Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

The Origins of Debt, Money, Slavery and Empire
21 Sep 2011
🖨️ Print Article

Like most of us, you probably learned in school that people invented money to replace barter, markets are guided by The Invisible Hand, and a debt is a kind of sacred promise.  Like much else you learned in school, says anthropologist David Graeber, this is wrong.  Markets are constructed by states, while the appearance of debt, slavery and money in human affairs coincide with the appearance of violent empires, and recede when empires are in decline.  Debts are only sacred, Graeber explains, when the poor owe the rich, and there are key distinctions between debts and promises.  Graeber, the author of Debt: The First 5,000 Years is interviewed by C.S. Soong on KPFA's Against the Grain...

The Origins of Debt, Money, Slavery and Empire

An Against the Grain Interview by C.S. Soong and Sasha Lilley

KPFA.s Against the Grain is consistently one of the best interview shows around.  We at BAR steal ideas from them all the time.  You can find a link to Debt: The First 5,000 Years here.



Your browser does not support the audio element.

listen
http://www.againstthegrain.org/files/files/atg/atg_2013.01.07_graeber.mp3

More Stories


  • Cody Bloomfield
    The State Is Wielding Grand Jury Subpoenas Against Cop City Activists
    23 Oct 2024
    Activists organizing against the militarized police training facility in Atlanta are facing new forms of repression.
  • Aída Chávez
    After Israel Killed Hamas Leader, D.C. Pushes to Hand Palestine to Saudi Arabia
    23 Oct 2024
    Bent on a “mega-deal” security pact with Saudi Arabia, Congress and the Biden administration see their chance.
  • Black Agenda Radio
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio October 18, 2024
    18 Oct 2024
    In this segment, we discuss housing proposals in New York City and nationally. Do they improve affordability? How do they impact Black people? But first, we discuss a new book written by a Black…
  • Union labor strike
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Class War in America: How the Elites Divide the Nation By Asking Are You a Worker or Are You White?
    18 Oct 2024
    Black Agenda Report contributor, Jon Jeter joins us from Washington to talk about his new book, "Class War in America: How the Elites Divide the Nation By Asking Are You a Worker or Are You White?"…
  • Leah Goodridge
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black People and the Housing Affordability Crisis
    18 Oct 2024
    Leah Goodridge is a tenants’ rights attorney, a writer, and a member of New York City’s City Planning Commission. She joins us to discuss New York City Mayor Eric Adams' recently passed housing…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us