Administrative Theory & Praxis· 2026Q2
The unintended consequences of using crisis discourse in school board deliberation to ban Critical Race Theory
- 0citations
- Q2SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
A Southern California school board's use of crisis rhetoric to ban Critical Race Theory (CRT) backfired, leading to a watered-down resolution due to a lack of understanding and internal contradictions exposed by legal counsel.
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Key points
- School board used crisis rhetoric to justify banning Critical Race Theory (CRT).
- Board members lacked a clear understanding of CRT's content or implementation.
- Crisis framing initially mobilized support but backfired due to inability to define or enforce CRT.
- Legal counsel's interventions exposed contradictions, forcing a watered-down resolution.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
This study examines how a Southern California school board employed crisis rhetoric to justify banning Critical Race Theory despite lacking a clear understanding of CRT’s content or implementation. Through discourse analysis of three board meetings, we found that while crisis framing initially mobilized support for a hardline anti-CRT resolution, it ultimately backfired when board members couldn’t define CRT or address enforcement challenges. Legal counsel’s interventions exposed contradictions in the crisis narrative, forcing the board to abandon their specific CRT definition and pass a watered-down resolution resembling standard nondiscrimination policy. The findings demonstrate how crisis discourse can undermine its own objectives when subjected to institutional scrutiny.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Communication
CommunicationSocial Sciences