CRT - A Critically Racist Theory?

And here's where it might start to sound a bit familiar: according to Conflict theory, social order is maintained by domination and power (think the "evil" white man).  Individuals and groups within society, according to Conflict Theory, work to maximize their own wealth and power.

Now Marx saw these laws within the framework of the rich oppressing the poor, or the bourgeoise (upper-class) oppressing the proletariat (working class).

These are the beginnings of what is known today as "class warfare" (pitting one class of individuals (like the rich or the "white man") against another class (like the poor or "minorities")).

And the language of "oppressor" and "oppressed" is something that you will hear today in discussions by other Marxist groups and ideologies, like CRT, socialism, etc.

What Does Critical Race Theory Actually Mean?

So when you hear "Critical Race Theory", what does that seem to mean or imply?

Well if you're like me, you say it probably means something along the lines of the theory of thinking critically about race, or something similar.

You might be surprised to know that "obvious meaning" is very different than its actual meaning.

Critical Race Theory comes out of the study called "Critical Theory". 

Well what's Critical Theory?

Critical Theory was established by the late Italian philosopher Antonio Gramski (1891-1937).

He was a one-time leader of the Communist party of Italy, whose ideas were further developed by the founders of the Frankfurt School.

In his book Fault Lines, Dr. Baucham breaks down what the phrase "Critical Theory" actually means; it will probably surprise you.

He explains that in the social sciences, the word "Critical" is "geared toward identifying and exposing problems in order to facilitate revolutionary political change."

In other words, the word "Critical" implies revolution. It is not interested in reform.

This again comes out of Marxism, is entrenched in this "oppressed-oppressor" mindset, and is all about overthrowing the system or the powers in charge.

Marxism and this word "Critical" seek to find ways in which the system is imperfect and make a lot of noise about it, whether it is reasonable or not, in order to rile the people up to overthrow the current power structure.

Well the word "Theory", when treated as a proper noun (capitalized) is an appropriate catch-all term for the thinking behind Critical Social Justice.

The word "Theory" is basically the head of the worldview that defines Critical Social Justice (the idea that inequality is deeply embedded in the fabric of our society).

So hold on. 

The word "Critical" implies a revolution to overthrow the government (or powers that be) and the word "Theory" implies that our society is basically inherently "unequal" and we need to overthrow it.

When related to race (Critical RACE Theory) it is implying that our society is inherently racist, and the only way to solve this is the Marxist process of MAKING A LOT OF NOISE ABOUT IT in order to rile people up to OVERTHROW THE GOVERNMENT. 

Good plan. Rile people up. Overthrow. Miss America would be proud of your world peace efforts. 

Wow.  So that's why those moms all across the country are kind of sort of concerned about their children being indoctrinated with this stuff.

They Have Redefined Racism and White Supremacy

So now that we have an ACCURATE definition of what people are referring to when they say "Critical Race Theory," Marxist roots and all, let's discuss some other key terms that there is a MASSIVE level of CONFUSION about.

White supremacy and Racism.  

Now these words probably bring up pictures in your mind of the antebellum days of slavery, where blacks were brutally beaten, and horribly treated as subhuman individuals.

Or maybe it brings up pictures of the Civil Rights Movement, with fire hoses being blasted at blacks in the segregated deep south in the 1960s. Or maybe segregated water fountains, KKK hoods, and burning crosses.

However, THAT IS NOT what "white supremacy" and "racism" mean to advocates of CRT.

Sure those things would certainly be deemed as racist and examples of white supremacy, but it goes much, much further than that

You see, according to the new definition of racism and white supremacy, pretty much ALL white people (especially white men) are guilty of racism and white supremacy whether or not they ever had a racist thought in their mind.

Like the Rock used to say, IT DOESN'T MATTER!

Ozlem Sensoy and Robin DiAngelo (pictured below), two of the intellectuals behind the CRT movement, wrote a book called "Is Everyone Really Equal?" where they define these words. 

They explain, "When we use the term white supremacy, we are not referring to extreme hate groups or "bad racists'" they write.

"We use the term to capture the all-encompassing dimensions of White Privilege, dominance, and assumed superiority in mainstream society."

This is extremely important for people to begin to recognize - it doesn't matter if YOU, as a white person, are racist, it matters that YOU as a white person are PART OF A SYSTEM which gives you a privilege that makes you superior in some way.

This is why it is SOOO important for YOU (all people) to ASSUME that systemic racism exists.  

You see, the entire ideology of CRT rests on an assumption: that the SOCIETY is racist, and beneficial to the white person.

The entire house of cards rests on this assumption.

If you reject the assumption that our society is inherently racist, then their theory becomes non-applicable and therefore it means nothing.

So they must FIRST (there is no other way) convince you that our society is inherently racist (I mean, isn't it obvious they say).

And if you reject this assumption, then they call YOU racist, because for them, it is of UTMOST importance that THIS ASSUMPTION be accepted.

Here is a video where Marc Lamont Hill sits down with Christopher F. Rufo and tries to PRESS him on these different issues.  However, Rufo does NOT take the bait.

Important CRT Definitions

Let's go over some KEY DEFINITIONS that it is important for you to know if you are going to talk with a proponent of CRT.

According to Fault Lines, White complicity maintains that all whites are complicit in systemic racial injustice (this often takes the form of all white people are racists, or guilty of racism).

Again, it is important to remember that this implies NOT that all whites are racially prejudiced, but rather that all whites participate in and, often unwittingly, maintain the racist system of which they are a part of, and from which they benefit.

Our next definition is a bit more obscure, which is white equilibrium, which is the belief system that allows white people to remain comfortably ignorant.

The Social Justice Encyclopedia defines it as "occupying a position of privilege (which) allows a person to avoid having to deal with or even understand the experiences of oppression (there's that Marxist word again) and marginalization, or indeed of bigotries like racism or even of the concept of race itself."

So basically, it's white people just going through the motions of a system that supposedly benefits them, and not seeing any reason to change that system because they are the recipients of those benefits.

Another popular definition you should be familiar with is white fragility, which is defined as the inability and unwillingness of white people to talk about race due to the grip that whiteness, white supremacy, white privilege, white complicity and white equilibrium exert on them (knowingly or unknowingly).

Critical Social Justice (CSJ) proponents believe white people can only respond appropriately to an accusation of racism by acknowledging, admitting, repenting of, and working to undo the (assumed) racism.

Apparently, the evidence is stacked up against the white man because he's...well...white.

Anything other than that is seen as EVIDENCE of white fragility.  And there is another phrase called aversive racism, which is a white person trying to deny they are racist.  That apparently makes you even more racist!

If You Are White Then You Are Guilty

Basically, if you are white, you are guilty of racism.  If you respond with anything other than admitting you are guilty, THAT ALSO makes you racist, or is just further evidence that you truly ARE a racist.

This would be similar to me calling you a JERK (or choose your word).  And then when you refuse that label, and try to provide evidence of you NOT being a jerk, I respond by saying that the fact you are denying being a jerk is FURTHER EVIDENCE that you are a jerk.

Good luck winning that one.

OK, so now we know what CRT actually means, a bit of history about where it comes from, and we are aware of some key definitions, which help us understand how they have changed the meanings of terrible words like, "Racist" or "White Supremacist" to be much more "inclusive".

Next, we will talk about how the Gospel fits in with all this.

How the Gospel Contradicts CRT 

So does the Bible fit in line with the teachings of CRT, or are they in direct contradiction to one another?

I will go over some reasons that these 2 are very much in direct contradiction to each other.

In Alisa Childer's book, Another Gospel (pictured below), she explains that the problem with Critical Theory (or CRT) is that it isn't just a set of ideas that influence how someone thinks about oppression.

Critical Theory (CT) functions as a worldview, a way of seeing (everything in) the world.

She goes on to further explain the divide.

She says that according to historic Christianity, we are human beings made in the image of a holy, loving, and just God.

However, according to Critical Theory (CT), our identity is not found in who we are created to be, but in how we relate with other groups as defined by our class, gender, sexual preference, etc.

Childers goes on.

According to Christianity, sin against a holy God is what's wrong with the world.

However, according to CT, oppression is what's wrong with the world.

According to historic Christianity, the sin problem is fixed by Jesus taking the punishment for our sins upon Himself, dying the death we deserve, so could be reconciled to God.

According to CT, the problem of oppression is fixed by activism, raised awareness, and an overthrow of oppressive systems and their power. 

See the difference?

Dr. Baucham notes that whereas Christians see Adam as the Federal Head of all mankind through whom the guilt of original sin is imputed to all of mankind, the "cult of antiracism" (as he calls it) sees the inventors of whiteness as the Federal Head of all white people through whom guilt is imputed in the form of white complicity. 

Sojourners magazine founder Jim Wallis has said, "Without confession to the sin of white racism, white supremacy, (and) white privilege, people who call themselves white Christians will never be free...from the bondage of a lie, a myth, an ideology, and an idol."

Dr. Baucham, however, calls this a direct affront to the Gospel, based on numerous scriptures including Romans 8:2 and John 8:36.

There's No Cure For Whiteness

Robin DiAngelo gives the following handout to help participants understand these CRT concepts.

First, that racism EXISTS today, in both traditional and modern forms.  

Second, that all members of this society have been socialized to participate in it.

And finally, that ALL white people benefit from racism, regardless of intentions - intentions are IRRELEVANT!

Dr. Baucham continues by saying, the very idea of dividing people up by ethnicity, then declaring some of them wicked oppressors and others the oppressed, is inconsistent with the biblical doctrine of UNIVERSAL guilt.

The EVIL is NOT the state of white men, it is the state of ALL PEOPLE.

Dr. Baucham continues on.

Your family never owned slaves? Doesn't matter.

You have family who fought and died for the Union in the Civil War? Doesn't matter.

Your family came here after slavery, segregation, and Jim Crow? Doesn't matter.

THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS IS WHITE SKIN.

I seem to recall another great American who said that he dreamed of a day when we could be judged NOT by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character.

Have we forgotten the great Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous words?

Christ has atoned for our sin, not that we would put back on a bondage again, but that we would all be set free, as brothers as sisters.

So let's pursue this sort of freedom, love, and truth together, or we will perish in our divide.

That is our summation of the CRT movement.  Did you know the definitions of racist and white supremacist were defined the way the CRT movement defines them?  Did you know Critical Theory had such an overt revolutionary meaning to it?  Let us know in the comments section below.

Recommended Books

Again, for further study on this topic, I recommend these books.

Fault Lines (2021)

By: Voddie T. Baucham

Another Gospel (2020)

By: Alisa Childers

American Marxism (2021)

By: Mark Levin