NATION: In the most recent days of the week, the US State Department appointed the person who would stand as the chief ofthe office of Diversity and Inclusion. Zakiya Carr Johnson.
By Michelle Crawford-Sapenter
According to reports surrounding the ethics and policies formerly stated and those conducted by Johson, the former Obama administration Race, Ethnicity, and Social Inclusion Unit chief offers an impression and view of the United States by which she indicates that the humanity and ability of people like her are harshly affected by mechanisms and cultures that dispute any inclination for trusting her/their ability to lead. Johnson , also, states that equity is failed by avoiding efforts at dismanling "...structural racism, patriotism and heterosexism. “
Zakiya Carr Johnson, recently appointed as the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO) at the U.S. State Department, will serve in such a role that will lead the Office of DEI in advancing the department’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA).
Reflecting on Critical Race Theory (CRT) as an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the relationships between social conceptions of race, political laws, and media, it considers racism to be systemic, embedded in various laws and rules, rather than solely based on individual prejudices.
CRT views race as a social construct with no biological basis. It emphasizes that racism and disparate racial outcomes result from complex, subtle social and institutional dynamics, rather than explicit individual prejudices.
A central concept in CRT is intersectionality, which recognizes how different forms of inequality (race, class, gender, disability) intersect and affect people’s experiences. Scholars of CRT argue that U.S. law, often perceived as “neutral,” actually perpetuates racial inequalities.
Zakiya Carr Johnson’s hiring has sparked controversy. The middle 40s professed feminist has been criticized for past remarks that some consider anti-American. Johnson once referred to the U.S. as a “failed historical model” embedded with racism, colonialism, and other negative aspects.
The 1996 BA graduate of Howard University has also advocated for dismantling traditions. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed concern that Johnson’s appointment reflects a divisive, un-American, Marxist dogma. Pompeo stated his belief that Johnson’s views will harm the State Department and America’s capacity to deliver effective diplomacy.
While it is Pompeo’s impression that Johnson’s express views on patriotism and heterosexist, in particular, could have a “demoralizing impact…” on the State Department in the manner that the DEI Chief’s dismantling areas of American sentiments are inclined to make a shattering impact, Pompeo pushes the theory that Johnson views, however, align with the Biden administration’s commitment to a divisive ideology.
Today, following her April 2, appointment, the debate surrounding Zakiya Carr Johnson’s current agenda touches on critical issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as differing perspectives on the impact of CRT within government institutions.
There is, however, nothing stated by Pompeo nor expressed through the views stated by Carr zJoe don that would lean toward any extremist efforts that might “destroy” the State Department. The issue, however, persists among Trump-centered Republicans as a matter of ongoing discussion and interpretation.
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