Critical Race Theory Ban States [Updated April 2023]

States with Bans Against Critical Race Theory

The following states have banned critical race theory: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia. These states represent only the tip of the iceberg, however. These only represent a moving target as there is a myriad of other state jurisdictions looking to end the practice of teaching critical race tenets.

States that currently have bills moving through the state legislature, or are emplacing school policies to forbid the teaching of Critical Race Theory include Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Oregon. A quick perusal of this second listing reveals several unexpected geographic concentrations.

While the states comprising the old Confederacy are widely represented in the number of anti-CRT bills and measures being put forth in legislative chambers, a surprising number of states representing a large swath of the Midwest have also attempted to restrict how race is taught in their state school curriculums.

Opposition to Banning Critical Race Theory

In each of these states looking to eliminate or reduce the level of Critical Race Theory-based instruction, there is vocal opposition to the move. In Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, anti-CRT bills have been vetoed, overturned, or stalled in the legislative process. That being said, however, supporters of the failed legislation have vowed to reintroduce those measures in future legislative sessions.

As of early 2023, only California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Vermont have not had bans attempted. These sites still have the chance to pass legislation to positively affirm the goals and intentions of teaching about racism, and the deleterious effect that that has had on generations of minorities of Black Americans in the United States.