Is the Left winning the war on meritocracy?

"Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities"

Marxist values challenge the notion of meritocracy¹ and argue that it is inherently flawed. According to Marxist theory, meritocracy serves as a tool of the ruling class to maintain their power and privilege, while disguising the underlying inequalities in society.

This has been the most well known and documented communist tactic.

The Bourgeois and Proletarians.

The Oppressors and the Oppressed

Social Unrest

Marxist values can not coincide with meritocracy:

Marxists argue that in a capitalist society, the distribution of wealth and resources is determined by ownership of the means of production rather than individual merit. They contend that capitalism perpetuates class divisions, with the bourgeoisie (capitalist class) exploiting the proletariat (working class) for their own gain. Marxist claim that meritocracy is a false ideology which obscures class-based inequality.

Consequently, even if merit-based evaluation systems exist, the starting point for individuals is unequal, making it challenging for true meritocracy to be achieved.

The statement above makes a great observation. Americans start out life in many different situations. Some are born into wealth, others into poverty. While some, as abhorrent as it was, were even born being considered “property".

No one has experienced a more defined example of meritocracy than a former slave turned American hero. Just off the top of my head, hear are 5 examples:

• Robert Smalls, an American Civil War hero who guided his family and other slaves to freedom on the Confederate ship “The Planter"²

• Booker T. Washington, known as The Great Educator, founded the Tuskegee Institute in 1881. He based his teachings not on the adversity his students faced, but the hard work they put in to achieve success.³

• Frederick Douglas, a national leader in the American abolitionist movement, and advocate of the US Constitution. Douglass spoke on many of the issues we still talk about today; Economic Prosperity, School Choice, Free Speech, Immigration, & Personal Responsibility⁴

• Araminta Ross, better known as Harriet Tubman, was a symbol of Freedom, and one of the most successful ‘conductors' of the Underground Railroad. Known as “The Moses of her people", Tubman also served as an armed scout/spy in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and later an activist in the Woman Suffrage movement.⁵

• Josiah Henson, the inspirational figure behing Harriet Bercher Stowe's famous novel ‘Uncle Tom's Cabin', Henson dedicated his life to preaching to, and inspiring other slaves to persevere. In 1841, Henson helped start a freeman settlement called the British American Institute, which became known as one of the final stops on the Underground Railroad.⁶

Marxists emphasize the role of social relations and power dynamics in shaping outcomes. They argue that individuals' success is not solely determined by their individual abilities but also by their social connections, access to resources, and position within the broader societal structure. In this view, personal merit becomes secondary to social advantages, and networks of influence can outweigh individual achievements.

Marxists contend that merit itself is a socially constructed concept that favors specific skills or attributes valued by the ruling class.

Marxist ‘values’⁷ challenge the notion of meritocracy by highlighting “the structural inequalities and power dynamics that undermine equal opportunities.” They argue that meritocracy perpetuates and legitimizes existing class-based divisions, and that true equality can only be achieved by ‘addressing systemic inequalities’ and ‘restructuring the social and economic order’.

The five examples of resilience & perseverance above defeats that narrative.

Here are some great books which discuss meritocracy and break down Marxist ideas

Is the Left winning the war on meritocracy?⁸

January 2, 2023 | American Thinker

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This article will explain to you the necessity of meritocracy to preserve our liberty & freedom.

Below are some excerpts from the above article.

Leftist elites must vanquish meritocracy, as individual achievement threatens the collectivist thinking upon which these elites depend. 

 "A Lesson in Critical Race Theory," references Khiara Bridges in delineating the major tenets of CRT: "CRT rejects claims of meritocracy or 'colorblindness.'" 

With characteristic duplicity, the Left assaults merit through the Trojan Horse of “equity.”  While there are some who deny that equity in education is an attack on individual achievement, “equity” has been exposed as a hollow, fraudulent, and ultimately punitive scheme.

while the prior board eliminated top honors for students, it kept “Principal/Teacher of the Year” honors for staff.  The Left attacks meritocracy for others but prioritizes political awards for itself.

School Districts Are Dropping Honors Classes In The Name Of Equity⁹

February 17, 2023 | Daily Caller

Six Unsettling Features of DEI in K-12 [Abridged]

1. meritocracy

mĕr″ĭ-tŏk′rə-sē

noun

1. A system in which advancement is based on individual ability or achievement.

2. A group of leaders or officeholders selected on the basis of individual ability or achievement.

3. A form of social system in which power goes to those with superior intellects.

4. The belief that rulers should be chosen for their superior abilities and not because of their wealth or birth.

5. Rule by merit, and talent. By extension, now often used to describe a type of society where wealth, income, and social status are assigned through competition.

A scan from a comic in my collection, which will be used in a future post about this amazing American hero

2.

3. Booker T Washington's 1901 autobiography, Up From Slavery, chronicles his story of perseverance and overcoming adversity to become a pillar in academia.

4

5. An excellent book on Harriet Tubman for children (and adults) is from the ‘Heros of Liberty' series.

6. The Story of Josiah Henson, the Real Inspiration for ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’

Rather than letting the media and propagandist anti-Tom novels gain attention and discredit the truths behind her novel, Stowe decided to fight fire with fact. Her response to critics was another book, published in early 1853, called The Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Presenting the Original Facts and Documents upon Which the Story Is Founded, Together with Corroborative Statements Verifying the Truth of the Work. A giant annotated bibliography of her sources, the book pointing to hundreds of documented cases of real-life incidents that were similar or identical to those portrayed in her story.

Stowe had named names. She had described the various people who had inspired the characters of Mr. Haley, George Harris, Eliza, Simon Legree, and the rest. One of those characters, of course, was of particular interest. Who was Uncle Tom?

In a letter to Frederick Douglas it was written:

“It is now certain, that the Rev. JOSIAH HENSON, of Dawn, Canada West, is the real Uncle Tom, the Christian hero, in Mrs. Stowe’s far-famed book of ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin.’”

7. A contradictory statement, as Marxists hold no true values nor principals

8. https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/01/is_the_left_winning_the_war_on_meritocracy.html

9. https://dailycaller.com/2023/02/17/school-districts-honors-classes-equity/