Netflix is getting backlash for Rachel Dolezal documentary
It's already divisive
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Your support makes all the difference.Netflix has announced a documentary on Rachel Dolezal is coming out - and people are not happy about it.
The streaming platform will release a documentary titled The Rachel Divide, which will show what Dolezal's life has been like since it was revealed that she is actually white and feigned being African American.
In a clip that has been released from the forthcoming documentary, Dolezal's son talks to his mother about why he doesn't think this documentary is a good idea and she gets emotional about it.
Some of the negative reactions appearing on Twitter have stemmed from the involvement of Dolezal's children in the documentary.
One user said she felt bad for Dolezal's kids, for going through so much "undue stress" because of her "racial fetishisation."
Actress Patricia Arquette tweeted, "I hope people steer clear of this Rachel Dolezal thing. Her kids are clear they DON'T want any of this. For their sakes let's protect them."
One user pointed out that Dolezal keeps putting her children "in front of a camera hoping for another check."
Other Twitter users were upset with Netflix giving a platform to Dolezal instead of funding more projects from black women.
One person asked, "Why don't you take all that money and put it towards projects made by real black women?"
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Netflix eventually replied to one of the users - journalist Joy Ann Reid - who had pointed out how problematic the documentary is.
Reid tweeted, "And then she sold her story to Netflix... ok yeah goodnight...."
Netflix wrote back saying, "To clarify one thing: Like all subjects for our documentaries, Rachel Dolezal did not receive any payment for this project. We worked with filmmakers Laura Brownson and Roger Ross Williams, who wanted to explore Dolezal’s life as a microcosm for a larger conversation about race and identity."
The streaming platform continued saying that the documentary is "a part of the larger conversation, including people who see her actions as the ultimate expression of white privilege."
Dolezal - who was a former NAACP leader - first came under fire back in June 2015 when she was asked, "Are you African American?" by a local news report during an interview about hate crimes.
It was discovered that she was actually a white woman pretending to be a black woman.
Later, she claimed to be "trans-racial."
According to USA Today, The Rachel Divide is set to air on April 27.
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