A service of Salisbury University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Dolezal Disinvited from Baltimore Book Festival

Today Show

BALTIMORE (AP) - Organizers of the Baltimore Book Festival say they have decided to disinvite Rachel Dolezal, the white woman who led others to believe she was black.

The decision by the Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts came days after defending its choice to have her there. The office said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that after hearing opinions from its constituents, it had to consider how Dolezal's appearance would affect the audience and the other authors.

The festival is scheduled for September. It has been held for 21 years.

Dolezal is the former head of the Spokane, Washington, chapter of the NAACP. Dolezal could not be immediately reached for comment.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.