Michael Huemer’s Progressive Myths is a powerful critique of contemporary progressive dogmas that eviscerates popular cliches with clinical precision. The University of Colorado philosophy professor probes a variety of explosive topics—ranging from racial and gender disparities to environmental and economic concerns—aiming to expose exaggerations and misrepresentations often-perpetuated by progressive narratives.

Progressive Racial Myths

Huemer begins by dissecting myths surrounding race, particularly in the domain of police violence and systemic racism. A prominent thread in progressive discourse is that American police disproportionately kill unarmed black individuals due to systemic racism. However, his interrogation of recent data on police shootings reveals that in 2018, 54 unarmed white people were killed compared to 36 unarmed black individuals. Moreover, conveniently omitted from debates on police misconduct, is that black Americans are overrepresented as dangerous criminals and constitute 43 percent of cop-killers. Huemer finds it odd that progressives can appreciate that most victims of police violence are men because their heightened exposure to violence increases the probability of them having negative interactions with the police. Yet, using this logic to understand why black offenders are shot at higher rates, is a struggle. Admitting that the negative picture of blacks painted by statistics stems from their conduct offends elite sensibilities, however, concocting strange theories to indict the American legal system for racism will not help blacks nor will it protect the victims of crime who are disproportionately black Americans………

Notwithstanding these omissions, Progressive Myths is an entertaining and incisive critique of contemporary progressive narratives. For curious people seeking to understand the deficits of progressive ideology, Progressive Myths is an essential read. It not only exposes the flaws in specific claims but also offers insights into the broader cultural and psychological forces that sustain these myths. As society grapples with increasingly polarized debates, Huemer’s call for intellectual honesty and critical thinking is both timely and necessary.