Erec Smith Likes Rhetoric
@Rhetors_of_York
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Associate Professor of Rhetoric, Co-Founder and Co-editor for @FreeBlckThought . Research Scholar for @CatoInstitute .
York, PA
Joined March 2009
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It amazes me that when I SAY something like, "CRT is problematic," so many people HEAR something like "I don't want race or accurate history discussed EVER because I'm a self-hating black man." The straw man struggle is real.
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I just attended a local, online "town hall" on CRT via. 2 white women gave the usual misinformation (It's not in schools. It's only about the truth. ETC.) I wasn't shy about pointing out their flaws, so they booted me off the Zoom. Thoughts?
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Cause for concern? I'm gonna say yeah.
BREAKING: The nation's largest teachers union has approved a plan to promote critical race theory in all 50 states and 14,000 local school districts.
The argument that "critical race theory isn't in K-12 schools" is officially dead.
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Critical thinker: "I'm going to try to find a solution for every problem."
Critical theorist: "I'm going to try to find a problem for every solution."
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The "That isn't CRT" debate is a red herring. What's going on in Higher Ed and k-12 is DERIVED from CRT. Call it Critical White Studies, Critical Social Justice, Critical Whatever. (How about "not-CRT"?) The point: it's bad for ALL students and must go.
@thereidout
@realchrisrufo
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Today, I'm thankful for finding likeminded people willing to defend classical liberal values and fight the all-around disempowerment inherent in critical social justice, a.k.a. "wokeness." Initially, I felt alone in this endeavor. That's no longer the case. Happy Thanksgiving!
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This one may be my most controversial article yet, but my argument is simple: "If you want to normalize Black excellence, act like Black excellence is normal."
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Once again,
@wrong_speak
has read my mind: "You cannot claim to be pro-black while selectively caring about which black person takes racial abuse. You cannot claim to be “anti-racist” if some racism is OK with you."
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Whether you want to call it CRT or not, it needs to go.
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Motivated by both a late February tweet from
@seerutkchawla
about DiAngelo's upcoming book AND being told by academics that, by refusing to demonize white teachers for being white, I was doing "harm" to people of color, I wrote this article.
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Critical Race Astronomy, anyone?
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Interesting thread. I find myself agreeing with Paresky, but my biggest issue is this: if things were reversed and two white writers of high prestige did this to a black college student, both writers would be looking for new jobs right now.
A pair of prestigious
@nytimes
staff writers posted on Twitter about a young writer’s first op-ed in their paper — and provided an illustration of the piling on dynamic (as opposed to thoughtful critique) that encourages self-censorship, about which she wrote: 1/
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As many of you know, I experienced (caused?) some local contention at a CRT talk last night. In response, I wrote an Op-Ed for a local paper. It'll be old news to most of you, but it's news to my local peers. Please share widely so they know we're serious!
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"Interracial Couple Fights Critical Race Theory"
Say what you will about Fox News, but this video is necessary viewing, esp. for parents with school-aged children. (I know CRT is a contested label. Call it what you want; it's a problem.)
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@thomaschattwill
I knew I had to dedicate myself to anti-wokeness when white people in my field denigrated me as a white supremacist for not wanting them to infantalize black people. Everything changed that day. Woke academia tried to silence me; they really just handed me a megaphone.
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Regarding DEI in schools: "Instead of teaching our children that they are unique individuals united by our shared humanity, it insists that they identify as members of racialized identity groups locked in a zero sum battle for power."
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Right now, on a rhetoric listserv (WPA-L), a POC is being attacked for having an opinion unbecoming of a person of color by both whites and POC. What's worse, his bullies are claiming that THEY are the ones being bullied. How does one know when an academic field is beyond saving?
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Well, you've heard of land acknowlegements. Now we have body acknowledgements, which are to be recited before every speech.
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Yet another concerned parents. I really hope these school boards are listening.
This man is lying about his elementary school kids experiencing emotional stress from Critical Race Theory curriculum according to
@JohnLeguizamo
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This video surpasses labels (e.g. CRT) and goes straight to the divisive concepts taught in the name of anti-racism. Let's normalize "pro-human" concepts once and for all.
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This is the visual iteration of one of the main tenets of Critical Social Justice: "The question is not 'did racism take place' but rather, 'how did racism manifest in that situation?'” Like I've said, it seems like critical theorists want to find a problem to every solution.
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Whether black or white, whether liberal or conservative, most people are opposed to critical race theory in our schools! I hope those in charge get the message.
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@seerutkchawla
I made this same point in and academic listserv yesterday
It didn't really go well.
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This is how CRT shows up in classrooms. Not as subject matter (usually), but as practice.
@fairforall_org
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PSA: CRT (more accurately CSJ: Critical Social Justice) isn't just the history of race in America. We already have a term for that: "the history of race in America." I can teach accurate US history without the CSJ tenets described here. That's it for now.
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Public Service Announcement: The fact that someone disagrees with you doesn't make that person a "troll." That is all.
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Here is my take on
@nhannahjones
's take on
@StrangelEdweird
's take on racial authenticity and individualism. What's YOUR take?
@FreeBlckThought
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@realchrisrufo
@reihan
This was informative, fun, authentic, and ultimately fulfilling. Thanks
@realchrisrufo
and
@reihan
for putting this together (and allowing me to collaborate with such brilliant people). There is power in numbers!
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@seerutkchawla
I was once told that, because I don't align with "wokeness," that "I don't know the harm my BODY is doing to people of color." There is so much wrong with that statement, including the belief that I am only allowed to have certain thoughts because of my physicality.
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Okay, I'm going off brand to ask what actors, besides Will Smith, can punch a guy on stage at the Oscars and not get kicked out. I'll start: Tom Hanks.
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I don't usually retweet FBT; I feel it's kind of redundant. (I'm a cofounder). But Kimi Katiti's article really gets to the hypocrisy around "lived experience" and does a nice job exposing many critical social justice activists for what they are. Please share.
"I came to understand that 'lived experience' was not a generous concept." It only applies "when a marginalized person’s experience attests to oppression under patriarchal, capitalistic, heteronormative, & white-centered" conditions.
Kimi Katiti in JFBT:
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@patriotdonuts
@ConceptualJames
@AcsAgainstCRT
@RBReich
@realDailyWire
@FreeBlckThought
@RubinReport
@ggreenwald
@benshapiro
@thomaschattwill
A few months ago, I was accused of perpetuating white supremacy by asking "what happened?" when someone accused an academic organization of racism. Because, you know, proof, accuracy, and due process are white things.
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We're One Year Old, and we're just getting started.
We launched FBT exactly ONE YEAR AGO to promote heterodox perspectives of black authors & thinkers.
We began w/ only our Compendium of FBT:
In August, we launched Journal of FBT:
We're a 501(c)3. Donate:
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@seerutkchawla
Many people take "woke" for its original meaning of "general critical awareness." They don't understand that the definition has morphed into a synonym for illiberalism and intolerance.
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ANNOUNCEMENT: As President of
@FreeBlckThought
, I'm happy to address the concerns and curiosities of followers and dispel falsehoods about FBT. Yet, some topics are too nuanced for a Twitter thread. So, I'll host a live Q&A, date/time forthcoming. Hope you can attend. Yes, you.
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@JohnHMcWhorter
@1776Unites
I am currently fighting a battle in my field over the idea that evidence is white. That is, when a POC accuses someone of racism, you must believe him at his word. Asking what happened is considered a sign of white supremacy.
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My thoughts on racial essentialism in anti-racist activism, scholarship, and pedagogy. (Spoiler: I don't like it.)
@wrong_speak
@FreeBlckThought
@_BarringtonII
@HueMatters
Counterweight's
@HPluckrose
sat down with
@Rhetors_of_York
to discuss how we can dismantle the idea that there’s only one authentic black voice. Watch the full interview here:
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Unfortunately, the demonization of open inquiry is the norm in my field of rhetoric. . . where we study EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION. Rhetoric without open inquiry is like water without wetness; it can't exist. Academia with open inquiry is not academia; it's church. This stops now!
Last year, a group of
@EmoryLaw
students established the Emory Free Speech Forum (EFSF). Unfortunately, Emory’s Student Bar Association (SBA) denied their application for recognition under the pretext that open inquiry is “harmful.” Our FAIR legal network has taken on their case!
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Love this. It speaks to the negative emotionality and "ressentiment" inherent in much contemporary social justice activist. (And Kimi Katiti seems pretty cool.)
"If Mandela, who survived 27 years of imprisonment under a racist regime, and ultimately united a country torn apart by apartheid determined that resentment was the real poison, then why are we advocating for a nation to drink the poison of Critical Race Theory?"
- Kimi Katiti
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According to woke rhetoricians, "To teach 'standard' English to all students . . . is to 'knee the necks' of black speech and writing."😒 Rest assured this is NOT a shared sentiment among black scholars! Please share.
PEACE, LOVE &
@FreeBlckThought
!
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My motto for these things: "Sunlight is the best disinfectant." This listserv is a treasure trove of empirical evidence of what the academic "woke" will do to destroy those who don't agree with them. I am who I am because they did the same to me two years ago.
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I couldn't help myself.
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". . .let’s stop the endless quibbling about terminology and talk about the ideas that have deeply infiltrated universities, employment, education, mainstream media, social media and general culture."
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I need to retweet "Free Black Thought" to inform colleagues that Black people are no monolith.
Clearly, leaders in my field don't know that and let a handful of "woke" people speak for us all. If they really care, they'll read.
@CouncilWPA
@WPA_Journal
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"‘Psychological safety’ may be helpful in a therapy session, but free debate is not possible in a climate where people feel they have a right not to be offended."
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I'm proud that
@GlennLoury
is proud to be affiliated with
@FreeBlckThought
.
Friends: Everybody should check this out. (Not just because it's me, ok?!) The Journal of Free Black Thought is a much-needed breath of fresh air. I'm proud to be affiliated. GL
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The fact that this happened to a black woman dedicated to diversity should be one of the main topics of conversation on the Left.
The fact that it isn't tells me one thing: The political affiliation I've embraced all my life no longer embraces me!
"Simply attempting to set an agenda for meetings caused my colleagues to accuse me of 'whitespeaking,' 'whitesplaining,' and reinforcing 'white supremacy'—accusations I had never faced before."
—FBT's Dr. Tabia Lee, fired for ideological incorrectness:
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My latest article for Discourse: "Blacks who don’t toe the woke party line are a very diverse group. However, one thing they have in common is being shunned for their views."
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"Yes, most Black Americans share a history that deserves to be celebrated, but it's the Black present that concerns me."
@HdxAcademy
@Counter_Weight_
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Yet again, a teacher losing out for fighting against illiberal and neo-racist ideas.
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This is a perplexing issue. In Oklahoma, people are up in arms because they insist that teaching about the history of racism is being banned by the school board, but being anti-CRT and being anti-accurate history are not the same things.
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More from McWhorter and F.A.I.R.
Wokeism.
This strange new religion is harmful to us all, especially to those it claims to help the most.
Thankfully, we've got FAIR Advisor
@JohnHMcWhorter
to explain why, as well as what pro-human solutions there are, in our latest video.
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"The idea that clear and long-established criteria for plagiarism should have been thrown out to save the elite-born president of an elite university, solely on the basis of her skin color, is not only preposterous; it’s that old soft bigotry."
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@FreeBlckThought
Earlier today,I was accused of being manipulated by whites by a person I like and respect after I thoroughly explained that I am against racism but I don't think Critical Social Justice is the way to go. This reminded me of the uphill battle we still have ahead of us.
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You are not alone. Whether a concerned parent, a "canceled" academic, or someone who sees the societal detriments of Critical Social Justice, YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
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Thank you,
@JohnStossel
, for giving me a platform to discuss the detriments of contemporary DEI initiatives.
Every big American company now has "DEI" diversity trainings.
But a study of 800 companies found that after companies did trainings, they actually came to have FEWER black managers.
@Rhetors_of_York
explains why:
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Akpala: “'Not seeing colour’ doesn’t mean that you don’t notice whether skin is relatively more dark or more light. It means that you judge people and situations as objectively as possible, not approaching them with internal biases and preconceptions...."
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"While the Left and its elected officials may think they are protecting black people [by ignoring black on black crime], what they are actually doing is deeming our deaths less important." Good work,
@CDouglasLove3
!
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"Higher education must move from squandering money on diversity policies that look good on paper and instead start putting the money into tutoring and mentoring programs that can actually help students." Professor Alaric Naude ()
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Happy to announce that, in addition to my professorship at York College of Pennsylvania and my President position at
@FreeBlckThought
, I am now a Research Fellow for
@CatoInstitute
. I am proud and excited about this new endeavor!
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"When two enemies are talking, they're not fighting, and THAT's an opportunity." I will always share a Daryl Davis post!
If we are only Anti-Racist then we will seek to destroy our enemies and they will seek to destroy us in return.
@RealDarylDavis
explains how to end the cycle of hate and
#BeProHuman
!
Watch more FAIR videos on our YouTube channel:
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@ConceptualJames
Wow! Is there an author who has argued, in a scholarly publication, that Foucault's entire inspiration for questioning all truth claims was to justify his sexual exploits? ("Pedophilia is wrong? Well, what is "wrong," really?") Just curious.
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I want to inform everyone of a new organization with a similar mission to Heterodox Academy: Counterweight.
“Counterweight is a liberal humanist organisation that values individualism, universalism, viewpoint diversity and the free exchange of ideas.”
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Sometimes I think to myself, "Maybe I should stop writing about the detriments of critical social justice. Maybe the tide is turning enough for me to do something else." Then I see posts like this and realize my work is far from over.
Michaelangelo's Sistine Chapel painting is apparently peak white supremacy to Robin D'Angelo.
Funny because I think Robin D'Angelo is peak white supremacy.
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From the article: "I never once believed — nor do I now — that the purpose of instruction was to lead my students to a particular conclusion. But brick by brick, the university has made this kind of intellectual exploration impossible."
@peterboghossian
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Here is Part One of a discussion I had with William Reusch on Cylinder Radio. A salient line: “Robin DiAngelo gets paid $15,000 every time she tells people how weak black people are. That's her job.”
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Critical Theories seem antithetical to the concept of common humanity. Listen to this discussion on how Critical theories are detrimental to civility and how they threaten the efficacy of K-12 education.
"This question about the future of social studies education is not a 'left' or 'right' issue. It’s a question of how to best equip children to participate in a democratic society as adults."
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Prof. De Piero "was forced to grade 'hispanic and black' students differently" and was "forced to teach that the 'English language is racist and embodies white supremacy.'"
I mean, if merely HALF of this story is true, it's still disturbing.
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@theREALbenORR
It's worse than that. Social Emotional Learning is supposed to be a mode of teaching meant to create grit, resilience, and positive self regard. The "woke" version does the complete opposite.
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Having spoken with Quay and living within miles of the school district in question, I can confidently say this is a sincere and accurate message. I encourage you to retweet this message and visit his website: .
The words "diversity, equity, and inclusion" don't need to be divisive.
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I spoke briefly on "Fox and Friends" about "white supremacy in mathematics." (Spoiler: I think it's dumb and infantalizing.) (Now that I've done NPR and Fox, I need to do an interview on a moderate news network for the political scale trifecta.)
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This week, I interviewed Daryl Davis, Matt Ornstein, and Noah Ornstein about the documentary "Accidental Courtesy," which chronicles Davis' mission to engage members of the KKK in an attempt to build bridges of understanding. Check it out.
@fairforall_org
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@ConceptualJames
It's really bad. I've heard more than one story about therapists shaming clients for not being woke enough. Imagine going to a professional for your mental health and being chastised for a political view or for using the wrong pronoun.
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Here is an actual black body acknowledgement from a prominent scholar in the field who, if I'm not mistaken, came up with the idea.
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Recent criticism about
@FreeBlckThought
's multi-racial leadership prompted me to write this piece. I hope it explains why we plan to STAY multi-racial.
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I can relate.
My biggest battle is not racism, it is constantly having to justify that my thoughts are mine and not me trying to do a white person's bidding.
My biggest battle is not defending my skin colour to racists but my own authentic thoughts to so called anti-racists.
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@wu_wenyuan
@LegInsurrection
@DrKarlynB
@FreeBlckThought
@ConceptualJames
@DefendingEd
@LeonydusJohnson
@NASorg
Please tell me this is a practical joke.
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It was a pleasure to be a part of this. I hope I can talk to them again in the near future.
New episode of American Shade! This dynamic group of
#Anti
&
#ProCRTers
came together to discuss their positions on
#CriticalRaceTheory
. And what took place holds-the-bar on how candid conversations are done.
Premiering at 5PM!
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From Wilfred Reilly: "[W]e should be judged as individuals, almost defined by life’s complexity, rather than solely as members of set groups based on immutable characteristics."
NEW on our Substack!
“Ibram Kendi recently… slipped and told the truth.”
- FAIR Advisor
@wil_da_beast630
.
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This is what I was afraid of. What soulless person has a problem with kids learning about the "I Had a Dream" speech? Let's get rid of divisive concepts, not the unifying concepts.
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From the article: "I don't need to believe in race to fight racism any more than I need to believe in God to fight religious dogmatism. Union is my project; division is not, and I refuse to divide myself from you—or for you." I can totally relate to this article.
I'm often accused of being "white."
I call it the One-Thought Rule: stand athwart the orthodoxy, and your very being will be called into question.
Well, my being doesn't belong to you, and you can't take it away from me.
My latest for
@Newsweek
:
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For those of you who think I exaggerate when I talk about the rampant wokeness in my field.
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Once again, some food for thought from
@fairforall_org
. Nuance might be difficult to grasp, but it must be grasped.
"The envelope doesn't mean anything... It's what's inside that matters, and that's what we need to teach children."
- Ndona Muboyayi.
#BeProHuman
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Question: Would the woke/anti-woke culture war look any different if "white" was replaced by "W.A.S.P."? If so, how so?
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This dude was a legend in more ways than one. He made his mark as an actor, a public intellectual, and an activist for civil rights. R.I.P.
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Current modes of social justice activism and scholarship function within an anti-intellectual framework.
@JohnHMcWhorter
explains.
"Ideology twisting scholarship with dangerous consequences is a phenomenon hardly limited to the Soviet Union. It's happening here, right now, in America, in an effort to spread an intolerant orthodoxy masquerading as 'Anti-racism.'"
- FAIR Advisor
@JohnHMcWhorter
.
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As it turns out, I ( fortunately) jumped the gun on Texas' SB3. Among other complexities, I misunderstood it as a substantial de-emphasis of important texts. That is not the case. Sorry for the false alarm. As you were.
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Here is Glenn Loury's talk on the importance of free speech for MIT's Free Speech Alliance.
As he, himself, warns, "Brace yourselves."
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"That silent majority needs to become vocal very quickly. We need more people to be brave enough to speak up and push back. The long march through the institutions is sprinting into the final lap, and it cannot be allowed to win."
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Interesting article by Justin McBrayer on diversity statements. If it looks like a religion and sounds like a religion . . . .
@HdxAcademy
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From the article: "It's necessary for me to mention that I'm having these conversations with black people because some individuals think that it's only white people who are pushing back against wokeism, and it's far from the truth."
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