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School district DEI trainer says American flag becoming 'hate' symbol, employees resisting CRT should be fired
'This is insane,' a teacher who underwent the DEI training said about the messaging
By Hannah Grossman
Published June 4, 2024 5:00am EDT
FIRST ON FOX – A diversity, equity and inclusion trainer spreading critical race theory in the public education system – affecting thousands of teachers and administrators – said that "resistant" employees who disagree with the concepts should be fired, according to her published work.
Epoch Education CEO Dr. Nancy Dome called employees who don't accept notions included in CRT, such as the existence of "White privilege," a "poison to culture and climate," and criticized equality in favor of equity. The DEI firm's YouTube videos, meanwhile, espouse CRT's tenets and indicate that color blindness isn't sufficient.
"So what happens when you face someone who's actually resistant, doesn't believe White privilege or inequity exists?" Dome wrote in her 2022 book, "Let's Talk About Race." She proposed engaging in "compassionate dialogue," calling it a "cleaner way of interacting."
"If someone continues to resist that culture or climate after multiple interruptions, then you know they do not belong," Dome added.
"If you continue showing up compassionately to conversations but the other person refuses to give as much as they get, then sometimes that relationship is simply not a worthwhile use of your energy. Divorce can be a form of repair if you’ve made every attempt but simply cannot find a way for the relationship to move forward. If a team member isn’t willing to adjust … then the repair may be to remove them from the team or organization," she said.
Epoch calls itself a "national leader" in DEI and indicates that at least five public school districts, ranging from nearly 40,000 students to over 70,000 each, have hired the firm to bring in an equity agenda. It lists the U.S. Department of Education, which did not respond to a comment request, as a client.
The firm doesn't shy away from CRT's inclusion in its programming: its YouTube channel has numerous videos explaining the tenets of CRT and the relevance of this concept to diversity training.
"Racist hierarchical structures influence all political, economic and social domains, including schools," a September 2020 video states.
In a video posted on Epoch's Vimeo account, Dome said she believed the American flag was becoming a symbol of "hate" and "extremism."
The video became publicly unavailable after Fox News sent a request for comment.
One of the practices Dome uses in her diversity training to bring in the desired culture is a "color line" exercise. Employees are scored, with a 0 being the most oppressed and a 125 for the most privileged. During the exercise, participants are asked a variety of prompts relating to their race and then provide them with scores accordingly.
"I can, if I wish, arrange to be in the company of people with my race most of the time" and "I can be sure that my children will be given curricular materials that testify to the existence of their race," the prompts said, as examples.
White women typically score around 100 because they are benefactors of "White privilege" but are simultaneously oppressed by the patriarchy, according to Dome. White men are in the top category of privilege.
"Once the scores are calculated, participants line up in the room according to their numbers, creating a powerful representation of the color line. It’s called the color line because almost without exception, the darkest people in the room will be closest to zero," Dome said. The exercise helps "people heal through perspective and understanding," she said.
The concept behind the "color line," Dome said, was derived from an article called "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack," which argued that White women are "justly seen as oppressive" and "enjoy unearned skin privilege."
"Many, perhaps most, of our White students in the U.S. think that racism doesn't affect them because they are not people of color, they do not see ' Whiteness' as a racial identity," the article added.
A California teacher who underwent the Epoch training at the Elk Grove Unified School District, Isaac Newman, told Fox News Digital he found the messaging "insane."
"I got to a point where I'm like, 'this is insane. I'm not taking any more of these trainings,'" he said. "I actually asked the district, 'What happens if I don't take the trainings?' and they refused to tell me. So they actually won't tell me the consequences, just that they're mandated."
"What's shocking is in these DEI trainings, they actually call out colorblindness and meritocracy," Newman said. "And of course, if you're dedicated to that, well, then you're going to have division, and you're going to have mediocrity."
Similarly, Epoch Education's September 2020 CRT video explained that "many liberal ideologies, like color blindedness and incremental change" are "insufficient to redress the deleterious effects of racism."
Fundamentally, Dome does not strive for equality in the short-term, she explained, rather the goal was to give people different advantages based on the group they belong in, according to an article she posted on LinkedIn in June 2023.
She called equality "one of those lofty ideals we’ve been hearing about since elementary school." She preferred equity, "the idea that everyone should get what they need, even if that’s different from what someone else gets."
People who may feel they are not being treated fairly in the name of equity, Dome explained, "they are right. But—and this is key—that’s not the point. The point is that equity is there to give everyone what they need to thrive."
She added that what someone else is given shouldn't bother others because "we are all connected," "my success is your success." She said an absence of equity will lead to theft.
"If you feel like an equitable system will create lack for you, remember that we are all connected. If you understand that my success is your success, and vice versa, you are much more likely to give me what I need," she said.
"Look, if you live in my community and you’re starving, there’s a good chance that one day you’re going to end up stealing from me (or someone else in the community) just to survive. On the other hand, if I have food and everything else I need, and I make sure you have everything you need, too, then I never have to worry about you coming in and harming me or stealing from me. Ultimately, the better off you are, and the better off I am, the better off we all are," she wrote.
Moreover, she encourages people to constantly scan environments to determine if they are oppressive, which she believes builds "equity intelligence," according to another LinkedIn article from 2019.
"In our Implicit Bias courses, we support participants in understanding that we are all always scanning our environments to see if we are safe and if we belong," she said. "Our ability to pause and recognize the reactions we have to the people and situations around us, points us in the direction of our specific anti-bias work and the building of our Equity Intelligence."
Fox News Digital reached out to Epoch Education, Nancy Dome and the Elk Grove Unified School District for comment and did not receive a response.
Hannah Grossman is a Reporter at Fox News Digital.
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