THE WEEKLY REVEAL

Hello! In this issue:

• We’ve been taught that “40 acres and a mule” was a broken promise. But it was real – and an even bigger betrayal to formerly enslaved people than most of us realized.
• “The Grab,” our deeply reported thriller on global resource theft, is in theaters and streaming now!

THIS WEEK’S PODCAST

40 Acres and a Lie Part 1

In the waning days of the Civil War, Union General William T. Sherman issued a special field order that was meant to give formerly enslaved people a chance to build new lives. You likely know it as 40 acres and a mule.

It’s often thought of as a promise to Black Americans that wasn’t kept. But 40 acres and a mule was more than that. It was real.

Journalists at the Center for Public Integrity unearthed thousands of records once buried in the National Archives. Through an investigation spanning two and a half years, they found more than 1,200 formerly enslaved people who were given land by the federal government through the field order – and then saw that land taken away.

This week on Reveal, we partner with the Center for Public Integrity to bring you the first in a three-part series on the history of a reparation that wasn’t – and the wealth gap that remains.

The first episode of 40 Acres and a Lie is out now.

Dig Deeper:

We can’t do this revelatory work with you. Become a member. 

NOW AVAILABLE

‘The Grab’ Is Now Streaming

Quietly and seemingly out of sight, governments, private investors and mercenaries are working to seize food and water resources at the expense of entire populations. These groups are establishing themselves as the new OPEC, where the future world powers will be those who control not oil, but food.

“The Grab” is a global thriller combining hard-hitting journalism from The Center for Investigative Reporting with the compelling, character-driven storytelling of “Blackfish” director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, taking you around the globe – from China to Russia and the boardrooms of Wall Street – to reveal one of the world’s biggest and least-known threats.

WATCH: On demand everywhere now

LISTEN: The Great Arizona Water Grab

In Case You Missed It