Friday, August 22, 2025

WIRTW #769: the 'slavery' edition


Donald Trump wants to make slavery great again.

In a rant on Truth Social, he fumed: "The Smithsonian is OUT OF CONTROL, where everything discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was… We are not going to allow this to happen.… This Country cannot be WOKE, because WOKE IS BROKE."

I can't believe I have to write this, but yes, slavery really was THAT BAD. Worse than bad. It was a centuries-long system of forced labor, racial terrorism, family separation, rape, murder, and dehumanization. It was chattel slavery—the commodification of human beings—on a scale unmatched in the Western world. It was, without exaggeration, the greatest moral stain on American history. Saying otherwise only displays your ignorance and bigotry.

Read the rest of this post at my Authoritarian Alarm Substack. (And while you're there, don't forget to subscribe.)



Here's what I read this week that you should read, too.




Why a Court Ruled for a Man Who Solicited Prostitutes at Work — via Improve Your HR by Suzanne Lucas, the Evil HR Lady

When an Employee's Online Religious Speech Goes Viral: Can You Fire Them? — via Eric Meyer's Employer Handbook Blog


How to Communicate Layoffs to Your Staff — via Harvard Business Review