In an era when discussions about race, identity and systemic inequities dominate national headlines, programs like the University of Denver’s Critical Race and Ethnic Studies (CRES) department are more essential than ever. 

Yet, amid looming budget cuts and a shifting cultural climate, questions arise about how much support institutions are willing to give to these vital programs. At DU, the CRES program represents more than just academic coursework — it’s a safe space for critical conversations, empowerment and a pathway to creating a more inclusive campus.

Audrey Ralphs, a fourth-year political science and CRES double major, from Phoenix, Arizona, was inspired to pursue a major in CRES because it would best prepare them to accomplish social change.

“The CRES major has opened my eyes to the important role a culturally diverse education maintains in becoming a productive member of society and an equitable leader in an organization… the major has allowed me to reassess my perspective of my privilege and actively decenter the white supremacist culture upon which this nation and university were founded,” Ralphs said.

Critical Race and Ethnic Studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines the ways in which race, ethnicity and power intersect with aspects of identity. CRES further dives into the ways systems of oppression and privilege are created, maintained and resisted throughout history and in contemporary society.

The CRES minor at DU was formed in the winter of 2019 by esteemed professors Elizabeth Escobedo and Lisa Martinez. It was not until fall 2023, that CRES was added as a major that now allows students to take CRES-specific courses like Intro to Critical Race and Ethnic Studies.

With the major addition, DU’s CRES program has been able to come to fruition with the implementation of a more structured program and the addition of four full-time faculty members who serve in a joint capacity between CRES and other programs across campus. Those four faculty members are Dr. Reggie Byron focusing on CRES and sociology, Dr. Stephanie Kang combining CRES and art history, Dr. T. Carlis Roberts focusing on music and CRES and new hire Dr. Hannah Paul who will teach CRES and political science.

The structuring of the program has been spearheaded by Dr. Byron, a tenured Associate Professor of Sociology and the director of CRES. Dr. Byron was born and raised in the Bronx, where he credits to having had the largest influence on the way he perceives the world.

“The lived experience that people have on the Manhattan side of Park Avenue is very different from the Bronx side… Visitors to New York City often go into Manhattan, but people rarely go into the Bronx. It’s two different worlds separated by the Harlem River,” Dr. Byron said.

The question concerning why does the river separate two distinct populations of the same city is a tenet of CRES which seeks to examine the deeply embedded racial inequalities within American society. What other analogies from our childhood are connected to deeper systemic issues, just like Dr. Byron’s river example? That’s what DU students discover as they embark on learning about critical race and ethnic studies.

“Racism, racial discrimination, ethnic mistreatment  — those are not just artifacts of the past, which is what I think a lot of students come in thinking; ‘Oh yeah, we had Jim Crow segregation, we had settler colonialism, those are over though.’ What CRES is trying to do is show students that those aren’t over, they still manifest… It is incumbent upon us to learn about these contemporary manifestations of racism and racial inequality,” Dr. Byron said.

At a predominantly white institution like DU, the CRES program cultivates a more inclusive and socially aware campus that prepares students to contribute meaningfully to our diverse society. For today’s political climate, CRES provides students with the space and tools to address inequalities and challenge dominant narratives.

DU’s CRES program has approximately 50 affiliated professors from 17 different programs, a testament to how much DU faculty support CRES. However, the same support Dr. Byron and the CRES program have at DU is unique; across the country, there is a battle when CRES and critical race theory (CRT) are concerned.

CRT is an academic concept and is centralized on race being a social construct. CRT finds that racism is not the result of individual prejudice, rather it is embedded in legal systems and institutions.

In a 2023 study, 16 states passed legislation banning CRT, and there were 20 states considering a ban. One of the main critiques from conservatives is that the theory forces division where individuals are placed in two categories, the “oppressor” and “oppressed.” Proponents of CRT argue that the framework allows history to be re-evaluated and rectified, giving voices that were once silenced the opportunity to be heard.

“What I’m trying to do is elaborate on and expand students’ knowledge of history and histories,” Dr. Byron said. “I don’t think this [CRES] is divisive. Once you learn about it, once you enter a class, you realize: ‘Oh, this is not about making me feel bad. This is about helping me learn in a more diverse fashion about other histories outside the one history that dominates textbooks.’”

For students, CRES serves as a catalyst reflecting the sociopolitical realities of our world while equipping students with the toolkit to challenge biases and promote meaningful change within and beyond the DU community.

“If someone does not see the value of participating in or supporting the CRES program, then perhaps they are making the exact judgements and assumptions that CRES seeks to confront and deconstruct. As someone with another major, I believe that the CRES curriculum has enhanced and even revolutionized my perspectives on other personal, academic, and professional pursuits,” Ralphs said.

With the impending $8 million CAHSS budget cuts, the CRES department is bracing itself for any reality. The college has already had to lay off administrative personnel and redistribute responsibilities. However, with the decrease in student enrollment, there is fear that there may not be a large pool of students to recruit from new majors. There’s also fear that those students may not want to engage in CRES depending on the rhetoric they were exposed to.

Despite these challenges, the importance of CRES at DU is unwavering — serving as a pillar for fostering a necessary counterbalance to the dominant and exclusive narratives about contemporary society.