Ortiz writes in the introduction: This book draws from the voices and experiences of people from the African and Latinx Diasporas in the Americas to offer a new interpretation of United States history from the American Revolution to the present.

The author dismantles assumptions of American exceptionalism and isolationism by demonstrating connections and intersections of freedom struggles across the Global South and the United States.

"[6] In The American Historical Review Perla M. Guerrero wrote, "Ortiz offers a multifaceted narrative of the struggles people have faced and the freedoms they have achieved through blood, sweat, and organizing.

"[7] A review in Publishers Weekly stated, "While each chapter is insightful, lucidly written, and extensively researched, the book reads more like a series of articles than a cohesive monograph.

Ortiz’s work has much to offer, but does not fulfill the promise of its title,"[8] while Kirkus Reviews described the book as "A sleek, vital history that effectively shows how, 'from the outset, inequality was enforced with the whip, the gun, and the United States Constitution.