Critical Theories Explained

Understanding the role of theory begins with acknowledging as true some of the phenomenon that we observe. Certainly, in the age of user generated content and malicious disinformation campaigns even that can appear challenging. A critique of our information ecosystem is a different topic for a different day. But let us start with the assumption that we can all agree on a set of descriptive facts as valid and legitimate based on a scientific method.  

Theories, depending on the type of theories they are, can help us make sense of a phenomenon in many ways.  

• Empirical theories (also known as positivistic theories) identify elemental parts of the phenomenon that can then be used to predict outcomes.  

• Interpretive theories help us understand a phenomenon by giving us descriptive details.  

• Dialogic theories examine or interrogate processes and movement.  

• Critical theories look at how systems of power might explain the phenomenon.  

For example, let us consider a few different phenomena that we can observe in our world right now. These are observations that are backed by statistics and are generally agreed upon.  

1. Black people are 3 to 5 times more likely to have a fatal encounter with the police compared to their white counterparts.  

2. Women on average make 77 cents for every dollar their male counterpart makes 

3. LGBTQ+ youth are four times as likely to attempt suicide compared to their non-LGBTQ+ peers.  

Critical theories overall, and Critical Race Theory (CRT) in particular, have been demonized by conservative political thinkers in the recent past. It is true that critical theories have largely circulated in elite academic circles and the ivory tower hasn’t done a particularly good job at explaining these theories.  Consequently, several pundits and politicians have knowingly or unknowingly suggested that CRT positions all white people as racist, and that it suggests that America is a racist country amongst several other claims. They have further suggested that CRT only serves to discriminate against white, male and other dominant identities. It is important to understand that critical theories are not prescriptive, but rather post-scriptive. These theories do not predict who is going to be racist or not. Rather, they explain how or why racist (or sexist, homophobic, ableist etc.) phenomenon might exist.  

The authors of Critical Race Theory, Derrick Bell, Richard Delgado and Kimberle Crenshaw sought to explain the rampant racial disparities that exist in the United States. In doing so they arrived at the following tenets that form the crux of the Critical Race Theory argument: 

1. Race is socially constructed and forms evaluative conclusions based on certain physical characteristics 

2. Evaluations based on racial markers are embedded into our systems and function as the norm and not the exception (therefore racism is not an aberration)  

3. Racialized experiences can and do vary based on the various minoritized racial identities 

4. Racial identities influence how other identities (such as female, trans, liberal etc.) are perceived and evaluated 

5. The negative effects of racism will only likely be mitigated when those who hold privileged social positions (largely white, male) see value in dismantling racist systems.  

Together these 5 tenets explain the persistence of the first social phenomenon listed above regarding police violence perpetrated against Black people. The first tenet explains how the skin color and appearance of blackness activates a process of social meaning making that influences policing action. The second tenet explains how we operate in a system that criminalizes Black behavior in ways that are different from white behavior. Furthermore, this tenet explains how a system of storytelling and media representation creates and maintains implicit biases within police officers. The third tenet explains how different racial minority groups experience policing differently and how even within the same racial group there are differences based on skin-color, socioeconomic status, education level etc. This and the fifth tenet advance the idea that while race is often the first and significant factor it alone doesn’t explain the entirety of the phenomenon. Other social identities are often viewed through the lens of race. And the final tenet explains why we continue to struggle with police violence against Black bodies. It wasn’t until the visible trial of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, that an urgency for reforming policing practices emerged… and that was because now it was in the best interests of the white police officers to change their practices.  

The merit and value of Critical Race Theory and other critical theories is that it moves the explanation of a phenomenon from individuals to systems. One could look at the phenomenon of police violence against Black people and explain it by suggesting that substantial numbers of police officers are simply racist individuals, or we can look at the systems of operation (media representations, criminal justice system, hiring, trainings etc.) that these police offices interact with and examine how these systems may be yielding a racist phenomenon even with the most well-intentioned officers. Certainly, there is some degree of individual responsibility in racist acts, but individual acts alone do not explain the omnipresence of racist phenomenon. Critical Race Theory simply proposes an alternate, and I would argue, more palatable argument than “everybody is just racist.”  

Practitioners and scholars who are informed by the variety of other critical theories use these theories to perform similar functions. They begin with a phenomenon and examine what larger systems might best explain that phenomenon. They look to history, ways of meaning making, methods of valuing or de-valuing, processes of selection and exclusion and many other systems to provide more parsimonious and practical explanations that can then inform methods for change. 

At Equity Labs, we embrace the value and utility of Critical Race Theory and other critical theories such as Feminist Theory, Queer Theory, Critical Discourse theory and others. We understand that people both create and are influenced by the systems that they interact with. We recognize that changing the world we live in means understanding the genesis of these systems and then correcting them at their core. Critical theories by their nature are designed to disrupt existing harmful practices. If we believe that criticism is the pathway to designing a better product, then we have to believe that critical theories provide a pathway toward a better world.