Original sins : the (mis)education of Black and native children and the construction of American racism /
"Why don't our schools work, despite seemingly endless efforts at reform, reinvention, and closing the racial achievement gap? Eve L. Ewing asks a new question: What if schools are doing exactly what they were built to do? If all children could just get an education, the logic goes, they w...
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| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
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New York, NY :
One World,
[2025]
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| Edition: | First edition. |
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| Summary: | "Why don't our schools work, despite seemingly endless efforts at reform, reinvention, and closing the racial achievement gap? Eve L. Ewing asks a new question: What if schools are doing exactly what they were built to do? If all children could just get an education, the logic goes, they would have the same opportunities in adulthood. But this tour de force shows that the opposite is true: Instead of being 'the great equalizer,' the school system prepares children to expect unequal treatment throughout their lives. In Original Sins, Ewing demonstrates that our schools were historically envisioned to propagate the myth of white intellectual superiority, to 'civilize' Native students, and to prepare Black students for menial labor. She argues that these dynamics persist, under the radar, in standardized testing, academic tracking, disciplinary policies, and uneven access to resources. By revealing that racial inequality is in the very DNA of American education, Ewing makes the case that we need a profound reevaluation of what schools are supposed to do, and who benefits from them--while offering a bracing vision of classrooms as places of freedom and liberation" -- |
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| Physical Description: | xii, 375 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm |
| Awards: | American Library Association Notable: Nonfiction, 2026 ; New Yorker Book Reviews: Briefly Noted, 2025 ; YBP Core 1000: Education, 2025 |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (pages 275-359) and index. |
| ISBN: | 9780593243701 0593243706 |