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

White Supremacy Goes Back to the Crusades
Black Agenda Radio with Nellie Bailey and Glen Ford
12 Nov 2019
🖨️ Print Article

The roots of western European anti-Blackness lie in the Middle Ages, in the Crusades to seize Arab lands, said Cord Whitaker, a professor at Wellesley College and author of “Black Metaphors: How Racism Emerged from Medieval Race-Thinking.” It was during this era that “you started to see the idea that darkness of skin, blackness, denoted potential evil,” said Whitaker. “It was still not the racial ideology we have today, but it was an important step in getting there.”

white supremacy

Related Podcasts

BAR Radio
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Report October 23, 2026
23 October 2026
In this week’s segment, we hear about the ongoing uprising in France against neo-liberal austerity, colonialism, and white supremacy.
france
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
French Protests Against Neoliberal Austerity, Colonialism, and White Supremacy
23 October 2026
Bouna Mbaye is an activist, writer, and a member of the Pan-African League-Umoja, the Pan-African Brigade for Palestine, and the US Out of Africa N
BAR Radio
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Radio September 11, 2026
11 September 2026
In this week’s segment, we discuss the 55th anniversary and legacy of the 1971 Attica prison revolt. But we begin with the history of W.E.B.

More Stories


  • The Hopeful Legacy of Roberto Clemente
    Gus Griffin
    The Hopeful Legacy of Roberto Clemente
    04 Jan 2023
    Roberto Clemente was one of the all-time great baseball players and one of the best in a long line of Afro-Latinos. He also acted in solidarity with people around the world, which ironically led to…
  • Israel Got the Middle Finger at the World Cup
    Nizar K. Visram
    Israel Got the Middle Finger at the World Cup
    04 Jan 2023
    The U.S. brokered Abraham Accords normalized relations between Israel and some Persian Gul Arab regimes. But Israel discovered at the recent World Cup that the Arab masses are still in solidarity…
  • We Condemn the Raid on the Headquarters of the Haitian-Dominican Women's Movement
    Socialist Movement of Workers of the Dominican Republic
    We Condemn the Raid on the Headquarters of the Haitian-Dominican Women's Movement
    04 Jan 2023
    The Dominican Republic continues to abuse its Haitian descended population. The Haitian-Dominican Women's Movement (MUDHA) was recently raided by government agents.
  • Why One Organization Dubbed the U.S.-Africa Summit the ‘Meeting of Uncle Tom and Uncle Sam’
    Julie Varughese
    Why One Organization Dubbed the U.S.-Africa Summit the ‘Meeting of Uncle Tom and Uncle Sam’
    04 Jan 2023
    The U.S. Africa Leaders Summit held in Washington in December demonstrated the depth of U.S. disregard for African nations. The photo opportunity extravaganza proved only that the U.S. commitment to…
  • The Imperialist Aggressiveness and the Birth of the West African Peoples Organization (WAPO)
    West African Peoples Organization
    The Imperialist Aggressiveness and the Birth of the West African Peoples Organization (WAPO)
    04 Jan 2023
    Anti-imperialist unity has long been sought by African people but has been thwarted by outside forces. The people still struggle to reach this goal, and the West African Peoples Organization is the…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us