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Economics

Cotton and Slaves

How the West Got Rich and Modern Capitalism Was Born

By Reparations

Slavery did not die because it was unproductive or unprofitable, as some earlier historians have argued. Slavery was not some feudal remnant on the way to extinction. By Sven Beckert — By 1830, one million Americans, most of them enslaved, grew cotton. Raw cotton was the most important export of the United States, at the center of America’s financial flows and emerging modern business practices, and at the core of…

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People attend an Anti-Trump demonstration to protest U.S. President's coming to the World Economic Forum of Davos, in Geneva.

Davos: Inequality Rocks the Magic Mountain

By News & Current Affairs

A major cause of such inequality is tax havens – which in the current casino atmosphere stand no risk of being regulated. By Pepe Escobar — The so-called globalized elites meet at the World Economic Forum in Davos this year under the specter of extreme turbulence. The WEF Global Risks Report is hardly reassuring. The top five most likely risks for 2018 all range from extreme weather/climate change disturbances to…

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Protestor Pierre Gabriel from Haiti carries flags during a march on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Times Square, called Rally Against Racism: Stand Up for Haiti and Africa in New York January 15, 2018.

Trump is wrong. Norwegian immigrants are not better than Haitians for the US economy

By Commentaries/Opinions

The Trump administration on January 18 removed Haiti from the list of countries eligible for the H2A and H2B temporary visas for low-skilled workers. The move came after President Trump reportedly called Haiti a “s–thole” and asked why we don’t have more immigrants from Norway. Here’s why Norwegians can’t fill America’s immigration needs. By Cindy Huang and Hannah Postel — The Trump administration on January 18 removed Haiti from the…

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A shantytown in São Paulo, Brazil, borders the affluent Morumbi district.

It’s Boom Times for Billionaires

By Editors' Choice

Around the world, the labor of poor people fuels the rising concentration of wealth. By Benjamin Dangl, AlterNet — Forida is a 22-year-old sewing machine operator in a clothing factory in Dahka, Bangladesh. She often works 12-hour days producing clothing for brands such as H&M and Target. Sometimes, during busy production cycles, the hours are even longer. “Last year, I worked until midnight for a full month,” Forida said. “I…

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