Critical Race Theory

[CoffeeTiger 5,084]

So this brings us to the current panic over Critical Race Theory.

Right wing media has been flooded with anecdotes and stories about anti-white racist propaganda in the schools. Check out these charts. It’s almost as if someone decided that this was going to be a thing… and lo and behold… it became one.

Matthew Gertz @MattGertz

 

June 22nd 2021

50 Retweets223 Likes

But what’s the reality in actual classrooms?

There are, in fact, real instances of intolerance, illiberalism, and indoctrination. Bari Weiss published a horrific account by a teacher at Manhattan’s Grace Church High School describing a mandatory anti-racism policy that “requires teachers like myself to treat students differently on the basis of race.”

Furthermore, in order to maintain a united front for our students, teachers at Grace are directed to confine our doubts about this pedagogical framework to conversations with an in-house “Office of Community Engagement” for whom every significant objection leads to a foregone conclusion. Any doubting students are likewise “challenged” to reframe their views to conform to this orthodoxy. 

Another teacher at a “posh” New Jersey prep school also quit in protest over the school’s divisive racial ideology.

“The school’s ideology requires students to see themselves not as individuals, but as representatives of a group, forcing them to adopt the status of privilege or victimhood,” [teacher Dana] Stangel-Plowe wrote in her letter to school brass.

“As a result, students arrive in my classroom accepting this theory as fact: People born with less melanin in their skin are oppressors, and people born with more melanin in their skin are oppressed. Men are oppressors, women are oppressed, and so on,” she continued.

And, as Caitlin Flanagan wrote in the Atlantic, anti-racist policies sparked a revolt by some of the parents at New York’s elite Dalton school.

According to the letter [from anonymous parents] , in science class there have been “racist cop” reenactments, art class has focused on “decentering whiteness,” and health class has examined white supremacy. “Love of learning and teaching is now being abandoned in favor of an ‘anti-racist curriculum,’ ” the parents wrote. “Every class this year has had an obsessive focus on race and identity.”

These are more than scattered anecdotes, and do seem to indicate a trend — at least in a certain strata of schools.

But how widespread is this sort of thing in less elite, posh, rarefied precincts?

The question came up on social media yesterday.

David Burge @iowahawkblog

@Patterico every school kid in this country should be taught the unvarnished history of slavery, the Civil War, Jim Crow, lynchings, Tulsa, Emmet Till, and the Civil Rights movement. No school kid in this country should be coerced into confessing mortal sin because of their skin color.

June 22nd 2021

27 Retweets167 Likes

Iowahawk is, of course, absolutely right. But how often is this happening around the country?

In 2018 there were 130,930 elementary and secondary schools in the United States. How many teach CRT?

In the 2019-20 school year, 56.5 million students attended public and private elementary and secondary schools in the United States. What percentage of them are being subject to CRT? 1%? .01%? .001%?

Curious minds wanted to know:

DivineSpecialAppearanceHat @Popehat

@iowahawkblog @Patterico I agree. But how much is that happening? Surely it’s an issue in, for instance, graduate education programs. But is it happening more than anecdotally? Isn’t this a motte and bailey thing where reasonable objection to that scenario is used to broadly attack curriculum?

June 22nd 2021

1 Retweet18 Likes

Patterico @Patterico

@Popehat @iowahawkblog I suspect it happens, but rarely, and mostly in the sort of rich white enclaves where “White Fragility” is the Bible. I doubt people in red America have much to worry about on this front — and these laws do not seem like the way to address any such concern on their part.

June 22nd 2021

7 Likes

More specifically, is it happening in places like Texas?

Uncle Jimmy - ERCOT Pawn🧂 @jneutron1969

Can @tedcruz or any other elected please direct me to ONE school district in Texas that is teaching Critical Race Theory and provide me with specific curriculum that is being taught? Or I'll even make it easier - proposed. Show me specifics, not FNC fear porn. CC @SykesCharlie

Ted Cruz @tedcruz

Trump Derangement Syndrome is astonishing. Sykes—who used to be conservative—is now defending critical race theory. He proffers a series of straw men, eg, don’t “ban” it. Nobody is banning it; but we don’t have to allow schools to teach our kids to hate each other based on race. https://t.co/SSjAl82yXl

June 22nd 2021

5 Retweets17 Likes

As far as I know, nobody knows the answer. And nobody — least of all folks like Ted Cruz — really wants to find out.

The point of shark attack politics is not data — it is fear and outrage. And for outrage, anecdata is more than sufficient. Statistics are irrelevant, if the stories are graphic and alarming enough.

So, even though the vast majority of Americans will never encounter anything remotely like CRT, it becomes a real threat and a potent political weapon.

There are sharks out there and if you refuse to join the panic, you must support shark attacks.

[homersapien 11,354]

"Shark attacks" and "anecdata" 

Perfect! 

Edited June 23, 2021 by homersapien

[CoffeeTiger 5,084]

6 hours ago, caleb1633 said:

"RePuBlIcAnS cAnT eVeN dEfInE iT!!" I guess the left is gonna milk that dick dance for all its worth.

really?....milk that dick dance? Is the dick dance what is being milked or is this a new dance that involves milking.....ok never mind, I get what you mean. 

Quote

 

This logical fallacy is called a "Fallacy Fallacy": Presumption that because a claim has been poorly argued (allegedly, though plenty have been spot on), or a fallacy has been made, that the claim itself must be wrong. It is entirely possible to make a claim that is false but still argue with the logical coherency of that claim, just as it is possible to make a claim that is true and justify it with various fallacies and poor arguments. This is an avoidance technique by the left to negate having to address the actual merit of whether the various tenants of CRT should be taught or not. There is no definition a Republican could give that would be good enough for the left.

 

As I've posted about, No. a majority of Republican lawmakers who are complaining about CRT and are proposing laws to stop it have absolutely no idea what-so-ever what CRT actually teaches or involved. There's an article on Al.com just a few days ago where they contacted the Republican lawmaker who is proposing a AL State ban on CRT and when he was asked what it was over the phone he just fumbled his words, said he didn';t have a explanation off hand, and referenced a news article he said he read but couldn't remember the source about how crazy CRT is and he doesn't believe it should be taught. 

Madison Hawthorn gave a speech recently in congress where he alleges that CRT is becoming the Biden administrations core agenda. He didn't have any specific examples but he did say that Biden hates America, and the American Flag, and that that's all apart of CRT.  ok...

You can also go watch an evening of Fox News where CRT is pretty much the topic 24/7 and you'll see all the hosts have a slightly different idea of what CRT is, 

Quote

 

Why not ban teaching Marxism or Post-Modernism as well? Because it's the application of the principles associated with the two schools of thought in the form of Identity Politics that has been so divisive. Ever tried reading Post-Modernist literature? Good luck. It's incredibly difficult to follow. Zealots in academia who used Post-Modern tools and Critical Theory to shape various disciplines, such as CRT, and make them more palatable is what enabled the ideas to go mainstream.

CRT isn't mainstream and is only becoming a central talking point because Republicans and Conservative media starting sounding alarm bells about it a couple of months ago and haven't let up since. Like Voter fraud, CRT is another manufactured outrage by Conservatives to try and keep feeding their viewers a constant diet of 'culture war' where liberals are always seeking to destroy the American way of life and Conservatives have to be constantly outraged and afraid about ....something....earlier this year that was Dr.Seuss...then transgender girls...now its Critical Race Theory....in a few more months copnservative media will have people stomping and screaming about something else completely different.  

 

Quote

Also, in terms of the bills introduced, they mostly say things along the lines of:

- Don't teach that any particular identity group is superior or inferior

- Don't treat individuals adversely based on sex, race, ethnicity, etc.

- Don't scape goat

So basically just extremely  vague, unenforceable garbage legislation that accomplished nothing but makes voters happy? Sounds about right. 

 

Quote

- Don't teach revisionist history (e.g., The 1619 Project)

 

What about those do you have any problem with?

This i have a problem with because revisionist history has a very different interpretation to different people. 

A lot of Southern History teachers will have to change up their own curriculums if they still teach that the Civil War was mostly about States Rights over trade and commerce,  and could more correctly be called the "War of northern Aggression" like history teachers taught me in school. 

Maybe it's just a fever dream of mine, but it would be ironically funny for me if Conservative teachers and schools started getting in trouble for breaking these vague laws that were supposed to be targeted towards 'Critical Race Theory' 

 

Edited June 23, 2021 by CoffeeTiger

[autigeremt 6,569]

4 hours ago, caleb1633 said:

Well, I think that's where a distinction must be made. Public schools are funded and run by the state, and therefore they can decide on what curriculum they want their students to be taught. I also wouldn't want my kids to be taught creationism as the truth, or have it mandated that schools lead their students in prayer every day, but I have no issues with people who believe in creationism or who pray. In a normal forum I veer strongly libertarian on not censoring what people say even if it does constitute "hate speech", but publicly funded education should be scrutinized to ensure what is being taught is most valuable to the students.

Who do you think funds the government? 

[bigbird 60,368]

5 hours ago, autigeremt said:

Who do you think funds the government? 

The shrinking middle class

[AU9377 4,914]

CRT is used as a talking point by the far right.  However, the far left makes itself an easy target with this NONSENSE.  When, in the history of mankind, has progress been made by one group continually telling the other that they are innately evil in some way?  Consensus is reached when all parties can admit their faults that have contributed to the problem and that there is a common goal.

[caleb1633 1,418]

21 hours ago, CoffeeTiger said:

really?....milk that dick dance? Is the dick dance what is being milked or is this a new dance that involves milking.....ok never mind, I get what you mean. 

 

As I've posted about, No. a majority of Republican lawmakers who are complaining about CRT and are proposing laws to stop it have absolutely no idea what-so-ever what CRT actually teaches or involved. There's an article on Al.com just a few days ago where they contacted the Republican lawmaker who is proposing a AL State ban on CRT and when he was asked what it was over the phone he just fumbled his words, said he didn';t have a explanation off hand, and referenced a news article he said he read but couldn't remember the source about how crazy CRT is and he doesn't believe it should be taught. 

Madison Hawthorn gave a speech recently in congress where he alleges that CRT is becoming the Biden administrations core agenda. He didn't have any specific examples but he did say that Biden hates America, and the American Flag, and that that's all apart of CRT.  ok...

You can also go watch an evening of Fox News where CRT is pretty much the topic 24/7 and you'll see all the hosts have a slightly different idea of what CRT is, 

Again, Fallacy Fallacy. I agree they need to have a better understanding of it, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t allowed to oppose what is being taught in schools. Whether they properly define it or not doesn’t change the fact that it’s a divisive school of thought that shouldn’t have any of its tenants being taught to our children as though it’s the actual state of affairs in our country.

CRT isn't mainstream and is only becoming a central talking point because Republicans and Conservative media starting sounding alarm bells about it a couple of months ago and haven't let up since. Like Voter fraud, CRT is another manufactured outrage by Conservatives to try and keep feeding their viewers a constant diet of 'culture war' where liberals are always seeking to destroy the American way of life and Conservatives have to be constantly outraged and afraid about ....something....earlier this year that was Dr.Seuss...then transgender girls...now its Critical Race Theory....in a few more months copnservative media will have people stomping and screaming about something else completely different.  

 

CRT is ABSOLUTELY mainstream! Now, is CRT in its original form that was taught in law schools decades ago mainstream? Not so much (writers at the New York Times probably don’t have a Kimberle Crenshaw poster at their desk); however, CRT is a *movement* (literally said in the first paragraph in “Critical Race Theory: An Introduction”). It is a movement of “activists and scholars interested in studying and transforming the relationship among race, racism, and power.” As all movements do, CRT expanded, and added more activists and scholars who were intent on studying and transforming the relationship among race, racism, and power.

Anyone who uses the tools of Critical Theory and Post-Modernism to deconstruct race is furthering the CRT movement. This includes Barbara Applebaum, who wrote “Being White, Being Good: Complicity, White Moral Responsibility, and Social Justice Pedagogy.” This includes Carol Anderson, who wrote “White Rage”, a book I happened to see as a centerpiece at Barnes and Noble. This includes Ibram X. Khendi. This includes Peggy McIntosh, who first coined the term, “White Privilege” in her three-page paper from 1989 that didn’t have a single citation, reference, or actual data to support her claims.

This includes many other professors and authors who teach these things on college campuses and are paid to teach “Diversity” training to employees of companies. Students who learn these things in college go into the “real world” and spread this ideology into their workplaces. A new job entitled “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer” has emerged. These are also not fringe jobs. They are, unsurprisingly, particularly concentrated within higher education, where, according to some reports in the United States, diversity officers are rapidly increasing in number and earn three times as much as the average American and more than the academic faculty. “Bias response teams” now exist at many colleges in the U.S. STEM is even being impacted. One 2015 paper proposes that an engineer should “demonstrate competence in the provision of sociotechnological services that are sensitive to dynamics of difference, power, and privilege among people and cultural groups.” “Dynamics of difference, power, and privilege”… All concepts that came directly from the CRT movement.

The most visible manifestations of CRT is in Social Justice activism. Antifa has pretty much destroyed Portland and downtown Seattle. Phrases such as “cultural appropriation” are said with frequency online, along with telling people to “check their privilege.” Google, the BBC, and Asda have fired employees on the bases of complaints couched in Social Justice terms and brought wider attention via social media. Dr. Seuss was cancelled because, like CRT always does, it intends to solve racism by seeing racism everywhere, which is the first tenant of CRT: “racism is ordinary, not aberrational”, and because it draws influence from the Post-Modernist belief in the power of language and knowledge, it believes that society will never be free of racism if children read certain Dr. Seuss books.

Conservatives have every reason to be outraged and alarmed by the Woke, and in my opinion, so do liberals. CRT denounces liberal values. Identity politics and intersectionality place the ultimate value in group identity and rejects the concept of the individual. This is stated verbatim by Ozlem Sensoy and Robin DiAngelo in their Critical Theory education manual, “Is Everyone Really Equal?”:

            “[Critical] movements initially advocated for a type of liberal humanism (individualism, freedom, and peace), but quickly turned to a rejection of liberal humanism. The ideal of individual autonomy that underlies liberal humanism (the idea that people are free to make independent rational decisions that determine their own fate) was viewed as a mechanism for keeping the marginalized in their place by obscuring larger structural systems of inequality. In other words, it fooled people into believing that they had more freedom and choice than societal structures allow.”

All of this traces back directly to CRT in its purest form and to CRT’s roots in the Neo-Marxist thought that came out of the Frankfurt School. Derek Bell, one of CRT’s founders stated: “Progress in American race relations is largely a mirage obscuring the fact that whites continue, consciously or unconsciously, to do all in their power to ensure their dominion and maintain their control.” And in terms of this being based in Critical Theory, Karl Marx believed that we were all living in a “False Consciousness.” That the ruling class had fooled people into believing they could be happy in their state of affairs. The Frankfurt School reified the work of Marx and asserted that to arise from this “False Consciousness” that had been created, not by the economic ruling elites, but by the powerful in order to retain their cultural hegemony, that one had to develop a “Critical Consciousness”, hence the term “Woke.”

True liberals and conservatives alike should be alarmed by this attack on American values.

Edited June 24, 2021 by caleb1633

[caleb1633 1,418]

2 hours ago, AU9377 said:

CRT is used as a talking point by the far right.  However, the far left makes itself an easy target with this NONSENSE.  When, in the history of mankind, has progress been made by one group continually telling the other that they are innately evil in some way?  Consensus is reached when all parties can admit their faults that have contributed to the problem and that there is a common goal.

Ummm the Salem Witch Trials, hello! 😋

Edited June 24, 2021 by caleb1633

[AU9377 4,914]

14 minutes ago, caleb1633 said:

Ummm the Salem Witch Trials, hello! 😋

There are similarities.. lol

[homersapien 11,354]

3 hours ago, AU9377 said:

CRT is used as a talking point by the far right.  However, the far left makes itself an easy target with this NONSENSE.  When, in the history of mankind, has progress been made by one group continually telling the other that they are innately evil in some way?  Consensus is reached when all parties can admit their faults that have contributed to the problem and that there is a common goal.

BS.  How about a quote from an authoritative source that supports that assertion as a part of Critical Race Theory.

[caleb1633 1,418]

25 minutes ago, homersapien said:

BS.  How about a quote from an authoritative source that supports that assertion as a part of Critical Race Theory.

If you believe that racism is evil, as we all should, then telling white people that they're all racist is essentially calling an entire group of people "evil." They do this:

 

“All white people are racist or complicit by virtue of benefiting from privileges that are not something they can voluntarily renounce.” Barbara Applebaum, Being White, Being Good.

 

“Treason to whiteness is loyalty to humanity.” Noel Ignatiev in the film "Indoctrinate U"

 

“If you abolish slavery, you abolish slaveholders. If you want to abolish racial oppression, you do away with whiteness.” Noel Ignatiev in the film "Indoctrinate U"

 

“White identity is inherently racist; white people do not exist outside the system of white supremacy.” Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility

 

“White people raised in Western society are conditioned into a white supremacist worldview because it is the bedrock of our society and its institutions." Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility.

 

“Whiteness is an invisible veil that cloaks its racist deleterious effects through individuals, organizations, and society. The result is that White people are allowed to enjoy the benefits that accrue to them by virtue of their skin color. Thus, Whiteness, White supremacy, and White privilege are three interlocking forces that disguise racism so it may allow White people to oppress and harm persons of color while maintaining their individual and collective advantage and innocence.” Derald Sue, “The Invisible Whiteness of Being.”

 

“Whiteness by its very definition and operation as a key element of white supremacy kills; it is mental and physical terrorism. To end the white terrorism that is directed at racially oppressed people here and in other nations, it is essential that self-identified whites and their whiteness collaborators among the racially oppressed confront their white problem head-on, unencumbered by racial comfort.” Johnny Williams in the Hartford Courant.

 

Still gonna try and keep defending this crap?

[DKW 86 7,411]

This is another time when the Repukes are doing what they do best, "Framing An Issue."

The definitions and realities? Icht machts nicht. 

Their messaging on "Defunding the Police" has already cost the Dems seats in the HOR. It cost them percentage points in the minorities in the election.

This is a new On Message Moment: Parents are heatedly showing up to schools demanding CRT not be taught or be changed. This is a motivating factor to turn out the vote.

CRT and Defund the Police are easy slogans that are tough to defend against in an election. In elections: "If you are explaining, you are losing."

Edited June 24, 2021 by DKW 86

[jj3jordan 2,040]

Glad they are doing it.

[homersapien 11,354]

8 hours ago, caleb1633 said:

If you believe that racism is evil, as we all should, then telling white people that they're all racist is essentially calling an entire group of people "evil." They do this:

 

“All white people are racist or complicit by virtue of benefiting from privileges that are not something they can voluntarily renounce.” Barbara Applebaum, Being White, Being Good.

 

“Treason to whiteness is loyalty to humanity.” Noel Ignatiev in the film "Indoctrinate U"

 

“If you abolish slavery, you abolish slaveholders. If you want to abolish racial oppression, you do away with whiteness.” Noel Ignatiev in the film "Indoctrinate U"

 

“White identity is inherently racist; white people do not exist outside the system of white supremacy.” Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility

 

“White people raised in Western society are conditioned into a white supremacist worldview because it is the bedrock of our society and its institutions." Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility.

 

“Whiteness is an invisible veil that cloaks its racist deleterious effects through individuals, organizations, and society. The result is that White people are allowed to enjoy the benefits that accrue to them by virtue of their skin color. Thus, Whiteness, White supremacy, and White privilege are three interlocking forces that disguise racism so it may allow White people to oppress and harm persons of color while maintaining their individual and collective advantage and innocence.” Derald Sue, “The Invisible Whiteness of Being.”

 

“Whiteness by its very definition and operation as a key element of white supremacy kills; it is mental and physical terrorism. To end the white terrorism that is directed at racially oppressed people here and in other nations, it is essential that self-identified whites and their whiteness collaborators among the racially oppressed confront their white problem head-on, unencumbered by racial comfort.” Johnny Williams in the Hartford Courant.

 

Still gonna try and keep defending this crap?

Some of those people you quote are saying outrageous things.  Others are making defensible arguments. 

I am not familiar with any of them and I don't know if any of these people can or should be seen as representing critical race theory.   Certainly they didn't all author the original academic papers - dating back to the mid 70's - that can be defined as the founding papers that created CRT.  They appear to be rhetorical comments that may or may not be supported by these "founding papers".

Unless you can show the links between these statements and these "originating" papers that represent the idea of CRT academically, these comments simply represent rhetorical statements which may or may not be classified as representative of the theory.

Otherwise, this is like cherry picking statements from the 60's made by radical activists - such as the Black Panthers - and insisting that represents the civil rights movement.

So no, I am not going to defend this "crap".  (And in my opinion it is crap.)

I think CRT is a graduate level thesis which is unlikely to be applied in 1-12 education at all, other than maybe presenting it for what it is - a theory of race relations.

Meanwhile, it has been appropriated by the right wing as a political tool and it is being being flogged to incite irrational fear. 

In my opinion, the assertion that such an academic theory is going to be used to brainwash or somehow pervert the psychology of our children is hysterical. 

It smacks of a watered down QAnon.

 

 

Edited June 25, 2021 by homersapien

[autigeremt 6,569]

9 hours ago, homersapien said:

Some of those people you quote are saying outrageous things.  Others are making defensible arguments. 

I am not familiar with any of them and I don't know if any of these people can or should be seen as representing critical race theory.   Certainly they didn't all author the original academic papers - dating back to the mid 70's - that can be defined as the founding papers that created CRT.  They appear to be rhetorical comments that may or may not be supported by these "founding papers".

Unless you can show the links between these statements and these "originating" papers that represent the idea of CRT academically, these comments simply represent rhetorical statements which may or may not be classified as representative of the theory.

Otherwise, this is like cherry picking statements from the 60's made by radical activists - such as the Black Panthers - and insisting that represents the civil rights movement.

So no, I am not going to defend this "crap".  (And in my opinion it is crap.)

I think CRT is a graduate level thesis which is unlikely to be applied in 1-12 education at all, other than maybe presenting it for what it is - a theory of race relations.

Meanwhile, it has been appropriated by the right wing as a political tool and it is being being flogged to incite irrational fear. 

In my opinion, the assertion that such an academic theory is going to be used to brainwash or somehow pervert the psychology of our children is hysterical. 

It smacks of a watered down QAnon.

 

 

Give it up homer! The evidence is mounting and while CRT may have began as something that was coherent it’s been hijacked and presented as the alt left of racism. In its current form it’s wrong. Your party pushes this rhetoric onto the country and large groups of people are starting to see it as doctrine. We’re starting to see it in communities around the country. 

[DKW 86 7,411]

The average off year losses in the HOR are 22-23 Seats. The Dems have handed the Repukes "Defund the Police" and "CRT." The RW Media is already lubing up the rails to ram that home in 2022. Two national issues/talking points that have the Dems backing up and trying to explain. The Dems may even be right about the real details of the policies. I am speaking SOLELY on the messaging and it is as bad as it gets. The best communications in Elections are SHORT & SWEET.  If you are explaining, you are losing. I am afraid that the Dems are already on their heels. They have history and bad messaging to overcome and that is a bad combo.

 

[homersapien 11,354]

What is critical race theory, and why do Republicans want to ban it in schools?

By

Marisa Iati

May 29, 2021 at 8:00 a.m. EDT

 

(emphasis mine)

The latest front in the culture wars over how U.S. students should learn history and civics is the concept of critical race theory, an intellectual tool set for examining systemic racism. With roots in academia, the framework has become a flash point as Republican officials across the country seek to prevent it from being taught in schools.

In reality, there is no consensus on whether or how much critical race theory informs schools’ heightened focus on race. Most teachers do not use the term “critical race theory” with students, and they generally do not ask them to read the work of legal scholars who use that framework.

Some lessons and anti-racism efforts, however, reflect foundational themes of critical race theory, particularly that racism in the United States is systemic. The New York Times’s landmark 1619 Project, which addresses slavery’s role in shaping the nation, also has an associated school curriculum.

At least five Republican-led state legislatures have passed bans on critical race theory or related topics in recent months, and conservatives in roughly nine other states are pressing for similar measures. Some teachers have said they worry that the legislation will have a chilling effect on robust conversations, or could even put their jobs at risk, at a time when the nation is embroiled in a reckoning on race relations.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is critical race theory?
• What are the criticisms of critical race theory?
• What do conservatives mean when they use the term ‘critical race theory’?
• What does critical race theory have to do with schools?
• What is the status of efforts to ban critical race theory?

What is critical race theory?

Critical race theory is an academic framework centered on the idea that racism is systemic, and not just demonstrated by individual people with prejudices. The theory holds that racial inequality is woven into legal systems and negatively affects people of color in their schools, doctors’ offices, the criminal justice system and countless other parts of life.  (The data certainly support this.)

The writings that coalesced into critical race theory date from the 1970s, when the late Harvard Law School professor Derrick Bell expressed frustration with what he saw as the limitations of the civil rights movement. He and other legal scholars — including Kimberlé Crenshaw, Richard Delgado and Mari Matsuda, among others — contended that civil rights laws and court victories had not actually managed to eradicate racial injustice.

Khiara Bridges, author of “Critical Race Theory: A Primer,” said traditional civil rights discourse maintained that racism would end when people stopped thinking about race. The dissenting scholars, she said, rejected that conclusion and believed race consciousness was necessary to overcoming racial stratification. Critical race theory emerged as an organized field in 1989, when academics gathered for the first Workshop on Critical Race Theory.

This way of thinking “compels us to confront critically the most explosive issue in American civilization: the historical centrality and complicity of law in upholding white supremacy,” some of the founding scholars wrote in 1995 in “Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings that Formed the Movement.”

While critical race theory does not have a set of doctrines, its scholars say they aim to overturn what they characterize as a bond between law and racial power. Critical race theory holds that race is a social construction upheld by legal systems and that racism is banal and common. Under this framework, George Floyd’s killing and Black Americans’ higher mortality rate from covid-19 are not aberrations, Bridges said.

“Critical race theory is an effort really to move beyond the focus on finding fault by impugning racist motives, racist bias, racist prejudice, racist animus and hatred to individuals, and looking at the ways in which racial inequality is embedded in structures in ways of which we are very often unaware,” said Kendall Thomas, co-editor of “Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings That Formed the Movement.”

What are the criticisms of critical race theory?

Critics of this intellectual framework often contend that it is divisive and even racist to examine the role of race in U.S. systems and structures. Opponents also argue that critical race theory is a Marxist framework that suggests the nation is inherently evil and that White people should feel guilty for their skin color.

On May 14, several Republican members of Congress introduced a bill banning the teaching of critical race theory in federal institutions and a resolution highlighting “the dangers” of teaching the theory in schools. In statements accompanying the announcement, the representatives said critical race theory promotes discrimination and stokes division.

“I grew up attending segregated schools in the Jim Crow South during a time when people were treated differently based on the color of their skin,” wrote Rep. Burgess Owens (R-Utah). “Critical Race Theory preserves this way of thinking and undermines civil rights, constitutionally guaranteed equal protection before the law, and U.S. institutions at large.”

The 1776 Project PAC, a new political action committee established to back school board candidates who oppose critical race theory, alleges that adherents to this framework are trying to remake the United States to reject capitalism and the nation’s founding principles. The PAC contends that critical race theory is “hostile to white people.”

While critical race theory is not characteristically Marxist, there is a loose connection. Scholars of “critical legal studies,” a precursor to critical race theory, included neo-Marxists “and other varieties of oppositionists in law schools,” according to “Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings That Formed the Movement.” Critical race theorists diverged from critical legal studies scholars to focus on studying race, Bridges said.

Some critical race theorists also believe that racism endures because it is profitable and that fighting racism therefore must mean opposing capitalism, Bridges said — but that opinion is far from universal within the field.

Critical race theorists disagree about whether the United States can overcome racism. While some believe racial discrimination will always exist, Bridges said others are more optimistic. Thomas said in his understanding, critical race theory maintains that racism “does not have to define our future if we have the will and the courage to reckon with it.”

Rather than encouraging White people to feel guilty, Thomas said critical race theorists aim to shift focus away from individual people’s bad actions and toward how systems uphold racial disparities.

What do conservatives mean when they use the term ‘critical race theory’?

Although the phrase “critical race theory” refers to an area of academic study, its common usage has diverged from its exact meaning. Conservative activists and politicians now use the term as a catchall phrase for nearly any examination of systemic racism in the present. Critical race theory is often portrayed as the basis of race-conscious policies, diversity trainings and education about racism, regardless of how much the academic concept actually affects those efforts.

In a public presentation this month, a member of Utah’s state school board offered a long list of words that she said were euphemisms for critical race theory, including “social justice,” “culturally responsive” and “critical self-reflection.”

The Heritage Foundation, a right-leaning think tank, recently attributed a range of events to critical race theory: property destruction and violence during the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, efforts to fire a Yale University professor amid a Halloween costume controversy, two White actresses stating that they would not play mixed-race characters, and the school shooting in Parkland, Fla., that killed 17. They reasoned that critical race theory makes race the primary lens through which people see the world and reimagines the United States as divided by factions that are pitted against each other.

Christopher Rufo, a prominent opponent of critical race theory, in March acknowledged intentionally using the term to describe a range of race-related topics and conjure a negative association.

We have successfully frozen their brand — ‘critical race theory’ — into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions,” wrote Rufo, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank. “We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category. The goal is to have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think ‘critical race theory.’”

What does critical race theory have to do with schools?

Since the murder of George Floyd by a police officer last year, schools across the country have been overhauling their curriculums to address systemic racism and seek to make classrooms more equitable. Among other efforts, districts are instituting anti-bias training for teachers and requiring that history lessons include the experiences of marginalized groups.

Conservative politicians have pushed back on these attempts to talk about race more often. Critics say teachers are trying to “rewrite history” and should not consider race when interacting with students. Proponents counter that discussing race creates more inclusive schools and helps students overcome systemic barriers restricting their achievement.

Academic critical race theorists do not necessarily agree on whether schools are promoting critical race theory. Bridges said she would not characterize the increased focus on diversity and multiculturalism as critical race theory, while Thomas said critical race theory “is defined by this more expansive view of history now taught in classrooms.”

What is the status of efforts to ban critical race theory?

In September, President Donald Trump directed federal agencies to cease any trainings related to critical race theory, White privilege or other forms of what he called “propaganda.” A federal judge later blocked the directive on First Amendment grounds, and President Biden rescinded the ban after he took office.

The anti-critical race theory movement is now focused on classrooms, with Senate Republicans criticizing the Biden administration in April for pushing for federal funding for U.S. history programs that “reflect the diversity” of all students. Most efforts to stop the teaching of systemic racism have played out in state legislatures, at least a dozen of which have taken up the issue in recent months.

Republican-led legislatures in Arkansas, Idaho, Tennessee, Texas and Oklahoma have passed bans, with some restricting the teaching of critical race theory in public colleges, in addition to lower-level classrooms. A teacher at Oklahoma City Community College said this week that the race theory class she has taught for six years was canceled because of her state’s new law. A spokesman for the college confirmed that the class has been paused while administrators evaluate the legislation’s ramifications.

Republican lawmakers, governors, prosecutors and political candidates are also pressing the issue in a range of other states, from Utah to New Hampshire. While some bills name critical race theory, others reference “divisive concepts” or race-related guilt.

“Let me be clear, there’s no room in our classrooms for things like critical race theory,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said in March at a news conference. “Teaching kids to hate their country and to hate each other is not worth one red cent of taxpayer money.”

In Utah, Democratic members of the state’s House walked off the floor to protest a resolution recommending the state review school curriculums that address how racism influences American politics, culture and law.

“What this is about is an attempt or first step in assuring that my history and the history of many people of color are not taught in our school system in the state of Utah,” Rep. Sandra Hollins, the only Black member of Utah’s legislature, told the Associated Press at the time.

The American Civil Liberties Union characterized the bans as an attempt to silence teachers and students and impose a version of American history “that erases the legacy of discrimination and lived experiences of Black and Brown people.”

“Our country needs to acknowledge its history of systemic racism and reckon with present day impacts of racial discrimination — this includes being able to teach and talk about these concepts in our schools,” the ACLU wrote.

These attempts to restrict the teaching of critical race theory and broader lessons about racism are likely to face legal challenges focused on the constitutional right to free speech, and it is unclear how courts will rule.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/05/29/critical-race-theory-bans-schools/

Edited June 25, 2021 by homersapien

[homersapien 11,354]

1 hour ago, autigeremt said:

Give it up homer! The evidence is mounting and while CRT may have began as something that was coherent it’s been hijacked and presented as the alt left of racism. In its current form it’s wrong. Your party pushes this rhetoric onto the country and large groups of people are starting to see it as doctrine. We’re starting to see it in communities around the country. 

Well you got that part right.

But exactly what part of it is "wrong"? (Please be specific and reference original sources.)

Edited June 25, 2021 by homersapien

[SaltyTiger 7,764]

2 hours ago, homersapien said:

Well you got that part right.

But exactly what part of it is "wrong"? (Please be specific and reference original sources.)

@autigeremt did a pretty good job. Perhaps you should ask the “hijackers” what is wrong.

[RunInRed 16,360]

 

[AU9377 4,914]

13 hours ago, homersapien said:

Some of those people you quote are saying outrageous things.  Others are making defensible arguments. 

I am not familiar with any of them and I don't know if any of these people can or should be seen as representing critical race theory.   Certainly they didn't all author the original academic papers - dating back to the mid 70's - that can be defined as the founding papers that created CRT.  They appear to be rhetorical comments that may or may not be supported by these "founding papers".

Unless you can show the links between these statements and these "originating" papers that represent the idea of CRT academically, these comments simply represent rhetorical statements which may or may not be classified as representative of the theory.

Otherwise, this is like cherry picking statements from the 60's made by radical activists - such as the Black Panthers - and insisting that represents the civil rights movement.

So no, I am not going to defend this "crap".  (And in my opinion it is crap.)

I think CRT is a graduate level thesis which is unlikely to be applied in 1-12 education at all, other than maybe presenting it for what it is - a theory of race relations.

Meanwhile, it has been appropriated by the right wing as a political tool and it is being being flogged to incite irrational fear. 

In my opinion, the assertion that such an academic theory is going to be used to brainwash or somehow pervert the psychology of our children is hysterical. 

It smacks of a watered down QAnon.

 

 

I've read enough of the work itself (speaking of CRT) to know that, in my opinion, it is nothing more than an opinion in the form of a thesis that has no value other than to cause a deeper divide and ignite the passions of many who feel undervalued by society in general.  Frankly, I see studying any of it as an enormous waste of time.

I agree with you when you point out that it has been appropriated by the right wing as a political tool.  My frustration is also with those on the far left that provide this type of ammunition to the far right and others on the left that blindly support it simply because the right despises it overall.  If someone that is truly neither left or right leaning on this issue is subjected to this type of thinking, they will move farther and farther to the right in an attempt to find some sanity.

[caleb1633 1,418]

14 hours ago, homersapien said:

Some of those people you quote are saying outrageous things.  Others are making defensible arguments. 

I am not familiar with any of them and I don't know if any of these people can or should be seen as representing critical race theory.   Certainly they didn't all author the original academic papers - dating back to the mid 70's - that can be defined as the founding papers that created CRT.  They appear to be rhetorical comments that may or may not be supported by these "founding papers".

Unless you can show the links between these statements and these "originating" papers that represent the idea of CRT academically, these comments simply represent rhetorical statements which may or may not be classified as representative of the theory.

Otherwise, this is like cherry picking statements from the 60's made by radical activists - such as the Black Panthers - and insisting that represents the civil rights movement.

So no, I am not going to defend this "crap".  (And in my opinion it is crap.)

I think CRT is a graduate level thesis which is unlikely to be applied in 1-12 education at all, other than maybe presenting it for what it is - a theory of race relations.

Meanwhile, it has been appropriated by the right wing as a political tool and it is being being flogged to incite irrational fear. 

In my opinion, the assertion that such an academic theory is going to be used to brainwash or somehow pervert the psychology of our children is hysterical. 

It smacks of a watered down QAnon.

 

 

The originating documents of CRT do express such sentiments. Derek Bell (who is considered the father of CRT) wrote that he essentially believed that white people would never allow blacks to achieve equality and that it was hopeless to assume that the liberal ideal of judging people as individuals rather than their racial category was hopeless. Kimberlé Crenshaw's solution (developer of intersectionality and considered kind of the mother of CRT) was outlined in her essay, "Mapping the Margins" where she proposed that instead of emptying the social significance of racial categories (as proposed by Civil Rights activists such as MLK), that group identity should be emphasized above all else as a "statement of resistance" against the system that is propped up in order to maintain white dominance and oppress everyone else. She also mentions Angela Davis in this essay as an influencer of her work. Angela Davis was a staunch communist in the 1960s and was radicalized by Herbert Marcuse, a prominent Critical Theorist out of the Frankfurt School. I could go on about the two of them, but that's another can of worms. 

 

To question if these statements by scholarship activists can be supported by the founding papers in the 1970s is a good question, but upon further examination is irrelevant since CRT expanded far beyond its origins in Harvard Law School. Richard Delgado said himself, "Although CRT began as a movement in the law, it has rapidly spread beyond that discipline." He specifically stated that CRT is a movement of scholars and activitists interested in studying and transforming the relationship between race, racism, and power. It continues, "Today, many in the field of education consider themselves critical race theorists who use CRT’s ideas to understand issues of school discipline and hierarchy."

 

Nicola Rollock and David Gill Borne (CRT activists themselves) wrote in “Critical Race Theory (CRT)” “Although critical race Theory arose in the United States in response to a very specific historical racial context, it has not remained in the United States. The British Educational Research Association has formed its own list of tenets of critical race Theory.

1. Centrality of racism
2. White supremacy
3. Voices of people of color
4. Interest convergence
5. Intersectionality"

It concludes,

“CRT has developed rapidly into a major branch of social theory and has been taken up beyond the United States to include work in Europe, South America, Australia and Africa.”

 

As far as all of the authors who essentially labeled the white race as evil, they all have ties that can be traced back directly to CRT in its original form, or their frame of study is undeniably derived from CRT. 

 

Barbara Applebaum's bio from Syracuse University: "Barbara Applebaum is trained in philosophy of education. Professor Applebaum's scholarly interests are currently focused on the point where ethics, education, and commitments to diversity converge. Her research is heavily informed by feminist ethics, feminist philosophy, and CRITICAL RACE  THEORY."

 

Noel Ignatiev was an American author and historian. He was best known for his work on race and social class and for his call to abolish "whiteness". Ignatiev was the co-founder of the New Abolitionist Society and co-editor of the journal "Race Traitor", which promoted the idea that "treason to whiteness is loyalty to humanity". Under the name Noel Ignatin, he joined the Communist Party USA in January 1958, but in August left (along with Theodore W. Allen and Harry Haywood) to help form the Provisional Organizing Committee to Reconstitute the Marxist–Leninist Communist Party (POC). His book "How the Irish Became White" is a suggested reading in"Critical Race Theory: An Introduction" on Page 85.

 

Derald Sue is a professor of counseling psychology at Columbia University. He has authored several books, including Counseling the Culturally Diverse: Theory and Practice, Overcoming our Racism, and Understanding Abnormal Behavior. He has written over 150 publications on various topics such as multicultural counseling and psychotherapy, psychology of racism and antiracism, cultural diversity, cultural competence, and multicultural organizational development, but more specifically, multicultural competencies and the concept of microaggression (a term specifically mentioned in page 106 of the Intro to CRT).

 

Johnny Williams is a Professor of Sociology at Trinity College in Hartford, CN. He is the author of numerous articles examining culture’s role in politics, social movement mobilization and scientific knowledge production. He is also currently writing "The Persistence of White Sociology" (Palgrave Macmillan) which explores how conventional sociology as a theory, method and ideology functions to ensure the viability of systemic racism. All things in line with the central tenants of CRT.

 

Robin DiAngelo - Critical White Studies is a specifically mentioned spin-off of CRT. She is a consultant, and facilitator working in the fields of critical discourse analysis and whiteness studies (I'd find it hard to argue that Critical White Studies and "Whiteness studies" vary in any way). DiAngelo has published a number of academic articles on race, privilege, and education and written several books. Her first book was co-written with Ozlem Sensoy, "Is Everyone Really Equal? An Introduction to Key Concepts in Critical Social Justice Education."

 

Ozlem Sensory's primary field of research is social justice education. Social justice education seeks to reveal how social inequities become embedded in the fabric of society, and to identify strategies for socially just change. Her research examines the opportunities and barriers inherent in advancing a more equitable society, through social justice education. In doing so, she studied a dual track: analyzing how inequities are reproduced in social institutions (such as schools, media, policing), and identifying constructive interventions to interrupt them (such as thinking critically about knowledge, pedagogical approaches, and political activism).

 

I will agree with you that of all the places it has spread, K-12 education is not the most prominent, particularly in red states. While it isn't part of the curriculum in those states, teachers have still been teaching many of the central themes as outlined by CRT scholars and their derivatives. I think the reason it is becoming so heavily contested in K-12 is because of how impressionable children in that age group are. Social Justice Theory has turned many college campuses into a pit of vipers, and Republican legislators are trying to prevent the same thing from happening in their  public education systems. 

 

It is undeniable how Woke-ified our institutions have become, and there should be pushback because at its core, CRT is an enemy of liberalism. The advocates of CRT try and put lipstick on the pig by saying, "Oh it's just diversity training and making everyone feel welcome! It's just trying to fight racism." If all you do is post a bunch of BS articles coming from the leftist media that are either lying about it or delusional, then of course it's not going to look so bad. But read the actual material and it becomes apparent that this is a white washed tomb. It's pretty on the outside, but full of decay on the inside.

 

I feel like there is no amount of evidence that will ever convince you that CRT is being pushed on our society and that it's a bad thing. I think your anti-conservative tribalism is going to make it nearly impossible to convince you otherwise, but let me ask you: What would convince you that many of us on here are correct in our stance on CRT?

[DKW 86 7,411]

On 6/25/2021 at 9:35 AM, RunInRed said:

 

Gonna re-ask a question that NO ONE that was out clutching their pearls over "trump just wont leave the WH, what are we gonna do?????" was ever man enough to answer. You willing to ask Milley here what he was going to do if trump didnt leave the WH at noon on 1-20-2021? He was going to order his troops to remove the orange man. PERIOD.

Milley is here giving you your Answer. 2:00 or so. The US Military is lead by people that are fully ******* aware what is going on in the world and are in no way going to blindly and stupidly allow some two-bit hack con artist to stage a coup. That was never going to happen, was never an option. These people have bet their lives on defending the Constitution. It means EVERYTHING to them. It is not some esoteric BS idea that can be talked or walked back, especially by some demented-orange-tweet-meister. The truly comical thing here is that some journalists, and some here on this board, that change direction every time the wind blows are somehow more aware of what's at stake than people that have staked their lives to defending the Constitution just shows how ******* stupid some people are.

Matt Gaetz, he should be the new poster boy for people you just want to slap the s*** out of.

Edited June 28, 2021 by DKW 86

[TexasTiger 12,811]

Interesting thread:

 

[DKW 86 7,411]

1 hour ago, TexasTiger said:

Interesting thread:

 

She is either brilliant, or completely deluded. I sit across from a Black Female Engineer (UAB) at this moment. I cannot imagine this woman being more wrong.