Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery Initiative
Grounded in Harvard’s mission and driving purposeful change.
Featured Story: Second Cohort of Du Bois Scholars Program Concludes “Life-Changing” Research Internship
Fellows from HBCUs spent the summer at Harvard honing their research skills.
A Legacy of Leadership
Harvard and Radcliffe’s early Black graduates lived lives of extraordinary impact. Their leadership and resistance are part of Harvard’s story, and part of the legacy that today’s Harvard students inherit.
The Report
The Report, prepared by the Presidential Committee on Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery, advances our quest for truth through scholarship about the University’s historic ties to slavery—direct, financial, and intellectual.
Harvard Spotlight
Andrea Jackson Gavin
Andrea Jackson Gavin is the inaugural program director of the HBCU Digital Library Trust. Funded by the Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery Initiative, the Trust collaborates with HBCUs, the HBCU Library Alliance, Harvard Library, and the Atlanta University Center Woodruff Library to sustain and deepen capacity for the digitization, discovery, and preservation of Black history collections held by HBCU libraries and archives.
About Us
Our mission is to understand and cast light on Harvard’s legacies of slavery and address enduring consequences through purposeful change. Our work is grounded in Harvard’s educational mission and the recommendations from the Report of the Presidential Committee on Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery’s recommendations.
Learn more about the Initiative and the people implementing the work
The Report
Harvard University began reckoning with our legacy of slavery more than 15 years ago. In April 2022, the Report of the Presidential Committee on Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery was released. This Report details three difficult truths about the University’s direct, financial, and intellectual ties to slavery, along with seven broad recommendations.
Implementation
Harvard University takes responsibility for our legacy of slavery and seeks to address enduring consequences by partnering with others in the Harvard community and with members of the descendant community in Cambridge, Boston, and beyond. We recognize that this work takes time. Over the next few years, the Initiative will focus our efforts on three priority areas: memorialization, advancing HBCU partnerships, and supporting descendant communities. We will also continue to provide learning opportunities and invite the Harvard community to join our reparative work.
Get Involved
As the Initiative enters the next phase of our strategy, we want to hear from you and leverage opportunities for partnership and learning.
News and Events
Stay up-to-date on the Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery Initiative’s latest news and events.
Second Cohort of Du Bois Scholars Program Concludes “Life-Changing” Research Internship
Fellows from HBCUs spent the summer at Harvard honing their research skills.
New fellowships focus on Harvard’s early history with Native lands
Work to analyze 17th, 18th, and 19th century records creates deeper understanding of University’s impact on Tribal lands and Indigenous peoples.
The HBCU Digital Library Trust Preserves History
The HBCU Digital Library Trust digitizes stories of historically Black colleges and universities and expands access.