Locating the emergence of ethical capital as a capitalist realist response to overlapping social, ecological and political crises, this chapter sets out the theoretical frame and core concepts of the book. It explains what ethical capital means in the context of this book, why it has emerged alongside a responsible capital imaginary, and what the consequences of this may be.

Chapter one develops a selective survey of different moral economies throughout capitalism’s history, interwoven with a discussion of speculation and risk. This chapter establishes the materialist approach to ethics that the book adopts, anchoring a discussion of the moral economy in key moments of ethical and political struggles. From establishing the liberal philosophical foundations for capitalist accumulation, to the socialisation of capital via joint stock companies, to the monopolistic endeavours of the early twentieth century and the welfare state of the post-World War II era, this history focuses on the dynamic manifestations of moral economy and the politics of speculation, articulating the grounded and contested nature of ethics.

Chapter two, following on from the argument in the previous chapter which uses the moral economy concept as an analytical tool, argues that the contemporary period is characterised by a “speculative moral economy”. This moral economy has two key, contradictory features. First, it is underlaid by the responsible capital imaginary, insisting that it is possible to simultaneously “do well” (make profits) and “do good” (be ethical). Contemporary business ethics asserts that profit-making and social justice are not merely compatible but mutually beneficial. Second, this moral economy is operationalised through risk management, generating a derivative logic of ethics. Ethical questions are treated as risks and are managed, like other risks, through financial mechanisms. Ethics become capital, but at the same time, capital accumulation produces a particular market-compatible ethics.

Racial targets are nonbinding, voluntary statements about goals to hire, retain, or promote people of color in the future. This chapter examines how companies have used racial targets and assesses the role of racial targets as part of the broader project of using race-conscious disclosures to show concern for and action toward addressing racial inequality. The chapter also discusses how companies attempted to meet their racial targets and argues that some corporate strategies to do so may have further entrenched racial inequality. The chapter illustrates the potential tensions between the positive aims of disclosures and their potential challenges for racial progress.

Chapter 1 examines how companies engaged in forms of race-conscious image construction in an earlier context. The chapter first describes early federal government efforts in the 1940s that, while mostly unsuccessful, laid the groundwork nonetheless for the version of race-conscious image construction that companies undertook in the 1960s, including the systematic disclosure of information demonstrating attention to addressing racial segregation and discrimination before the advent of digital print and online disclosures. It explores partnerships between the federal government and companies during John F. Kennedy’s presidency, showing how the processes employed through this program helped corporations to establish their public images on race at the time. The chapter establishes that there was already a pattern, before 2020, for companies to use disclosures about race in ways that serve their own financial and reputational interests.

Chapter 2 defines the concept of race-conscious image construction, which occurs through disclosures, presents empirical evidence of it in action, and charts how corporations used race-conscious images to bolster their reputation between 2020 and 2024. It also demonstrates how the language and prevalence of disclosures about race changed during that time. The chapter discusses Chevron Corporation (Chevron) as representative case studies that illustrate the image construction process undertaken by thousands of companies. It also explores the role of risk management in corporations’ use of race-conscious disclosures, demonstrating that image construction is often employed as a shield from legal and reputational scrutiny.

Chapter 5 argues that race-conscious retraction constrains racial progress because it communicates that the issues of racial inequality companies communicated previously were either not important or have become largely irrelevant. The chapter examines the influence of conservative pressure on companies’ pulling back on making race-conscious disclosures. It shows that race-conscious retraction can be either partial or complete and opines on what trajectory this phenomenon will take in the future. It also argues that left unregulated as proposed in Chapter 6, race-conscious disclosures are likely to develop toward cycles of construction and retraction. During cycles of construction in response to future societal occurrences and social and political pressures to address racial inequality, race-conscious disclosures will be accommodated. During cycles of retraction, race-conscious disclosures will shrink. During either cycle, corporations manipulate disclosures for financial and reputational gain.

The introduction provides an overview of the rest of the book’s chapters. It introduces the argument that corporations use words to constrain racial progress by failing to acknowledge past inequality, using disclosures to challenge concerns about racial inequality in their operations, and engaging in race-conscious retraction. It also highlights the book’s unique contributions with its focus on race rather than broad notions of diversity, equity and inclusion, and contributions to the fields of corporate governance, private law, and law and political economy.

Chapter 4 examines the role of philanthropy in race-conscious image construction and empirically develops the concept of corporate racial philanthropy (CRP). CRP is the use of corporate words to define the parameters of philanthropy to focus on business transactions and the strategic pursuit of financial gain by targeting minority groups and racial causes. It is within the framework of business development initiatives that use philanthropy to tap new markets and generate profit. The chapter discusses how companies might best implement CRP to achieve racial progress that centers advancing racial minority decision-making authority.

This chapter describes what is at stake for people of color and corporations. It notes that focusing on racial progress will likely open corporations to further risk of backlash from conservative groups or a conservative administration. But corporations and society will be better off in the long run if corporations use their words to support true racial progress rather than limiting it or withdrawing from words that are more likely to generate racial progress.