The Slavery and Justice Report, released last October by the Brown University Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice, sheds light on Brown’s and Providence’s debts to the slave trade. In the 1700s, there were few aspects of America’s economy unaided by slavery. Providence served as an embarkation port for slave ships and many of its most prominent citizens not only benefited economically from the slave trade, but also contributed to it as an institution. Many of those citizens, including the Brown brothers, were involved in the founding of Brown University—financially and otherwise. Additionally, Providence, with its abundance of textile mills, found a niche in producing clothing for slaves—rough, simple, and cheap garments.

When President Ruth Simmons first called for a committee to assess Brown’s ties to the slave trade in 2003, it was big news—it even warranted a prominent article in the New York Times. Almost four years later, the report of the committee has been released and the University Corporation has issued a response and recommendations for a plan of action. Yet Brown’s connections to the slave trade still lack a concrete place in the consciousness of the University’s students. Many students know about the committee and the report only vaguely, and even more do not know that the University Corporation has issued a response. Hardly any students have read the report itself.

In a class of 25 in which we read the report as part of an assignment, only one or two students had read it previously. When I spoke to a random sampling of other students about whether they had read the report, none had. Some expressed embarrassment about their lack of information and seemed to want to know more—"I’m sorry, I’m so uninformed!" was a common refrain. Some students said it was too long and daunting—they would read it if there were a summary. However, others did not think the report was important and expressed no interest in reading or learning about it. As one student explained to me, "I don’t think Brown has a connection to the slave trade anymore."

It would be nice and convenient if this were true—unfortunately, it is drastically incorrect. Anyone who has used University Hall benefits from slavery. Anyone who uses the resources and prestige Brown has to offer as one of America’s oldest universities benefits from the slave trade. Brown would not be the University it is today without the foundation provided by American slave traders. Although it may be a controversial idea, to benefit from Brown is to benefit from the American slave trade. In a 2004 Op-Ed article President Simmons wrote for the Boston Globe, she explained that the impetus behind creating the committee was to foster intelligent discussion about the issue. In order to participate in rational discussions about Brown and the slave trade, it is imperative that students read the report.

Brown students have a lot to do—papers to write, problem sets to solve, pages and pages of textbooks to read, in addition to the multitude of extracurriculars in which most Brown students immerse themselves. However, there must be some way that Brown’s connections to the slave trade could become common knowledge at Brown. The report is available for free online and the corporation plans to make free hard-print copies available—it is currently sold at the bookstore. Making the report required summer reading does not seem like a good idea—most students I talked to felt that it would just turn them against it and make it even more unappealing to read the report. One student explained, "people wouldn’t do it, and people aren’t going to get anything out of it if they’re forced to do it and don’t want to." As high school seniors, we were all chosen to become students at Brown because we were seen as thoughtful, voracious seekers of knowledge, yet few students know or want to know about the history of the University itself and how they themselves are benefiting from slavery.

Many students I spoke to seemed to care, yet could not find time to read and think about the report. At freshman orientation, students are introduced to the history of Brown’s debt to slaves in a large class lecture, but there are no small discussions about it. There is a chance this will change with the release of the report. Perhaps small, mandatory discussion groups, either during orientation or during the year, are necessary to spur conversation. Perhaps an annual day or week devoted to learning and thinking about Brown’s history would be a good idea.

The University Corporation was quick to issue its response in February 2007 "on behalf of the University." However, perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a response on behalf of the Corporation. Where were the students, faculty, and staff involved with this response? Many of their recommendations for action were excellent—money, teachers, and support for Providence public schools, easily accessible copies of the report, and a revised official history of Brown. However, creating a committee and coming up with a list of recommendations is easy; implementing change is not. It is up to the students of Brown to come up with their own response to the report. Those of us who inadvertently benefit from past injustices have an obligation to act to fight against current injustices and make the world a more just place today. ● BC

Thanks to ET107 for suggestions. Read the report at http://www.brown.edu/Research/Slavery_Justice/.