Blog Post #4: Relevance to Now

 Hello! This is my fourth blog post and in this one I will be comparing some of what I've read so far in the book to recent discussions about Critical Race Theory and some of the controversy about what is getting taught in schools or training in government programs regarding racism. In the book I'm about half way through Chapter 5 and so far it's mostly summarized what Alexander has said in the book, however, she is moving onto what the term "the new Jim Crow" means. 

If you don't know, Critical Race Theory (CTR) basically examines systemic oppression within governments and how minorities are impacted it. Many representatives in Congress support the existence of this mode and are trying to integrate into schools and educate more people on how it affects everyone.

Racism today as described in The New Jim Crow occurs more subtly then it did 70 years ago. Alexander has discussed how black men are targeted and incarcerated without means of escaping a felony. The police and the courts find ways to discriminate and segregate African Americans through prisons and felonies. As I have talked about in previous posts, this incarceration system has been refined and implemented into our judicial and social society to the point of which it is technically legal to discriminate and just being black is reason for an unwarranted search by police. CTR is simply the existence of this system and the effects that it has on society.

As CTR has become more popular through the turn of 2021, many people have advocated for it to be taught in public schools. Not necessarily CTR, but the ideas behind it. Some schools already taught about systemic racism and many schools integrated into their curriculum. I personally am enjoying the current race unit that is being taught by my high school and it's very eye opening. After about my second blog post I was wondering how I could get everyone in America to read this book. For me, I think this unit has been very important for me personally and the way I see systemic racism and racism in general. However, this type of education or training is beginning to get cancelled in other places besides schools.

In the federal government, President Donald Trump wanted to remove CTR training from federal agencies. For example NASA has “power and privilege sexual education workshops," that are supposed to integrate and educate the ideas of CTR. The FBI was holding weekly "intersectionality workshops" as an attempt to further help integration and Sandia National Laboratories held a "reeducation" seminar to "deconstruct white male culture".

Sandia National Laboratories is the place that designs nuclear weapons.

Overall, this book has a lot in common with CTR and the nitty gritty on how it all works. I think that education and training about race should stay and actually get implemented in more schools. It's important that everyone knows about this so America can begin to change and make progress to more integrated and less racist society.


Eden, Max. "Critical Race Theory in American Classrooms." City Journal, Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, 8 Sept. 2020, www.city-journal.org/ critical-race-theory-in-american-classrooms. Accessed 25 Mar. 2021.

"Critical Race Theory (1970s-present)." Purdue Owl, owl.purdue.edu/owl/ subject_specific_writing/writing_in_literature/ literary_theory_and_schools_of_criticism/critical_race_theory.html. Accessed 25 Mar. 2021.

"7 Ways We Know Systemic Racism Is Real." Ben and Jerry's, www.benjerry.com/ whats-new/2016/systemic-racism-is-real. Accessed 25 Mar. 2021.

Comments

  1. Ms. LaClairMarch 29, 2021 at 2:42 PM

    Ethan, I'm glad you're appreciating the purpose of the unit. Have you found anything about other states/school districts facing issues with teach Critical Race Theory units? How does this concept relate to the section that you read for today's post?

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousMarch 30, 2021 at 8:27 AM

    Hi Ethan,
    I agree with you in that this unit has been quite insightful to me. I think it's important that Critical Race Theory is taught in schools- education is truly one of the greatest preventative actions that can be taken. How do you think Critical Race Theory should be implemented in schools? Do you think that it should be a mandatory part of the cirriculum?

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousMarch 30, 2021 at 3:25 PM

    Hello Ethan, I really enjoyed reading this blog post because it reflects many of my same feeling about these subjects. For one, I too was wondering how we could get the knowledge if this book out to the people who really need to hear it. Obviously a popular book is a good start but those who deny that systemic racism exists in our country are less than likely to pick up and read a book like this one. Another thing I related to was your feeling that this unit has opened your eyes and really taught about how systemic racism is a prominent thing in our society. I believe that banning units like these are simply a tactic to allow systemic racism to continue unnoticed. -Andrew

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousMarch 30, 2021 at 10:44 PM

    Hey Ethan, I thought that your point about how black males are disproportionally imprisoned was interesting. Do you think that by giving felons the right to vote it would fix this system? Because if there are means for the appressed to change the system then there should be no need for auxiliary help. For instance, the war on drugs has been criticized for locking up a generation of African American males, but if the majority of the country thought that drugs were that bad, and everyone had the right to vote, then would that be okay?

    ReplyDelete

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