I 100% believe that history, rules, laws, etc. have a profound impact on society today and how systemic racism can continue to be perpetuated. The first video we watched in this module reminded me of a book I am reading, "Lies My Teacher Told Me" by James Loewen. Loewen highlights the whitewashing of American textbooks used to teach our students, who then grow up with a skewed perspective of the world. There were events in this book that I read and thought "wow that is not how my teacher taught it..." and it was embarrassing to realize how this affected my own personal beliefs. I believe that textbooks and history curriculum today do not accurately portray US history in a way that is truthful and worthy of critical observation for students to understand its effects. From the beginning with the colonization by Christopher Columbus, white people were using colonialism and religion to justify the exploitation of people of color to their benefit. As history evolved, so did the exploitation, leading to institutionalized racism that will continue to oppress people of color and leave them at a disadvantage. When student's do not have the opportunity to learn an honest and unbiased history that is not whitewashed, they then do not understand concepts of mass incarceration, why low-income neighborhoods seem to experience more crime, police brutality against people of color, etc. The way we reflect on history is a huge part of practicing anti-racism, and that can be difficult when a large group of people has grown up a certain way and find it hard to change their prior beliefs because "that's what they taught in school".
I totally agree with your perspective but I can personally attest to changes, particularly in American history education. I am a baby-boomer who has been blessed by the experiences of mothering several generations of children and by being a student for more than a half century. Back in grade school we were certainly provided with a Eurocentric version of our country's history. However, nearly 30 years later there were very distinct yet subtle changes in the way our founding fathers were portrayed in my history books, and very definitely credit was given to the multitudes who broke their backs to build the institutions that created my state. By the time I went to grad school even more truth was revealed so that we understood the systemic racism that our institutions were so totally steeped in would only change with a tremendously conscious effort. Yet, we were hit so profoundly with the shame associated that realization that my youngest continually reminds us of the responsibility that accompanies our white privilege.