A prominent pro-Palestinian activist and Philadelphia educator was only pretending to be Black and Palestinian.
Hanna Gann admitted on Instagram that she was essentially a race faker. She falsely claimed Palestinian and Tunisian heritage — and has been lying about her identity to “everyone” for years.
Gann posted her confession after two racial justice groups she worked with became suspicious and outed her as being a white, Jewish woman.
Instagram commenters dubbed her “Temu Rachel Dolezal” or “Palestinian Rachel Dolezal.” Dolezal is the former NAACP chapter president who also pretended to be Black until her father publicly shared her birth certificate in 2015, proving she was “Caucasian by birth.”
The Racial Justice Organizing Committee and Philly Educators for Palestine confronted Gann on September 17, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
“We asked her to publicly acknowledge that she is a white woman of Jewish heritage and an Israeli settler family,” the organizations told the outlet, adding that they were “stunned, saddened and angered by this betrayal.”
In her mea culpa, Gann admitted to coming from “significant privilege and wealth.” The New York Post reported that Gann’s father is a tax lawyer who once worked for the U.S. Treasury, and she grew up in Falls Church, Virginia, an affluent Northern Virginia suburb.
Gann reportedly adopted a “blaccent” after returning from the Peace Corps in Rwanda, and critics accused her of using bronzer and fake tans to look darker, according to The Post.
She has also publicly appeared wearing a keffiyeh and spoke of family members, including a grandfather, in Palestine. According to a Philly Palestine Coalition (PPC) document obtained by the Inquirer, that grandfather was born in Baltimore, and many family members still live in Israel.
The PPC also accused her of soliciting money from organizations like CAIR on the premise that she was short on funds because she was sending money to relatives in Palestine.
Also concerning, Gann is a teacher at the Workshop School, a predominantly Black Philadelphia high school, and had presented herself as mixed race to the community.
“A teacher of predominantly Black youth, [Gann] has gained the trust of young people on the basis of a sense of shared oppression. She has served as a mentor to at least one young white person, who was manipulated by Hannah on the basis of a fake identity,” the PPC said.
They added: “Her access to vulnerable young people, especially Black youth, is deeply concerning, given her pattern of lying and manipulation.”
In her Instagram statement, Gann made it clear that she acted alone:
“There is not a single person on this planet, no friend, no fellow organizer, no one in my family, no professional connection, no secret op or handler who knew what I was doing,” she said. “I hid my family’s background from everyone in Philly and also hid from the people in my own family what I was doing.”
Gann said she wanted to continue her activism without her family knowing, and that she “allowed half-truths and obfuscations to grow into outright lies” because she “genuinely wanted to commit to the work I was doing.”
A spokesperson for the School District of Philadelphia said the district was aware of the situation but did not provide details about whether it would take disciplinary action.
“These posts reference the employee’s involvement in an external group,” the statement said. “The district is making support available to The Workshop School staff and students, as needed.”
