Banning phony ‘critical race theory’ in KC-area schools puts real history at risk
Given the outcome of recent school board elections in the Kansas City area, there has never been a more critical time to clear up intentional confusion over what critical race theory is, what is actually being proposed by Republican lawmakers and what is at stake if a proposed ban is passed here.
In Johnson County, several conservative candidates ran for school boards on a so-called “anti-CRT” platform — “parent choice” — and won seats in some of the area’s best performing districts. I think it’s important that they know, and that parents and teachers also know, exactly what it is these newcomers support. Is it really good education? Or is this just political rhetoric fueled by unnecessary fear that schools are out to make children feel bad about being American or guilty or inadequate?
If you agree that schoolchildren should be taught the full scope of our American history — the good and the ugly — but you support a proposed legislative ban on what lawmakers are calling “critical race theory,” then you may have been duped.
Let me break it down:
First, with full knowledge that the term critical race theory could be co-opted to obliterate discussion of race and racism in school curriculum, conservative activist Christopher Rufo constructed a step-by-step plan. (He’s the same guy who called on former president Donald Trump to write an executive order limiting diversity training in the workplace.)
His homemade controversy even suggests specific language conservative lawmakers should use to incite a right-wing uproar over what is taught about America’s history, including “race-based Marxism”, “state-sanctioned racism,” “woke racism” and “racial engineering.”
In March, Rufo tweeted: “We have successfully frozen their brand — ‘critical race theory’ — into the public conversation and are steadily driving up negative perceptions. We will eventually turn it toxic, as we put all of the various cultural insanities under that brand category..”
Racial history concept not taught in K-12 schools
We and others have said this before, but maybe not loud enough.
Real critical race theory is a college-level academic concept discussing the impact of racism on our systems of justice, education, banking and more. It is not being taught in our K-12 classrooms, nor should it be.
But it also is not what the legislation proposed here suggests we ban — because of course you can not ban something that does not exist, right?
Republican lawmakers redefined the term when they crafted this legislation. What they are calling “critical race theory” actually would include fundamental periods in American history — slavery, women’s suffrage, civil rights and the forced removal of Indigenous people from the Southeastern United States known as the Trail of Tears. All have been a part of public and private classroom lessons and discussions for decades. Parents should be demanding that more be taught about these issues, not less.
Consider the legislation proposed in Missouri that effectively would ban the ways teachers discuss with students topics such as white supremacy, racism and sexism.
It says this:
“Curriculum implementing critical race theory shall include any curriculum that … identifies people or groups of people, entities, or institutions in the United States as inherently, immutably or systemically sexist, racist, anti-LGBT, bigoted, biased, privileged or oppressed.”
Does that mean don’t teach that white Americans bought, sold and enslaved Black people? Or don’t teach that laws were established to deny Black people the right to vote, an education and to hold certain jobs? Without a doubt, these represent racist systems that a multiracial collection of Americans also recognized as wrong and for decades worked to dismantle.
Do they really want to remove discussions of the civil rights movement and the decadeslong fight for women’s right to vote from the classroom? Should we pretend those things did not happen?
Do school boards want to reinforce discrimination?
Surely, our new school board members who say they support the proposed legislation don’t want to erase the hard fought human struggle for equality by people of color, women and LGBT people from our history books, and muzzle discussions about these very important subjects in our classrooms. If they do, that would be racist, sexist and gender discrimination.
Kansas state Sen. Caryn Tyson, a Republican from Parker, has said she intends to introduce legislation — not yet crafted — to ban critical race theory in her state. At the same time, she said, “We need to understand the history so that we can move forward in a positive, productive manner.”
Huh?
With such contradictory messaging, it’s no wonder teachers are confused about what parts of American history they would be allowed to teach.
Even if critical race theory isn’t actually being taught in K-12 classrooms, parents should not assume that nothing would be lost if school district leaders get their proposed ban.
One more time folks, it’s not critical race theory, but rather American history on the chopping block.
School board members who won their seats promising parents they want to protect the quality of education in district schools should have to point to exactly which parts of American history they think children should no longer be taught.
We should never deprive students of important history that helps them understand their world. And parents should know what school leaders want to take away.
