carol Perone (yep, another Rachel), is - excuse me, used to be - the chief equity and inclusion officer for the Philly-based, Quaker-founded American Friends Service Committee. The guy who helped hire her said she billed herself as "queer" and "multiethnic" - which fits with the rest of her resume.
She told the Boston Globe in 2004 that she was planning a wedding that held to her “Arab and Latin traditions.” She reportedly decorated her home in Indian decor. Multiple articles citing Saraswati referred to her as ethnically Hispanic, South Asian, and Arab, often pointing to her Muslim faith. She even spent time and snapped photos with prominent Democrat minority lawmakers like congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar on Capitol Hill.
Clad in a fancy hijab over clearly fake-baked skin, she was named “Woman of the Year” by the National Organization for Women’s Philadelphia chapter, all for supporting queer and Muslim social justice causes around the world - causes to which she claimed to have racial and religious ties.
Buuuuut she didn’t.
Saraswati resigned this week after an open letter published by concerned citizens on February 10 outed her as an ethnic fraud. Turns out Seidel, who reportedly converted to Islam in high school and has been living trans-ethnically ever since, is actually of British, German, and Italian heritage, and is about as Middle Eastern as bangers and mash.
Here's a before and after, for your consideration:
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Given that she allegedly lied about her background to get the job, Saraswati has left her post at AFSC, per the organization.
Raquel Saraswati, who is facing public allegations that she misrepresented her background and past associations, has informed us of her intention to separate from the organization,” said AFSC spokesperson Layne Mullett in a statement.
Now, in a sane world, I’d say it’s pretty jacked up for a person to lie about their ethnic background and pretend to be something they’re not just to get a job and some attention. Not because it’s “cultural appropriation” - eat all the shawarma you like, white girl - but because lying about yourself and trying to be something you aren’t is stupid, and unnecessary.
But given today’s climate, I feel the need to defend poor Rachel here. After all, if a man can throw on some lipgloss and a pair of sensible heels and call himself a woman, if a dude can declare himself a female and proceed to pummel a fellow MMA fighter in the ovaries, if a guy can barge into women’s locker rooms or changing areas or demand - and be allowed - to invade female-only spaces because he has simply decided he’s a she and we’re all supposed to just go along with it, consequences be damned, then white little Rachel here should be able to slap on a head covering, coat herself in some cheap bronzer, and call herself an Arab.
After all, she’s living her truth. Who cares if it’s the real one?