Schools are restricting the teaching of systemic racism through the CRT

The critical race theory has been a topic of interest to educators and school boards all over the nation. State legislation is beginning to ban CRT in schools and limit teaching of topics such as slavery, racial injustice and systemic racism. 

The CRT is the academic teaching that racism is a systemic prejudice, rather than an individual bias, that still influences society today. According to Columbus Dispatch, “supporters define CRT as a way of understanding how biases (even unconscious ones) can slip into our public institutions.” Since the 2020 protests condemning systemic racism, school districts have begun banning the teaching of these topics in K-12 public schools.  

CRT originated from legal scholarship which looked at the justice system in reference to fairness and equality. The critical race theory further examines what role race plays in the legal system. This theory then evolved to looking at how race has impacted other aspects of society such as the health care system, education and financial systems.

“The application of it has grown since then to be a bit more socially inclusive,” said Dr. Larry Napoleon, Associate Professor for the School of Education at North Dakota State University.

Napoleon says that schools don’t necessarily have to teach CRT, but instead teach the idea behind it. “What’s more important to me than necessarily teaching the theory, is that in the education system, we engage in honest and thorough examinations in U.S. history,” said Napoleon. “Whether you call that critical race theory or whether you just call that factual examination of history, I don’t care…You cannot have an honest examination of history without the ideas of systemic and present day racial injustice coming into play.”

When students are not being taught this, “…you get a populous that doesn’t know U.S. History,” Napoleon states. 

As of Aug. this year, 27 states have proposed bills to ban the teaching of CRT to students grades Kindergarten to 12th grade. These bills would limit educators and how they teach racism, sexism or other equality issues. According to Education Week, twelve states have enacted these bans, either through legislation or other avenues.

According to the New York Times, across the country, Republican-led legislatures have passed bills recently to ban or limit schools from teaching institutional racism. States such as Texas, Idaho, N.H. and S.C. are among some that have enacted bans against CRT. Currently no K-12 school districts are explicitly teaching CRT to students. However legislation is limiting what the teachers say to their students concerning these issues. 

Texas principle James Whitfeild was placed on paid administrative leave due to allegations of teaching CRT in his school. To some, Whitfeild “has become an example of what could happen to educators who try to address issues of racism or inequality in the classroom.”

The controversy over the critical race theory has caused chaos in education board meetings all across the country including Fargo-Moorhead. On June 14, tensions between anti-CRT and pro-CRT supporters clashed while at an event organized by the Center of the American Experiment. Shouting erupted from the audience members as they disagreed whether or not CRT should be taught in Fargo-Moorhead Schools according to InForum. The Fargo Public School Board has not discussed the issue of CRT and it is not on the agenda for the future. 

Protests have occurred throughout the U.S. both supporting and denouncing CRT in the classrooms. According to Acled, “Anti-CRT demonstrations have been reported in 22 states, while pro-CRT demonstrations have been reported in 24 states and D.C.”

Supporters believe that prohibiting the teaching of CRT is “threatening students’ learning and heaping additional anxiety on educators,” according to USA today. With educators being restricted in their teaching curriculums, some worry that “the legislation will drive educators out of the profession.” Teachers fear that saying the wrong thing about race or slavery when teaching could result in losing their jobs. 

Educators also worry that cutting conversations about race and inequality would be neglecting the history of their students of color. According to USA Today, teachers have stated that CRT has been a word categorized to any teaching of racism, equity and slavery. 

According to Napoleon, the U.S. has had skewed systems in place for generations, leading to areas of history being whitewashed and non-factual. “The concept of whitewashing U.S. history is something that is deeply embedded throughout the U.S. education system,” he said. “None of these issues are new, they have been in place since education became a formalized system, these are ongoing issues.” 

Those against the teaching of CRT state that they support the teaching of history but not critical race theory, according to Columbus Dispatch. Anti- CRT supporters have stated that they do not want their children to view people as either oppressed or oppressors, causing division between students. Ohio lawmakers are seeing that the teaching of CRT could contradict the constitution. By treating students differently based on their race, “that kind of lesson plan would violate the U.S. Constitution, Ohio Constitution and the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964,” stated Columbus Dispatch.

However, pro-CRT activists claim that such legislation will disrupt discussion of how racism and sexism have shaped the country’s past and how it will continue to affect social, political, and economic systems, according to Education Week. Napoleon said, “What it’s doing is just exploring the way race intersects with the criminal justice system and multiple other systems.”

“If the truth makes you uncomfortable, I don’t think that necessarily suggests we should run away from the truth, we should just deal with it,” Napoleon said.