Distillery Justice

A concept coined by Andréa Lawson Gray

I coined the term distillery justice in my second book, Caribbean Cocktails: Drinks & Bites from the Afro-Latino Diaspora, to describe the idea that rum’s history—and future—must fully acknowledge the enslaved and their descendants, whose labor and knowledge built the industry — and that the people and communities from which rum derives its value must share in the wealth it creates.

Inspired by historian and author Michael Twitty’s concept of culinary justice, the framework considers questions of historical truth, recognition, cultural ownership, and who benefits from the value created by a spirit and its story.