The Big Lie About Race in America's Schools: Race and Education

by Royel M. Johnson (Editor), Shaun R. Harper (Editor), Diana Blue (Narrator)

The Big Lie About Race in America's Schools delivers a collective response to the challenge of racially charged misinformation, disinformation, and censorship that increasingly permeates and weakens not only US education but also our democracy. Royel Johnson and Shaun Harper bring together leading education scholars and educators to confront the weaponized distortions that are undermining both public education and racial justice. The experts gathered in this work offer strategies to counter these dangerous trends.

The contributors examine efforts both broad and specific, from restrictive education legislation, to book bans, to twisting terminology like Critical Race Theory (CRT) and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), that are obscuring truth in public education. They demonstrate how this narrowing of ideas does a disservice to all students and especially to those who are underrepresented in curricula.

Ultimately, the book offers clear, actionable insights for educators, policymakers, and advocates who seek solutions that will counter recent trends and transform educational contexts within K–12 and higher education. This volume advocates strengthening educational alliances through shared leadership, organized collaboration, and parental involvement. It also presents innovative countermeasures to help defend public education.

Audible Audio

Published October 7, 2025

Reviews

[Alyse · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some redeeming anecdotes, but felt repetitive and difficult to stay engaged. While I anticipated the heaviness of the topic, the lack of any realistic call to action just made it feel like trudging through mud. I didn’t find anything truly new or novel here, just a repackaging of things most people who work in human or public service (not just education) already know and have been talking about for years (decades in some cases). I would say it would be a good read for people new to the field, but the lack of any reasonable actionable steps aside from what most people already do makes me worry it will put off would-be activists.