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A Philadelphia educator known for her anti-Israel activism has admitted to lying about her Palestinian and Black identities and revealed that she is “a White woman of significant privilege and wealth” — leading some online to refer to her as the “Palestinian Rachel Dolezal.”
Hannah Gann, a longtime educator with the School District of Philadelphia, previously claimed that she was both Palestinian and Black, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. In one instance, her outspoken activism led to a mobile billboard that called her “Philadelphia’s Leading antisemite” being parked outside her school.
Inquirer journalist Kristen A. Graham wrote, “A Philadelphia teacher is being called the ‘Palestinian Rachel Dolezal’ after being caught lying about her background.” This was a nod to the former NAACP official who rose to fame in 2015 after it was revealed that she had been identifying as a Black woman despite having two White parents. Graham noted that the phrase has popped up about Gann online.
The Inquirer reported that Gann — a teacher at the Workshop School, a project-based high school in the School District of Philadelphia — is White and Jewish and lied about her identity for several years.
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Hannah Gann is reportedly a teacher at the Workshop School, a project-based high school in Philadelphia. (Google Maps)
“Members met with Hannah and questioned her about her background on Thursday and after an hour of discussion, Hannah finally admitted she lied,” the Racial Justice Organizing Committee and Philly Educators for Palestine said in a statement to the outlet, adding that, “We asked her to publicly acknowledge that she is a White woman of Jewish heritage and an Israeli settler family.”
Digital reached out to the Racial Justice Organizing Committee.
Both groups are reportedly “stunned, saddened and angered by this betrayal,” and have permanently severed their ties with Gann.
In a 10-minute-long video posted to Instagram, Gann admitted to and apologized for the yearslong ruse, while revealing she is “a White woman of significant privilege and wealth.”
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A giant shroud bearing the handwritten names of more than 20,000 children reported killed in Gaza is displayed at City Hall North in Philadelphia on Sept. 1, 2026. Participants add names to the approximately 110-meter-long shroud as part of the Gaza Children’s Shroud project. An interfaith memorial vigil featuring Christian, Muslim and other religious leaders is held in the evening. (Anadolu via Getty Images)
“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,” Gann 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 was reportedly a leading voice within the school district following the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attacks on Israel, and in 2024, she participated in a West Philadelphia “teach-in” on “scholasticide” in Gaza. She was also a vocal supporter of Keziah Ridgeway, a Philadelphia educator who was previously disciplined over pro-Palestinian social media posts shared on her private accounts.
Social media posts shared by Gann in 2025 show her appearing at a public community hearing wearing a keffiyeh and speaking in an apparent accent that is not present in her apology video.
According to a document compiled by the Philly Palestine Coalition (PPC) and obtained by the Inquirer, Gann allegedly made several references to having Palestinian family members. In one instance, the PPC found that a grandfather Gann claimed to be Palestinian-born was actually born in Baltimore, according to historical records.
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A man flies a kite during a “Global Palestine Kite Day” rally to show solidarity with Palestinians in Philadelphia on May 25, 2025. (AFP via Getty Images)
Additional documents obtained by the PPC reportedly found that Gann’s family actually lives abroad in Israel, and that she had successfully received donations from people after telling them she was strapped for cash because she was sending money to loved ones.
A University of Pennsylvania classmate of Gann’s told the outlet she was known in college “as a self-proclaimed White Jewish woman with family in the occupied West Bank. I watched her sudden transformation after she returned to Philly from the Peace Corps [in Rwanda].”
The unnamed classmate reportedly added that, “she was clearly making herself look darker using makeup and fake tan, and speaking using [African American Vernacular English.]”
Additionally, the PPC research document obtained by the Inquirer pointed out that Gann “is a teacher of predominantly Black youth. She has gained the trust of young people on the basis of a sense of shared oppression.”
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The document reportedly alleged that Gann “has served as a mentor to at least one young White person who was manipulated by Hannah on the basis of a fake identity,” and added that “her access to vulnerable young people, especially Black youth, is deeply concerning, given her pattern of lying and manipulation.”
In response to the allegations against Gann, the school district is reportedly providing support to students who may have been affected.
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In a statement to the Inquirer, a district spokesperson said that officials are “aware of social media posts concerning a district employee and her involvement with an outside advocacy organization. These posts reference the employee’s involvement in an external group.”
The district, however, did not reveal whether Gann would face any disciplinary consequences for her actions, according to the outlet.
Digital reached out to Gann and the Philadelphia School District.
Gann’s apparent denunciation of her Israeli heritage drew the ire of the Lawfare Project, a pro bono legal organization that works to protect the rights of Jewish individuals on a global level.
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“The most disturbing question isn’t only why Hannah Gann lied. It’s why she believed her real identity was a liability and a fabricated identity was an asset,” Director of Communications Jayne Zirkle said in a statement to Digital.
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“Gann has acknowledged concealing her family background and lying about who she was,” she added. “This is a testament to an activist culture that has become inextricably linked to anti-American ideology. It is a culture that makes someone feel they must hide being Jewish to gain moral credibility.”
