“Our Constitution is Colorblind”: A CRT Analysis of SCOTUS Cases in Secondary Social Studies Standards

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Abstract

Despite its historical role in the legal construction of race, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is often positioned as a neutral arbiter of the law. In this study, we examined the official curriculum’s mandates about SCOTUS and race as represented by the cases named in the state standards for secondary social studies education. Using a CRT framework deployed through QuantCrit and Critical Race Discourse Analysis, we reveal how race-evasiveness and a narrative of racial progress are routinely upheld in standards addressing SCOTUS cases. We argue that state standards have contributed to a false narrative that SCOTUS operates as a colorblind institution and that a more historically accurate accounting of SCOTUS’ role is necessary to advance social justice.

Authors

• Joseph Adam Schultz, University of Georgia

• Rebecca Cooper Geller, University of Georgia