Book cover of The 272

Book description

“An absolutely essential addition to the history of the Catholic Church, whose involvement in New World slavery sustained the Church and, thereby, helped to entrench enslavement in American society.”—Annette Gordon-Reed, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Hemingses of Monticello and On Juneteenth

New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice • Longlisted…

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Why read it?

1 author picked The 272 as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This story had been told only in pieces, but after reporter Rachel Swarns collected the details, the entire ugly history of how the Jesuits sold their enslaved to pay for their university was revealed.

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