Critical Race Theory proponent and “antiracist” millionaire Ibram X. Kendi was reportedly paid nearly $45,000 by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to promote his books and train faculty and students, according to a report by The Federalist. Kendi also made the university delete his lecture from a private server after apparently fumbling his response to a question from someone who asked if coronavirus vaccine mandates are racist.
The event, titled “An Evening with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi,” took place on September 21 at the taxpayer-funded university, where Kendi made $40,000 gross, plus an additional $3,500 stipend for travel, flights, and meals — about $207 per minute, The Federalist found via public records.
“Join us for an evening with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, author of ‘How to Be an Antiracist, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America’ and other books,” a UWM press release for the event read.
“Professor Kendi is one of America’s foremost historians and antiracist scholars,” the press release added. “At UWM, Professor Kendi will participate in a conversation on antiracism with UWM’s Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion [DEI] Officer, Dr. Chia Youyee Vang.”
Around 630 tickets were printed for the event. Nearly 400 of them were reserved for students, and 90 were printed for the general public at an admission rate of $12 each. The other tickets were for the “campus community” and Vang’s VIP cohort, for a cost of $10 each, The Federalist reports.
The university’s Kendi event was reportedly sponsored by UWM’s board of regents, division of student affairs, student involvement center, division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and the group Leaders Igniting Transformation. The event lasted for three and a half hours.
The agenda also included an hour-long so-called “professional development series with UWM faculty and staff,” as well as a 45-minute meeting with a maximum of 25 student leaders, a 30-minute private book signing, and the one-hour talk with Vang.
The Federalist reports that the complete fee breakdown for Kendi’s event included the following:
$30,000 for 60-minute event conversation
$5,000 for 45-minute meet and greet with UWM student leaders
$5,000 60-minute professional development session on anti-racism with a group of UWM faculty and staff
$3,500 for airfare and meals for two people
While it remains unclear why Kendi made the university delete his remarks, Mythinformed — a Milwaukee-based nonprofit that promotes critical thinking and viewpoint diversity — alleged Kendi forced UWM to delete the event “because we asked him if vaccine mandates are racist policies.”
“Instead of standing on principle, he offered a horrible answer that exposed him,” the group added. “He then contacted Twitter to lock us out for sharing the video. We still have the receipts.”
In September — when the UWM event was held — Twitter reportedly locked the official account of the nonpartisan non-profit after it shared a video of Kendi embarrassing himself by attempting to wriggle his way around the question regarding vaccine mandates, which fit his definition of systemic racism by disproportionately affecting black Americans. Kendi’s silence put him at odds with Black Lives Matter on the issue, as organizers in New York City have protested Mayor Bill de Blasio’s vaccine mandate which barred black residents from eating at restaurants.
Kendi was able to conceal his appearance because of an “audiovisual recording addendum” clause Penguin had UWM sign, The Federalist reports.
Per the contract, UWM “remove[d] the recording on Oct. 5, 2021” from its “internal” database and forwarded footage of Kendi’s lecture to the speakers bureau within 30 days. Public records custodian Colleen Ference-Burke noted in a letter that Kendi maintains the copyright to event recordings.
As an advocate of Critical Race Theory, Kendi has pushed bizarre demands for a federal bureaucracy to police what he believes are “racist ideas.” His activism has been embraced by teachers’ unions, corporations, the U.S. military, and Hollywood, among other entities.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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