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Legacies of American Slavery

Legacies of American Slavery

an initiative of the Council of Independent Colleges

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  • About UsLearn more about the Council of Independent Colleges and the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at Yale University.
    • A Timeline of the Legacies of American Slavery Initiative
    • Council of Independent Colleges (CIC)The Council of Independent Colleges is the nation’s leading association of smaller private colleges and universities.
    • Gilder Lehrman Center (GLC)The Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at the MacMillan Center (Yale University) is dedicated to the investigation and dissemination of knowledge concerning slavery and its legacies across all borders and all time, from the distant past through the present day.
    • Meet the Project Team
    • Funders
  • Legacies and ThemesDefining the “legacies” of slavery.
    • What Is a Legacy (Now)? Afterlives and the Turbulent PresentA reflection on the Legacies of American Slavery initiative by David Blight, looking back from 2025.
    • What Is a Legacy?An introductory essay by David Blight (2020).
    • Legacy ThemesThis project is organized around nine “legacy themes” that help define the afterlives of slavery.
  • Network MembersSeven private colleges and universities serve as the backbone of a growing national network of higher education institutions and community partners.
    • Regional Collaboration PartnersSeven institutions serve as coordinating hubs for the national network.
    • Institutional AffiliatesTwelve additional colleges and universities support regional activities as part of the Legacies network.
  • ResourcesWhat are CIC institutions doing to reckon with the legacy of slavery? Find resources and examples here.
    • Resource DatabaseA publicly available, searchable, and sortable database of existing resources at independent colleges and universities related to the legacies of slavery.
    • Virtual Symposium (2022)CIC and the Gilder Lehrman Center hosted a virtual symposium on the Legacies of American Slavery in April 2022.
    • Virtual Sessions: Independent Colleges and the Legacies of Slavery (September 19 and 21, 2024)
  • Archived ProgramsClick on the menu items below to learn more about previous programs, including a national conference in 2024.
    • Conference: Independent Colleges and the Legacies of Slavery
    • Summer 2023 Programs for Faculty and Staff from CIC Colleges (and Community Partners!)
    • Regional Conference Schedule, Fall 2022

Legacies of American Slavery: Reckoning with the Past is a multi-year initiative, providing a variety of opportunities for CIC member colleges and universities, their faculty members and students, and community-based partners to participate in research, teaching and learning, and public discussions about the multiple legacies of American slavery. Offered in collaboration with the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at the MacMillan Center at Yale.

What Is a Legacy?

An Essay by David Blight (January 2020) American history has never been for the faint-hearted, nor for those who seek a past that will merely please or entertain—although it may do both. The American past comes to us laden with both enlightenment and terror, with equal parts slavery and freedom,…Continue reading “What Is a Legacy?”

Links and Resources

Legacies links for September 10, 2024: Recovering Land, Resisting Slavery, Contesting Identities

10 Sep 202410 Sep 2024
A day later than usual — but as always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery.…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for September 5, 2024: Culture Wars, Medical Racism, and more

5 Sep 20245 Sep 2024
We took a short break on Labor Day but we're back with more links! As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who…
Reflections…

Uncovering Connections to Slavery on a Florida Campus

29 Aug 20246 Nov 2024
Guest contributors: Claire Strom and Rachel Walton* Rollins College (Winter Park, Florida) c. 1901 and today. Source: Rollins College (left image, right image). The Locating Slavery’s Legacies database (LSLdb) has been developed by…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for August 26, 2024: Politics, Monuments, and Segregated Schools

26 Aug 202426 Aug 2024
As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery. A link here does not imply agreement…
Opportunities

Register for Virtual Sessions: Independent Colleges and the Legacies of Slavery (9/19 & 9/21)

20 Aug 202430 Sep 2024
This September, the Council of Independent Colleges is hosting a conference to celebrate the culmination of our multiyear initiative on the Legacies of American Slavery: Reckoning with the Past. The…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for August 19, 2024: public art, a database of offensive names, and faith-based reparations

19 Aug 202419 Aug 2024
As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery. A link here does not imply agreement…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for August 12, 2024: Sonya Massey, Michael Brown, Jr., and Other Expressions of White Supremacy

12 Aug 202412 Aug 2024
As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery. A link here does not imply agreement…
Updates from the Network

On Hallowed Ground at Goucher College

8 Aug 20248 Aug 2024
Epsom Mansion, the main house on Epsom Farm, a former plantation purchased by Goucher College when it moved from Baltimore to Towson, Maryland, in 1953. The mansion burned down in…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for August 5, 2024: Citing Slavery, Tulsa Reparations, and Critical Whiteness

5 Aug 2024
As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery. A link here does not imply agreement…
Links and Resources

Happy 100th Birthday, James Baldwin

2 Aug 20242 Aug 2024
“History is not the past. It is the present. We carry our history with us. We are our history. If we pretend otherwise, we are literally criminals.”James Baldwin (1924-1987) As…

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© Council of Independent Colleges except where otherwise indicated.

Council of Independent Colleges

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Washington, DC 20036
legaciesproject@cic.edu #CICLegacies
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Organized in collaboration with

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David W. Blight, Director

With generous support from


and additional support from

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed on this site do not necessarily represent those of the NEH.

 

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