Book Review of Critical Race Theory: An Introduction

Basic Tenets of CRT

1 – Racism is ordinary, not aberrational. It’s the normal way of doing business.
2 – Our system of white-over-color ascendancy serves important purposes – psychic & material.
A – Ordinariness – racism is hard to cure or address. Color blindness can only address most blatant forms of discrimination.
B – Interest convergence (material determinism) – Racism advances the interests of white elites & working class. Large segments of society have little incentive to eradicate it.
3 – Social Construction Thesis – Race is a product of social thought & relations. It doesn’t correspond to biological or genetic reality.
Races as categories are invented, manipulated or retired by society when convenient.
People may have similar physical traits but these are a small part of the genes & are dwarfed by what we have in common: personality, intelligence & moral behavior.
4 – Differential racialization. Dominant society racializes different minorities at different times according to the needs of the labor market.
Blacks were needed less at one time because there were Mexican or Japanese workers. Japanese were put in camps during WW2. Stereotypes change.
5 – Each race has its own origins & evolving history. Intersectionality & anti-essentialism.
No person has a single, easily stated identity. Sex, race, class, sexuality, political part are all potentially conflicting, overlapping identities, loyalties & allegiances.
6 – Unique voice of color
Different histories & experiences with oppression, different categories can communicate with whites what they don’t know.
Minority status brings a presumed competence to speak about race & racism. Legal storytelling urges “black” & “brown” writers to recount their perspectives & experiences.

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