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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

Tag: Economic Disparities

Persistent disparities of wealth, income, and home ownership by race; persistent industrial and economic underdevelopment in parts of the South and cities across the nation; and varieties of unfree and semi-free labor since emancipation.

Links and Resources

Legacies links for October 2, 2023: life and death, art and memory, contested citizenship

2 Oct 2023
As always, the editorial team here at the Legacies blog encourages you to share the post with friends, students, colleagues, etc. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for September 7, 2023: Black breastfeeding, Black colleges, Black medicine

7 Sep 20237 Sep 2023
We're back after the holiday weekend! As always, the editorial team at the Legacies blog encourages you to share this post with friends, students, colleagues, etc. A link does not…
Uncategorized

Paul Robeson on the Labor that Built America

4 Sep 2023
The Legacies blog is taking a break for Labor Day, but here are some stirring words for the day from artist and activist Paul Robeson: Paul Robeson (1898–1976). source: New…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for August 7, 2023: revisiting history, tracking the legacies of slavery

7 Aug 20237 Aug 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post with friends, students, colleagues, etc. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. A statue…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for July 17, 2023: the Memphis massacre, college admissions, geographic racism, and more

17 Jul 202316 Jul 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post with friends, students, colleagues, etc. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. Scenes in…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for May 15, 2023: Petrochemicals, prisons, and psychology

15 May 202315 May 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. The industrial stretch of the Mississippi River…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for April 24, 2023: banjos, secrets, and credit scores

24 Apr 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. Henry Ossawa Tanner, The Banjo Lesson (1893).…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for February 6, 2023: Where every month is a Black History Month

6 Feb 20236 Feb 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post. A link does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. All incoming students at St. Edward’s University…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for January 30, 2023: Black history in Florida and other skirmishes in the culture wars

30 Jan 202327 Jan 2023
As always, we encourage you to share this post. A link here does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. Splash Mountain (and its racist legacy)…
Links and Resources

Legacies links for December 12, 2022: apologies, reparations, and overlooked histories

12 Dec 202212 Dec 2022
As always, we encourage you to share this post. A link here does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges. A Black church in rural Eloy,…

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Commemoration and Memory Contested Citizenship Critical Race Theory Cultural Creativity Economic Disparities Environmental Justice Halloween Hispanic Heritage Month Institutional Histories John Brown Mass Incarceration Museums Phillis Wheatley Poetry Public History Race Race, Health, and Medicine Race, Place, and Migration Racial Violence and Resistance Reading Lists Reflections Religion and Slavery Reparations Slavery tourism Teaching about Slavery Teaching slavery


© 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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