The former CEO of CVS Pharmacy, Inc. reportedly invited Ibram X. Kendi to educate employees on their inherent racism so they understand that Americans are “completely soaked in racist ideas.” This was the fruition of a reeducation program launched in 2020 by CEO Larry Merlo who has since conveniently retired.
Before the presidency of Barack Obama, stating Merlo’s race would not be material to the story, but times have changed for the worse and so it is important now to note that Merlo is a white guy. A very rich white guy who can’t be racist because he asked Kendi to perform for his employees before he ducked out.
Author and conservative activist Christopher Rufo laid out the discovery and the documents via his Twitter page on Wednesday.
SCOOP: @CVSHealth CEO Larry Merlo earned 618 times more than the median CVS employee salary, while simultaneously promoting the idea that America is “racist” and forcing hourly-wage workers to deconstruct their racial and sexual “privilege.”
Here is the full story.👇
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Naturally, the training documents address the now-hackneyed talking points of critical race theory such as “intersectionality”, “white privilege” and “unconscious bias.”
Last year, Merlo—who has since retired—launched an extensive race reeducation program, built on the core tenets of critical race theory, including “intersectionality,” “white privilege,” and “unconscious bias.” pic.twitter.com/lWya3bg351
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Major corporations like Coca-Cola and Bank of America have recently used similar group-think training programs, and like all anti-racism initiatives, this one starts by having participants break themselves into identity groups to identify their privilege, teaches them how to be an ally, and ends with a commitment to put the training into action.
Merlo hosted a conversation with critical race guru Ibram Kendi, who told 25,000 CVS employees that “to be born in [America] is to literally have racist ideas rain on our head consistently and constantly.” As a result, Americans are “completely soaked in racist ideas.” pic.twitter.com/xdDdjwTMYD
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Kendi argued that two- and three-year-old children are deeply racist: “Our kids are basically functioning on racist ideas, choosing who to play with based on the kid’s skin color.” The solution, in part, is to “diagnose” them as “racist” in order to help them become “antiracist.” pic.twitter.com/FB67Vjgp6A
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
That’s why he wrote “Antiracist Baby” as a complement to his “How to Be an Antiracist.”
In a mandatory training, CVS executives forced hourly-wage employees to deconstruct their racial and sexual identities, then rank themselves according to their “privilege”—a practice informed by the theory of “intersectionality.” pic.twitter.com/TjFewREPDV
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Another exercise, called “Say This, Not That,” provided employees with detailed racial etiquette “reference cards” to reorient their speech to the values of “diversity, equity, and inclusion.” Employees were told to cease using “problematic phrases,” including “I’m colorblind,” “I grew up poor,” “peanut gallery,” “I’m not racist,” and “we must stand up for minorities.” All these phrases, according to the training program, are racist microaggressions that minimize the existence of “systemic racism,” have a “racist history,” and “could be seen as discrediting the experiences of Black people and their culture,” Rufo detailed in his full story at City Journal.
In a mandatory training, CVS executives forced hourly-wage employees to deconstruct their racial and sexual identities, then rank themselves according to their “privilege”—a practice informed by the theory of “intersectionality.” pic.twitter.com/TjFewREPDV
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Examples of privilege, according to a checklist, included “celebrat[ing] Christmas,” “hav[ing] a name that is easy to pronounce,” “feel[ing] safe in your neighborhood at night,” and “feel[ing] confident in my leadership style.” pic.twitter.com/NBnKHQ5YCF
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
The irony of these corporate “privilege” programs is inescapable. Last year, CEO Larry Merlo earned 618 times the median CVS employee salary, yet still lectured his 300,000 employees—many of whom live in poverty—about their “privilege.” pic.twitter.com/M6iZVeA5Nh
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) September 22, 2021
Far from being a bottom-up program of empowerment, the new ideology of “antiracism” allows elites such as Merlo to forego their guilt and shift blame to the average American.
As far as Ibram X. Kendi, charlatans such as he and Nikole Hannah-Jones enjoy lucrative book deals, undeserved Pulitzer Prizes and the all-too-common tenure offers from ivy league universities. (Kendi took his at Boston University. Hannah-Jones rejected hers from the University of North Carolina and instead accepted an offer from Howard University, the alma mater of Vice President and border czar, Kamala Harris).
Kendi, also known to many for his lack of intellect but somehow still highly employable, was once asked to define racism and what it means to be racist. He answered with a circular definition, using the term to define the term:
“RACIST: One who is supporting a racist policy through their actions or inaction or expressing a racist idea.
ANTIRACIST: One who is supporting an antiracist policy through their actions or expressing an antiracist idea.
Definitions anchor us in principles. This is not a light point: If we don’t do the basic work of defining the kind of people we want to be in language that is stable and consistent, we can’t work toward stable, consistent goals.”
Way to go, Larry Merlo.
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