Calvin Schermerhorn
@calscherm.bsky.social
Author of The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made (2025) @yalepress. From Southern Maryland🍂. Teaches history in Arizona 🌵
Pinned
“A carefully researched work of history that chronicles centuries of injustice while calling for an end to inequality. A historical examination of the origins of the ever-deepening divide between Black and white intergenerational wealth”-Kirkus; in print &audiobook yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
July 9, 2026 at 4:07 PM
Why do Latina/o households have just 22 cents on the dollar compared to white ones? "The project demonstrates how wealth inequality is the cumulative result of systems that have limited access to opportunity across generations." #racialwealthgap
latino.ucla.edu/research/his...
latino.ucla.edu/research/his...
Sueño Incompleto: A History of the Latino Wealth Gap in the U.S.
This report traces how Latino wealth has been shaped and constrained by five major interlocking policy systems that govern immigration, land and housing, labor markets, public benefits, and education.
latino.ucla.edu
May 11, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Why do Latina/o households have just 22 cents on the dollar compared to white ones? "The project demonstrates how wealth inequality is the cumulative result of systems that have limited access to opportunity across generations." #racialwealthgap
latino.ucla.edu/research/his...
latino.ucla.edu/research/his...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
@larryglickman.bsky.social writes, "For Trump and a group of conservative legal scholars and politicians to demand now that courts ignore the legal consensus of the past century-plus is...to command Americans to collectively engage in an act of historical amnesia" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Americans Once Understood Birthright Citizenship
Newspaper columnists instructed generations of citizens about the Fourteenth Amendment. Today, the country seems to have forgotten how clear the law is.
www.theatlantic.com
April 28, 2026 at 3:32 PM
@larryglickman.bsky.social writes, "For Trump and a group of conservative legal scholars and politicians to demand now that courts ignore the legal consensus of the past century-plus is...to command Americans to collectively engage in an act of historical amnesia" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
@larryglickman.bsky.social writes, "For Trump and a group of conservative legal scholars and politicians to demand now that courts ignore the legal consensus of the past century-plus is...to command Americans to collectively engage in an act of historical amnesia" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Americans Once Understood Birthright Citizenship
Newspaper columnists instructed generations of citizens about the Fourteenth Amendment. Today, the country seems to have forgotten how clear the law is.
www.theatlantic.com
April 28, 2026 at 3:32 PM
@larryglickman.bsky.social writes, "For Trump and a group of conservative legal scholars and politicians to demand now that courts ignore the legal consensus of the past century-plus is...to command Americans to collectively engage in an act of historical amnesia" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Check out “Until the Last Gun is Silent” by @mattdelmont.bsky.social—a brilliant,searing history of Black soldiers & anti-war activists struggling against racism & charges of betrayal to highlight the battle for justice at the heart of America’s Vietnam War www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/736800...
April 8, 2026 at 1:24 AM
Check out “Until the Last Gun is Silent” by @mattdelmont.bsky.social—a brilliant,searing history of Black soldiers & anti-war activists struggling against racism & charges of betrayal to highlight the battle for justice at the heart of America’s Vietnam War www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/736800...
Check out “Until the Last Gun is Silent” by @mattdelmont.bsky.social—a brilliant,searing history of Black soldiers & anti-war activists struggling against racism & charges of betrayal to highlight the battle for justice at the heart of America’s Vietnam War www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/736800...
April 8, 2026 at 1:24 AM
Check out “Until the Last Gun is Silent” by @mattdelmont.bsky.social—a brilliant,searing history of Black soldiers & anti-war activists struggling against racism & charges of betrayal to highlight the battle for justice at the heart of America’s Vietnam War www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/736800...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
The First Black-Owned Bookstore and the Fight for Freedom
Black abolitionist David Ruggles opened the first Black-owned bookstore in 1834, pointing the way to freedom—in more ways than one.
daily.jstor.org/the-first-bl...
Black abolitionist David Ruggles opened the first Black-owned bookstore in 1834, pointing the way to freedom—in more ways than one.
daily.jstor.org/the-first-bl...
The First Black-Owned Bookstore and the Fight for Freedom - JSTOR Daily
Black abolitionist David Ruggles opened the first Black-owned bookstore in 1834, pointing the way to freedom—in more ways than one.
daily.jstor.org
February 5, 2026 at 8:02 PM
The First Black-Owned Bookstore and the Fight for Freedom
Black abolitionist David Ruggles opened the first Black-owned bookstore in 1834, pointing the way to freedom—in more ways than one.
daily.jstor.org/the-first-bl...
Black abolitionist David Ruggles opened the first Black-owned bookstore in 1834, pointing the way to freedom—in more ways than one.
daily.jstor.org/the-first-bl...
Thanks @ashleyrparker.bsky.social for the requiem of The Washington Post. I too grew up reading it-and delivering it-in MD as a kid. My Dad would read aloud the Style invitational, book reviews & animal stories. I'll miss what Bezos wasted but treasure what it was
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
The Murder of The Washington Post
Today’s layoffs are the latest attempt to kill what makes the paper special.
www.theatlantic.com
February 4, 2026 at 4:44 PM
Thanks @ashleyrparker.bsky.social for the requiem of The Washington Post. I too grew up reading it-and delivering it-in MD as a kid. My Dad would read aloud the Style invitational, book reviews & animal stories. I'll miss what Bezos wasted but treasure what it was
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
adding to my book wishlist
January 29, 2025 at 5:43 PM
adding to my book wishlist
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Check out this blog post from Plunder of Black America author, Calvin Schermerhorn. Read this and more on our website!
When Canada was the Promised Land: What Canada Taught America about Freedom and Inclusive Democracy - Yale University Press
Calvin Schermerhorn— “I felt no real safety South of Canada,” Henry Goings recalled as he gazed at Canada across the Detroit River, “for there is none to the colored man... READ MORE
yalebooks.yale.edu
June 4, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Check out this blog post from Plunder of Black America author, Calvin Schermerhorn. Read this and more on our website!
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Idrees Kahloon, @wsj.com reviews the Plunder of Black America by Calvin Schermerhorn
What We Miss When We Talk About the Racial Wealth Gap
Six decades of civil-rights efforts haven’t budged it, and the usual prescriptions—including reparations—offer no lasting solutions. Have we been focussing on the wrong things?
www.newyorker.com
August 11, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Idrees Kahloon, @wsj.com reviews the Plunder of Black America by Calvin Schermerhorn
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Historian Calvin Schermerhorn traces four hundred years of Black dispossession and decapitalization, telling of the quiet heroism of those who worked to overcome obstacles and defy the plunder. Learn more at yalebooks.com.
February 20, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Historian Calvin Schermerhorn traces four hundred years of Black dispossession and decapitalization, telling of the quiet heroism of those who worked to overcome obstacles and defy the plunder. Learn more at yalebooks.com.
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made Hardcover by Calvin Schermerhorn
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made [Schermerhorn, Calvin] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made
www.amazon.com
February 26, 2025 at 2:24 AM
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made Hardcover by Calvin Schermerhorn
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Last was “The Plunder of Black America” by @calscherm.bsky.social, who uses individual cases across US history as a lens into the economic repression of Black people - with every gain by being quickly met with systemic subversion. Highly recommend
Full review: bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/... (5/5)
Full review: bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/... (5/5)
The Plunder of Black America
The long history of the racial wealth gap in America told through the stories of seven Black families who struggled to build wealth over multiple generations...
yalebooks.yale.edu
January 20, 2026 at 3:38 AM
Last was “The Plunder of Black America” by @calscherm.bsky.social, who uses individual cases across US history as a lens into the economic repression of Black people - with every gain by being quickly met with systemic subversion. Highly recommend
Full review: bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/... (5/5)
Full review: bookwyrm.social/user/bwaber/... (5/5)
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Thank you @joelegoza.bsky.social for a brilliant review in the L.A. Review of Books: lareviewofbooks.org/article/raci...
Racialized Economic Piracy | Los Angeles Review of Books
Joel Edward Goza dives into Calvin Schermerhorn’s new study of American history, tracing a financial pattern of racial exploitation that’s woven into the nation’s fabric.
lareviewofbooks.org
December 1, 2025 at 6:01 AM
Thank you @joelegoza.bsky.social for a brilliant review in the L.A. Review of Books: lareviewofbooks.org/article/raci...
Thank you @joelegoza.bsky.social for a brilliant review in the L.A. Review of Books: lareviewofbooks.org/article/raci...
Racialized Economic Piracy | Los Angeles Review of Books
Joel Edward Goza dives into Calvin Schermerhorn’s new study of American history, tracing a financial pattern of racial exploitation that’s woven into the nation’s fabric.
lareviewofbooks.org
December 1, 2025 at 6:01 AM
Thank you @joelegoza.bsky.social for a brilliant review in the L.A. Review of Books: lareviewofbooks.org/article/raci...
"The stories hit on almost all of the factors that contribute to our nation’s imbalance in racial wealth....this list takes on the flesh and blood of family life—stats become stories, & we must reckon not simply with what happened but also with the real people it happened to"[email protected]
December 1, 2025 at 5:59 AM
"The stories hit on almost all of the factors that contribute to our nation’s imbalance in racial wealth....this list takes on the flesh and blood of family life—stats become stories, & we must reckon not simply with what happened but also with the real people it happened to"[email protected]
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Out now, The American Revolution and the Fate of the World by @rickbell.bsky.social A wide angle view of a global event that never loses focus on the Revolution itself. Check it out!
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
November 16, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Out now, The American Revolution and the Fate of the World by @rickbell.bsky.social A wide angle view of a global event that never loses focus on the Revolution itself. Check it out!
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
My article shows how we can use postcolonial lenses to navigate something we as yet don't know how to acknowledge or talk about well: premodern, non-European people doing things that look a lot like what we now call blackface.
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/articl...
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/articl...
Performing Blackness in the Medieval Muslim Metropolis: Arabic Literature and Tropicalization
This essay aims to chart a path between premodern blackface performance and postcolonial theory that escapes colonial teleologies. It analyzes moments from the Abbasid through Mamluk era (ca. 750–1517...
read.dukeupress.edu
October 3, 2025 at 1:33 PM
My article shows how we can use postcolonial lenses to navigate something we as yet don't know how to acknowledge or talk about well: premodern, non-European people doing things that look a lot like what we now call blackface.
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/articl...
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/articl...
Out now, The American Revolution and the Fate of the World by @rickbell.bsky.social A wide angle view of a global event that never loses focus on the Revolution itself. Check it out!
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
November 16, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Out now, The American Revolution and the Fate of the World by @rickbell.bsky.social A wide angle view of a global event that never loses focus on the Revolution itself. Check it out!
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/752265...
Now out! Without Fear: Black Women & the Making of Human Rights — Keisha Blain’s brilliant new book tells a 200-year history of Black women who fought for human rights from enslavement through the activists against police violence in our time. Check it out: wwnorton.com/books/978039...
Without Fear
“<em>Without Fear</em> tells the stories of Black women who, like Deborah in the Bible, have engaged in social justice agitation, refusing to simply suffer by engaging in the redemptive work of ...
wwnorton.com
October 19, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Now out! Without Fear: Black Women & the Making of Human Rights — Keisha Blain’s brilliant new book tells a 200-year history of Black women who fought for human rights from enslavement through the activists against police violence in our time. Check it out: wwnorton.com/books/978039...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
Congratulations and happy Pub Day to @ktgerbs.bsky.social "Archival Irruptions" tells a new history of Obeah, an Afro-Caribbean religion that was criminalized in 1760 after the largest slave revolt in the 18th century British Empire
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
Archival Irruptions: Constructing Religion and Criminalizing Obeah in Eighteenth-Century Jamaica
www.dukeupress.edu
October 15, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Congratulations and happy Pub Day to @ktgerbs.bsky.social "Archival Irruptions" tells a new history of Obeah, an Afro-Caribbean religion that was criminalized in 1760 after the largest slave revolt in the 18th century British Empire
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
Congratulations and happy Pub Day to @ktgerbs.bsky.social "Archival Irruptions" tells a new history of Obeah, an Afro-Caribbean religion that was criminalized in 1760 after the largest slave revolt in the 18th century British Empire
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
Archival Irruptions: Constructing Religion and Criminalizing Obeah in Eighteenth-Century Jamaica
www.dukeupress.edu
October 15, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Congratulations and happy Pub Day to @ktgerbs.bsky.social "Archival Irruptions" tells a new history of Obeah, an Afro-Caribbean religion that was criminalized in 1760 after the largest slave revolt in the 18th century British Empire
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
www.dukeupress.edu/archival-irr...
Reposted by Calvin Schermerhorn
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made by Calvin Schermerhorn
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made [Schermerhorn, Calvin] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made
www.amazon.com
July 22, 2025 at 5:56 PM
The Plunder of Black America: How the Racial Wealth Gap Was Made by Calvin Schermerhorn
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...
www.amazon.com/Plunder-Blac...