The Duke University Office of the Provost is holding a major symposium, March 30-31, 2018, on the history of American universities and the legacies of slavery, which provides an occasion to reflect on the meaning of monuments, racism, white supremacy, the history of the South, and their meaning for the present.
The symposium is convening some of the nation’s leading scholars of history, law, economics, art history, and sociology whose voices have been central to the current debate.
From humble beginnings as Trinity College to its present stature as one of the nation’s and the South’s leading universities, Duke University has been inescapably a place where questions of race, and citizenship, and belonging have been central, compelling, and difficult. Following the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue from the entrance to Duke Chapel on August 19, 2017, President Vincent Price recommitted the University to a “campus conversation about controversy and injustice in Duke’s history.” This symposium aims to contribute to that conversation. With this effort, Duke University joins other universities across the country that are exploring often troubling pasts in the midst of debates about monuments, the direct and indirect ties many universities had to the institution of slavery, the political disfranchisement of African Americans, segregated education, and systemic social, civic, and economic inequalities.
This event is open to the public, and students are especially encouraged to attend. Advance registration is not required.