Breakdown:

1. Introduction:
   • Black wealth and upward mobility have consistently been viewed as a threat by those invested in maintaining white dominance and the cycle of poverty for Black Americans.
   • Throughout history, Black people’s attempts to gain economic independence have been met with systemic resistance and racial violence, designed to maintain the status quo of white supremacy.
2. Post-Emancipation Challenges:
   • The abolition of slavery did not equate to freedom from oppression for Black Americans. Instead, it introduced new problems rooted in racism.
   • Former white slave owners sought to regain control over society through legal, economic, and violent means, fearing the economic destabilization caused by the loss of free labor.
   • Reconstruction and Black empowerment movements like the establishment of schools, rising wages, and Black political representation only intensified this fear.
3. The Creation of Black Codes:
   • To maintain control, Southern states introduced Black Codes—laws that effectively re-enslaved Black people by tying them to labor contracts, restricting their movement, and limiting economic freedom.
   • These codes were designed to keep Black people dependent on white landowners, ensuring that free Black labor would remain under the control of former slave-owning families.
4. Economic Oppression Through Sharecropping:
   • Sharecropping became a new form of economic enslavement, where Black people worked the land but remained under the control of white farmers.
   • Black Codes further restricted Black people’s ability to own land, access credit, or pursue better employment, perpetuating a cycle of poverty.
5. The Role of Racial Violence:
   • As Black people began to resist these oppressive systems, racial violence became the primary tool used by white landowners to control Black communities.
   • Local authorities such as sheriffs and judges were often complicit, enforcing laws that kept Black people trapped in a system of exploitation and fear.
6. The Story of William Carreker:
   • William Carreker, a Black man who owned his own land in Georgia in 1909, became a target of white supremacy due to his economic independence.
   • Carreker’s ownership of land was seen as a direct challenge to the racial order, as white landowners feared any disruption to the economic and social structures that benefited them.
   • The arrival of a Black preacher in Talbot County, who urged Black sharecroppers to resist the unjust system, led to growing tensions and ultimately violence against Carreker, as white farmers feared losing control over their Black labor force.
7. The Legacy of Resistance and Retribution:
   • The story of William Carreker and the preacher is a stark reminder of how Black wealth and economic independence were—and still are—viewed as a threat by those invested in maintaining racial hierarchies.
   • White supremacy not only relied on the legal system to suppress Black wealth but also resorted to racial violence to maintain control.
8. Conclusion:
   • The fight for Black wealth and economic mobility is not just about overcoming individual challenges but also dismantling deeply entrenched systems of racial oppression.
   • The historical context of Black Codes, sharecropping, and racial violence demonstrates the lengths to which white supremacy has gone to maintain power.
   • Despite these obstacles, Black resistance and resilience continue to challenge the economic barriers placed upon them, as the fight for equality and justice endures.

This breakdown provides an analysis of how Black wealth has been systematically undermined throughout history, emphasizing the role of racial violence and legal oppression in maintaining white supremacy.