Winner of the US National Book Award for Nonfiction, "Stamped from the Beginning" is a redefined history of anti-black racist ideas that dramatically alters our understanding of the causes and extent of racist thinking. This deeply researched and dynamic narrative traces the journey of racist ideas from Europe in the fifteenth century to present-day America through the lives of five significant intellectuals: the Puritan minister Cotton Mather, President Thomas Jefferson, passionate abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, brilliant scholar W.E.B. Du Bois, and legendary anti-prison activist Angela Davis. It illustrates how these ideas were developed, disseminated, and ultimately entrenched in American society. Contrary to popular belief, it reveals that racist ideas did not arise from ignorance or hatred. Instead, they were crafted and refined by some of the brightest minds of each era.