Thread by @deonteleologist

Check out the full discussion of Critical Race Theory between @wu_wenyuan and me, hosted by @jamiljivani. Thread incoming! 🧵

Link didn’t copy; here it is: iheartradio.ca/newstalk-1010/… starting at around 10:14

Jamil introduces us and kicks off the discussion by asking us to define CRT.

Dr. Wu: CRT is "a subschool of political thought that has its academic roots in theories such as Marxism, Neo-Marxism, the Frankfurt School, radical feminism, critical theory, and postmodernism."

Note that no specific commitments of CRT have been identified!

I identify one: the impact of race on the world as we know it has been massive, we still feel its effects, and this has important implications; we must interrogate the entanglements of race and power in society.

Next we move on to the "Ban-CRT-Bills." Jamil asks, "Why is it so controversial that these sorts of actions are being taken against CRT in the US?"

Wu: "In my opinion, [CRT] is a very narrow framework to examine our social relations and our policies."

But WHAT IS THE FRAMEWORK?

Dr. Wu goes on, talks about a racism witch hunt and EDI trainings, but she never articulates what these CRT or CRT-infused/informed assumptions are that are supposed to be so dangerous they must be legally prohibited from classrooms.

When Jamil asks me why I think CRT has become so controversial, I have to explain the disinformation campaign that has made this possible. Chris Rufo and James Lindsay are intentionally--and quite transparently and shamelessly--poisoning the well, and thus CRT has become toxic.

Here are receipts for my comments about the organization of which Dr. Wu is the executive director. These are from the booklet they recently published on their website (cferfoundation.org/wp-content/upl…) -- which I will certainly be talking more about on my Substack soon.

Jamil then asks us about the #Loudouncounty parent who went viral...

Hitler and the KKK aside, let me just point out the glorious hypocrisy in her insistence that people be treated w/ colorblindness while she shouts "You cannot tell me what is or is not racist. LOOK AT ME!!!"

When Jamil asks me for my take, all I can really do is reiterate how influential the right-wing propaganda machine is, and note that this new moral panic is really just the same old dance in newer clothes.

And here is how the interview concludes. I hope @jamiljivani does decide to invite @wu_wenyuan and me back on the show to discuss in further detail soon; I think the debate we had demonstrates that it's a topic worth diving deeper into and does require long-form discussion.