{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fthis-is-critical-with-virginia-heffernan.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Fcritical-theory-rUsLs4Bc","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Why Bother with Critical Theory at All?","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/d02ab162-92b1-40d0-9d90-caab30ce394f/cc061e16-62e3-4525-af5b-aa14025ee09a/stitcher-cover-thisiscritical-3000x3000-c020.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"<iframe src=\"https://player.simplecast.com/ce1555e0-72dc-44e4-a1ba-073c53c1e5d5\" height=\"200\" width=\"100%\" title=\"Why Bother with Critical Theory at All?\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"></iframe>","height":200,"description":"Over the last year, right-wing agitators have turned the academic discipline of Critical Race Theory into the hottest-button issue facing schools. Their anti-intellectual arguments can be maddening. But, paradoxically, the outsized blowback to CRT makes a strong case for it, and for critical theory of all kinds. Victor Ray, sociologist and author of the new book On Critical Race Theory, joins Virginia for a deep dive into both the CRT panic and what the theory actually is."}