The Critical Race Theory Controversy

The Critical Race Theory Controversy
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            In recent years, the Critical Race Theory has come under attack by some sections of the population. It has led to some states establishing laws that subsequently remove the theory from the classroom. As of 2021, eight states had passed regulations to ban the approach, although only one dared to mention the words Critical Race Theory (Ray & Gibbons, 2021). Media has also embarked on this conversation, with stations like Fox News mentioning the term up to 1,300 times within two months (Power, 2021). The idea is to remove critical race theory from the curriculum, which implies turning a blind eye and excluding dark American pasts from the history taught to children. This move is hypocritical and shows that CRT has become nothing but a new bogeyman for a people unwilling to acknowledge America's racist and oppressive history and its impact on the present.

Critical Race Theory

Critical Race Theory (CRT) is an approach to studying American policies and institutions often used in law schools. The theory is underpinned by the premise that racial bias is baked in American laws and institutions, whether deliberate or unintentional. For instance, African Americans are incarcerated at much higher rates or be killed by the police than any other race in the country, not because they are the most involved in criminal activities but because the laws are less protective of them (Price, 2016). An example of oppressive laws includes the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act. Here, harsher penalties were established for possession of crack cocaine than those for powder cocaine. The former was mainly found in African Americans' hands, while whites were primarily involved in the latter (Keyes, Bing III, & Keyes, 2021). Thus, it is through such issues that CRT is important. America's dark pasts of slavery, segregation, uprooting of native Americans, and the Jim Craw laws era are still impacting minority lives today through policy and laws. From this point of view, there is no reason why critical race theory should be banned since it tells true American history.

Opponent's Views

            However, opponents of critical race hold a different view. They have raised the fear that CRT admonishes all white people for being the oppressor and perpetuates the view that Black people are the hopelessly oppressed (Adler-Bell, 2022). These fears have compelled school boards and legislatures to ban teaching about race and, to some extent, gender wars or differences. Thus, the opponents believe that they are protecting American children from the unsavory chapters of American history, especially when racial tyranny has become more explicit, as demonstrated through police violence against African Americans.

Consequently, opponents argue that they protect American students from the 'discomfort' of talkin...