Social Justice: Book Review

The Kidnapping Club is a historical look at the lives and lack of true freedom for those that escaped enslavement in the south as well as those African Americans born free in the north. It points out the complicit actions of Wall Street, bankers, the business community, law enforcement and the judicial systems in returning both escaped enslaved and free individuals to slavery in the south. These actions were fueled by the greed of those involved to maintain the cotton trade that sustained the growth of New York right up to the Civil War and was supported by the fugitive slave laws.

The author provides both a historical context and documented accounts of individuals in New York from the beginning of the 1800’s up to the Civil War. If you thought slavery was just a southern issue, this book shows the complicity of many in the north to support the slavery of the south.
Reviewed by Brad Monroe