Chicago — Based on the book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents written by Pulitzer Prize-winner Isabel Wilkerson, the movie “Origin” tells the important story of the racism and caste system in place in the United States that’s been here for longer than many of us have been.
Directed and co-written by Ava DuVernay, this film starred Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Isabel Wilkerson. Other actors in the film include Jon Bernthal, Vera Farmiga, Audra McDonald, Niecy Nash-Betts, Nick Offerman, Blair Underwood and Chicago’s own, Lennox Simms.
For those unaware, a caste system can be defined as “an artificial hierarchy that helps determine standing and respect, assumptions of beauty and competence, and even who gets benefit of the doubt and access to resources,” according to NPR.
It’s more than just racism. It’s literally a system where Black people are set up to lose because they’re at the bottom of the totem pole compared to their white counterparts rising to the top.
This guest post is in partnership with True Star Media.