Rachel Dolezal finally speaks out over racial identity controversy

Rachel Dolezal, the civil rights leader who has been accused of hiding her white background, has stood down from her role as president of a local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

In a statement published on the civil rights group's Facebook page, Dolezal did not appear to apologise or clarify her identity.

Instead she touched upon her successes in office and signalled that she would be handing over the reins to her deputy - Naima Quarles-Burnley.

I have waited in deference while others expressed their feelings, beliefs, confusions and even conclusions - absent the full story.

I am consistently committed to empowering marginalized voices and believe that many individuals have been heard in the last hours and days that would not otherwise have had a platform to weigh in on this important discussion.

She continued by saying that she would "never stop fighting for human rights" and will do everything in her power to advance the cause of the NAACP:

This is not about me. It's about justice. This is not me quitting; this is a continuum. It's about moving the cause of human rights and the Black Liberation Movement along the continuum from Resistance to Chattel Slavery to Abolition to Defiance of Jim Crow to the building of Black Wall Street to the Civil Rights and Black Power Movement to the ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ movement and into a future of self-determination and empowerment.

Dolezal came to international attention last week when her biological parents said she had been misrepresenting herself/self-identifying as black for years

Read her full statement below:

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