Media top headlines August 9
Brian Stelter admits Chris Cuomo's scandal has been a 'CNN conundrum' but still defends him, the mainstream media is silent while Obama dances maskless in a crowded tent, and NBC experiences the 'worst case scenario' as Olympics ratings plunge
The Los Angeles Times argued Sunday that the teaching of critical race theory (CRT) as part of an "ethnic studies" course in high schools was necessary to make students of all backgrounds aware of the effect of racial inequality on their lives.
The Times claimed in an editorial that "bias" by participants in a recent board of education forum in California "illustrated why an ethnic studies course" was needed in high schools, as well as why "the study of systemic and institutional racism" needed to be a part of it.
"A renewed call for ethnic studies in public schools has caused a nationwide wave of contentious school board meetings, with opponents of such courses hurling accusations of indoctrination and in some cases attempting to recall the education leaders they had elected," the Times wrote. "The verbal cudgel that opponents wield most often against ethnic studies is that it’s a version of ‘critical race theory.’"
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The Times claimed that although several Republican-controlled states had moved to ban the teaching of CRT in schools, people had little idea what the subject actually entailed. It marked yet another liberal media outlet suggesting parents didn't understand the subject they were criticizing, following a similar CNN report last month.
"What many of its detractors do realize … is that critical race theory challenges the notion that this is a land of equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, ethnicity or background. As it should," the Times wrote. "This is a land of equal opportunity — but only for some people."
Critical race theory has come under fire from parents and others as a form of neo-racism that pits groups against one another, while supporters have called it a necessary rejoinder to what's been historically taught in American schoolrooms.
The Times argued that some groups of people had been left out of the opportunities passed down from generation to generation, and that one of the main tenets of CRT was to point out that "reality" and "make students of all backgrounds aware of the impact it has on their lives almost every day."
The Times claimed it was "disturbing" to see parents stand against their children learning "uncomfortable realities," and that it was "deeply problematic" for legislators to turn the debate over CRT into a political opportunity "by putting a chokehold on the truth."
It added that it was "particularly troubling" that a July forum hosted by the Orange County Board of Education was "stacked" with people opposed to CRT, and that the subject was "misrepresented" by panelists making false statements.
"Public education has gotten better at bringing the history, literature and art of marginalized groups into the classroom. But it has not gone nearly far enough," the Times wrote. "Ethnic studies is one place where the intention is for students to see topics through the history and eyes of Black, Latino, Asian and Native Americans, the nation’s four most marginalized groups."
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"Students spend most of their schooling seeing these issues through the eyes of White people who had the power to create the institutions and tell most of the stories," it added. "It is true that students should not be proselytized and told what to believe. But they need to be taught the truth."