To help you learn more about Critical Race Theory (CRT), LDF has compiled answers to the most frequently asked questions about critical race theory. This resource also includes information on the laws banning critical race theory and racial justice discourse being enacted across the country and how they fit into a larger effort to suppress the voice, history, and political participation of Black Americans. LEARN MORE ABOUT LDF'S PRO-TRUTH WORK What is Critical Race Theory? Critical Race Theory, or CRT, is an academic and legal framework that denotes that systemic racism is part of American society — from education and housing to employment and healthcare. Critical Race Theory recognizes that racism is more than the result of individual bias and prejudice. It is essentially an academic response to the erroneous notion that American society and institutions are “colorblind.” Critical Race Theory recognizes that racism is embedded in laws, policies and institutions that uphold and reproduce racial inequalities. According to CRT, societal issues like Black Americans’ higher mortality rate, outsized exposure to police violence, the school-to-prison pipeline, denial of affordable housing, and the death rates of Black women in childbirth are not unrelated anomalies. The scholarly framework holds that racism goes far beyond just individually held prejudices, and that it is in fact a systemic phenomenon woven into the laws and institutions of this nation. A cursory review of U.S. history — or even just news headlines from 2020, where far too many examples of police brutality and violence against Black people propelled a historic racial justice movement — proves the truth of this theory. The classroom itself, currently the focal point of the ongoing fight to suppress uncomfortable truths about America, has traditionally been the site of some of this nation’s most egregious acts of state sponsored racism. This includes segregation, which theLDF has been at the forefront of challenging since our founder and the first Black Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall successfully litigated Brown v. Board of Education in the 1950s. Who created Critical Race Theory? Why should I care about Critical Race Theory? What are the common elements of recent legislation attacking CRT? Bans on any discussion or teaching that the United States is inherently or fundamentally racist. Bans on what legislatures have deemed “divisive concepts,” including white supremacy, male privilege, white privilege, equity, unconscious or implicit bias systemic racism. However, the bans lack context, definitions, or examples of the ways they are being taught. Requirements to teach “without giving deference to any one perspective” and provide a counter narrative or opposing view of anything being taught. Ban discussions of systemic racism and sexism that would “discriminate,” “hurt feelings” or make someone feel “guilty” about their skin color. Drastic limits and funding cuts for anti-bias trainings and diversity and inclusion initiatives for students and teachers. Provisions allowing the state to withhold funding for schools that violate the bans. What was President Trump’s role in the backlash to Critical Race Theory? How are laws banning Critical Race Theory or restricting what students can learn impacting education? Why do some lawmakers want to ban CRT? The term “critical race theory” has been co-opted by opponents as a catch-all and rallying cry to silence any discussions about systemic racism, ban the truthful teaching of American history, and reverse progress toward racial justice. The term has been unjustifiably used to include all diversity and inclusion efforts, race-conscious policies, and education about racism, whether or not they draw from CRT. Attempts to ban CRT are really attacks on free speech, on discussions about the truthful history of race and racism in the U.S., and the lived experiences of Black people and other people of color. Lawmakers and proponents of the bans insist they are advocating for a balanced and “patriotic” education. However, these bans do the exact opposite: deny the truth about our nation’s history, silence dissent, and punish those who speak the truth to counter whitewashed falsehoods. Why did Critical Race Theory suddenly come under fire? What does recent legislation regarding Critical Race Theory seek to ban? What role do school districts and school boards play in the bans of education on the history of systemic racism? The vast majority of school board members are elected officials who have power over school policy decisions, budgets, programming, resource allocation, curriculum, and faculty tenure. They have the power to vote down or institute school district policies, programs, and budgets. Currently, unprecedented numbers of mostly white parents are attending meetings to demand that school boards use their power to ban the teaching of so-called “critical race theory” in schools. Recent efforts to ban racial justice discourse are part of a long American history of backlash in response to demands for educational equity. Laws banning racial justice discourse are attacks on all students’ right to a fair, full, and truthful education about their country and their communities. Members of school boards must use their influence to resist bans on truth and defend the rights of teachers and students to discuss race in a classroom setting. Local elections have the power to shape the future of your school district. Learn more about local elections and candidates at Vote.org. What does the 1619 Project have to do with these laws? MORE PRO-TRUTH RESOURCES LDF'S PRO-TRUTH WORK LDF is at the forefront of the fight to ensure that America lives up to the ideals of justice and equality for all. The right to free expression and the right to vote are cornerstones of our democracy. Through litigation, public advocacy, and community organizing, LDF and coalition partners are fighting back to protect truth. LDF is working to protect truth in education in Texas, Alabama and South Carolina. All three states introduced legislation that could threaten truthful and honest discussions of history in classrooms, universities, and state agencies. READ MORE LDF ORIGINAL CONTENT American, Redefined: How Language is Weaponized to Oppress and Marginalize The linking of discussions of systemic oppression, race, gender expression, and sexual orientation with “anti-American” sentiments is intentional. It’s an attempt to redefine and reclassify who gets to call themselves American, regardless of their relationship to the country. READ MORE LDF ORIGINAL CONTENT What Florida Stands to Lose From its War on Books and Black History Public education has been taken hostage in Florida. And the state legislature and governor’s feverish campaign to strictly limit what facts and information can be accessed in public learning institutions is the driving force behind this egregious incursion. READ MORE ⟶ LDF ORIGINAL CONTENT How Woke Went From "Black" to "Bad" The word “woke” has been a signal urging Black people to be aware of the systems that harm and otherwise put us at a disadvantage since the 1920s. This piece explores how the term “woke” has been manipulated and maligned to hold back racial justice progress. READ MORE ⟶ LDF ORIGINAL CONTENT SERIES THE WAR ON TRUTH: Examining the Recent Rise of Anti-truth Laws PART 1 Anti-CRT Mania and Book Bans are the Latest Tactics to Halt Racial Justice We examine the attacks on ‘Critical Race Theory‘ and efforts to ban books as the latest tactics to halt racial justice. READ MORE PART 2 The History They Don't Want You to Know A historical view of attacks on truth, efforts to silence conversations about our nation’s history and current inequalities, and backlash to racial justice and educational equity. READ MORE PART 3 Why Truthful, Inclusive Education Benefits All Students — And How To Make It Happen Attorneys, education experts, and researchers explain why truthful, inclusive education benefits all students and how to make it happen. READ MORE THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE BRIEF WHOSE HISTORY? How Textbooks Can Erase the Truth and Legacy of Racism One way in which truth is attacked is through controlling the narratives told in children’s history textbooks, a practice dating back to the U.S. Civil War. this TMI brief examines the ramifications of attempts by anti-truth groups to remove or whitewash our nation’s history and legacy of racism from K-12 public school classrooms. READ MORE JUSTICE ABOVE ALL PODCAST OUTSIDE INFLUENCE The Origins of Anti-CRT Mania Dr. Kesha Moore unpacks the anti-truth movement and the coordinated attempts to censor the accurate teaching of American history. Justice Above All is joined by Katrina Feldkamp, Assistant Counsel for the Legal Defense Fund and Anya and Raven, two student leaders in the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition. LEARN MORE