Book SummaryThe Half Has Never Been Told, by Edward E. Baptist

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Half Has Never Been Told

In The Half Has Never Been Told, Edward E. Baptist argues that slavery was central to the economic and political development of the United States. He contends that the forced labor of enslaved African Americans was a key driver of economic growth and capital accumulation in the US. Baptist also asserts that the growth of slavery was central to political unity and power in the US, and that historical narratives have often minimized the economic impact of slavery and the resistance of enslaved people.

Baptist is a professor of history at Cornell University...

The Half Has Never Been Told Summary The Economic Powerhouse of Slavery: Exploitation and Capital Accumulation

According to Baptist, enslavement was a key driver of economic growth and capital accumulation in the U.S. That year, cotton production was worth $77 million, about 5% of the US gross domestic product. The value of products and services created through cotton production, including shipping, insurance, and credit, was over $100 million. The resources and services needed to produce cotton, such as the purchase of slaves, land, and supplies, added another $100 million. The spending of workers and the earnings of slave traders, as well as those who produced and sold goods, who gained income from cotton production added another $200 million. In total, more than $600 million, or nearly half of the US economic activity in 1836, was directly or indirectly derived from cotton produced by enslaved people.

Baptist’s Economic Methodology

Economic historians Alan L. Olmstead and Paul W. Rhode argue that Baptist’s claim that cotton and slavery were the main drivers of the US economy is inconsistent with the findings of economic historians who have reconstructed the national income accounts of the...

The Half Has Never Been Told Summary Enslavement and the Shaping of American Power: Politics, Expansion, and Conflict

We’ll examine how slavery's growth was driven by territorial conquest and forced migration. Then, we'll look at how slavery's spread was central to political unity and power in America.

Slavery's Spread: Growing Territories and Forced Migration

According to Baptist, slavery's growth was driven by territorial conquest and forced migration. Following the American Revolution, the US took possession of large lands to the west of the Appalachians. Other nations asserted claims to these lands, and Native Americans would not leave them. The US government was weak, couldn't levy taxes, and faced an economic crisis. Despite this, more enslaved Africans were brought to North America. In 1775, of the 2.5 million people living in the thirteen original colonies, 500,000 were enslaved. Baptist notes that slavery was vital to the colonies in North America. The northern territories' commercial activities relied on shipping plantation goods to Europe.

(Shortform note: Baptist’s argument that territorial conquest and forced migration were key to slavery’s growth aligns with the broader historical framework of settler colonialism. In _[An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United...

The Half Has Never Been Told Summary Historical Narratives, Resistance, and the Enduring Effects of Slavery

Baptist argues that historical narratives have often minimized the economic impact of enslavement and the resistance of enslaved people. These narratives have portrayed slavery as a premodern, unprofitable system that did not contribute to the economic growth of the United States. They have also depicted enslaved individuals as passive victims who did not resist their oppression. These accounts have been employed to legitimize the exclusion and discrimination of Black people after slavery.

(Shortform note: Since the publication of The Half Has Never Been Told, there has been a shift in the dominant narrative about slavery in the United States. In 2019, the New York Times published the 1619 Project, which aimed to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans at the center of the national narrative. The project has sparked a national conversation about the legacy of slavery and the ongoing struggle for racial justice.)

Next, we’ll look at how systems like sharecropping and Jim Crow laws maintained racial control following emancipation. Then, we'll look at how...

Shortform Exercise: The Impact of the Emancipation Proclamation

Consider the significance of the Emancipation Proclamation in the fight against slavery during the American Civil War.

Why might the Emancipation Proclamation be considered a pivotal moment in the struggle to end slavery?