MSU Under Fire For Radical Teacher Training Materials On Race And Capitalism

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

Michigan State University’s College of Education is under scrutiny for its radical training materials for teachers as part of its program, “Social Foundations of Justice and Equity in Education.” The material includes radical race theories and a video of Communist and Black Panther Angela Davis explaining that “racism is integrally linked to capitalism.”

The Federalist reported on the material, which includes a warning to educators that those “who cling to their Whiteness cannot participate in abolitionist teaching because they are a distraction, are unproductive, and will undermine freedom at every step, sometimes in the name of social justice.”

Imagine if material told black or other minority teachers that they had to drop identities to their race if they want to teach. “Clinging to your Whiteness” is often a complaint leveled against those who do not repeat race-based mantras or statements in these sessions. Such public demonstrations have long been a part of the academic orthodoxy. Years ago, I noted with concern how academics were expected to engage in public confessions like the one at Northwestern University School of Law when Northwestern Law Dean declared publicly, “I am James Speta and I am a racist.” He was followed by Emily Mullin, executive director of major gifts, who said, “I am a racist and a gatekeeper of white supremacy. I will work to be better.”

MSU requires teachers to listen to Davis make the absurd claim that capitalism is inherently racist. Another video claims that “America can never be a meritocracy” without fundamental changes to create an “equal starting point and equal resources.” 

Telling teachers that they cannot succeed unless they give up their racial identity can be an environment of extreme intolerance and orthodoxy. It is one thing to address racism (in all forms) and singling out white teachers as having to address their race. Some students may assume that public demonstrations or affirmations are required to counter assumptions about their bias or inherent racism.

As for the use of Davis to claim that capitalism is the driver of racism, it ignores how capitalism fuels the advancement and empowerment of citizens. There is nothing inherently racist about a system emphasizing individual productivity and success. My Sicilian grandparents faced prejudices and extreme poverty in arriving in our country. They soon found that hard work allowed them to secure a better life for themselves and their children.

While she later left the party over internal disputes, Davis previously declared:

“I am a Communist because … If we are going to rise out of our oppression, our poverty, if we are going to cease being the targets of the racist-minded mentality of racist policemen, we will have to destroy the American capitalist system. We will have to obliterate a system in which a few wealthy capitalists are guaranteed the privilege of becoming richer and richer, whereas the people who are forced to work for the rich, and especially Black people, never take any significant step forward.”

I actually think that Davis’s views on capitalism and racism would be valuable in a course on those subjects to explore different views on such subjects. The question is why MSU would select Davis to be part of the mandatory material for new teachers as part of an education training and whether there is true balance offered in the material from figures like Milton Friedman or others on the benefits of capitalism. That does not appear to be the case at MSU.

MSU should address these concerns and show how, if such material is included in required reading, there is also material that offers real balance and counterpoints to these radical views.