NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Yale University issued an apology Friday for its involvement with chattel slavery in the United States.
The statement came from Yale President Peter Salovey after findings were issued from the Yale and Slavery Research Project.
The Slavery Research Project started at the university in 2020 and included contributions from faculty, staff, students and New Haven community members.
Yale professor David Blight spearheaded the project.
Today, on behalf of Yale University, we recognize our university’s historical role in and associations with slavery, as well as the labor, the experiences, and the contributions of enslaved people to our university’s history, and we apologize for the ways that Yale’s leaders, over the course of our early history, participated in slavery. Acknowledging and apologizing for this history are only part of the path forward. These findings have propelled us toward meaningful action to address the continued effects of slavery in society today.
Peter Salovey, Ph.D.
“It was not merely a search for all that’s wrong or evil in Yale’s history, it was trying to do what history actually does: find the truth. As close as you can get to it, put it together, and then tell a story.”
Blight told NewsNation affiliate WTNH he was asked by Salovey to start the project in 2020.
The Research Project found there are no known records of Yale University owning enslaved people, but many of the university’s founders and leaders, including seven of Yale’s ten original trustees, did own and enslave people. More than 200 of these enslaved Black and Indigenous people have been identified thanks to the Research Project.
All findings are being peer-reviewed and published in a book. The full book and key findings are available online.
Moving forward, the university said its main focus is on increasing educational access for New Haven youth and guaranteeing that Yale’s history, in its entirety, is better reflected on their campus.
“Apologizing is taking responsibility, so that’s the first step,” said Yale student Victor Amana.
But another student, Liz, who did not want to share her last name, told WTNH, “I think they should’ve done it earlier, and they’re not doing enough.”
It’s not the first time Yale has been confronted about this issue. In 2017, it was forced to change its name from Calhoun College to Hopper College. It came after months of protest. The college was initially named after 7th U.S. Vice President John Calhoun, known for his passionate support of slavery.
Yale says it is taking several actions and initiatives as a result of the latest findings, including:
- Increasing educational access and excellence in teaching and research.
- Advancing inclusive economic growth in New Haven.
- Acknowledging the past.
- Creating widespread access to historical findings.
Yale is already partnering with the New Haven Public School System for a residency program to place 100 qualified teachers into city schools within five years. In the summer of 2025, Yale plans to launch a teaching institute for K-12 teachers to improve how regional history is taught in Connecticut, beginning with Indigenous history.
A full list of the university’s new initiatives and commitments can also be found online.
“I don’t think it’s just lip service,” said Dori Dumas, New Haven NCAAP President. “To hear the president take this stance and to apologize and to really try to make right so many wrongs, shining a light on the ills of this society … is huge for New Haven.”
Dumas says she hopes other colleges and universities nationwide will follow in Yale’s footsteps.
