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Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago's South Side by Eve L. Ewing
sarabz's review
5.0
This book focuses on school closings in Bronzeville and the impacts on community members. I am so appreciative of this book that presents the value of these institutions to the people who use them and build community in them, centering the voices of students, parents, and teachers. An excellent counter to the narrative that uses test scores and student enrollment numbers to fabricate a legitimacy for the destructive school policies that devalue Black students, maintain segregation, and disrupt communities. I also appreciated Ewing's placement of herself in the narrative, explaining her relationship to the schools, the closings, and Chicago, and includes notes about her position and her relationships with the people she interviewed at the end of the book.
ekb523's review
5.0
Wow. This book is really important for K-12 ed reform leaders (and anyone who cares about the public school system) to read...especially if your work touches Chicago or a large urban area where school closings have happened/are happening. The book provides a deep dive into the rich history of Black neighborhoods in Chicago (specifically Bronzeville) as well as the history of structural/institutional racism that have led to the current problem of “underutilized” and “underperforming” schools. This book has given me an entirely new framing to consider and questions to ask as I think and talk about school closures and school performance in historically low-income communities.
linneacolleenann's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this - there was so much information that I did not know about the Chicago Public Schools, how they were set up, etc. I more than recommend this.
I did have a comparatively hard time understanding the last part of this, referring to mourning and connecting that to ghosts, but it brought up a lot of points I’m interested in and would like to review more. Can I say 4.75/5?
I did have a comparatively hard time understanding the last part of this, referring to mourning and connecting that to ghosts, but it brought up a lot of points I’m interested in and would like to review more. Can I say 4.75/5?
asaugustine's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
An important work exposing the structural inequality and mismanagement of Chicago Public Schools. I especially appreciated the historical analysis in Chapter 2 that helped to better clarify how 50 “underutilized” schools came to be so. The concept of institutional grief is also a valuable framework to consider how schools operate within communities.
pink_distro's review
4.0
a short, great read i'd recommend to anyone ! this book is a great case study in how modern systemic racism operates, and ewing's explanations are approachable to anybody, so would be a perfect gift to a parent or anyone who isn't as ... conscious of how power operates in the world, but it's still deeply valuable even if you have read into these subjects before. the story of the dyett high school hunger strikers, all the brilliantly contextualized testimonials of people whose schools were closed, and the history of how housing policy and white violence laid the groundwork for this deprivation are all enlightening + delivered in a moving and concise manner. ewing's research and narrative places the focus exactly where it should be: both on the people affected & their emotions, relationships, lives, and their resistance, as well as racist systems of power & how they act.