Raquel Evita Saraswati, the woman accused of lying about her race and ethnicity, has stepped down from her position as the chief equity and inclusion officer for the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), USA Today reports.
On February 10, after Saraswati was hired by AFSC, an open letter was published via Medium claiming Saraswati was lying about her identity. She claimed she was Arab, South Asian and Latina but the letter said she was just White.
After the letter was published, The Intercept interviewed Saraswati’s mother, Carol Perone, who also said Saraswati was lying about her identity. Perone said Saraswati was born “Rachel Seidel.”
“I’m as white as the driven snow and so is she,” Perone said in an interview with The Intercept.
AFSC, a quaker based social justice organization, said it was giving Saraswati a chance to address the allegations. AFSC spokesperson Layne Mullett confirmed that Saraswati was resigning in an email to USA Today.
“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,” Mullett wrote.
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