This is a word, a podcast from Slate. I'm your host, Jason Johnson. Across the country,

Republicans like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis are fighting against critical race theory,

even if they don't know what it is. Let me be clear, there's no room in our classrooms for

things like critical race theory, teaching kids to hate their country and to hate each other

is not worth one red cent of taxpayer money. Professor Ibram Kendi explains critical race theory,

so even racists can understand. Coming up on a word with me, Jason Johnson, stay with us.

Welcome to a word, a podcast about race, and politics, and everything else.

I'm your host, Jason Johnson. Critical race theory used to be something that only

academics talked about, but in recent months many Republican leaders have painted as the number one

threat to democracy. Here's a clip of former President Donald Trump's senior advisor, Steven Miller.

Critical race theory is simply a new attempt at segregation, a new attempt at dividing people

based on their skin color. But even as conservatives rush to ban critical race theory from schools,

even when it's not being taught, there's a real question about whether they have much of an idea

about what it is to help us make sense of all of this. We're joined by Professor Ibram Kendi.

He's the author of How to Be an Anti-Racist, and the director of the Boston University Center

for Anti-Racist Research. He's also the host of a new podcast, Be Anti-Racist with Ibram X Kendi,

and Dr. Ibram Kendi joins us now. Welcome to a word. Thank you, Jason, for having me on the show.

In your mind, what actually is critical race theory? And why do you think Republicans and so many

people are so intercrafuffle about it now? Critical race theory emerged among lawyers and legal

scholars who recognized that despite being in this post civil rights America, that racial inequity

and disparity still existed and persisted, and they largely existed and persisted because of

our laws and the structure of racism that persisted. And so for them and for critical race theorists,

...