You may remember that last year, Dalhousie University announced that it was forming a panel to study the history of the university with respect to slavery and race, with a focus on moving forward. The panel was led by Afua Cooper, and consisted of experts from across the country, including Françoise Baylis, Camille Cameron, Ainsley Francis, Paul Lovejoy, David States, Shirley Tillotson, Harry Amani Whitfield, and Norma Williams, with research support from Jalana Lewis, Kylie Peacock, and Wade Pfaff, as well as contributors Karly Kehoe and Isaac Saney.
The final report was released late last week, and found that the nine Earl of Dalhousie actively worked to expel Black refugees from the War of 1812 from Nova Scotia, helped enforce the British order that all formerly enslaved Black persons be returned to their masters following a coup in Martinique in 1794, and used proceeds from trade with slave-owning West Indies produces to establish Dalhousie University. And both he and the first two presidents of Dalhousie University openly espoused anti-Black rhetoric.
The reported includes thirteen recommendations for the university, with respect to regret regarding the university’s historical and present connection to anti-Black racism and a commitment to taking steps against anti-Black racism; recognition of the lived realities of Black Nova Scotians, including their contributions; and take concrete steps to repair the harms that are the legacy of slavery. There is a special emphasis on education, and I would encourage all educators to pay special attention to these recommendations and work to enact them.
Two of the recommendations have already been enacted. The first is an apology from the president of Dalhousie University expressing regret regarding the university’s and its founders’ connections to slavery and ongoing anti-Black racism. The second has been the creation of a website where all of the panel’s materials and any related documents will be stored.
To see the Lord Dalhousie Scholarly Panel on Slavery and Race website, go here: https://www.dal.ca/dept/ldp.html
To read the final report from the panel, go here: https://www.dal.ca/dept/ldp/findings.html
To read the formal apology from the president of Dalhousie University, go here: https://www.dal.ca/dept/ldp/university-response.html
I would like to personally thank Dr. Cooper and all of the project members for their work on such an important topic. I hope to see more universities following suit.
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