Idealism may come easier to academics, but reality-based strategies benefit the communities in need.

I n a 2003 essay titled “Crossroads and Blind Alleys,” legal scholar Richard Delgado offered a scathing critique of critical race theorists, who, he argued, valued performative “activism” over strategies that could make real, material differences in the lives of minority groups.

This criticism is nothing new. Delgado, however, is a critical race theorist himself. In fact, he is one of the founding fathers of CRT and has been a prominent name in the field since its inception in the 1970s.

Delgado noticed a fast-growing trend among critical race theorists: Symbolic gestures were more common than concrete action, and idealism was favored over realism. Activists’ preference for changing the name of a bridge or taking down an offensive statue was overtaking their efforts to challenge and change policies that hinder human flourishing. CRT activism was becoming nothing more than theater.

Delgado’s criticism is even more relevant now, as diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives are being accused, sometimes even by their own originators, of promoting symbolism over substance.

Fortunately, politicians in the City of Baltimore got Delgado’s message. Through real, concrete action, Mayor Brandon Scott did what many thought was impossible. Crime rates in the city have been dropping more and more each year. This year so far has seen fewer homicides and nonfatal shootings than the last, which had seen fewer incidents than 2023. Baltimore’s homicide rate is at a 50-year low. This wasn’t done through symbolic action.

In 2020, Scott launched the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, or MONSE. Since the program’s inception, homicides and nonfatal shootings have fallen 40 percent and 43 percent, respectively. Other crimes have declined also: Auto thefts are down 33 percent, robberies are down 22 percent, arson is down 19 percent, and carjackings are down 11 percent.

According to Mayor Scott, the “continued progress is the direct result of the comprehensive, evidence-based public safety strategy that we have implemented in partnership with residents.” Evidence-based strategies are more effective than ideologically oriented strategies unattached to real-world circumstances. In this case especially, the city’s partnership with residents may be the most salient part of the plan, which is made more remarkable by the strong implication from many progressive activists that minority group members lack sufficient agency to make a difference in their lives.

The cooperative efforts of the police department, the Maryland governor’s office, and others were imperative. This collaboration involved substantial funding of the police department and the city’s attorney’s office by the state government, the repealing of ineffective non-prosecution policies, the reformation of the juvenile justice system and gun regulations, and neighborhood-based crime prevention initiatives. Mayor Scott acknowledged this. “Everybody plays a part,” he said, according to the Washington Post. “Yes, I’m the mayor. Yes, I had to come up with and deliver this plan. But none of it works without every single one of our partners.” Community agency and interinstitutional collaboration — not implicit bias trainings or land acknowledgments — brought about these successes.

Perhaps the best news is that Baltimore is not a stark outlier among American cities. Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Atlanta, and other cities have also seen notable drops in crime, and for similar reasons. Contemporary social justice activism overemphasizes the influence of systemic or structural racism, but this worldview is and has always been too simplistic. Cultural, behavioral, and economic factors must also be considered. What’s more, moral shaming and the induction of guilt do nothing to improve conditions. Generally, the tight embrace of dogma that describes many contemporary social justice initiatives seems to have been overcome, at least in these cities.

Are we entering an age of practicality in social justice? I hope so. Delgado’s explanation for the symbolic turn in critical race theory is that it made things easier for academics who wanted to “do” something. Symbolic gestures might benefit an academic, but they are a detriment to those who really need help.

Baltimore and other cities have embraced reality-based strategies. Academics and activists who proclaim themselves proponents of social justice should pay attention.