Trump Administration to Stop Taxpayer Funding for Critical Race Theory Training
A September 4, 2020 memo (M-20-34) from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought asserts that critical race theory (CRT) trainings for federal employees are un-American and go against the founding principles of the United States. The memo directs agencies to cancel contracts and cease funding for these trainings.
The OMB memo directs “all agencies to begin to identify all contracts or other agency spending related to any training on ‘critical race theory’, ‘white privilege,’ or any other training or propaganda effort that teaches or suggests either (1) that the United States is an inherently racist or evil country or (2) that any race or ethnicity is inherently racist or evil.”
According to the memo, press reports indicate that employees in the Executive Branch have claimed that they are required to say, in these trainings, that they benefit from racism and that all white people contribute to racism.
President of the Professional Managers Association (PMA), Chad Hooper, expressed his discontent with the memo and said in a press release, “The current training systems remain inadequate. PMA and other groups representing federal employees have consistently advocated for more, not less, training on how to address inequalities and discrimination within the federal workforce. Black and brown voices remain under represented in federal leadership roles. This directly impacts how our workforce serves taxpayers.”
Bob Corsi, Interim President of the Senior Executives Association (SEA) also shared his thoughts on the OMB memo and said in a press release, “The OMB justification for canceling a significant amount of racial equality training for our federal workforce is inadequate and insincere. While it is critical that all races feel comfortable and heard within our federal workforce, it appears the removal of critical race theory training is based on several accounts which deeply misunderstand the intention for these trainings.”
The Purdue Online Writing Lab explains that “Most CRT scholarship attempts to demonstrate not only how racism continues to be a pervasive component throughout dominant society, but also why this persistent racism problematically denies individuals many of the constitutional freedoms they are otherwise promised in the United States’ governing documents.”
The OMB memo concludes, “The President, and his Administration, are fully committed to the fair and equal treatment of all individuals in the United States.”
Note: This article was updated on 9/14/2020 to include statements from PMA and SEA.
