Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism: An evening with Eve L. Ewing and Josie Duffy Rice

From the venue:

This event is free and open to the public, but registration is encouraged. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THIS EVENT. This event takes place at the Auburn Avenue Research Library, 101 Auburn Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30303. Doors open at 6pm. Event begins promptly at 6:30pm.

Charis and the Auburn Avenue Research Library welcome Eve L. Ewing for a discussion of Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism, an historical tour de force that makes it clear that the U.S. school system has played an instrumental role in creating and upholding racial hierarchies, preparing children to expect unequal treatment throughout their lives.

In Original Sins, Ewing demonstrates that our schools were designed to propagate the idea of white intellectual superiority, to “civilize” Native students and to prepare Black students for menial labor. Education was not an afterthought for the Founding Fathers; it was envisioned by Thomas Jefferson as an institution that would fortify the country’s racial hierarchy. Ewing argues that these dynamics persist in a curriculum that continues to minimize the horrors of American history. The most insidious aspects of this system fall below the radar in the forms of standardized testing, academic tracking, disciplinary policies, and uneven access to resources.

By demonstrating that it’s in the DNA of American schools to serve as an effective and underacknowledged mechanism maintaining inequality in this country today, Ewing makes the case that we need a profound reevaluation of what schools are supposed to do, and for whom. This book will change the way people understand the place we send our children for eight hours a day.

About the Author:
Eve L. Ewing is a writer, scholar, and cultural organizer from Chicago. She is the award-winning author of four books: Electric Arches, 1919, Ghosts in the Schoolyard, and Maya and the Robot. She is the co-author (with Nate Marshall) of the play No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks and has written several projects for Marvel Comics. Ewing is an associate professor in the Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity at the University of Chicago. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, and many other venues.

About the conversation partner:
Josie Duffy Rice is a journalist, writer, law school graduate, and podcast host whose work is primarily focused on prosecutors, prisons, and other criminal justice issues. She is the host of the podcast UnReformed: The Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children, released in January 2023, which she also co-wrote. In addition, she co-hosts What a Day, Crooked Media’s daily news podcast, two days a week. She is also the creator and co-host of the podcast Justice in America. Until May 2021, she was President of The Appeal, a news publication that publishes original journalism about the criminal justice system.

About the venue:
AARL has a free parking lot accessible via Courtland street. Please park and enter the library to get a guest pass for your dashboard before having a seat in the auditorium. Masks are encouraged but not required.