Jean-Paul Faguet

Now, for context, this phone call happens in about 2016, early 2017. No, 2016.

Now, for context, this phone call happens in about 2016, early 2017. No, 2016.

And this is a time when people like Nathan Nunn, who was then at Harvard, and Leonard Wanchikun at Princeton, and a bunch of other people are putting out a lot of papers, really innovative, empirically sophisticated papers that show the horrible effects of slavery, not just then in those places where slavery happened, but today in those places that had suffered slavery over the past two or three hundred years.

And this is a time when people like Nathan Nunn, who was then at Harvard, and Leonard Wanchikun at Princeton, and a bunch of other people are putting out a lot of papers, really innovative, empirically sophisticated papers that show the horrible effects of slavery, not just then in those places where slavery happened, but today in those places that had suffered slavery over the past two or three hundred years.

So the things like... in places where there was severe slave trafficking on the western coast of Africa, today people trust each other less. And they can link that empirically to the fact that you had marauding slave parties and different ethnic groups that were pitched against one another by the English and Portuguese and others for the sake of trading slaves.

So the things like... in places where there was severe slave trafficking on the western coast of Africa, today people trust each other less. And they can link that empirically to the fact that you had marauding slave parties and different ethnic groups that were pitched against one another by the English and Portuguese and others for the sake of trading slaves.

And that has impacts today on people's inter-group trust, like between different ethnicities in Africa. let alone things that are easier to understand, like education and health outcomes are worse today in places that suffered a lot of slavery. So the encomienda is not slavery. It's very broad similarities. It's also forced labor.

And that has impacts today on people's inter-group trust, like between different ethnicities in Africa. let alone things that are easier to understand, like education and health outcomes are worse today in places that suffered a lot of slavery. So the encomienda is not slavery. It's very broad similarities. It's also forced labor.

But when you look at the specifics, it's quite different from slavery, but equally nasty, actually arguably worse than slavery in some ways. How could it be having positive effects on development outcomes today? And it's very strong effects, not just economic development as in GDP per capita or productivity or wages, but also health, education, infant mortality, literacy.

But when you look at the specifics, it's quite different from slavery, but equally nasty, actually arguably worse than slavery in some ways. How could it be having positive effects on development outcomes today? And it's very strong effects, not just economic development as in GDP per capita or productivity or wages, but also health, education, infant mortality, literacy.

Also institutions, like local institutions and places that did have encomienda are stronger and more capable today in Colombia than comparable places that had no encomienda. So how can this be true? And so the story of this paper is that we spent the past seven years trying to break this down, like throwing everything we can trying to make the result go away.

Also institutions, like local institutions and places that did have encomienda are stronger and more capable today in Colombia than comparable places that had no encomienda. So how can this be true? And so the story of this paper is that we spent the past seven years trying to break this down, like throwing everything we can trying to make the result go away.

And it's there regardless of what we do. And so we think it's a really strong empirical result.

And it's there regardless of what we do. And so we think it's a really strong empirical result.

It is complicated. Yeah, that's a fantastic. So, you know, part of the next frontier of research is to make those sorts of comparisons. But we're not there yet. And it would be methodologically complicated. But I mean, but hugely interesting as you lay out.

It is complicated. Yeah, that's a fantastic. So, you know, part of the next frontier of research is to make those sorts of comparisons. But we're not there yet. And it would be methodologically complicated. But I mean, but hugely interesting as you lay out.

So our answer, and it took us years to, you know, we had an intuition about it, but it took us years to prove it, to really show it econometrically, is that, and I want to be really clear about this, the encomienda, so let me say quickly how the encomienda worked, because it's important to understand this.

So our answer, and it took us years to, you know, we had an intuition about it, but it took us years to prove it, to really show it econometrically, is that, and I want to be really clear about this, the encomienda, so let me say quickly how the encomienda worked, because it's important to understand this.

So encomienda comes from the Spanish word encomendar, which is to recommend or to put in the care of. And so the deal with the encomienda is that you had a Spanish Lord, a conquistador, who just finished conquering a bunch of indigenous people.

So encomienda comes from the Spanish word encomendar, which is to recommend or to put in the care of. And so the deal with the encomienda is that you had a Spanish Lord, a conquistador, who just finished conquering a bunch of indigenous people.