In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Aja Martínez, associate professor, award-winning author, and one of the sharpest thinkers in Critical Race Theory today. We get into the deep stuff right away: the religious roots of the attacks on CRT, the long game of the New Right, and how history repeats itself when we’re not paying attention.

Dr. Martínez walks us through her and Dr. Robert Smith’s research on Derrick Bell, revealing how religion and prophetic witness sit at the very heart of early CRT work. We talk about the decades-long strategy behind Project 2025, the role of conservative think tanks, and why “how did we get here?” is the wrong question. People have been warning us. We just weren’t listening.

We also explore the personal side of this work: the risks, the canceled events, the mental load, and the joy she finds in r ...