Donald Trump’s attack on critical race theory and racial sensitivity training threatens the greatness of our country.

In recent news of Donald Trump’s continued attack on the American people, his administration has been directed to end racial sensitivity trainings that discuss topics such as white privilege and critical race theory. Office of Management & Budget Director Russell Vought issued a memo calling such trainings “propaganda.” As usual, the Trump administration seeks to dismantle that which it fears but does not understand. If one does not understand critical race theory, how can one have a properly informed critique of it?

Critical race theory emerged as an area of study in the 1980s, although thought leadership on this topic was well underway before it became a formalized concept in academia and other fields. Critical race theory offers an analysis of social inequities through the lens of structural and ideological factors. Simply put, it considers the role of race and power in perpetuating the social dynamics we see today. For example, critical race theory recognizes the role of racism and structural laws and practices, such as redlining and city planning investment or divestment, in prominent community segregation as we know it. In 2020, where the use of social media has continued to shine a brutal spotlight on Black trauma, pain, and injustice at the hands of police brutality (read: anti-Black racism + structural power), critical race theory is not and should not be a radical concept.

I cannot distill critical race theory down into one paragraph or Medium post and do it justice. There are many scholars who have devoted their careers to studying and progressing the world of critical race theory, so for those interested in learning more, I would offer up the works of Derrick Bell, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, Richard Delgado, and bell hooks — to name a few.

For that reason, I do not believe that Donald Trump or his administration understands the true intent, potential, or impact of critical race theory and anti-racism generally; or he actively seeks to prohibit the exact effort that will put his white supremacy under the microscope — and to be honest, I could not care less about his ill-informed and inadequately considered opinions. Critical race theory has contributed to our understanding and our advancement of racial and other forms of social equity in our country. Full stop. This is not up for debate.

What does enrage me about the news of the Trump administration, including and especially Donald Trump himself, seeking to end such crucial anti-racism training is the damaging reverberations of this thoughtless-at-best, insidious-at-worst announcement throughout our society.

Let us consider the horrific possibility that his administration successfully manages to cancel all federal contracts related to investments in anti-racism training. Our federal government institutions are charged with the responsibility of enacting policies and delivering the life-sustaining resources and services that impact states and people all across the country. A true understanding of the mechanisms of power and how to operate such power for social equity, both internally and externally, seems core to an institution with such vast power and influence over the United States. Eliminating this anti-racism training is reckless and destructive to the very work that the federal government is tasked to lead. It furthermore heavily impacts the people of color-led firms who often are the contractors doing this work.

Let us say, instead, that Donald Trump has no true power to cancel federal contracts and that this is merely another desperate attempt to gaslight and siphon the energy of the public (which I would argue…yes). His rhetoric of encouraging federal agencies to “report any sightings” while brandishing about an obscure term like critical race theory is a thinly-veiled attempt at confusing and further dividing our country. He posits that critical discourse on race causes division, while failing to take the time to learn how critical race theory and anti-racism training can address the racial unrest currently captivating national conversation. However, the damage is done, and many who are unfamiliar with the framework will latch onto the idea that anti-racism training is the source of destruction and division, rather than the racist ideologies that Trump espouses in attacking this and other necessary work.

Attacking critical race theory is an attack on the racial equity and broader social equity efforts that we seek. A precedent for eliminating anti-racism training in federal agencies paves the way for pernicious acceptability in destroying other diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts — efforts to create a culture of inclusion through employee resource groups and affinity networks, efforts to increase diversity and expand the beauty of our varied team perspectives through focused recruitment and hiring practices, and more. The Trump administration has begun with what sounds — and only sounds — like an unfamiliar idea to sow fear and to open the door for unraveling the progress we have made in becoming a more equitable and just place to live.

The news comes just as I excitedly announced a soft launch of InclusionLabs this week, a program dedicated to developing the inclusive leadership of young professionals through a series of facilitated dialogues in community with others also seeking to learn in their inclusive leadership journey. The entire concept of InclusionLabs is predicated on the idea that ignoring social identity and power will not resolve our country’s needs; rather, facing these complex and sticky topics — by reflecting on our own identities and how we operate and make change in the world — is crucial to building the society we want. What a shame to see Donald Trump, in contrast, recoil against tackling our country’s most pressing social needs, when there is so much potential for open dialogue surrounding race and other forms of identity to build unity and understanding across lines of difference. In times of massive cultural and sociopolitical shifts, you would be hard pressed to find examples of leaders who have effectively navigated these changes by refusing to address them and by tearing down foreign ideas. These responses are roadblocks to progress and innovation, and if Trump and his administration truly cared about upholding our nation’s ideals, they would recognize the inherent value of these much-needed anti-racism efforts in healing and bringing our country forward to a more conscious and equitable society. We have a long ways to go, but only by leaning into it can we continue to push the rock uphill.

We at InclusionLabs are committed to doing this anti-racism and social equity work. If you would like to learn more, visit us at www.inclusionlabs.org!