“Research suggests that between 1910 and 1997, Black Americans lost about 90% of their farmland.” The first book by acclaimed writer, political strategist, and national organizer Brea Baker, Rooted is a quick-paced and engagingly lucid primer on the physical histories and land legacies of Black people in the United States, interwoven with Baker’s own vivid family history of devastating land loss in Kentucky and North Carolina. Baker has examined records and historical accounts from all over the country to illustrate how the concerted effort to push Black Americans off of the land has resulted in the contemporary racial wealth gap. In chapters like “So Much for 40 Acres and a Mule,” “What Doesn’t Kill You,” and “The Land Wants Us Back,” she presents a powerful history of the impact of land theft and violent displacement in the U.S., arguing that justice and reparations will stem from its literal roots. Keisha N. Blain, co-editor of the #1 New York Times bestseller Four Hundred Souls, says, “Brea Baker’s Rooted is a moving, insightful, and intimate account of the history of Black land ownership and land theft in the United States. It is a must-read for anyone interested in advancing racial justice and equity.”

About Brea Baker:

Brea Baker has been working on the frontlines for over a decade. She believes deeply in nuanced storytelling and Black culture to drive change, and has commented on race, gender, and sexuality for Elle, Harper’s BAZAAR, Refinery29, THEM, and more. Her writing has been featured in the anthologies OUR HISTORY HAS ALWAYS BEEN CONTRABAND and NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE.

A Yale alumna, Brea has been recognized as a 2017 Glamour Woman of the Year, a 2019 i-D Up and Rising, and a 2023 Creative Capital awardee. She has spoken at the United Nations' Girl Up Initiative, Yale Law School, the Youth 2 Youth Summit in Hong Kong, the Museum of City of New York, and more.

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