After Professor Jessica Krug revealed her true identity, admitting to lying about her heritage, the George Washington University Department of History calls for her resignation.
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“The members of the faculty of The George Washington University Department of History are shocked and appalled by Dr. Jessica Krug’s admission on September 3, 2020 that she has lied about her identity for her entire career,” reads the official statement.
The disgraced academic recently announced on an online blog that for years she lied about being Black. Her Medium post was an attempt to take responsibility for her actions.
“I have eschewed my lived experience as a white Jewish child in suburban Kansas City under various assumed identities within a Blackness that I had no right to claim: first North African Blackness, then US rooted Blackness, then Caribbean rooted Bronx Blackness,” Krug wrote.
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theGrio reports M. Brian Blake, the provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, and Paul Wahlbeck, dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences confirm she will not teach classes this semester.
“We want to acknowledge the pain this situation has caused for many in our community and recognize students, faculty, staff, and alumni are hurting,” said the university in a statement according to the report.
Students enrolled in the courses are being provided with different coursework opportunities. The department of history calls for her resignation and recommends the university rescinds her tenure and terminates her appointment.
“With what she has termed her “audaciously deceptive” appropriation of an Afro-Caribbean identity, she has betrayed the trust of countless current and former students, fellow scholars of Africana Studies, colleagues in our department and throughout the historical discipline, as well as community activists in New York City and beyond,” the statement reads.
“The discipline of history is concerned with truth telling about the past. With her conduct, Dr. Krug has raised questions about the veracity of her own research and teaching. Accordingly, the department calls upon Dr. Krug to resign from her position as associate professor of History at GW. Failing that, the department recommends the rescinding of her tenure and the termination of her appointment.”
According to her staff page, still active on the university website, Dr. Krug remains listed as an Associate Professor. Her areas of expertise listed include Africa, Latin America, African American History, and more.
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