Judicial Watch announced today it received 518 pages and 135 pages of records revealing critical race theory (CRT) instruction at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point. One training slide contains a graphic titled “MODERN-DAY SLAVERY IN THE USA.”
The records were obtained through two Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits against the U.S. Department of Defense, which were filed after it failed to respond to requests for records concerning critical race theory training at West Point (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Defense (No. 1:21-cv-01795)) and emails related to such training of LTG Darryl A. Williams, Superintendent, United States Military Academy, BG Mark C. Quander, Commandant, U.S. Corps of Cadets, U.S. Military Academy, and CSM Michael J. Coffee, former U.S. Military Academy senior enlisted leader, (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of Defense (No. 1:21-cv-02616)).
The records include material about “whiteness:”
In order to understand racial inequality and slavery, it is first necessary to address whiteness
- “White people and people of color live racially different structured lives” – Frankenberg
- 1) Is a location of structural advantage, of race privilege.
- 2) A standpoint or place from which white people look at themselves and the rest of society
- 3) Refers to a set of cultural practices that are usually unmarked and unnamed:
Take-for-grantedness of whiteness
- Privilege lives within this
A slide in the materials is titled “By the Numbers” and has a graphic titled “MODERN DAY SLAVERY IN THE USA.” [Emphasis in original] It lists:
Blacks are more likely than whites to:
Live below the poverty line
Be victims of homicide (6:1)
Be incarcerated (8:1)
Blacks are less likely than whites to:
Have a college education
Receive recommended medical screening tests
Receive bank approval for a housing mortgage
Own their own homes
Receive a job promotion
Students are instructed that critical race theory, “Grows out of the field of law and studies the way that racism is built into and reproduced through the institutions that organize everyday life.”
Another presentation is titled “Education and Work Inequality,” in which one slide has a text box: “‘Race and the Invisible Hand’ How White Networks Exclude Black Men from Blue-Collar Jobs.”
Another slide in the presentation titled “Affirmative Action,” asks cadets:
Do you think Affirmative Action creates and [sic] environment for “reverse discrimination?” Use CRT to support your answer.
Cadets are asked in a slide titled “Conundrums of Integration:”
What is the difference between desegregation versus integration? How would you apply a tenant [sic] of CRT to this idea?
An additional PowerPoint presentation, includes a slide titled “Critical Race Theory and Policy” which describes critical race theory as having the following attributes:
· Racism is ordinary.
· Race is socially constructed.
· White Americans have primarily benefited from civil rights legislation.
A slide in the presentation titled “Queer Theory and Policy,” under the general heading “Queer Theory” lists:
· Heterosexuality is the basis for sexual formations.
· Queer theory is multidisciplinary.
· Gay and lesbian issues get combined into one category when they are not the same.
In the syllabus for a 3-credit Social Sciences Department class titled “The Politics of Race, Gender, and Sexuality,” an assigned reading text is “Critical Race Theory: An Introduction” by Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic. In the course description, the syllabus notes: “[T]he class will serve as an introduction to the theoretical concepts of post-modernism. This will include a focus on feminist theory, critical race theory, and queer theory.”
Another objective is to “consider how the contemporary issues that relate to race, gender, and sexuality apply to the army and how they impact the army officer. The concepts that will be discussed in this class are essential for future military officers to understand and fully absorb.”
“Our military is under attack – from within. These documents show racist, anti-American CRT propaganda is being used to try to radicalize our rising generation of Army leadership at West Point,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
Judicial Watch lawsuits and FOIA requests on critical race theory and other leftist extremism include:
- Judicial Watch in June 2022 further pursued litigation a federal court decision dismissing a civil rights lawsuit on behalf of David Flynn, a Massachusetts father who was fired from his position as high school football coach after he raised concerns over Black Lives Matter/critical race theory being taught in his daughter’s seventh-grade ancient history class.
- Records produced in April 2022 from the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) show the government agency responsible for regulating credit unions required “inclusion and unconscious bias training” for the agency’s employees and contractors and offered advice on how to recognize and address alleged “microaggressions” in the workplace.
- Records produced in February 2022from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) included a PowerPoint presentation titled “Race and gender based microaggressions” that was used for training at the organization.
- Two sets of records obtained by Judicial Watch in November 2021 related to the teaching of critical race theory in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Maryland’s largest school system, included a training course with information about a book titled “Antiracist Baby” that introduces the youngest readers to “the concept and power of antiracism,” and says it’s the “perfect gift” for “ages baby to age 3.”
- Records from Loudoun County, VA, obtained in October 2021 revealed a coordinated effort to advance critical race theory initiatives in Loudoun County public schools despite widespread public opposition.
- A training document provided to Judicial Watch in October 2021 by a whistleblower in the Westerly School District of Rhode Island, details how its schools are using teachers to push critical race theory in classrooms. The training course was assembled by the left-leaning Highlander Institute and cites quotes from Bettina Love, from whom the Biden administration distanced itself publicly after her statements equating “whiteness” to oppression.
- Records produced in June 2021 by Wellesley Public Schools in Massachusetts confirmed the use of “affinity spaces” that divide students and staff based on race as a priority and objective of the school district’s “diversity, equity and inclusion” plan. The school district also admitted that between September 1, 2020, and May 17, 2021, it created “five distinct” segregated spaces.
- Heavily redacted records obtained by Judicial watch in May 2021from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland included documents related to their $454,000 “Anti-racist system audit” and critical race theory classes. Students were taught that the phrase “Make America Great Again” was an example of “covert white supremacy.”
Author: Judicial Watch
Judicial Watch, Inc., a conservative, non-partisan educational foundation, promotes transparency, accountability and integrity in government, politics and the law. Through its educational endeavors, Judicial Watch advocates high standards of ethics and morality in our nation’s public life and seeks to ensure that political and judicial officials do not abuse the powers entrusted to them by the American people. Judicial Watch fulfills its educational mission through litigation, investigations, and public outreach. Visit Judicial Watch at https://www.judicialwatch.org/
