In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in critical content-based instruction (CCBI) in language education, which aims to develop students’ critical perspectives required to question existing frameworks and power relationships in society and actively participate in social transformation. Although CCBI has been discussed in several studies of Japanese language education, it remains unclear whether CCBI can be applied to English language education in Japan. In this article, we first define CCBI and reconceptualize English language education as a potential site for CCBI. Additionally, we critically analyze a course unit on the civil rights movement in an authorized English textbook and problematize its discourse. Lastly, we propose two plans for CCBI-oriented lessons and discuss how to implement CCBI in the classroom. This article constitutes an important step toward connecting CCBI with English language education in Japan.