Harvard University announced Tuesday that it is pledging $100 million to redress its gains from slavery following the findings of a committee indicating the Ivy League institution greatly benefited from the slave trade in the colonial era.
The sum is among the largest made by an institution of higher education to atone for its role in the slave trade. The Jesuit order of Catholic priests pledged a similar amount in 2021 for selling slaves to pay off the debts of Georgetown University in 1838.
“While Harvard does not bear exclusive responsibility for these injustices, and while many members of our community have worked hard to counteract them, Harvard benefited from and in some ways perpetuated practices that were profoundly immoral,” Harvard President Lawrence Bacow said in a letter. “Consequently, I believe we bear a moral responsibility to do what we can to address the persistent corrosive effects of those historical practices on individuals, on Harvard, and on our society.”
Bacow established the Committee on Harvard and the Legacy of Slavery in November 2019 to “understand and address the enduring legacy of slavery” within Harvard. The announced pledge was a response to the committee’s report, which detailed how the institution had benefited from slavery from its founding in 1636 until 1783, when the slave trade was banned by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
“The truth is that slavery played a significant part in our institutional history,” Bacow said. “Enslaved people worked on our campus supporting our students, faculty, and staff, including several Harvard presidents. The labor of enslaved people both far and near enriched numerous donors and, ultimately, the institution.”
The $100 million pledged by the Harvard Corporation, which governs the university, will be used to implement the committee’s recommendations for reparations, which include “expanding learning opportunities” in communities descended from slaves, memorializing enslaved people, partnering with historically black colleges and universities, and ensuring the university can “identify, engage, and support” people who are directly descended from slaves.
“I recognize that this is a significant commitment, and for good reason. Slavery and its legacy have been a part of American life for more than 400 years. The work of further redressing its persistent effects will require our sustained and ambitious efforts for years to come,” Bacow said.
The university did not detail where the pledged funding will come from, but a university spokesperson told the Washington Examiner it will be allocated from “available funds.” The university boasts an endowment of over $53 billion and charges over $50,000 in annual tuition.
