The Boogeyman of Critical Race Theory

Dave and Mickey discuss the spate of state initiatives to ban the teaching of critical race theory in schools, and how the small, specific body of scholarship that calls itself critical race theory is so different from the vague, amorphous threat that these initiatives seek to ban. In fact, many of the proponents of these bills cannot define critical race theory when asked. With its target so ill-defined, bans against critical race theory can become, in effect, a ban on teaching anything that relates to race and have a chilling effect on teachers in schools that have not yet banned it.

Show Notes

Additional Resources:

"Whitmire: Alabama lawmaker wants to ban critical race theory, so I asked him what it is," AL.com, June 15, 2021.

"How a Conservative Activist Invented the Conflict Over Critical Race Theory," The New Yorker, June 18, 2021.

 "Fox’s anti-“critical race theory” parents are also GOP activists," Media Matters for America, June 17, 2021.

"What critical race theory is -- and isn't," CNN, May 10, 2021 (updated).

"Nikole Hannah-Jones, a Mega-Donor, and the Future of Journalism," The Assembly, May 30, 2021.

"Pressure builds on UNC board to grant tenure to journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones," The Washington Post, May 26, 2021.


Podcast Reference:

"Clint Smith on the Importance of Critical Race Theory and His New Book, 'How the World Is Passed', " The Bakari Sellers Podcast, June 3, 2021.
 

Social Media References: 

Michael Harriot tweet

Nikole Hannah-Jones tweet

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David Shanks, aka Traum Diggs, is an MC/writer/journalist from Brooklyn, NY. He began writing articles in 2005, contributing correspondent features for print and online publications and has participated in conferences and panels at several colleges and universities including Rider University and SUNY- Rockland. He has also contributed chapters in Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide; Expressive Writing: Classroom and Community; and St. James Encyclopedia of Hip-Hop Culture. His independent album releases include Jazz Hop, Major Journalism, and Jazz Hop II.   A more complete discography is available at traumdiggs.com .

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Dr. Mickey Hess is Professor of English at Rider University and the author of A Guest in the House of Hip-Hop: How Rap Music Taught a Kid from Kentucky What a White Ally Should Be. With rapper and producer Buddha Monk, Mickey co-authored The Dirty Version: On Stage, in the Studio, and in the Streets with Ol' Dirty Bastard. His other books include Big Wheel at the Cracker Factory; Is Hip-Hop Dead? The Past, Present, and Future of America’s Most Wanted Music; and the edited collections Icons of Hip-Hop and Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide.

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Twitter:  @mickeyhess

What is A Guest in the House?

A Guest in the House, a podcast hosted by rapper and journalist David Shanks (aka Traum Diggs) and professor and author Mickey Hess, celebrates the best of what hip-hop has to offer and the lessons it can teach us about the ways we relate to each other across cultural, racial and social divides.