The media has a way of dehumanising "controversial" characters. It's a decent documentary that offers further insight to the person behind the controversy and hate. Although I wish they would've included a psychological perspective to the main theme of the documentary - racial identity!
As an armchair psychologist, it's clear to me that Rachel is using the less-known notion of "trans-racialism" to disassociate from what seems to have been a difficult childhood and upbringing. In a household where there definitely existed abuse of some type, her escape route was her attachment to her adopted black siblings and wanting to protect them from parents that were unfit to adopt children of a different race. She identified with them more than her own biological parents and brother, all of whom are responsible for inflicting the trauma that she still hasn't addressed or processed.
The form of escapism she chose in order to deal with her domestic issues turned a fantasy of who she wanted to be into a reality where she felt more "authentic" by changing her racial identity. I don't think that at any point, this was a spur-of-the-moment choice to exercise her "white privilege" but something that developed gradually within her at a core-deep level. Many traumatised children do this in one form or another--by creating a new identity for themselves that's the opposite of the identity they were born with or cultivated during a difficult upbringing.
But enough of my amateur psychoanalytical ramblings...
The documentary itself maintained my attention and interest throughout while I experienced quite a roller-coaster of emotions and thoughts, veering between feelings of sympathy for Rachel to getting frustrated with her. Especially heartbreaking was witnessing the pain and anguish her media appearances or social media posts caused her sons, particularly the younger one (who wasn't able to flee to Europe to get away form it all like his older brother). At only 13 years of age, he seemed like an incredibly mature and insightful boy who espoused more common sense and maturity than any of the adults featured.
The horrid nastiness of some of the people towards her was hard to watch. I couldn't compute how they viewed themselves as direct victims of her actions. In a world where hardened criminals like George Floyd are sanctified and made into poster children for justice and celebrated as heroes, what has Rachel done that's so unforgivable/irredeemable that she has to be so vilified and ostracised? People are advocating for transgender rights but why is it okay to be a man who identifies as a woman but not okay to be one race but identify as another? If you are one of the people who believes that race is merely a 'social construct' then you should be supporting Rachel and hail her as a hero for admitting that she's not white despite appearances!
We sure live in a messed-up world where everything has been turned on its head! It might've been helpful if the documentary makers had addressed Rachel's mental health and offered to get her into therapy to deal with many of her unresolved issues.
And finally, so bloody what that she's written a book to tell her side of the story? Considering that no one will employ her, she's excluded from society, harassed when in public etc., she needs to earn money to live and feed her family. Where's the humanity in humans these days? This woman has undeniably made mistakes for which she's paying but at some point we must stop punishing people like her and focus on the real villains of our world.
