Bernice King Blasts 'Fear Mongering' Over Critical Race Theory

Dr. Bernice King, the activist and daughter of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., has condemned what she calls "fear mongering" over critical race theory.

She posted on Twitter: "The fear mongering regarding CRT is aimed at banning all teaching of substance on the past and current devastation of white supremacy/racism."

Her comments came after the once-obscure theory—which has become a weapon in the nation's culture wars—appeared to play a key role in Virginia's gubernatorial election on Tuesday.

Republican Glenn Youngkin beat his Democratic rival Terry McAuliffe after pledging to keep CRT out of school curriculums in the state.

Youngkin told Fox News' Mark Levin at the weekend: "There's no place for critical race theory in our school system, and [that's] why, on day one, I'm going to ban it." The GOP candidate repeatedly made similar comments on the campaign trail.

Youngkin told Levin that the theory "teaches children to see everything through a lens of race and then to divide them into buckets and have children [who] are called privileged and others [who] are victims."

Dr. King also condemned Youngkin for quoting her father in a rally on the eve of the election.

"[I]n the immortal words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we're called to judge one another based on the content of our character and not the color of our skin," Youngkin said. "And that's why there's no place for critical race theory in our school system, and why, on day one, I'm going to ban it."

Dr. King's tweet continued: "It is cruel to quote my father, who was assassinated for working to eradicate racism, poverty and militarism, to facilitate that fear."

What Is Critical Race Theory?

Critical race theory is a way of thinking about America's history through the lens of racism. Scholars developed it during the 1970s and 1980s in response to what they viewed as a lack of racial progress following the civil rights legislation of the 1960s.

It centers on the idea that racism is systemic in the nation's institutions and that they function to maintain the dominance of white people in society.

The architects of the theory argue that the United States was founded on the theft of land and labor and that federal law has preserved the unequal treatment of people on the basis of race. Proponents also believe race is culturally invented, not biological.

A video of a Virginia man saying CRT was the most important issue in the state's election—but then being unable to define it—went viral this week.

Some social media commenters said the clip perfectly captured the conservative backlash against CRT.

"Pretty good summation of the outrage against critical race theory," journalist Jemele Hill tweeted.

Author and political commentator ​​Jared Yates Sexton posted: "CRT is a manufactured and weaponized panic that taps directly into white supremacist paranoia. You cannot just let this fester. These things dictate entire generations if they're not met head on. Call this what it is. Get into the fight."

Additional reporting from Associated Press.