A linguist examines Trueman s claims
Valerie Hobbs
By Valerie Hobbs
Carl Trueman s article on Critical Race Theory for the February issue of First Things caught my eye last night because of this provocative claim about religious language:
All-embracing and transformative views often have a religious quality. Critical race theory is no exception. It has a creedal language and liturgy, with orthodox words (“white privilege,” “systemic racism”) and prescribed actions (raising the fist, taking the knee). To deviate from the forms is to deviate from the faith. Certain words are heretical (“non-racist,” “all lives matter”). The slogan “silence is violence” is a potent rhetorical weapon. To fail to participate in the liturgy is to reject the antiracism the liturgy purports to represent something only a racist would do.