sanctions

EXCLUSIVE: Cornel West leads reparations activists in launching boycott of Wells Fargo and Brooks Brothers because of their 'links to slavery'

Barclays, Capitol One, Aetna, New York Life, and Catholic Church also targeted
Cornel West says US has an 'unpaid debt' from slavery era to black residents
READ MORE: Calls for reparations fall apart due to 'intense opposition' by public

National Leaders Descend on Nation's Capital for Reparations Summit

National Reparations Convention - Lincoln Temple United Church (Shaw Community Center) Friday 6 pm; Sat 12 noon: Sunday 3 pm

Churches played an active role in slavery and segregation. Some want to make amends.

Two and a half years ago, Episcopal Bishop of New York Andrew M.L. Dietsche reminded a group of clergy of the ugly history of their diocese.

Not only was slavery deeply embedded in the life and economy of colonial New York, but Episcopal churches across the state often participated in it. Church founders, churchgoers and even churches themselves had enslaved people. The abolitionist Sojourner Truth had once been enslaved by a church in the diocese.

“The Diocese of New York played a significant, and genuinely evil, part in American slavery,” Dietsche said during his November 2019 address. “We must make, where we can, repair.”

In Aetna's Past: Slave Owner Policies

Before the Civil War, the corporate ancestor of insurance giant Aetna Inc. sold policies that reimbursed slave owners for financial losses when their human chattel perished, a company spokesman said yesterday.

Vatican Inc.: 5 facts about the business of the Catholic Church

The Catholic Church is the spiritual home to 1.1 billion people around the world. It's also a big business that handles billions of dollars.

Acknowledging our past: New York Life and slavery.

As a 178-year-old company, New York Life’s history is interwoven with our nation’s history, including its worst periods. For two years, between 1846-1848, New York Life sold policies on the lives of enslaved people.

The History of Slavery at the University of Georgia

Enslaved near Columbus, Georgia, Lucius Henry Holsey (1842-1920) arrived in Athens not by choice. His enslaver and newly hired Franklin College English professor, Richard Malcom Johnston, brought Holsey to Clarke County in 1858. For seven years, Holsey served as Johnston’s carriage driver, house servant, and gardener

Wells Fargo’s racist history and the call for reparations

While Wells Fargo was founded in 1852, it acquired Wachovia in 2008, thus intertwining itself with a very dark history. Wachovia was founded in 1879, descended from the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company, the Bank of Charleston and Atlanta’s Fourth National Bank. All of these companies had deep ties to the mistreatment of black people. As part of their banking practices, the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company accepted slaves as collateral on mortaged properties or loans. They owned at least 162 slaves during their time.

Shackled Legacy

History shows slavery helped build many U.S. colleges and universities. As more schools begin to confront their participation in slavery, they also consider how to make amends.

University of Maryland releases report on school's history of slavery

The report is the culmination of The 1865 Project. Researchers found many of the university's early donors financially benefitted from slavery. Some of the institution's early presidents had ties to the Confederacy.