Glenn Grothman tries to ban ‘critical race theory’ in District of Columbia schools

The bill introduced this week by Rep. Glenn Grothman, titled the “Ending Critical Race Theory in D.C. Schools Act,” focuses narrowly on D.C. public schools. 

It typically would be beyond the scope of Congress to define what teachers in a specific school district can or cannot do, but federal lawmakers have unique oversight of D.C.’s local laws — a main reason why D.C. advocates are seeking statehood. Grothman sits on the House Oversight & Reform Committee, which has jurisdiction over D.C. municipal affairs.

Under the legislation, “no employee of the District of Columbia Public Schools or the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools shall compel a teacher or student to adopt, affirm, adhere to, or profess ideas that promote race or sex stereotyping or scapegoating.”

“Race or sex stereotyping or scapegoating” is broadly defined to include a range of “divisive concepts,” such as the discussion of the United States as a “fundamentally racist or sexist” country; individuals as “inherently” racist or sexist due to their race or sex; or that someone should feel “discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” because of their race or sex.

The measure — which has four Republican cosponsors, including Rep. Bob Gibbs of Ohio — has virtually no chance of advancing in the Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives. 

But it’s the latest example of a broad wave of outrage in statehouses and Congress over what’s known as “critical race theory,” which has been used as a catch-all term to describe a range of attempts to address and discuss racial inequities.

Grothman’s staffers did not respond to an interview request about his new legislation. 

A news release from his office Friday said the measure would ensure critical race theory “will no longer be present” in D.C. public schools. But the release did not specify any current curriculum or teaching methods within the district that would be prohibited under the bill.

“The CRT curriculum that ‘enlightened’ educators are regurgitating teaches our children hate—to hate each other and hate their country,” Grothman said in the news release. “In other words, students are being taught that they are defined by the color of their skin, not the content of their character. This neo-racist ideology should have no place in our public education system, especially in our nation’s capital.”

A spokeswoman for D.C. public schools was not able to provide a comment on Grothman’s bill Friday afternoon.

Grothman also has cosponsored several other bills seeking to ban critical race theory. 

One measure seeks to block the teaching of critical race theory to federal employees, and another would prohibit the use of federal dollars for any employee training portraying the U.S. as fundamentally racist or individuals as inherently racist or sexist due to their race or sex.

Those who teach about critical race theory say conservative politicians are not correctly describing the approach and the extent to which it is used in schools and workplaces.

The field of critical race theory started as a way to analyze the U.S. legal system. Proponents argue that, because race is a social construct, laws and other social norms are what perpetuate racial inequities. 

One of the theory’s central tenets is that U.S. society and government have always promoted racial disparities. 

But opponents have forged ahead amid critique of how they’re defining the term. As a result, teachers across the country are grappling with how to respond to, or accommodate, the new policies.

Grothman’s bill isn’t the first time that he’s sought to tamp down discussions of race and racial inequity related to schools. 

When the House Education and Labor Committee held a hearing last year on racial disparities that intensified across the U.S. education system amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Grothman, who serves on that panel, stated: “I don’t like to talk about race.”

“It’s a little difficult to be on here because it kind of appears in this committee we’re supposed to look at people racially, and not look at people as people,” Grothman said. “So, I’ve got to switch my mindset.”