1 Critical race theory and Black leadership

Adopting critical race theory (CRT) to examine assumptions and practices leads to uncomfortable and challenging reflection. It offers a potentially profound challenge to established power and in this way is a theory of great value. At its core, CRT aims to ‘expose the structural dynamics which keep oppression in place’ (Ladkin and Patrick, 2022, p. 209). It assumes that power exists in and is exercised through ‘language, structures, practices, and taken for granted ways of behaving’ (ibid). Such exercises of power have a significant impact on how: a society’s resources are unevenly distributed away from Black people; Black lives are valued less than white lives by people in power.

Delgado and Stefancic (2011, p. 9-10) offer five tenets of CRT, and these are worth dwelling upon as significant for interpreting leadership (Ladkin and Patrick, 2022):