In the bad old days people of non-White descent worked hard to “pass” as White.

There were good reasons for that: being non-White could impose great costs. There was an undeniable racial hierarchy, and you didn’t want to be anywhere near the bottom of it. Go back far enough and even people who are uncontroversially seen as “White” today, such as Irish, Italians, or Eastern Europeans, were commonly seen as inferior.

For the most part those days are long gone. Racism itself is alive and well, but its manifestations and even to whom it is directed have changed wildly.

One of the most striking phenomena of the 21st century is the growth of the racial grift. You saw examples in the late 20th century, but it manifested itself as entrepreneurial members of a racial group appointing themselves spokesmen for a group. The Jesse Jacksons and Al Sharptons of the world figured out a way to guilt or coerce institutions into making them millionaires. It was a good extortion racket for them, although it accomplished precious little for their “constituents.”

Today the grift has gotten so profitable that others are flocking to the industry. Elizabeth Warren was an early adopter of the scam, claiming indigenous heritage to secure her spot at Harvard Law School. Rachel Dolezal famously pretended to be Black, becoming an NAACP Chapter president and professor of Africana Studies.

Now we have the story of nibiiwakamigkwe, or Kay LeClaire, of Madison WI. (Ever notice how these cases pop up in Leftist-dominated places such as Boston, Spokane, and Madison?).

This story is amazing.https://t.co/JfArrpf0WW

— Noam Blum (@neontaster) January 3, 2023

nibiiwakamigkwe has quite the story. She was a queer indigenous artist, until 5 minutes ago.

Early in 2020, an Indigenous artist urged the owners of a new music venue in town to change its name.

It was called The Winnebago, after the street on which it stands. Many Indigenous people and allies let the owners know that wasn’t the best name for a white-owned music venue. One of them was nibiiwakamigkwe, also known as Kay LeClaire, a founding member and co-owner of the queer Indigenous artists’ collective giige, and budding leader of Madison’s Indigenous arts community.

It took several months, but the venue eventually relented and rebranded as The Burr Oak.

“I’m glad the owners have decided to no longer profit from the identities of Indigenous peoples,” LeClaire wrote in an editorial for Our Lives Wisconsin. “I’m glad the name is going, but I’m not happy the institutions that allowed it to be stolen in the first place remain. For over 500 years, Indigenous Peoples have not controlled our narratives and representations. Our exclusion has been built into inclusion for others.”

It turns out that it was Kay LeClaire who was profiting off the identities of indigenous people. Pretty sure nobody was going to go to the theater or not due to its entirely common name. Most people aren’t even aware that Winnebago refers to an Indian tribe, not a recreational vehicle, sadly.

LeClaire’s true story is about what you would expect: she was a normal white girl of German, Swedish, and French Canadian descent. As such she was pretty much a dime-a-dozen in Wisconsin, so she rebranded herself as a queer indigenous artist and prospered mightily.

Since at least 2017, Kay LeClaire has claimed Métis, Oneida, Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, Cuban and Jewish heritage. Additionally, they identify as “two-spirit,” a term many Indigenous people use to describe a non-binary gender identity. In addition to becoming a member and co-owner of giige, LeClaire earned several artists’ stipends, a paid residency at the University of Wisconsin, a place on the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force and many speaking gigs and art exhibitions, not to mention a platform and trust of a community – all based on an ethnic identity that appears to have been fully fabricated.

She acquired “oppressed identities” at the same frequency as kids did baseball cards when I was growing up. And with each badge of oppression, she prospered more.

Which is the point: “marginalized” is the opposite of the truth these days for people who at one time genuinely were outcasts in society. This is demonstrably so because people are actively seeking out and embracing so-called “marginalized” identities for fun and profit. TikTok is filled with people dying for attention as “oppressed” minorities. They shout their oppression from the rooftops, and gain prestige points and often money due to their “oppressed” status.

LeClaire, who now admits she is not of indigenous origin, is still hanging on to her status as “non-binary,” and the authors–who are revealing what a total fraud she is–still accept her at her word. What drivel. Her entire identity is made up, but gender status is somehow sacrosanct?

Invented identities are a scam. You cannot choose your race, your gender, your genetic heritage, or your eye color. We come into the world with these characteristics; the only thing we can influence is how we behave. God gives us traits that we inherit, and it is our job to turn those traits into something good.

Identity politics is toxic. It was toxic when minorities were treated like dirt, and it is toxic today when the roles are reversed.