Critical race theory (CRT), a framework developed in the 1970s and 1980s by legal scholars such as the late Derrick Bell, examines how racism is embedded in American law and institutions. Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, credited with coining the term, has described it as a way of accounting for the ways racial inequality is facilitated and reproduced.
Despite not being part of the school curriculum, CRT has been seized upon by Republicans and right-wing media. Fox News and others have turned it into a catch-all phrase for any teaching about race. Patti Hidalgo Menders, president of the Loudoun County Republican Women's Club, said such teaching is "fundamentally CRT" and "dividing our children into victims and oppressors".
Glenn Youngkin made education his signature issue in the Virginia governor race. He falsely claimed his Democratic opponent, Terry McAuliffe, had asked the FBI to silence conservative parents. Youngkin promised to ban CRT on his first day in office, saying: "What we won't do is teach our children to view everything through the lens of race."
The backlash is widely seen as a response to last year's Black Lives Matter protests and changing demographics, as well as frustration over lengthy school closures during the pandemic. School board meetings turned ugly, with protests against mask rules and CRT often overlapping.
Exit polls showed 14% of Virginia voters listed education as a top issue, and about seven in ten of those voted for Youngkin. McAuliffe hurt his campaign by saying he did not believe parents should tell schools what to teach, allowing Republicans to frame the race as a battle for parental rights.
