Indeed, according to a 2021 YouGov survey, large majorities of Democratic respondents support public schools’ teaching many of the morally and empirically contentious ideas to which opponents of CRT object. And these ideas have also influenced many Democratic voters. Therefore, what conservatives are up in arms about is not the teaching of CRT, but the teaching of America’s uncomfortable racial history.īut strong connections exist between the cultural radicalism of CRT and the one-sided, decontextualized portrayal of American history and society that Democratic activists endorse. CRT, they contend, is a legal theory taught only in university law programs. The response to these charges from many on the left has been to deny or downplay them. But are the cases Rufo and others point to representative of American public schools at large-or are they merely outliers amplified by right-wing media? Educators following these curricula are said to be teaching students that racial disparities in socioeconomic outcomes are fundamentally the result of racism, and that white people are the privileged beneficiaries of a social system that oppresses blacks and other “people of color.” On gender, they are being taught that gender identity is a choice, regardless of biological sex. Rufo, many on the right allege that CRT-related concepts-such as systemic racism and white privilege-are infiltrating the curricula of public schools around the country.

Motivated by the work of Manhattan Institute senior fellow and City Journal contributing editor Christopher F. To what extent, if at all, are critical race theory (CRT) and gender ideology being taught or promoted in America’s schools? With little data available, and no agreement about what constitutes the teaching of critical social justice (CSJ) ideas, the answer up to now has remained open to political interpretation.

Mad zach free sound pack