The Stolen Wealth of Slavery: A Case for Reparations (HC) (2024)

In his timely historical work The Stolen Wealth of Slavery, Emmy Award-nominated journalist David Montero follows the trail of the massive wealth amassed from the transatlantic slave trade by Northern corporations in America. It has long been maintained by many that the North wasn't complicit in the horrors of slavery, that the forced bondage and exploitation of Black people was primarily a Southern phenomenon. Yet this isn't true: In fact, popular Northern banks--including well-known institutions like Citibank, Bank of New York, and Bank of America--saw their fortunes rise dramatically from their involvement in the slave trade. White business leaders and their surrounding communities created humongous wealth from the abject misery of others.

Stolen Wealth of Slavery grapples with other facts that will be a revelation to many: Most white Southern enslavers were not rolling around in wealth and were barely making ends meet, with Northern businesses benefitting the most from bondage-based profits. And some of the very Northerners who would be considered pro-Union during the Civil War were in fact anti-abolition, seeing the institution of slavery as being in their best financial interests and only supporting the Union once they realized doing so would be good for business. Over time, the wealth generated from slavery didn't vanish but became part of the bedrock of the growth of modern corporations, helping to transform America into a global economic behemoth.

Montero elegantly and meticulously details rampant Northern investment in slavery, ultimately calling for corporate reparations as he details contemporary movements to hold companies accountable for past atrocities. He has produced a remarkable work that ends in a call for reparations, showcasing exactly what was stolen, who stole it, and to whom it is owed.