Of Blood and Sweat: Black Lives and the Making of White Power and Wealth

“Ford’s overlap of past and present, narrative and commentary is masterful, and makes this volume all the more valuable to those readers wise enough to allow the past to inform the future. Of Blood and Sweat is a myth-busting work of genius that will stand as the last word on this vital subject for a long time to come.”—Elizabeth Dowling Taylor, New York Times bestselling author of A Slave in the White House and The Original Black Elite

In this, provocative, timely, and painstakingly researched book, the award-winning author of Think Black tells the story of how Black labor helped to create and sustain the wealth of the white one percent throughout American history.

Clyde W. Ford uses the lives of individual Black men and women as a lens to explore the role they have played in creating American institutions of power and wealth—in agriculture, politics, jurisprudence, law enforcement, culture, medicine, financial services, and many other fields—while not being allowed to fully participate or share in the rewards. Today, activists have taken the struggle for racial equity and justice to the streets. Of Blood and Sweat goes back through time to excavate the roots of this struggle, from pre-colonial Africa through post-Civil War America. As Ford reveals, in tracing the history of almost any major American institution of power and wealth you’ll find it was created by Black Americans, or created to control them.

Painstakingly researched and documented, Of Blood and Sweat is a compelling look at the past that holds broad implications for present-day calls for racial equity, racial justice, and the abolishment of systemic racism, and offers invaluable insight into our understanding of Black history and the story of America.

Ford’s groundbreaking research uncovers the hidden architecture of American power.

• American Institutions Built on Slavery: Discover how industries from agriculture and finance to law enforcement were specifically designed to create wealth for the white one percent or to control Black Americans.
• The Roots of White Wealth: Follow the direct line from the unpaid labor of enslaved people to the creation and accumulation of immense fortunes that define America today.
• A Myth-Busting History: Go beyond standard narratives to understand the true economic engine of the nation, from the first ships in 1619 through the Civil War and Reconstruction.
• Connecting Past and Present: Gain invaluable context for today’s calls for racial equity and justice by understanding the centuries-old systems that are still in place.