The debate over Rachel Dolezal's racial identity hasn't just made her the topic of national discussion — it has also drawn scrutiny to her family's fractured history, NBC News reported. In a memoir published last year, Dolezal's biological older brother Joshua described how their parents, Larry and Ruthanne, enforced a strict form of Christianity known as young earth creationism in the mountains of Montana. Rachel said her parents "physically abused" her, but her parents had denied abusing their children and insisted she was lying about her race. In 2014, Joshua was charged with sex abuse after one of his adopted siblings told police in Colorado he had molested the child more than 20 times; he has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial. And in 2010, Rachel's adopted brother Izaiah petitioned for emancipation from his parents, seeking permission to live with his sister and describing a life of physical punishment.
