Racial Capitalism - A Stone's Throw

I've been interested in discussing racial capitalism for a few months now, ever since I saw the video of this lecture by Robin Kelley. It's about an hour, with another 20 minutes or so of q+a. The video feels like it's going to be a little long, but Kelley is a charming and engaging lecturer who skillfully and succinctly covers this topic.

I don't think summarizing it will serve the content well. That said, I am including time codes to certain sections that resonated with me. These topics created and synthesized additional questions and theses not covered in this video that feel either controversial (Is socialist theory as limited as capitalist theory?) or worth arguing about at a cheap bar ("Specific Objects" minimalism is not just incorrect, it feels ignorant, biased, and repugnant).

Video Timeline

Basic Theses (06:10)

Race and gender are not incidental or accidental features of global capitalist order.
Race isn’t simply or primarily about an identity.
The central story of race and the making of the capitalist order isn’t always the most obvious story.

The underlying thesis of Cedric Robinson and this discussion (11:20). Racial dynamics preceded capitalism, directly challenging the Marxist idea that capitalism was a revolutionary break from feudalism.

Racial capitalism is not merely a type of capitalism (16:02). Non-racial capitalism doesn't exist. Racism is fundamental for the production and reproduction of violence. Capital doesn’t begin with money, it comes from seizing control of natural resources and finding cheap labor to turn those into commodities.