Am I Racist?

In this follow up to Daily Wire’s “What is a Woman?”, Matt Walsh and his crew set out to expose the errors of the “antiracism,” which is essentially the teaching of what is known as Critical Race Theory (CRT), and in more popular parlance the “woke” movement. This is quite a different film than “What is a Woman?” Though like its predecessor, it is a documentary, this movie follows a fictional narrative played out in real life, and in that sense feels similar to a regular movie. Matt Walsh pretends to be a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) expert (albeit he pretended in real life) who interviews other DEI experts and proponents. The story is told well. The plot is very smooth, and the movie is frankly very entertaining. Not much of the plot will be given away here.

The movie starts out with Matt Walsh pretending to be a DEI expert on an actual news show called “Good Things Utah,” talking about “stretching out of your whiteness.” The film clearly shows that the “antiracism” movement has a problem with “whiteness,” and apparently if you are white there is no way to completely correct it. According to CRT proponents white people are inherently racist, and in fact a white person cannot deny that they are racist. One can educate themselves, but can never fully escape or eradicate their whiteness and racism.

According to these proponents, racism is systemic, and it’s not possible to dismantle this system (systemic racism). People are grandfathered into this system.

Critical Race Theory teaches that the best people can do is educate themselves so that they can at least minimize the racism in themselves and others. One of the CRT advocates says that people should talk to their kids about racism before kids can even talk. One claims that only white people are racist. Republicans are called Nazis. Someone calls white people trash, and other disparaging things are said. One of the lines in the film’s theme song is, “bein’ white mean you can’t have an opinion, especially if you Christian.”

In contrast to this, as Matt (posing as a CRT/DEI expert) is talking to a kid on the street in his late teens/early twenties. After listening, the kid tells Matt that he is the most racist person he ever met. The kid says, “If you want to forget about it, you got to shut up.”

Matt goes to a biker bar, hilariously on a moped of sorts. When he asks one of the men at the bar what he is doing to decenter his whiteness, the guy replies, in one of the most poignant lines of the film, “Who’s making it the center? Why they doing that?” Certain bikers say color doesn’t matter, and that, “you treat people right.”

Matt interviews a black mechanic who shares that he hasn’t had a problem with racism in this country. When Matt tries to convince him to read some of the CRT/DEI expert books he’s been reading, the mechanic replies, “Only thing I read is the Bible.” He also tells Matt that “we all bleed the same thing.”

The point being made with these later interviews in contrast to the interview with “experts,” is that common people, black and white alike, don’t see racism as the systemic problem that these CRT experts do. Other comments are made throughout the film that there is inherent dignity in all of us, and that we are all one in God’s eyes. (Yes, all human beings are made in God’s image, and each and every one has inherent value and dignity, but we are all sinful and prone to evil. Unregenerate men and women are in spiritual darkness, and only those who repent and trust in Jesus Christ are redeemed and saved.)

The mechanic shares with Matt that the answer is that we have to love each other, to which Matt replies “It can’t be that simple,” and the mechanic replies back, “It is to me.”

The film does a really good job of exposing the current “antiracist” movement of Critical Race Theory. Of course, it is evil and sinful to be racist. The film’s producers are focused on exposing CRT, helping viewers see that it is bringing only confusion and no true answers, laying open the contradictory nature and hopelessness of Woke ideology.

Of course real racism is a problem. I prefer to call it ETHNIC PREJUDICE instead of racism for two main reasons. The first is that Biblically-speaking every human being is part of the human race. So, to dividing us into different “races” is misleading. We have different ethnicities, languages, skin colors, nations and so forth, and that fits into God’s purposes for mankind.

The second reason is that ethnic prejudging better explains the problem. When one pre-judges someone based on the color of their skin or nation, that is wrong. Nonetheless, with that explanation in place, I will still use the term racism to describe the issue, because it is such a widely used term.

This film uses the power of humor to make its point. But a caution must be added. I can see how some people might see that humor at times as making light of real racism. The problem with humor is that it can be insensitive and can get carried away. These filmmakers are concerned with the serious problems that CRT brings to society. It is seriously destructive. It confuses and divides people. It doesn’t help with the problem of real racism, it contributes to it. It is not a solution by any means, it only makes things worse.

Humor is an effective tool to combat false ideologies. Nonetheless, in combating CRT, I think at times the filmmakers may have gone too far and were insensitive to the real problem of ethnic prejudice. It also needs to be mentioned that the film makers do include a message about everyone getting along, and we have to keep in mind it is a movie, it is not going to say everything perfectly. Bottomline, though I agree CRT is wrong and needs to be exposed, I also believe that there is real ethnic prejudice in the world.

Another point about the problem of real prejudice is that CRT is actually taking away from confronting the real problem, as the film’s theme song asserts. If everybody is a racist, then no one is. It’s like the boy who cried wolf. Prejudice does exist, and it is ugly. But if people are claiming to see it in places it isn’t, then that is going to distract people from dealing with cases that are real.

The film presents the problem of CRT theory clearly. But it doesn’t offer much of a way forward or a strategy to fight it. Yes, it does speak of the importance of all people getting along, but that is not developed. The mechanic who read his Bible is a positive element, and hopefully people make the connection that reading and following the Bible is the answer for all people getting along.

The biker bar scene is clearly a sinful setting. I’m not saying that simply because they are bikers at a bar, but because you just need to read what some of their shirts say. Nonetheless, the bikers are saying that everyone needs to treat everybody right. Clearly, not all of these people are following the Bible. However, we are all made in the image of God, and mankind has an instinctive sense of right and wrong.

So, the movie does give a basic sense that not ALL people are inherently racist or see racism as a problem in the same way that CRT advocates do, but it doesn’t focus on the real answer to the problem. And maybe it didn’t need to. Perhaps it just needed to expose the problem, because many people are not aware of the perils of CRT and its infiltration into our schools and entertainment.

But this is a review, and I am just pointing out that this movie did not focus on a solution. There is a brief mention of the Bible, and it has the solution. We will talk about that momentarily.

But next it needs to be mentioned that from what I understand Matt Walsh and his crew were not upfront with all the people he interviewed about who they really were. Admittedly, I don’t know all the details of this, but I can’t condone the experts being misled. I agree that light needs to be shed on the problems and contradictions within the CRT movement, but I could have an ethical concern about the way it was done.

This documentary also reveals the anti-Christian bias that exists among CRT proponents. One expert says, “I pray to God” and mentions a Christian background, but claims “patience is not needed… kindness is not what is called for.”

Biblical Analysis

As mentioned, ethnic prejudice is a real evil in this world. The only answer for it is love (and the Gospel). But when we say love we must talk about real love, love as it is defined by the Bible. The Bible says that God is love (1 John 4:8, 16). Therefore, because love comes from His being, He must define it. The Scriptures teach that God demonstrated His love through the death of Jesus Christ (Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:9-10). Christ, our Creator, died for sinners of every people group and ethnicity (John 3:16). All who repent and believe in Him will be forgiven of their sins forever. Their skin color, nationality, or language has nothing to do with a person’s salvation. What matters is that a person trusts in God’s beloved Son. God’s love for the redeemed is the foundation upon which they love other (1 John 4:11).

The Bible is concerned about harmony among the different ethnicities in the world, but ultimately therer can be no unity without the Gospel. The cross of Jesus Christ accomplished many things, and one of those is that He broke down the wall that separated Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:11-22). And that goes for all peoples as well. The new heavens and the new earth will be filled with the redeemed of all the nations worshiping the One True Triune God (Revelation 5:9-10). The answer to racism and all the evils of the world is the Gospel. It offers valid hope. CRT does not.

Objectionable Content

There is a book called “Nigger.” The word “Nigger” is used 2 times. F-words are used eight times, but always bleeped out. There are eight S-words. Five uses of the H-word. Three A-words. One Possible use of D**n; it was said in a low tone, so it is hard to know for sure. 3 misuses of God’s name.

On a man’s shirt there is a sexually inappropriate word play on the term vegetarian with a sexually suggestive image. There is some female cleavage and focus on the breast area. Weird tattoos. There is a scene of two men attacking Walsh, which is meant to humorously mock an alleged attack reported in real life. There is mention of self-flagellation, and the tools for it appear on screen.

Conclusion

“Am I Racist?” rightfully exposes major problems with Critical Race Theory which paints the picture of a problem that is impossible to solve and without giving people valid hope. It is an entertaining and humorous film, and it communicates its message in a narrative form that works quite well. Kids should definitely not see this movie. And despite the positive elements mentioned above, I cannot endorse this as a wholesome movie. There are elements contained within that are not sanctifying for believers to watch.

• Vulgar/Crude language: Moderately Heavy
• Sex: Moderately Heavy
• Profane language: Moderate
• Violence: Minor
• Nudity: Mild
• Drugs/Alcohol: Minor
• Occult: None

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.