Victims of Critical Race Theory
More often than not, government grant money to public schools has contingencies in the fine print – for example, having to include programs like Critical Race Theory in the school curriculum. Communities should beware of the fine print.
“Critical Theory” (without the “Race”) is a Marxist-based concept that first surfaced in the 1920s and is critical of virtually every element of Western thought. Now repackaged as Critical Race Theory (CRT), it has become, as one conservative pundit put it, a “culturally acceptable Trojan Horse for Marxism that redefines the social construct of ‘racism.’” In CRT’s application, supporters’ ultimate goal is that reality and justice will be determined by the POLITICAL POWER OF THE OPPRESSED. Following is a clear and illustrative definition of CRT by Marc Little, director of CURE America Action:
“…CRT divides America into two categories: Oppressor and the Oppressed. This is known as ‘Intersectionality’ and was introduced …in 1989. The Oppressor is defined as white, male, heterosexual, cis gendered (naturally born male), able bodied, and native born. The Oppressed are ranked by degrees of ‘oppression.’ If you are black, you are oppressed. If you are black and gay, you are more oppressed. If you are black, gay, and female, you have an even greater degree of oppression. And so on. The point being, the more oppressed one is, the more moral authority one has … [and] the least amount of responsibility. And to the Oppressor, you gain moral authority [only] by surrendering your power to the oppressed. This is called being ‘woke’ and purports to accomplish the goal to reverse the so-called ‘privilege’ held by the white man. It is an effort to enforce so-called ‘equality’ [emphasis added].”
Contrast CRT to the Biblical view of humanity, which is that we are all created in the image of God and therefore equal, and that we “are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Moreover, sin in the Bible is any act, statement, or even thought that violates God’s laws, including unjust oppression – and we are all sinners in God’s eyes. But salvation and forgiveness are available for everyone who confesses heartfelt faith in Jesus (and not through any good works we do). Most importantly, our desired destiny is eternity with Jesus, and not some earthly monument. With CRT, on the other hand, the only sin is oppression, the only sinners are the white oppressors, and there is only earthly “salvation.” The oppressed are “saved” automatically, while the oppressors can earn this “salvation” only by (1) surrendering their power to the oppressed (becoming woke), and (2) by engaging in activism for the causes of the oppressed.
Here’s an example of how CRT works. In 2023, 44% of small businesses had job openings they couldn’t fill – over 8 million jobs – because unemployed people (the oppressed) were receiving more money in government benefits than they could get by working. Yet, the woke Biden administration at the time complained about a rising unemployment rate due to a shortage of “suitable” job openings – and hence a need for even more government benefits for the oppressed. A white male could become a woke activist by publicly declaring his support for that view. But if he were honest and said the government couldn’t afford more benefits, and that the need could be greatly reduced if recipients simply took an available job, he would be considered the worst kind of oppressor – “no salvation for you, fella.”
Even now, the CRT message is still being introduced in some schools, most colleges, some woke corporations, and is rampant in most government agencies. To the general public, CRT is messaged primarily by distorting the language, backed by a compliant media as well as college administrators and teachers’ unions. Yes, we are being fed NEWSPEAK, like in Orwell’s 1984. It really is back to the future.
For example, say a white male denounces the instances of BLM, Antifa, etc. looting and burning in our cities as criminal violence, and a black woman challenges him by saying (in newspeak) that no, they were peaceful demonstrations in which oppressed participants were claiming their rightful reparations. In this case, CRT would paint the white male as an oppressor and confer the moral authority on the “oppressed” black woman. That would, in turn, make her expressed view the new reality. We oppressors don’t have a chance.
Another example of CRT newspeak that, for a while at least, made the rounds in the media is the term “birthing person.” Christians and other people with functioning brains would use the term “mother,” which in every language has been used for millennia by even the least educated. But now we must pretend that “men” can get pregnant and give birth. The “men” are, of course, females who “identify” as men. To be considered woke, oppressors had to perpetuate this newspeak without hesitation. Any attempt at public discussion or debate by normal people about using “birthing person” would have been shouted down by the woke mob.
With CRT, truth no longer matters. If you’re a white heterosexual male (considered the worst oppressors), your white privilege and male toxicity have rendered you and your view of reality as irrelevant or “problematic” (a favorite word of the left). And all your negative attributes go double if you’re a Christian.
Individuality doesn’t matter, either. What matters is the class or classes you belong to. Are you a person of color? Check. Do you identify gender-wise as other than your biological designation? Check. Are you LGBT or Q in sexual practices? Check. If white, are you Hispanic? Check. And so on. The more boxes you check, the greater your moral authority – and as part of a cohesive political group (i.e., the Democratic party), the greater your power. CRT aims to keep all these classes of people together as a voting bloc.
That such an insane cultural obsession like CRT can take hold here is what happens when we as a nation abandon God’s truth, and “everyone does what seems right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). CRT is nothing more than moral relativism on steroids – and it keeps us divided as a nation.
Here’s what commentator Jay Rogers (CEO of Alpha Strategies) said recently about CRT as related to corporate, academic, and government DEI programs (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion):
“DEI programs institutionalize the division of Americans by demographic category, rewarding individuals not for achievement but for the grievance their group can claim. Critical race theory presents the hierarchy of oppressors and oppressed as permanent – which is to say, as politically useful. The practical effect is to create what might charitably be called permanent victim tribes whose political value to their handlers depends on the problems never being solved (emphasis ours).”
As we noted earlier, CRT (along with other false doctrines) has worked its way into many schools – in some cases, as a string attached to government money. There is also little doubt that teachers’ colleges are complicit by turning out more teachers with “woke” credentials. Can this dangerous state of affairs be overcome? A few states have passed laws banning CRT in their schools, but I believe the biggest stumbling blocks to this and other needed education reforms are the teachers’ unions, which (as a group) are woke and expressly support CRT. Indeed, public education in general will continue to be corrupted in a variety of ways – and student performance will continue to suffer – until teachers’ unions are abolished.
Who are the real victims of CRT in the schools? White kids, without a doubt. CRT purports to elevate kids of color (often in questionable ways) – and it will be at the expense of white kids, who are often treated as second-class citizens. Elevating self-esteem and achievement of one group at the expense of another is wrong. It’s not a zero-sum game.
Clearly, in some parts of the country at least, we have let things go too far for too long, but there are still some actions believers and patriots can take. Homeschooling is one option – and because there’s an upsurge of homeschooling in the US, there are many more homeschooling resources available for all K-12 grade levels. Another option is a charter school, if there’s one in your area. (If there isn’t, parents might look into starting one.) Data over the last several years have shown that (non-union) charter schools have significantly outperformed public schools with similar socio-economic student bodies.
Of course, a big key to more charter schools is the voucher system. Yes, vouchers would funnel money away from public schools, but that may be a good thing in the long run. Replacing woke school board members would be another positive step. But the biggest positive step would be reverting to pre-1961 federal law, which disallowed public employee unions.
Indoctrinating our youth with CRT and other divisive policies can only lead to national ruin. Historian Victor Davis Hanson offered this cautionary advice to multiracial nations: “[Because]…humans’ first allegiance [is] to their own tribe, as defined by race, ethnicity or religion, [it is] why multiracial nations always wisely sought to tamp down tribal differences, and to emphasize common ties of citizenship and transcendent common interests. Otherwise…tribal feuding [can] turn bloody and barbaric (emphasis ours).”
Will we ever have tribal warfare here that turns barbaric and bloody? Possibly. But Christians offer both a bastion of immutable truth and a doctrinal pushback against violence, because of our common ties of heavenly citizenship and a transcendent common interest in Jesus Christ. If we speak up more, the chances of a culturally bankrupt nation will decrease. And vice versa.
Norbert J. Kuk