Rihanna Defends Rachel Dolezal, Says She is a 'Hero'

Rihanna has come to the defense of Rachel Dolezal, the controversial white NAACP president who pretended to be black.

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The singer, who appears on the cover of the latest Vanity Fair, told the magazine: “I think she was a bit of a hero, because she kind of flipped on society a little bit.

"Is it such a horrible thing that she pretended to be black? Black is a great thing, and I think she legit changed people’s perspective a bit and woke people up.”

Dolezal made national headlines in June when her parents, who are both white, said she was not black. Dolezal had claimed that as a young child, she had drawn pictures of herself with brown curly hair.

But her mother told INSIDE EDITION: "Rachel never indicated as a young child that she identified as a black girl. There were no drawings with the brown crayon. None of that exists in reality."

Their daughter remained defiant.

"I identify as black,” she told the Today show’s Matt Lauer.

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Following the controversy, Dolezal stepped down from her local NAACP chapter as president.

In September, Dolezal announced she was pregnant and expecting a baby boy.

Watch Below: Rachel Dolezal Steps Down as Local NAACP President