Report: Slavery was intertwined with university's history

Published January 24, 2017

A report says New York's Columbia University was founded partly with slave traders' money, counted slaveholders among its early leaders and let at least one student take a slave with him to college.

The report was released Tuesday. It traces the 263-year-old Ivy League university's entanglement with the proceeds, promoters and opponents of slavery.

Columbia is the latest in a series of elite U.S. universities to account publicly for their historical ties to the bondage of millions of African-Americans.

Columbia President Lee Bollinger encouraged the project. It's unclear what actions Columbia might take, if any.

Columbia's Black Students' Organization and undergraduate student government haven't responded to messages about the report.

The report was overseen by Pulitzer Prize-winning Columbia historian Eric Foner and was first written about by The New York Times.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/us/report-slavery-was-intertwined-with-universitys-history