Economics for Emancipation

A Course of Economics for All

MODULE 8

What is finance? In this module, we explore its historical roots and evolution, uncovering how financial tools emerged and how they shape the way our society plans for the future.

We will look at debt and equity: who uses them, and how they’ve been tied to systems of colonization and racial capitalism. By understanding where wealth comes from and who makes financial decisions, we can ask ourselves: “how can we democratize finance and use these tools to build the future we want to see?”

Learning Objectives:

  • Understand how financial systems are intentionally designed and how they shape society’s relationship to the future
  • Examine how current financial tools (e.g. debt and finance) influence economic power, resource distribution, and community planning outcomes
  • Explore how we can democratize financial tools to fund community projects and shape the future we want to see. 
  • Understand asset classes, including distinguishing between real and financial assets

VIDEO LESSONS:

Takeaways

  • Finance is one of the most powerful tools society has for planning the future. It allows us to invest in businesses and projects today without needing to save up huge sums of money first.
  • Debt finance has always been linked to morality.
  • Modern finance is deeply intertwined with colonialism, slavery, and racial capitalism.
  • At its core, the financial system is structured to serve those who control capital. The decision-making power lies in the hands of financiers and investors, who prioritize profit above all else. But what if we changed the rules, and could decide who gets a loan and on what terms?
  • Global capitalism has existed in its modern, industrial form since the late 1700s and early 1800s but it has and continues to evolve over time. Many of the ways finance has evolved happened through economic policies.
  • Asset classes were created for rich people to store or grow their wealth. Debt and equity are important asset classes that we need to understand if we want to use them to raise money for the projects and small businesses we want to see.

ALL MODULES COMPLETED! CONGRATULATIONS.

Readings

Videos

  • Democratizing Investment

    INDEP, Christoph Sorg, J W Mason, Sushovan Dhar, Melanie Brusseler, Mike McCarthy and Lavinia Steinfort.