POSTSCRIPT: “Origin”

Over the past three years, the non-fiction book I’ve recommended most frequently is “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” by Isabel Wilkerson. As I wrote in December 2020, “If you think our country is grappling with a race problem or a class problem, think again: As [award-winning author and former New York Times journalist] Wilkerson eloquently argues, we’re struggling with a caste problem.” In the book, Wilkerson notes, “Class doesn’t protect you from Caste.” She also outlines what she calls the “eight pillars of caste,” along the way offering eye-opening comparisons to India’s caste system and the Nazi’s approach to creating anti-Semitic legislation. Now comes the film “Origin” – and it’s even more powerful, more emotional than the book. And the book was plenty powerful and emotional. The movie, written and directed by Ava DuVernay, features Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Isabel Wilkerson while she is researching and writing “Caste.” The film packs an even more powerful punch because it not only describes the ideas behind “Caste,” it tells the stories of Wilkerson’s relationships with her Mother, Husband, and Sister. A tour de force, indeed.