[11][15][16] The book's thesis has been labeled an antisemitic canard by historians, including Saul S. Friedman, who contends that Jews had a minimal role in the New World slave trade.

Even when Jews in a handful of places owned slaves in proportions slightly above their representation among a town's families, such cases do not come close to corroborating the assertions of The Secret Relationship.

"[31] Classics scholar Mary Lefkowitz called the book "hate literature" and wrote: "The authors of The Secret Relationship continually misquote Jewish sources, taking quotations out of context, or citing as support works that actually say the opposite of what they are claiming.

"[32] Seymour Drescher who analyzed the role of Jews in the overall Atlantic slave trade concluded that it was "minimal," and only identified certain regions (such as Brazil and the Caribbean) where the participation was "significant.

[33] According to the Anti-Defamation League, Volume Two blames Jews for "promoting a myth of black racial inferiority and makes a range of conspiratorial accusations about Jewish involvement in the slave trade and in the cotton, textiles, and banking industries".

[35] As summarized by the ADL, the work claims the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan and the subjugation of Black people during the early 20th century not only enriched but also was orchestrated by Jewish businessmen of the time.