On Thursday, June 18, 2009, the United States Senate passed a non-binding resolution apologizing to African-Americans for the wrongs of slavery.   The resolution did not offer reparations.

via Faculty Lounge:

This follows on the heels of the Brown University’s Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice, which issued its report in 2006, as well as several state apologies for slavery in 2007.  I’ve already expressed surprise that academics weren’t more involved in the state slavery apologies, so it should come as no surprise that they seem to have been absent from the discussion in the Senate.  The University of Virginia also apologized for its connections to slavery, in April 2007.  UVA had been talking about an apologyfor some time.  (And back in 2007 when the Virginia legislature was contemplating an apology for slavery, I had some thoughts over at diverse education’s website.)

So let me look into the crystal ball and ask, what next?  We’ve been following the latest talk at William and Mary about its study of slavery on its campus.  And the University of Maryland’s been conducting a year-long study of slavery in its campus, under the direction of distinguished historian Ira Berlin.  Perhaps some other schools will conduct similar investigations, I’m not sure.  We may hear something about this from places like Randolph Macon College, the University of Georgia, Ole Miss, or Transylvania (four schools that figure in University, Court, and Slave.)….