Mick Hartley

Critical Race Theory comes to London:

One of the most expensive day schools in Britain has been accused of indoctrinating its pupils in critical race theory.

Testimonies shared among parents of pupils at the American School in London say their children have been accused of “white fragility” and told only white people can be racist. They also say that non-white pupils were recruited to “people of colour” affinity groups.

Robin Appleby, head teacher at the ASL, will leave in January after accusations from parents about the school’s approach to critical race theory.

However, parents say this will not change the culture because Appleby hired many staff who believe in the same causes.

This week, according to parents, some pupils were shown a video that described Thanksgiving, which takes place today, as a celebration of the massacre of indigenous people.

The private school in St John’s Wood, north London, which charges £32,650 a year and whose alumni include the actress Kathleen Turner, has pupils of 70 nationalities.

One parent said that those complaining about the school were from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and did not want their children segregated. Testimonies from parents have been compiled into a document seen by The Times.

It is understood that a separate complaint has been sent to the education department about the school.

One parent said in a testimony that families wanted their children to grow up colour-blind, not divided. Another wrote: “During the past school year, ASL has established racially segregated school clubs, referring to them as ‘affinity groups’. We are horrified by this. We regard racially segregated school clubs to be just as discriminatory, offensive and immoral as racially segregated lunch counters and water fountains of the Jim Crow-era USA.

“It has been reported to us by parents with children who would be considered to have darker skin that ASL officials have been actively recruiting them to the ‘people of colour’ affinity group. By contrast, children who have South Asian and Latino heritage — but who have lighter skin — have not been targeted by ASL to join. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that ASL is not merely discriminating against white children by operating affinity groups from which they are excluded, but also against lighter-skinned people of colour.”

Another part of the document says teachers are promoting and perpetuating “offensive and racially prejudiced concepts derived from critical race theory” and stifling expression of opposing viewpoints. This has included calling white people “oppressors” and non-white people “oppressed”, and invoking the concepts of “white privilege”, “white fragility”, “white tears”, “inherited white guilt”, and “cultural appropriation”. It said one pupil would no longer participate in class debates after being repeatedly accused by the teacher of “white fragility” for asking the “wrong” questions, while an English teacher had reportedly apologised repeatedly to pupils for being white.

One father told The Times: “The school is teaching them that white children are oppressors and black children are victims. It’s focusing on differences. Most of us want to raise our children to be colour-blind.”

Racism in new "progressive" clothes.