Critical Race Theory or CRT is all in the news. It seems to be a call to arms for Ultra Conservatives, and a litmus test for Ultra Liberals to identify racists. We thought we would take a look to better understand the issue.
First, CRT is not new, and it is just a theory. Like most theories, they are considered in higher level education, so it is unlikely that CRT itself is being taught to our children in elementary school. We can dampen that alarmist claim up front. Second, to evaluate a theory or consider its value, we have to hear it. We can’t dismiss CRT outright or we would be committing a logical fallacy ourselves. To learn more about CRT we conducted a little online research and read two books listed below.
Critical race theory tries to get us to consider whether bias, prejudice, or racism has influenced how systems or government have developed or operate. Depending on the source, CRT material can come across as aggrieved, but can anyone disagree that slavery was wrong? In our effort to form a more perfect Union, where All Men are Created Equal, and where we believe in One Person, One Vote, it is appropriate that we consider CRT. Our laws, policies, and State and Federal agencies should operate without bias and independent of race.
Considering CRT does not mean that you must believe in it. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you support changes to educational curriculum, defunding the police, illegal immigration, or reparations. All that is necessary, in a fair society, particularly for lawyers, and future leaders in government, is that we develop critical thinkers able to recognize flawed thinking that may unintentionally disadvantage one group of people over another.
We may not want to admit it, but we are all prejudice or racist to some degree. It is a natural survival mechanism for animals, humans included, to be cautious around those that are different. There is even a name for it, homophily. Homophily is the natural tendency for people to seek out, be more comfortable with, or attracted to those who resemble themselves. Recognizing when personal bias may be skewing the way that we see an issue is an essential skill for critical thinkers and future leaders.
CRT is a broad concept that should not be dismissed outright. Few dismiss sociology though there may be some aspects that we do not agree with. We do not reject political science on the whole, though we may be sick of politics or politicians. There is no need to fear a theory that might be presented to college students as they work to broaden their minds. We would all benefit from more critical thinkers.
Two simple points that may allow us to recognize the need for America to apply critical thinking to how we operate follow. Let’s take race out of the equation and make it about us. First consider our children and their education. If you were poor, would you want to send your kids to a school that spent four to six thousand dollars less per pupil, than a more affluent school down the road? If we are advocating equal ‘opportunity’ shouldn’t our school systems invest equally in all students?
Second, if you were giving a friend a ride to work, and you didn’t know he had drugs in his pocket until you were stopped for a traffic violation, should you spend more time in jail if he had crack, than if he had cocaine? Aren’t drugs just drugs? Is there a reason that we view one as worse than the other? CRT asks us to evaluate our system, identify, and correct disparities or inequities. If we can get through all the propaganda from both extremes, the bottom line is that in America all of our people should be treated fairly and equally.
What we really need to do is get off our couch, get out of our neighborhood, and go meet some people that don’t look like us. As they say, “if you don’t have a white friend, go make one. If you don’t have a black friend, go make one.” Perhaps we should all do some time in the military or in some other form of government service, so that we can see and learn that people are people. We are all the same. What do you think?
Delgado, Richard, and Jean Stefancic. Critical Race Theory: An Introduction. New York: New York University Press, 2017.
Wagner, Caldwell. Critical Race Theory: The Complete Introduction, 2021.
