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The following is an opinion contribution and reflects the author’s views alone.
Critical Race Theory (CRT), which makes race the prism through which one analyzes every aspect of American life, has become increasingly pervasive in American culture, especially in academic curriculum. The core tenet of CRT maintains that racism is not merely the product of individual bias or prejudice, but something embedded in legal institutions, policies, and social systems. Proponents of CRT believe that in order to eliminate the historical consequences of racial inequality, you must elevate race in our institutions by, for example, creating race-centered policy intended to “uplift” those historically impacted by racism and by teaching an “anti-racist” curriculum.
The prevalence of Critical Race Theory in so many aspects of American life should be concerning to Americans. CRT poses a great threat to American society because it intends to replace our national identity with values that are inherently antithetical to the American ethos of freedom and equality for all. It is for this reason that CRT must be abolished in our institutions, from schools to governments. Although it is true that CRT is classified as an intellectual movement, radical proponents of CRT have a much more national agenda: they believe that the only way to cure inequality of outcome is by replacing our institutions with new, “anti-racist” ones. They also intend to reframe the American narrative by placing slavery and its consequences at the center of American history, as evidenced by the 1619 Project from The New York Times, instead of centering American history on the founders’ vision for a free and equal America. If America clings onto its grave sin, slavery, and allows it to be the definition of the American narrative, then we shall be forever bound to the past, unable to extricate ourselves from the consequences of America’s dark stain on history and unable to progress with genuine change.
Although one can sympathize with the good-willed intentions of CRT to improve the lives of those who have been historically marginalized, we should not simply discard America’s historical efforts to achieve the idea that “All men are created equal” by creating institutions that intend to dismantle the very premises of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. We cannot replace our national identity with one that tries to divide Americans by teaching them that the invisible, omnipresent “racist” forces exerted by our legal institutions and social systems are holding them back from flourishing in this country. CRT and its neo-Marxist tendency to focus on class conflict and distinctions between groups intend to reject equal opportunity and fairness under the law. A national identity rooted in unfairness and scorn for our values and ideals would not be sustainable and healthy for the well-being of our society. Academic curriculum needs to teach about America’s struggle to achieve the ideals of the Declaration of Independence, not the idea that every aspect of American life is riddled with systemic racism.
I must clarify that the abolition of CRT does not equate to abolishing discussions about racism in the classroom. Racism is America’s deep stain on history and every effort must be made to reconcile with America’s grave sins of slavery and its certain historical instances of systemic racism, such as the Jim Crow era South. America today, however, is no longer a systemically racist country. The founders’ vision of “All men are created equal,” Frederick Douglass’s hope that the promises of freedom and equality guaranteed by the Constitution are extended to all Americans, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream have all come true. While we are not, and never will be, a perfect nation, we have made noteworthy strides towards ensuring that the American Dream is available to all, regardless of race. Embracing CRT and accepting it as a valid school of thought simply discards everything our great forebears fought for: equality for all.
Critical Race Theory has crept into many facets of life in America, straying us away from Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of an equal playing field for all Americans regardless of race. It is time for America to reconcile with the visions of the great men of the past, which includes Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream, as well as the founders’ vision and intention for America to be a place where “All men are created equal.” The abolition of CRT is what all pioneers for equality should strive for. But, if we cannot forgive America’s past sins of racism and move on from our lessons of the evils of prejudice, then we are forever bound to the past.
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