Rachel Dolezal legally changes name to Nkechi Amare Diallo ahead of book release

Rachel Dolezal, a former NAACP chapter president, gained attention in 2015 after it was revealed that she was white and not black, as she had been claiming for years.

More than a year after the scandal made headlines, she changed her name.

The Spokane, Washington-based activist officially changed her name to Nkechi Amare Diallo in a Washington court in early October, according to legal documents, the Associated Press reported.

According to the Daily Mail, the new name has African origins, specifically from Nigeria. "Nkechi" is short for "Nkechinyere," which means "what god has given" or "gift of god," and "Diallo" means "bold," according to the Mail.

>> Jobless and nearly homeless, Rachel Dolezal still isn't sorry for posing as black

Change.org petition in October urged the TEDx organization to post one of the former civil rights leader's speeches online. The petition was posted by a user with the name Nkechi Diallo.

"Rachel Dolezal's TEDx Talk on Race & Identity ... is still not available online," the petition read. "Please post her talk online immediately. She should not be censored due to her unique perspective. We want to watch this speech."

On Feb. 27, four months after the petition was started, TEDx responded, saying the organization had made the speech public. The petition had reached less than half of the 100 supporters it seeked.

The 39-year-old's social media accounts still list her birth name.

A memoir is set to be released March 28, with Dolezal listed as the author.

A description on Amazon teases the book as follows:

"What determines your race? Is it your DNA? The community in which you were raised? The way others see you or the way you see yourself?

"With 'In Full Color,' Rachel Dolezal describes the path that led her from being a child of white evangelical parents to an NAACP chapter president and respected educator and activist who identifies as black. Along the way, she recounts the deep emotional bond she formed with her four adopted black siblings, the sense of belonging she felt while living in black communities in Jackson, Mississippi, and Washington, D.C., and the experiences that have shaped her along the way."

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