White House directs federal agencies to cancel race-related training sessions it calls ‘un-American propaganda’

[ThinkingSapien]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/09/04/white-house-racial-sensitivity-training/

White House directs federal agencies to cancel race-related training sessions it calls ‘un-American propaganda’​

Administration seeks list of contracts for those that refer to ‘white privilege,’ according to memo​

President Trump is moving to revamp federal agencies’ racial sensitivity trainings, casting some of them as “divisive” and “un-American,” according to a memo by the White House Office of Management and Budget.

In the two-page memo, OMB Director Russell Vought says Trump has asked him to prevent federal agencies from spending millions in taxpayer dollars on these training sessions. Vought says OMB will instruct federal agencies to come up with a list of all contracts related to training sessions involving “white privilege” or “critical race theory,” and do everything possible within the law to cancel those contracts, the memo states.

The memo, released on Friday, also tells all federal agencies to identify and if possible cancel contracts that involve teaching that America is an “inherently racist or evil country.”

“The President has directed me to ensure that federal agencies cease and desist from using taxpayer dollars to fund these divisive, un-American propaganda training sessions,” the memo states.

Vought writes in the memo that “it has come to the President’s attention that Executive Branch agencies have spent millions of taxpayer dollars to date ‘training’ government workers to believe divisive, anti-American propaganda.”

He then refers to press reports that say federal employees “have been required to attend trainings where they are told that ‘virtually all White people contribute to racism’ or where they are required to say that they ‘benefit from racism.’ ”

It could not immediately be learned what training sessions Vought was referring to in the memo. Recent Fox News segments have heavily criticized “diversity and inclusion” efforts in the federal government started under the Obama administration.

 

[JonNC]

In the two-page memo, OMB Director Russell Vought says Trump has asked him to prevent federal agencies from spending millions in taxpayer dollars on these training sessions. Vought says OMB will instruct federal agencies to come up with a list of all contracts related to training sessions involving “white privilege” or “critical race theory,” and do everything possible within the law to cancel those contracts, the memo states.

Good. These theories are, by definition, racist themselves.

 

[AshCat]

I was in government sponsored anti-racism classes way back in the 1980s in the Army. We were marched in, told to sit down, and lectured about how we all hold racist ideas. (This was before the Marxist Critical Race Theory became omnipresent, I can only imagine how bad it is now.) We were then told to stand opposite someone of another race, and call them every disparaging, bigoted name we could think of. I have no idea what this was intended to prove. We were a very tight, hardcore unit and no one wanted to insult a buddy we had been through too much together for that. Many of us just refused to do it (as did I), as the person running the seminar was a civilian and we felt no need to follow her instructions as an order. The whole exercise left us feeling nasty and used, though. I wondered how much money the “facilitator” made from the taxpayer.

Around the same time, the Marine Corps was faced with the same post-Vietnam increase in racial incidents, but they took a completely different approach - they used a “values-based” anti-racism training program that was created by an Iwo Jima Marine, former boxer, and philosophy professor named Robert Humphrey (his book upon which the program was based was “Values for a New Millennium”, still in print). The program focused on what unites us (our common humanity and values), encouraged the Marine students to look at different human cultural behaviors as arising from a fundamental desire for dignity and to protect one’s family, and to strengthen the bonds of brotherhood within a unit, and in dealing with other cultures, based on this recognition.

Which do you think was the more effective program?

Racial incidents increased in the Army, but decreased in the Marines.

If there is a need to reduce racism in government, and I think we have largely moved beyond that, we should drop all the pseudo-scientific Critical Race Theory nonsense and go back to the Humphrey program.

 

[ATraveller]

These race relations training tend to inflame racial tensions. Race relations in Canada improved because people worked together and got to know each other like normal people rather than being treated as subjects in abstract “theories” based on absurd assumptions. None of this pseduo-intellectual nonsense. These sessions based on what the organizers themselves reveal end up antagonizing and make broad assumptions about people. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out antagonism and making often false assumptions about people is counterproductive. Which makes you wonder how low the bar is for people to get a PhD these days.
And again, critical race “theory” is pseudo-intellectual nonsense dressed up in jargon to make it look plausible. The rigour in the social sciences is disturbingly low.

 

[WingedHussar]

Good, white Americans are people too and they do not deserve to be coerced into attending struggle sessions paid for by their own tax dollars.

 

[Horton]

Good! The last thing we taxpayers need to pay for is companies to come in and tell thousands of white federal workers they are racists and tell thousands federal workers of color they are victims.

I, for one, am getting really tired of being called a racist, a homophobic, told I need to “check” my privilege.

I think the program @AshCat described is the best answer yet.

 

[pnewton]

I have attended a lot of these classes over the years. My first thought is to wonder how may President Trump has attended to be able to formulate an opinion. I have no idea what federal classes are like. If he wants to cancel contracts that teach America is an inherently evil country, then that would make sense.

As far as being inherently racist, also false. If we were inherently racists, that would mean that racism is something we cannot help but be, by the definition of the word. We surely inherited racism. We have come a long way. Whether we have gone as far as we can remains to be seen, but going backwards and abandoning effort at reducing racism should not be a step any president should take. Change companies, write your own, copy some good state curriculum, but do not abandon educating people about racial, cultural, ethnic, economic, and generational diversity.

IDIC

 

[JonNC]

Whether we have gone as far as we can remains to be seen, but going backwards and abandoning effort at reducing racism should not be a step any president should take.

I agree with your post, with this caveat:
I don’t see what the president has done falls into this category. I would contend that racist accusations such as “white privilege” do take us backward.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

Although the goal of these training programs may be admirable, I have not heard that the programs themselves are particularly effective at achieving that goal. Maybe what is needed is very clear day to day policies against racism and good old zero tolerance for violation of those policies. That will be more convincing to the employees than a training program that seems disconnected from the way the organization actually operates.

 

[Horton]

Maybe what is needed is very clear day to day policies against racism and good old zero tolerance for violation of those policies.

Would this include of people of color toward white people?

 

[JonNC]

Although the goal of these training programs may be admirable, I have not heard that the programs themselves are particularly effective at achieving that goal.

Teaching the racist lie of “White privilege” is not an admirable goal. If it has been ineffective, good.

Maybe what is needed is very clear day to day policies against racism and good old zero tolerance for violation of those policies.

These are already in place.

That will be more convincing to the employees than a training program that seems disconnected from the way the organization actually operates.

It is good that agencies do not operate in the manner these despicable programs intend.

The avoidance of racism is simple. Do not evaluate an individual based on immutable characteristics.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

LeafByNiggle:

Maybe what is needed is very clear day to day policies against racism and good old zero tolerance for violation of those policies.

Would this include of people of color toward white people?

Yes.

LeafByNiggle:

Although the goal of these training programs may be admirable, I have not heard that the programs themselves are particularly effective at achieving that goal.

Teaching the racist lie of “White privilege” is not an admirable goal.

It is not a goal. It is an intended means to reducing racism, and not a very good means to that end.

JonNC:

Maybe what is needed is very clear day to day policies against racism and good old zero tolerance for violation of those policies.

These are already in place.

Apparently not. At least, if they are, they are not enforced.

JonNC:

The avoidance of racism is simple. Do not evaluate an individual based on immutable characteristics.

It is simple for those who want to avoid racism. Unfortunately many do not want to avoid it. That is where societal rules come in.

 

[JonNC]

It is not a goal. It is an intended means to reducing racism,

By claiming one race is racist? I don’t see how that reduces racism.

not a very good means to that end.

Clearly.

It is simple for those who want to avoid racism. Unfortunately many do not want to avoid it. That is where societal rules come in.

This is patently false in America today. As an example, Jamie Harrison is a black Democrat running for senate against Lindsey Graham. The race is in the margin of error. In South Carolina! This character assassination against the American people must stop

 

[LeafByNiggle]

LeafByNiggle:

It is not a goal. It is an intended means to reducing racism,

By claiming one race is racist? I don’t see how that reduces racism.

As I said, it has not been a very good means.

JonNC:

It is simple for those who want to avoid racism. Unfortunately many do not want to avoid it. That is where societal rules come in.

This is patently false in America today. As an example, Jamie Harrison is a black Democrat running for senate against Lindsey Graham. The race is in the margin of error. In South Carolina! This character assassination against the American people must stop

Citing one instance in which racism is not present does not prove that racism does not exist. It just means it may not exist in the one instance you mention. Even during the Jim Crow era, there were isolated instances of successful black men.

 

[Annie]

Even during the Jim Crow era, there were isolated instances of successful black men.

What is your definition of successful?

 

[JonNC]

As I said, it has not been a very good means.

And I agreed.

Citing one instance in which racism is not present does not prove that racism does not exist.

I forgot to mention that South Carolina already has a Republican black senator.
Another example is the overwhelming outrage of the George Floyd killing.
And the dramatic increase in interracial marriage.

Even during the Jim Crow era, there were isolated instances of successful black men.

To compare today’s America to the Jim Crow era is just ridiculous.

 

[FrankFletcher]

These race relations training tend to inflame racial tensions.

You know what really inflames racial tensions? Ignoring disparity based on race. The “pseudo-intellectual nonsense” you mentioned is proven in hiring, housing, college admissions, and profiling – people may claim to be “color blind,” but their subconscious choices and actions say differently.

It’s pretty stunning how far this current administration is setting things back.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

LeafByNiggle:

Citing one instance in which racism is not present does not prove that racism does not exist.

I forgot to mention that South Carolina already has a Republican black senator.
Another example is the overwhelming outrage of the George Floyd killing.
And the dramatic increase in interracial marriage.

Yet for all that, there is still racism.

JonNC:

Even during the Jim Crow era, there were isolated instances of successful black men.

To compare today’s America to the Jim Crow era is just ridiculous.

Not if the comparison is meant to be a contrast, which it was. If there were isolated instances of successful black men during the Jim Crow era, there could certainly be isolated instances of successful black men in 2020. To show the absence of racism you need to show that on average black people are doing as well as whites. If there were no racism left in America, that would be fairly easy to do. But in fact it is impossible, because you do still have the fact that the average white family has, not 10% more, not 30% more, not 50% more, but nine times the wealth of the average black family. That huge discrepancy can only come about as the result of racism.

 

[JonNC]

Yet for all that, there is still racism.

Considering the fact that we are perhaps the most diverse country in the world, the amount of racism is tiny. As long as there are races there will be individuals who are racist.

Not if the comparison is meant to be a contrast, which it was.

There is no comparison at all the only contrast is the American republic today in no way resembles those dark days.

To show the absence of racism you need to show that on average black people are doing as well as whites.

The average black family income is about $58k, about what I made as a teacher. Black families do not, on average, make the same as white families. White families make less than Asians. Clearly the race is not the only determining factor. Equality of opportunity does not necessarily mean equality of outcome.

 

[JonNC]

You know what really inflames racial tensions? Ignoring disparity based on race. The “pseudo-intellectual nonsense” you mentioned is proven in hiring, housing, college admissions, and profiling…

I agree that we should view people by the content of the character, not their immutable characteristics.
So, when college admission practices exclude Asians and Jews who have the highest qualifications to make room for blacks, it is just as bad as excluding blacks who have the highest qualifications to make room for others.

but their subconscious choices and actions say differently.

You are in no more of a position to judge people’s “subconscious” than I am. Unless you have mind reading capabilities.

It’s pretty stunning how far this current administration is setting things back.

Yes, I know that lowering the unemployment rate of people of color to record lows runs against the goals of power of the progressive movement.
Eliminating the overt racist teaching of “white privilege” and intersectionality is a giant step forward in eliminating racism.