Original Sins by Eve Ewing

Original Sins by Eve Ewing outlines the development of the public education system in Black, White, and Indigenous communities in the United States. As Ewing traces this history, she describes how various pedagogical strategies have been used in different communities to establish social control. For Black students, public education serves to create cheap labor, for indigenous students it serves to erase their culture, and for White students it encourages them to accept these oppressive systems. Understanding how these systems have functioned in the past enables students to recognize their modern-day continuities. Perhaps more importantly, knowledge of the history of education allows teachers to perceive their students in a larger social context where oppressive systems create obstacles for them. In turn, these educated teachers are likely to engage in pedagogy that counteracts the challenges constructed by the public education system.

In addition to the historical content of the book, I appreciate Ewing’s decision to intertwine Black, White, and Indigenous history. All too often, the histories that make up America are categorized separately to create division and sustain a false narrative regarding America’s history of oppression. Original Sins encouraged me to consider whose stories are represented and how their categorization coincides with certain societal narratives.