The “CRT in Schools” narrative fundamentally reshaped American education politics by claiming that critical race theory had infiltrated K-12 curricula to indoctrinate children with anti-white racism and radical ideology.

Narrative Origins

2020-2021: Post-Floyd Emergence Following George Floyd’s murder and nationwide racial justice protests, conservative activists began targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in schools, claiming they represented critical race theory infiltration.

Strategic Reframing: Christopher Rufo’s Campaign Manhattan Institute fellow Christopher Rufo explicitly outlined the strategy on Twitter, stating the goal was to “have the public read something crazy in the newspaper and immediately think ‘critical race theory’” and to “recodify” the term to encompass “the entire range of cultural constructions that are unpopular with Americans.”

Core Framing Structure

The narrative structures interpretation through several key frames:

Ideological Capture: Schools have been taken over by radical leftist educators who prioritize political indoctrination over traditional academic subjects.

Child Victimization: Students are being psychologically harmed by being taught to view themselves and others primarily through racial categories, creating guilt, shame, and division.

Parental Displacement: Educational authorities are undermining parental values and rights by exposing children to inappropriate racial content without consent.

American Values Under Attack: Traditional civic education emphasizing shared American ideals is being replaced with divisive ideology that teaches children to hate their country.

Digital Evolution and Impact

Social Media Amplification: The narrative spread rapidly through Facebook parent groups, Twitter campaigns, and conservative media ecosystems, with viral videos of angry parents confronting school boards.

Strategic Messaging: Conservative activists coordinated messaging across platforms, providing talking points and training materials for parents to use at school board meetings.

Mainstream Media Integration: Fox News and conservative talk radio elevated isolated incidents into evidence of systematic indoctrination, creating national conversation around local school controversies.

Political Weaponization: Republican candidates adopted anti-CRT messaging as central campaign strategy, with Glenn Youngkin’s 2021 Virginia gubernatorial victory demonstrating electoral effectiveness.

Targets and Applications

Educational Institutions: Teachers, administrators, and school boards faced accusations of pushing radical ideology through any discussion of racism or diversity initiatives.

Democratic Politicians: Republicans used CRT claims to attack Democratic opponents as supporters of anti-white indoctrination and radical education policies.

Teachers and Curriculum: Specific teaching materials, books, and training programs were targeted as evidence of CRT infiltration, leading to book challenges and curriculum reviews.

DEI Programs: Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives became redefined as CRT implementation, facing elimination or significant modification.

Legislative and Electoral Impact

State-Level Bans: By 2024, lawmakers in 44 states pursued anti-CRT legislation, with 17 states enacting laws limiting how schools can discuss race and racism.

School Board Elections: The narrative transformed typically low-profile school board races into partisan battlegrounds, with CRT opposition becoming central campaign issue.

Electoral Strategy: Republicans incorporated anti-CRT messaging into broader “parental rights” platform, using education culture wars to mobilize conservative voters.

Book Challenges: The narrative facilitated widespread efforts to remove books focusing on race and racism from school libraries and curricula.

Contemporary Usage

The narrative continues to influence education policy through:

• Ongoing legislative efforts to restrict race-related curriculum content
• Integration with broader “anti-woke” political messaging and candidate platforms
• Evolution into attacks on LGBTQ+ content and comprehensive sex education
• Sustained impact on teacher behavior and curriculum development decisions