Critical Race Theory

From the Substance Podcast: “Bradly Mason on Telling the Truth About CRT”

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I had a fantastic discussion with Philip, Trevor, and Vincent over at The Substance podcast. We talked some truth about Critical Race Theory, the ongoing culture war, a little Voddie Baucham, and the many misrepresentations and characterizations of antiracism plaguing the Church.

I hope you will check it out and let us know what you think. So far we’ve heard a lot of great feedback!

Audio Link: “Bradly Mason on Telling the Truth About CRT“

YouTube Link: “Bradly Mason on Telling the Truth About CRT“

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A Christian Chop Session on Critical Race Theory: Part 3

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Contextual Note to Our Readers: This is our third chop session on Critical Race Theory. For session one, see HERE or HERE. For session two, see HERE or HERE.

Prelude: Why Chop Session Three is on Robin DiAngelo

Conjunto: We ended our first chop session promising to discuss some of our favorite CRT works in the next chop session. But since publishing that piece, many have voiced their surprise about our not mentioning Ibram X. Kendi or Robin DiAngelo in a session answering the question, “What is CRT?” Because this series es para el pueblo—“for the people”—we’ve decided to change course and use chop sessions two and three to explain why Kendi and DiAngelo did not appear in our first post, and why, apart from those sessions, they’re unlikely to appear in the rest of the series.

This chop session is on DiAngelo. The previous one was on Kendi. Enjoy!

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From Becoming Bridge Builders, with Keith Haney: “A Deep Dive Into Critical Race Theory”

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I had a great conversation with Keith Haney on his Becoming Bridge Builders podcast! We discussed Critical Race Theory, what it is and is not, whether it is “Marxist,” how it differs from popular conceptions, and how we can engage against the perennial public distortions of culture warriors. Please have a listen and let us know what you think!

Link to audio: “A Deep Dive Into Critical Race Theory“

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“Systemic Racism,” in the Key of CRT

Brad Mason4 Comments

“Systemic racism” can be a difficult concept to grasp, largely because “racism” is commonly understood as an exclusively individual and intentional affair. Thus, most Americans begin with an idea of racism as personal prejudice toward those of different skin color and then are left imagining how this intentional prejudice can somehow become a property of systems, institutions, or social structures. In the end, many are left believing systemic racism is a grand conspiracy of racist individuals, or an ethos which pervades a society, or a set of explicit laws and basic assumptions hidden somewhere deep in the books.

Others, alternatively, tend to think of systemic racism as any policy, whether state or private, which leads to or preserves racial disparity. This is a contender, to my lights, as the racial distribution of harm and/or advantage should certainly be recognized as a measure of a policy’s success. But is, for example, every fee hike or price increase a racist act?

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From Story Power Podcast, With Jen Kinney: “Demystifying Critical Race Theory with Brad Mason”

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Podcast My Face

I had the great pleasure of discussing Critical Race Theory, its historical development, our current period of racial retrenchment, the ongoing anti-CRT “culture war,” and much more with Jen Kinney over at the Story Power Podcast!

Please have a listen and let us know what you think!

Link: “Demystifying Critical Race Theory with Brad Mason“

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From Patheological: “Common Places: A Conversation with Brad Mason”

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In my latest discussion with Dr. Todd Littleton on Patheological, we take a deeper dive into the social construction of race thesis, exploring its many implications. We discuss how the social construction thesis necessitates many of the other commonplaces of Critical Race Theory, including differential racialization, intersectionality, and the embedded nature of racism in American society.

Let us know what you think! We’d appreciate any feedback, including critique, to help us cover the topics and questions most on listeners’ minds.

Link to audio: “Common Places: A Conversation with Brad Mason“

And if you need to catch up:

Link to Part 1: “The Dangers of Mediating Ideas: A Conversation with Bradly Mason“

Link to Part 2: “When the Law Does Not Deliver: A Conversation with Bradly Mason”

Link to Part 3: “Can Two Walk Together? More with Bradly Mason on CRT“

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Critical race theory:

Brad Mason6 Comments

So, what is Critical Race Theory (CRT)? Answering this question can be difficult. As Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw has written, “the notion of CRT as a fully unified school of thought remains a fantasy of our critics.”[1]

Nevertheless, CRT founders and practitioners like Crenshaw, Mari Matsuda, Charles Lawrence III, Richard Delgado, Devon Carbado, and others, have offered explicit answers to “What is critical race theory?” (See Words That Wound, pp. 2 – 3,  Critical Race Theory: The Cutting Edge, pp. 4 – 6, Critical Race Theory: An Introduction, pp. 8 – 10, and “Critical What What,” pp. 1607 – 1615.)

The following are their suggested “tenets”—or as I prefer, “commonplaces”—ordered and presented more or less thematically, fleshing out Dr. Crenshaw’s description of CRT as “a way of seeing and thinking about race that denaturalizes racial inequality.” Additionally, the founders’ own words are included verbatim in the footnote for each commonplace.

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A Christian Chop Session on Critical Race Theory: Part 2

Brad Mason2 Comments

Prelude: Our Aim

As fears of Critical Race Theory (CRT) spread across the United States—including within US churches—many of us find the common descriptions of CRT unrecognizable. What is CRT, really? Dr. Nathan Luis Cartagena and I, Bradly Mason, have developed this series of dialogs, or “chop sessions,” to answer this and related questions.

Our goal is fourfold: (1) Accurately present CRT, situating it in the movement’s historical context; (2) relate CRT to our shared faith; (3) explore CRT’s impact on our own lives within our own differing social locations; and (4) help other brothers and sisters interact honestly and redemptively in our deeply racialized and stratified culture. ¡Bendiciones en Cristo!

Explanation about Chop Sessions Two and Three

Conjunto: We ended our last post promising to discuss some of our favorite CRT works in the next chop session. But since publishing that post, many have voiced their surprise about our not mentioning Ibram X. Kendi or Robin DiAngelo in a session answering the question “What is CRT?” Because this series es para el pueblo—“for the people”—we’ve decided to change course and use the next two chop sessions to explain why Kendi and DiAngelo did not appear in our first post, and why, apart from those sessions, they’re unlikely to appear in the rest of the series.

This chop session will focus on Kendi. The next one will focus on DiAngelo. Enjoy!

Continue reading →

A Christian Chop Session on Critical Race Theory: Part 1

Brad Mason2 Comments

Questions

Prelude: Our Aim

As fears of Critical Race Theory (CRT) spread across the United States—including within US churches—many of us find the common descriptions of CRT unrecognizable. What is CRT, really? Dr. Nathan Cartagena and I, Bradly Mason, have developed this series of dialogs, or “chop sessions,” to answer this and related questions. Our goal is fourfold: (1) accurately present CRT, situating it in the movement’s historical context; (2) relate CRT to our shared faith; (3) explore CRT’s impact on our own lives within our own differing social locations; and (4) help other brothers and sisters interact honestly and redemptively in our deeply racialized and stratified culture. ¡Bendiciones en Cristo!

Continue reading →

From Patheological: “Can Two Walk Together? More with Bradly Mason on CRT”

Brad MasonLeave a comment

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In my latest discussion with Dr. Todd Littleton on Patheological, we take a deep dive into the social construction of race thesis, our specific national history of racial construction, and what it means for our understanding of racism today, including systemic and institutional racism, differential racialization, intersectionality, etc. We hope that by understanding the nature of “race” itself, as a social, historical, and political entity, we can find common ground to examine the larger social implications.

Let us know what you think! We’d appreciate any feedback, including critique, to help us cover the topics and questions most on listeners’ minds.

Link to audio: “Can Two Walk Together? More with Bradly Mason on CRT“

And if you need to catch up:

Link to Part 1: “The Dangers of Mediating Ideas: A Conversation with Bradly Mason“

Link to Part 2: “When the Law Does Not Deliver: A Conversation with Bradly Mason”

Follow @AlsoACarpenter