What we must teach

When I read the Nov. 3 column by Chris Powell on his opinion that critical race theory didn’t need to be taught in the schools, I thought someone had left a 1950s newspaper in my driveway.

In 2021, it is appalling such an uninformed opinion piece should be written by a journalist and printed by a newspaper. Once upon a time, newspapers strove to educate and inform. Apparently, no longer.

According to Education Week.org: “Critical race theory is an academic concept that is more than 40 years old. The core idea is that race is a social construct, and that racism is not merely the product of individual bias or prejudice, but also something embedded in legal systems and policies.”

Why is this controversial? It is long recognized that structural racism has robbed people of color of the same social and economic opportunities as whites. I’m sorry Mr. Powell can’t see past his privilege to recognize simple facts, but just because he can’t see the problem doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. And his specious argument that we don’t need to teach “critical race theory” in schools because children don’t need this instruction to treat others decently fails in the face of history. As a society we still subject people of color to discrimination in education, work, housing and credit opportunities, leading to higher rates of poverty and mental health trauma.

This isn’t a matter of liberal versus conservative. This is about human decency and recognizing that as a society we must do better. If parents can’t teach their children these concepts, the schools must.

Beth Riggott-Turnage Middletown