Critical Race Theory is often misunderstood . . . maybe even by you!

You might be misunderstanding the tenants of Critical Race Theory! So why are you fighting against it without digging deeper to understand it?

Let’s start with the intentions of Critical Race Theory, or CRT. CRT is not a synonym for “toxic propaganda that’s meant to destroy America", nor is it as big of a threat to Western civilization because it will cause us to revert back to a segregated society. But that’s the narrative some are being fed and if you haven’t explored it in its entirety, I can understand that listening to its critics will have you thinking it will contribute to persistent racial divides instead of seeking to peel back the layers on racial inequities and ways to advocate for change.

Teaching about American history, even the dark side of our history, in hopes that we can correct the effects of the hidden machinery of "systemic" racism is imperative, and that’s what CRT hopes to do - uncover, explore, teach and learn from THE TRUTH about our history. But, when we instead think that teaching our country’s history will pit all BIPOC communities against our white brothers and sisters, it centers the sensitivity of those who have not been most harmed, and decenters the lives and experiences that BIPOC communities have and continue to endure. So why is this truth so divisive?

Let me draw a parallel link:

• Would you agree that women have had a different experience in America than men?
• Would you agree that there were laws that gave men advances educationally, thru voting, through employment and other systems?
• Would you agree that for many years there were inequities in the way women vs. men were treated and women did not have the same starting point as men?

Then why is this #truth not offensive, but learning about these same types of inequities about BIPOC communities is offensive?

Let’s explore this example further: Women’s right to vote! Stay with me, I’ll pull it all together shortly. Although the Declaration of Independence specifies that "all men are created equal," this same equality wasn’t afforded to women. Before women had the right to vote, only men had the power and vote to shape our society. Even during an 1840s World Anti-Slavery Congress, two brave white women, Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were not permitted to participate in the convention because they were female. They knew that, as women, they were not treated as equal, as the Declaration of Independence promised, and this snub inspired them to work together to guarantee rights for women. They fought against systems of male supremacy and along with others, aside from the work being done by women for broad-based economic and political equality and for social reforms, women sought to change voting laws to allow them to vote. This is a fundamental TRUTH about America’s history. It’s shared as fact, not fiction, and although it shines a bright light on America’s sexist history, it serves as a reminder of where our society WAS, and why modern-day discrimination against the sexes cannot be allowed.

But when race is discussed, many feel people should be silenced. Why? What is it that you are afraid to unveil? Why are we as a nation too fragile to unpack the truth? When we adamantly fight against Critical Race Theory, “CRT”, or any concept of teaching our nation’s history and it’s impact on the systems that support racial supremacy, we’re denying our children and adults of learning and absorbing the truth. The next question is, does CRT cause racial tension? So are you saying that the historical atrocities against BIPOC people and the systems that were created to support these inequities are the cause of racial tension? Or that the people who endured these atrocities and are fighting for justice, that we're the problem? Or has racial tension been part of the fabric of our society and there is a right to know the truth! Ask many BIPOC communities and WE will tell you YES, it's always existed. Not talking about the systems and structures that have been embedded into our society that has created the racial inequities and racial tension, will not help it go away. Burying our heads in the sand and creating policies that say - don't talk about race, is in fact a prime example of a society that is not willing to "own" its truth.

CRT was developed by legal scholars including Derrick Bell, Kimberlé Crenshaw, and Richard Delgado.?There are significant disagreements among experts and non-experts about what critical race theory is as well as how it should be used to educate both students AND adults, and how it impacts policies and systems today. The basic idea is this – RACISM is a social construct that is not just individual bias or prejudice. Instead, is systemically embedded into our legal systems and policies. CRT identifies that racism is part of everyday life, so people, white or nonwhite, who don’t intend to be racist can still inadvertently exhibit behaviors, actions or choices that fuel racism. CRT focuses on systemic outcomes, not on individual beliefs, and it seeks accountability.?

What’s an example of a racist or discriminatory system that has impact today?

Now let’s look at an example that is rooted in FACT and can be researched on your own, REDLINING! In the 1930s, government officials drew lines around areas deemed poor financial risks, mainly because of the racial makeup of the people living in those areas. The result was that banks subsequently refused to offer mortgages to blacks and other people in those areas. The impact connects to the wealth gap today. At the start of 2020, 73.7% of white households owned their homes, while 44% of Blacks, 48.9% of Hispanics, and 55.9% of other racial groups owned theirs. One reason this gap exists today is due to the lasting effects of redlining, which is just one of several discriminatory lending practices.

So, how did it start? In the 1930s, the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation drew maps of American cities, categorizing neighborhoods based on criteria such as ethnicity/race, economic class, and employment status. Lenders then used this information as an indication of credit risk and would “redline” or block off these areas as “high risk” neighborhoods. This resulted in lenders denying investment or loans within those areas. You might say, “well, if they were a credit risk . . . “ BUT, it wasn’t that the people/families had a history of credit unworthiness, it is their identities that deemed them as being unworthy of receiving the same credit that was afforded people in white communities. This practice actively kept residents from homeownership opportunities which would have increased their economic security, and further segregated white communities and communities of color. This is an example of what critical race theory seeks to uncover – the systems that support supremacy.

Why are people against Critical Race Theory?

Many people have only learned a synopsis of what CRT truly entails and the underpinnings of its work. Many critics have proclaimed that it leads to negative dynamics such as a focus on group identity over our shared traits and that it divides people into “oppressed” and “oppressor” groups. Many are confused over its relationship to terms such as “anti-racism” and “social justice.” Some associate critical race theory to movements such as the Black Lives Matter protests, having LGBTQ clubs in schools, free-speech debate on college campuses, and alternatives to exclusionary discipline—such as the Promise program in Broward County, Fla., that some parents blame for the Parkland school shootings. This has led many to believe that CRT is destructive and divisive and therefore should not be taught or understood.

Let’s continue the discussion!

We’ll talk further and dissect critical race theory based on the facts of what it is and what its intentions are, and are not. We’ll also discuss how CRT, when used outside of its intended purpose (which is much of the rhetoric we’re hearing about today), can cause an “us vs. them” mentality, which is not the goal of CRT. Instead, we want to seek the truth and look at it as a way of understanding how American racism has shaped public policy, not as a divisive discourse that pits people of color against white people. We’ll look at systems – housing, criminal justice, media, education, healthcare and how they support supremacy AND explore the VALUE of Critical Race Theory.

Stay tuned for the discussion!