Teacher Responds to Backlash Over Faking Black, Palestinian Heritage - Newsweek

A white teacher in Philadelphia who admitted lying about having Palestinian and Black heritage publicly apologized for a second time on Thursday, insisting she's "heartbroken" by blowback connected to her elaborate ruse.

Hannah Gann, a pro-Palestinian activist and teacher at the Workshop School in Philadelphia, expressed remorse for her actions in an Instagram post a week after outing herself on social media as local racial justice organizations questioned her background.

"I am so, so sorry," Gann wrote Thursday on Instagram. "It's so far from being enough, but I don't know what else to say. I am still trying to do everything I can to make this right."

"And adults leaving nasty comments about my students: it is sickening and disgusting," Gann's post continued. "The only reason I'm leaving this page up is so you can come at me, not them. Pick on someone your own age."

Gann, 34, told Newsweek in a text message, "I deeply regret what I’ve done and hope I can get the chance one day to repair at least some of the harm for my students, their families and our school community."

The teacher, dubbed by some as the "Palestinian Rachel Dolezal" after the former NAACP president who was outed by her parents as a white woman pretending to be Black, acknowledged her heritage on September 17.

"I lied about my identity and have been lying for years," Gann also wrote on Instagram. "I have no Palestinian or Tunisian heritage. I am a white woman of significant privilege and wealth. Anyone who supported me was manipulated and should not be judged as a result of their support of me."

Gann posted a follow-up video on September 20 as she sought to "take accountability" for her actions.

"All mistakes and deceptions are mine and mine alone," Gann wrote in a caption. "Please do not let them affect how you engage with any people, organizations, causes, or communities to which I was connected. Please reach out if you know me and want to have a direct conversation about how I hurt you. I will regret causing this hurt for the rest of my life."

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported last week that Gann admitted to lying about her background when approached on Thursday by the Racial Justice Organizing Committee and Philly Educators for Palestine. She had been a member of both advocacy groups, the outlet reported.

"We asked her to publicly acknowledge that she is a white woman of Jewish heritage and an Israeli settler family," organizers said in a statement.

Both groups permanently cut ties with Gann, who previously made references to her Palestinian family, including a Palestinian-born grandfather who was actually a native of Baltimore, according to the group's research.

Gann's latest mea culpa, meanwhile, did little to quell questions about her motivation.

"I just want to hear your story," one reply read. "What possessed you to do this? How did it spiral out of control? How did you justify it in your mind? Not judging, just genuinely curious. It's a fascinating story."

School district officials in Philadelphia confirmed they're aware of Gann's public penance.

"The School District of Philadelphia is aware of social media posts concerning a district employee and her involvement with an outside advocacy organization," a spokesperson told Newsweek Thursday in a message. "The posts reference the employee's involvement in an external group. The district is making support available to The Workshop School staff and students, as needed."

District officials declined to indicate whether Gann remains employed as of Thursday. She did not respond to a message about her job status, but publicly denied collecting donations for Palestinian relatives in her most recent post.

"Every time I raised funds, I told folks where it was going and that is where they went, 100%," she wrote in a reply on Instagram. "If anyone had evidence I stole, don’t you think they’d have come out with it by now given all the attention this is getting? And, as a reminder, I really wish that attention would instead focus on Gaza, Sudan, Congo, police brutality, uninvestigated lynchings, ICE, Philly school closings, etc."

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Edward T. Cummins