Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Christopher Rufo

How Christopher Rufo built a successful career. Explore key moments that defined the journey.

Christopher Rufo is an American conservative activist and a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Known for his opposition to critical race theory, he has been a prominent figure in debates surrounding race, education, and cultural issues. Rufo's background includes documentary filmmaking and fellowships at various conservative think tanks, including the Discovery Institute, the Claremont Institute, The Heritage Foundation, and the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism. His work and activism have made him a significant voice in contemporary American political and cultural discourse.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements

2016: Poverty Investigation Begins

From 2016, Rufo's investigation into poverty in cities that had declined dramatically following periods of prosperity began.

2017: Lawsuit Against Seattle Income Tax

In 2017, Christopher Rufo was one of 30 plaintiffs in a lawsuit that successfully prevented Seattle from imposing a 2.25% income tax on sums above $250,000 a year for individuals and over $500,000 for couples.

2018: City Council Run

In 2018, Christopher Rufo briefly attempted a run for the city council.

2018: Seattle Under Siege Policy Paper

In 2018, Rufo wrote the Discovery Institute-funded policy paper "Seattle Under Siege: How Seattle's Homelessness Policy Perpetuates the Crisis and How We Can Fix It."

2019: America Lost Documentary

In 2019, Rufo directed America Lost, a documentary coproduced by PBS and WNET, as part of the series "Chasing the Dream: Poverty and Opportunity in America."

2020: Critical Race Theory Views

In 2020, Christopher Rufo contended that "critical race theory has pervaded every institution in the federal government". He also described his strategy to oppose critical race theory as intentionally using the term to conflate various race-related ideas in order to create a negative association.

2020: Influence on Trump's Executive Order

In 2020, Christopher Rufo's appearances on Fox News with Tucker Carlson reportedly influenced President Donald Trump to issue an executive order banning some topics from diversity training for the government and contractors.

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2020: Influence on Trump Administration Diversity Training Ban

In 2020, through interviews with Tucker Carlson on Fox News, Rufo reportedly influenced the Trump administration to issue an executive order to prohibit federal agencies from having diversity training that addressed topics such as systemic racism, white privilege and critical race theory.

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2021: National Conservatism Conference Speech

In 2021, Christopher Rufo spoke at the National Conservatism Conference in Orlando.

2021: Biden Rescinds Trump's Executive Order

In 2021, President Joe Biden rescinded the executive order that had been influenced by Christopher Rufo's appearances on Fox News with Tucker Carlson, which banned some topics from diversity training for the government and contractors.

April 2022: Newsletter Subscribers

In April 2022, Christopher Rufo was reported to have 2,500 paid subscribers to his newsletter.

January 2023: Appointment to New College of Florida Board of Trustees

In January 2023, Christopher Rufo was appointed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to the board of trustees of New College of Florida.

December 2023: Investigation of Claudine Gay

In December 2023, Christopher Rufo and co-author Christopher Brunet investigated the past research of Harvard University president Claudine Gay, alleging that many of her articles, including her dissertation, were plagiarized.