Seth Meyers on Wednesday ripped Republican Glenn Youngkin, winner of Virginia’s hotly contested gubernatorial race, over his signature issue: critical race theory.
Although critical race theory is not part of the curriculum in K-12 public schools, Youngkin took the topic and ran with it, embracing the culture war issue fueled by conservatives and right-wing media. He pledged to ban it from being taught in public schools.
Critical race theory is an academic framework typically taught in universities that is centered on the idea that racism is embedded in American institutions, creating lingering systemic inequities for people of color. Conservatives often conflate it with any teachings about racism in U.S. history and accuse Democrats of trying to teach it to schoolchildren.
After airing a montage on “Late Night” of just a handful of the many times Youngkin referenced critical race theory during his campaign, Meyers observed: “He said it so many times you’d think he was trying to summon it Beetlejuice style.”
“Maybe heard an urban legend that if you say critical race theory three times into a mirror your 14-year-old will become ‘woke,’” Meyers added. “So Republicans of Fox News have successfully weaponized the panic over so-called critical race theory. But I’m sorry, it shouldn’t be radical to teach children about the history of racism in American society.”
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