Almost all social progress movements inevitably generate a pushback. The recent response to the march for social justice for people of color* has created a boogieman response about the Critical Race Theory.
And what is that? I’m not quite sure, but a writer in a Newsmax piece thinks he does. “Critical Race Theory is Marxist. Its real target is Christianity and the Bible.”
Sounds terrible. And here I thought it was a framework for a better understanding of systemic racism. For instance, Disney has launched a “diversity and inclusion” program, called “Reimagine Tomorrow,” which has Newsmax in a snit.
THE black Republican US Senator
Much of the recent discussion seems to center around the response by Senator Tim Scott to President Biden’s “Can’t Be Called the State of the Union” address. The Weekly Sift guy addresses this:
“The most quoted line of Scott’s response is ‘America is not a racist country.’ I have to agree with Matt Yglesias:
“Is America a Racist Country?” is the perfect meaningless culture war debate because it has basically no content at all. What is it asking? Compared to what?
“Scott clearly wasn’t claiming America has no racism, because he also said, ‘I have experienced the pain of discrimination.’ He even allowed that American racism is not entirely in the past: ‘I know our healing is not finished.'”
In fact, in a 2016 interview, the senator said he had been pulled over seven times by police; he acknowledged he was going too fast two of those times, but the other five times, the only thing he was guilty of was being Black.
“So the argument he started is basically semantic: How much racism does it take to count as a ‘racist country’? Today’s US is not as racist as the Confederacy or Nazi Germany or the old apartheid regime in South Africa. Is that good enough? How many angels of color have to be included before we consider a pinhead dance to be integrated?”
What IS racist?
Part of the problem is that race-focused “conversations derail when people are using the same terms in different ways.”
Or looking at it another way, the United States is a place. Can a location be “racist”? People can act in racist ways and clearly can create a system that perpetuates racism. So, no, Critical Race Theory isn’t ‘anti-American’.
“Remember: Meaningless debates serve the interests of people who have nothing to say. If you have a real vision of the future you want, avoid getting baited into arguing about nothing.”
The Department of Homeland Security produced a report in 2020, suppressed by the previous regime, identifying white supremacists as the leading domestic terror threat. In the past, the government told us violent white racists were few in number and weak in intent. Yeah, right.
Note the mental health issues facing the black community, sent to me by the publisher. Also, Race and Medicine from the New England Journal of Medicine.
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah explains Critical Race Theory as well as anyone. Check out the video near the bottom of the page.
Anniversary of George Floyd’s death
An article in Vanity Fair noted that less than 53 weeks ago, George Floyd was just an average guy trying to make it in this world.
Yes, there has been a lot of outrage over police violence in the past year. Eyes have been opened, hearts and minds changed. Lots of unexpected alliances have been formed.
While there is so much work to do, I’ve decided to be optimistic that things can never go back to the way they were. But change is slow; it usually is.
*or whatever term you prefer
I was going to leave a response, but then it got longer and longer. So, I’ll post in reply on my blog sometime in the next few days. For now, though, I share your views—including about your optimism. There’s so little about the USA that gives me any hope these days, but I think that there’s at least a chance of a breakthrough on race in the USA—which, I’m certain, is why the Rightwing is trying so hard to divide people along racial lines.