Air Force Academy Professor Defends Teaching Critical Race Theory as ‘Vital’ for Military Leaders

A United States Air Force Academy professor is defending teaching critical race theory (CRT) to her students in a new op-ed in the Washington Post.

“As a professor of political science at the U.S. Air Force Academy, I teach critical race theories to our nation’s future military leaders because it is vital that cadets understand the history of the racism that has shaped both foreign and domestic policy,” Lynne Chandler Garcia wrote.

Chandler Garcia adds that teaching CRT helps her students “identify the structural racism and inequality that has been endemic in American society … Racism was ingrained in the system from the beginning, and the military still struggles with these issues.”

“I don’t coddle my cadets out of fear that exposure to certain literatures might make them uncomfortable or test their existing beliefs,” the professor noted.

In a statement to Politico, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby defended Chandler Garcia’s op-ed.

“That a professor at an academic institution such as the Air Force Academy teaches a given theory as part of an elective course does not in the slightest way signify some larger effort by the Department to teach, espouse or embrace said theory,” Kirby said.

Chandler Garcia’s article comes just a couple weeks after U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley defended teaching CRT to military members.

Speaking about a seminar titled, “Understanding Whiteness and White Rage,” that was taught at West Point, Milley said, “I want to understand white rage, and I’m white, and I want to understand it.”

“I’ve read Mao Zedong. I’ve read Karl Marx. I’ve read Lenin. That doesn’t make me a communist. So, what is wrong with understanding?”

The op-ed from Chandler Garcia and the statement from Chairman Milley seem to conflict with a statement Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin recently made at a Senate hearing.

“We do not teach critical race theory,” Austin said. “We don’t embrace critical race theory.”

Senator Tom Cotton, R-Ark., blasted Chandler Garcia’s op-ed during an interview on Fox News on Wednesday.

“[Professor Garcia] has no business teaching the Constitution or political science to cadets at the Air Force. Secretary Austin has testified at least twice that our military does not teach, instruct, or condone critical race theory,” Sen. Cotton said.

“We should not be teaching and indoctrinating our cadets to believe that our military is a fundamentally racist institution. Who exactly is going to raise their hand and take an oath to defend our Constitution if you believe what Professor Garcia is teaching about it?” the Senator added.

For an additional perspective on current racial issues, check out Focus on the Family’s Daily Broadcast, “A Fascinating Perspective on Racial Issues” featuring Dr. Shelby Steele. He discusses racial divisions in America, examines the civil rights movement of the 1960s and compares it to the campaign for social justice today.

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