by Tracy Blake

Name one primary system in nation that has not been used for, cut with, and is currently a mechanism for racism.  Lending, housing, healthcare, education, policing, etc., all have been used for, cut with, and are currently a mechanism for racism.

Critical race theory is an academic concept that is more than 40 years old. Critical Race Theory was established by Black American Civil Rights activists and academics who understood that racism is deeply embedded into the fabric of America.

Critical race theory is an elective academic undergraduate & graduate study that examines how racism is woven into the social fabric & creates a racial caste system. The earliest academics were honestly legal academics who wanted to make plain that racism exists in and sharply affects our legal system.

The term was first coined in 1989 by Kimberlé Crenshaw and Derrick Bell.

They developed this theory on discrimination in housing, education, and employment, identifying the ways in which Black Americans have been systematically discriminated against based on their race.

They put forward that white supremacy is the guiding force behind legislation and law creation and in order to secure liberation for racially oppressed groups, racism must be eradicated from American institutions and systems.

One of the theory’s central tenets is that racism is structural rather than only personal, and that laws and institutional practices can have racist outcomes without racist intent. To recognize that as color-blind as Americans attempt to be today, past actions and racism ripple through our laws and systems. It’s saying that even if racism disappeared from people’s thoughts and actions overnight, there would still be structural remnants that have to be acknowledged and addressed.

The GOP has weaponized CRT to scare people about it being taught in k-12. It is NOT.

AGAIN, Critical race theory is NOT a part of ANY pK-12 classroom teaching in America.

If Critical Race Theory was taught in the classroom, it would help teach children about a long history of racism in America that permeates through institutions and practices today, and ultimately boosts the practice of equity by looking at these systems through the critical lens of race.

Imagine being so ashamed of your history that you make it illegal to teach it to your children.

From peoples’ reactions there are many people who are furious at the thought of their children being taught that America is a racist nation whose laws have created, regulated, and sustained the subjugation of people who are not white. They don’t want their children feeling “guilty” for being white and they don’t think teaching about racism does anything other than create division.

The folks who tried to prevent a Black girl from going to school in 1957 are resistant to their grandchildren learning about how they tried to prevent a Black girl from going to school in 1957.

The message is clear: Some only like their history whitewashed. Textbooks have long palliated slavery or depicted the enslaved as happy and content.

NOT TRUE.

Some plantation tours don’t acknowledge slavery at all.

SO, APPALLING.

Then there are those who deny the Holocaust and downplay the Japanese internment camps created during World War II.

ABSOLUTELY FLABBERGASTING.

The rewriting of history is nothing short of spineless, and it’s allowed the imprints of slavery to fester, resulting in inequities in housing, personal wealth, education, the judicial system and environmental issues that persist in America today. The rest of us must stand up to revisionists by pushing back against their false reality and demanding the truth regarding this country’s legacy.

Opponents of CRT want to steal Black History (American History) from their own kids for purposes of indoctrination.

“The roots of racism are very deep in America. Historically, it was so acceptable in the national life that today it still only lightly burdens the conscience.” — Martin Luther King Jr.

What’s important to know is that because the GOP is a front for white nationalism, they realize they must fight against the actual telling of US history.

I feel the primary goal of all the people behind the fake outrage over CRT is ALL about privatization into unregulated charter schools and home schooling.

If you never tell the truth about how the United States was established, then you can believe there is no problem. Right?

America has never adequately addressed a central part of its history (slavery, racism) nor delivered reparations or even a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Present inequalities are connected to the past in educational settings? This is LITERALLY what we are witnessing in real time.

We need to quit conceding that CRT is being taught in American public schools. ITS NOT.

Conservatives do this thing where they redefine words and then people use those definitions as if they are accurate. FYI. They’re NOT.

We got to stop doing that, ASAP!

If your kid is learning CRT, your kid is in law/grad school. Be proud. You did something right. Right?

CRT is NOT being taught in school divisions nationwide (because it’s graduate-level study, duh), I’m not sure why it is so scary to people. Do you not believe that past racism has been codified into our institutions, laws, and practices? Ever heard of red lining? Sure, it’s not legal today, yet the intended effects of redlining can still be seen in socio-economic patterns in nearly every metropolitan area which impacts funding for schools, public health infrastructure, availability of grocery stores, economic investment, property values, etc.

For example, the differences in laws between crack cocaine and powder cocaine. Same drug but harsher penalties for the form used more commonly in minority communities versus white communities.

Why has the crack epidemic been handled noticeable differently than the Opioid Epidemic?

Look where infrastructure investment has gone. What neighborhoods did the Interstate highway system cut through and wall off from the rest of the city? What are the long-term impacts still felt today by creating an impenetrable barrier through the middle of established neighborhoods?

Its undeniable if you took time to contemplate it.

CONCLUSION: The GOP’s thinks “Critical race theory” just means “anything acknowledging or concerning equity and/or black people exist”.

Republicans are trying to remove history so people will believe their lies. The dumbing down of America. Which is the number one reason they want to dismantle public education.

“White Fragility” is not critical race theory. Stop.

Critical Race Theory is not being taught in K-12 Public Schools. School divisions are focused on creating learning environments that are physically, emotionally, academically and culturally safe for each student. When opponents talk about banning it, they want to stop equity efforts like anti-bias training for teachers or measures meant to ensure equal discipline and honors diplomas for black & white students.

(Editor’s Note: The views expressed in the preceding editorial reflect those of the author only and not necessarily of PW Perspective, LLC or its stakeholders.)