By Harry Howard
The theory is displayed in a graphic put together by the US-based Equality Institute, which describes itself as a ‘global feminist agency working to advance gender equality and end violence against women and girls.’
The graphic features in a document titled ‘responding to racism’ that was compiled by the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich and uncovered by campaigning group Don’t Divide Us.
The diocese, which is headed up by Bishop The Right Reverend Martin Seeley, controls 87 schools in the region, all but two of which are primaries. The document was uploaded to the diocese’s website for teachers to look at.
It explicitly tells them to use ‘visuals’ including the pyramid to ‘help pupils understand how bias, stereotypes and prejudice can lead to racist words and actions, leading to physical harm and death.’
Reacting to the document, high-profile Church of England priest Father Marcus Walker, the Rector at historic London church St Bartholomew The Great, told MailOnline: ‘The enthusiasm with which some in the Church of England are diving into the culture war is profoundly depressing. Children are not there to be indoctrinated.’
Former CofE priest Gavin Ashenden, who converted to Catholicism after resigning from his position as Chaplain to the late Queen Elizabeth in 2017, added his voice to the criticism.
The 69-year-old told MailOnline: ‘The problems stack up badly here. Thought crime, of which the accusation of “racism” is a subset, should play no part in Christian ethics.
‘Christians by definition are committed to “Loving their neighbour”, a powerful antidote to racism.
‘Beyond that the Church does not believe in making children (or adults) feel guilty for collective social failures.
‘Guilt is restricted to personal choices only. A Church school should not be indoctrinating children in political and racial guilt they are innocent of.
‘It should be teaching the powerful and renewing ethics of love and personal forgiveness found in the teaching of Jesus.’
The pyramid has the word ‘mass murder’ at the top of a scale of worsening actions.
On the bottom is the word ‘indifference’, above a series of excuses allegedly uttered by white people.
They read: ”’There are two sides to every story”, apolitical beliefs, avoiding confrontation, “politics don’t affect me”‘.
The pyramid then moves up to ‘minimisation’, under which are terms including, ‘White saviour complex’, ”not all white people”, and ‘denial of white privilege’.
Above that is ‘veiled racism’, which is said to include: ‘Victim blaming, racist jokes, Euro-centric curriculum, tokenism, cultural appropriation, racist icons.’
‘Discrimination’ then comes next and includes actions including ‘racial profiling’, ‘mass incarceration’ and even ‘anti-immigration policies’.
Third from top is ‘calls for violence’, under which it says: ‘KKK, Neo-Nazis, burning crosses’.
The initials KKK stand for the infamous American white supremacist organisation the Ku Klux Klan.
Second from top is ‘violence’, which is exampled with ‘lynching, hate crimes, police brutality’.
Along the side of the pyramid is an arrow leading up from ‘normalisation’ to ‘genocide’.
The wider document is titled ‘Responding to Racism’ and gives staff guidance on ‘what to teach pupils’.
Also there is an instruction to ‘teach pupils about what white privilege is and how they can become more aware of it.’
White privilege is the premise that Western societies are defined by racism and that white people enjoy advantages because of their skin colour.
Critics say it is overly simplistic and ignores the achievements of people from diverse backgrounds, such as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose parents are of Indian descent.
An illustration in the document to depict the concept shows white people and ‘people of colour’ on an imbalanced scale, with the former higher than the latter.
Under a heading titled ‘what schools can do’, teachers are asked if they are ‘celebrating Black lives’ and ‘educating pupils about Black history and the British slave trade.’
Elsewhere in the document, teachers are urged to: ‘Try not to simplify the message to ‘we are all equal’, as if racism were a thing of the past and fully resolved.
‘This can lead children and young people to conclude that the inequalities they do see are earned or justified in some way.
‘Without adults, children often fill in these ‘data gaps’ themselves and they don’t always use reliable sources.’
Another illustration in the document shows an airport-style travellator with a red arrow moving forwards that is titled ‘Active racism, using their privilege’.
A green arrow going the other way reads: ‘Anti-racist, walking away in other direction at pace.’
A third orange arrow coming from the right says: ‘Passive racism, going with the system.’
Campaign group Don’t Divide Us mentioned the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich’s guidance in its bombshell investigation into how schools are being taken over by organisations teaching controversial ‘anti-racism’ theories.
It said in its report that the guidance showed how the Church’s board of education ‘is highly partisan and has a strong activist orientation.’
Nigel Genders, the Church of England’s chief education officer, told MailOnline: ‘Racism exists in our society, and both children and staff experience racism in schools and communities every day.
Another illustration in the document shows an airport-style travellator with a red arrow moving forwards that is titled ‘Active racism, using their privilege’. A green arrow going the other way reads: ‘Anti-racist, walking away in other direction at pace.’ A third orange arrow coming from the right says: ‘Passive racism, going with the system’
Another illustration in the document shows an airport-style travellator with a red arrow moving forwards that is titled ‘Active racism, using their privilege’. A green arrow going the other way reads: ‘Anti-racist, walking away in other direction at pace.’ A third orange arrow coming from the right says: ‘Passive racism, going with the system’
‘The Church of England is committed to addressing racial injustice and we encourage children in our schools to be courageous advocates for equality and to challenge prejudice without political partiality.
‘Our aim is to resource and lead learning experiences for all children which consistently and intentionally celebrate equity, diversity, belonging, inclusion and justice at every opportunity, and to ensure that staff and children can flourish irrespective of ethnicity.’
A spokesperson for the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich said: ‘All staff at our schools are committed to creating an inclusive and safe space for our children to learn.
‘The resources highlighted in this report were made available to staff for guidance in support of our approach to teaching children about racial equality, which is in line with that of the national Church of England and other Dioceses across the country.
‘Children at our schools champion equality and we are proud of the diverse learning environment our schools foster.’
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