美国国家公共电台 NPR--Ideas that make up critical race theory have been around long before it got its name

Ideas that make up critical race theory have been around long before it got its name

Transcript¹

NPR's A Martinez talks to Kimberle Crenshaw, who coined the term "critical race theory," about anti-racism² and why she believes it must be part of American discourse³.

AMART?NEZ, HOST:

Critical race theory, or CRT, has been discussed in academic circles for nearly 40 years, but the term has only recently been weaponized in backlash of the racial reckoning that spread across the country following the police killings⁴ of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor in 2020. Law professor Kimberle Williams Crenshaw is a pioneering scholar and writer on race, civil rights and law. She teaches at Columbia University and UCLA. She's also a co-founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum⁵. I spoke⁶ with her about CRT and its importance in this moment.

So, Professor, since you coined the term critical race theory, could you start us off with what it is?

KIMBERLE WILLIAMS CRENSHAW: It is effectively an embodiment of what I call racial literacy. How do we read the world? How do we understand the relationship to its history? We frame it that way not simply as a way of marking history and showing, for example, how segregated⁷ neighborhoods were the product of federal policy that continues to create material differences in wealth and in health to this day. It's important to understand the history of it to do something about it.

MART?NEZ: You wrote an article - an op-ed actually - in the LA Times in January, and the headline is "Martin Luther King Was A Critical Race Theorist Before There Was A Name For It." In what way, Professor?

CRENSHAW: Well, in several ways. No. 1, he was a critic of the contradiction between what America says it is, what its deepest aspirations⁹ are and what its material reality is. You know, a lot of people like to quote his March on Washington speech, particularly the part where he talks about how our aspiration⁸ is to be judged on the content of our character, not the color of our skin. That was his sort of aspirational¹⁰ moment. The rest of the speech was a trenchant¹¹ critique of the idea that America had given African Americans a rubber check. Basically, the promises of the 13th and the 14th Amendment¹² came back marked insufficient¹³ funds. So his entire point of that speech was to make good on the Democratic promises.

MART?NEZ: But has the anti-CRT wing of society, as you put it, Professor - are they in full control of the narrative¹⁴ surrounding CRT?

CRENSHAW: What's that saying? - that a lie gets around the world three times before truth puts its boots on. I would say that the MAGA faction¹⁵ has used CRT, and it's gone around the country multiple times before the Democrats¹⁶ and our president finally stepped up to say, our country is hanging in the balance. And the attack on our democracy and the attack on anti-racism are one in the same. It's not an accident that the Confederate flag made an appearance in the Capitol during January 6. It's not an accident that the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys and many other neo-nationalists and white supremacist groups are all behind the idea that the election is stolen. You can't fight against that without naming and being clear about the role of neo-nationalism and white supremacy¹⁷ in stoking these fears.

MART?NEZ: So then on the point of history and learning those lessons from the past, Professor, in what ways has historical erasure¹⁸ impacted our society and culture as it relates to CRT?

CRENSHAW: If you don't know about the federal housing role in creating the middle class and doing it racially, if you don't know what happened after World War II when white GIs were able to use the GI Bill to actually create the white middle class and use federal housing dollars to create white suburbs, but those dollars were denied to African Americans - if you don't know that story, if that has been erased¹⁹, then you're able to infer that the lack of wealth, that the disproportionate enjoyment²⁰ of middle-class and upper-class status is simply the product of the failure to work hard or the decision to work hard.

MART?NEZ: When it comes to our democracy then, or actually the threats to our democracy, you said that we can't talk about that without including critical race theory. How are they connected?

CRENSHAW: They're connected because, No. 1, our democracy - one has to remember for the majority of our existence, Black people were not able to contribute to this democracy, as were women and other people of color. So our actual democracy is one that has been shaped by a notion of democracy for a few.

MART?NEZ: So what actions would you like to see President Biden take?

CRENSHAW: I would love to see him actually speak directly to the role of race and racism in the lies about the election. I would like to see him call for greater literacy. I would like to see him talk about how un-American it is to ban books, including books by some of the heroes of American society - Martin Luther King, Ruby²¹ Bridges, who integrated New Orleans schools and told her story from the perspective of a child. I would love to see him say that it is un-American to try to win by depriving us of knowledge. Knowledge and political participation²² and freedom go hand in hand in a democracy. Denying that goes hand in hand in a democracy that's sliding towards fascism.

MART?NEZ: How can people better explain what CRT is?

CRENSHAW: Critical race theory is something that people practice every day. If you yourself put your hands on the steering²³ wheel at the 10 and 2 o'clock position when you see those lights in the rearview mirror, you are practicing critical race theory. Critical race theory is practiced by any number of people and groups who recognize that colorblindness is an aspiration, but it's not the reality in American society. And to survive and to thrive, you have to be aware of how race plays a role. You have to pass it on to your children. You have to practice it in your workplace. You practice it in the stores. You practice it wherever you go.

MART?NEZ: Kimberle Crenshaw is a professor at the Columbia and UCLA Law Schools and executive director of the African American Policy Forum. Professor, thank you very much.

CRENSHAW: Thank you.

(SOUNDBITE OF TALIB KWELI SONG, "PUSH THRU")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

3 discourse   

n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述

参考例句：

• We'll discourse on the subject tonight.我们今晚要谈论这个问题。
• He fell into discourse with the customers who were drinking at the counter.他和站在柜台旁的酒客谈了起来。

4 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

5 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 segregated   

分开的； 被隔离的

参考例句：

• a culture in which women are segregated from men 妇女受到隔离歧视的文化
• The doctor segregated the child sick with scarlet fever. 大夫把患猩红热的孩子隔离起来。

8 aspiration   

n.志向，志趣抱负；渴望；(语)送气音；吸出

参考例句：

• Man's aspiration should be as lofty as the stars.人的志气应当象天上的星星那么高。
• Young Addison had a strong aspiration to be an inventor.年幼的爱迪生渴望成为一名发明家。

9 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

10 aspirational   

志同的，有抱负的

参考例句：

• Most of the images that bombard us all are aspirational. 轰击的图像，我们都期望最大。
• Analysts said self-help and aspirational reading could explain India's high figures. 分析师们指出，自助读书、热爱读书是印度人均读书时间超过别的国家的主要原因。

11 trenchant   

adj.尖刻的，清晰的

参考例句：

• His speech was a powerful and trenchant attack against apartheid.他的演说是对种族隔离政策强有力的尖锐的抨击。
• His comment was trenchant and perceptive.他的评论既一针见血又鞭辟入里。

12 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

13 insufficient   

adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的

参考例句：

• There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
• In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。

14 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

15 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

16 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 supremacy   

n.至上；至高权力

参考例句：

• No one could challenge her supremacy in gymnastics.她是最优秀的体操运动员，无人能胜过她。
• Theoretically,she holds supremacy as the head of the state.从理论上说，她作为国家的最高元首拥有至高无上的权力。

18 erasure   

n.擦掉，删去；删掉的词；消音；抹音

参考例句：

• The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became truth. 过去给人擦拭个干净，擦拭的行为又忘了个干净，于是，谎言就变成了真理。 来自英汉文学
• The inspection, modification, replacement or erasure of part of file's contents. 检查、修改、代替或擦去文档内容一部分的过程。 来自互联网

19 erased   

v.擦掉( erase的过去式和过去分词 )；抹去；清除

参考例句：

• He erased the wrong answer and wrote in the right one. 他擦去了错误答案，写上了正确答案。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He removed the dogmatism from politics; he erased the party line. 他根除了政治中的教条主义，消除了政党界限。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 enjoyment   

n.乐趣；享有；享用

参考例句：

• Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同，我们这次访问更加愉快了。
• After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话，这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。

21 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

22 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

23 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。