Before he was a documentary filmmaker, before he led the campaign against Critical Race Theory, before the recent posts on X of the influential conservative commentator led to major cuts in the Department of Education, Christopher Rufo was a band kid at Rio Americano High School.
Rufo, who graduated in 2002, got the attention of President Donald Trump during his first term with his attacks during appearances on Fox on what he saw as the “existensial threat” of teaching Critical Race Theory and of diversity programs in government agencies. Trump issued an order banning Critical Race Theory in 2020, which Joe Biden rescinded when he took office.
But with Trump back in the White House, Rufo’s influence is growing. According to the education news site Chalkbeat, the Department of Education ended tens of millions of dollars of grants last month after Rufo posted on social media shots of training material paid for by the grants.
Programs intended to advance STEM education instead “push left-wing ideologies in local districts,” he posted on social media.
In a 2021 interview with the Mirada, Rufo said that although his high school education at Rio covered race issues, Critical Race Theory played no part in it. As his star continues to climb in Washington, we invite you to look back at Rufo’s early years and the conflict he stoked about Critical Race Theory in an 2021 article by Mirada staff writer GraceAnn Lesser here.
