The Universities and Slavery Movement with Dr. Ruth Simmons

Join us for a conversation between Dr. Ruth Simmons, President Emerita of Brown University and President’s Distinguished Fellow at Rice University, and Dr. Karl Jacoby, Allan Nevins Professor of American History at Columbia University.

Under the leadership of Dr. Simmons, Brown University initiated the first comprehensive evaluation of an American university’s history, and complicity, with slavery and the slave trade. In the nearly twenty years since Brown published its Slavery and Justice Report, dozens of educational institutions in the United States and around the world have undertaken similar ventures. As the close ties between American higher education and racism have become clearer, universities have launched a wide variety of initiatives to begin to address legacies of white supremacy. This discussion will reflect on the past, present, and future of this ongoing work.

This event is sponsored by the Columbia University and Slavery project, a research and justice initiative examining the institution’s connections to the history and legacies of enslavement. The ongoing work aims to provide a fuller picture of Columbia’s past while helping to inform the University’s actions in the present.

Members of the audience are invited to participate in a moderated question and answer session following the discussion.

Reception to follow.

Online registration is required. Register here.