Our Purpose
In announcing the establishment of the Yale and Slavery Working Group on October 14, 2020, Yale University President Peter Salovey stated, “To understand where we are today and to move forward as a community, we must study the history of our university. As an American institution that is 319 years old, Yale has a complex past that includes associations, many of them formative, with individuals who actively promoted slavery, anti-Black racism, and other forms of exploitation. We have a responsibility to explore this history, including its most difficult aspects; we cannot ignore our institution’s own ties to slavery and racism, and we should take this opportunity to research, understand, analyze, and communicate that history.”
Our Work
In response to President Salovey’s mandate, the Yale and Slavery Research Project undertook a deep and thorough investigation of Yale’s historic involvement and associations with slavery and its aftermaths. Building on the labor of generations of scholars, archivists, descendants, staff, and community members, the research team drew on a rich array of sources, from the Yale archives and beyond, to better understand the role of slavery and enslaved people in the making of this university.
The research team, led by David Blight, Sterling Professor of History, of African American Studies, and of American Studies and director of the Gilder Lehrman Center, received vital assistance from faculty, staff, librarians, and New Haven community members. The Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at the MacMillan Center provided administrative leadership and support.
Next steps
In a major milestone for the project, Yale and Slavery: A History, by David W. Blight with the Yale and Slavery Research Project, was published by Yale University Press in February 2024. This narrative history is a comprehensive examination of how slavery and resistance to it have shaped this university.
To download the free ebook, or to view videos, a walking tour, and other related resources, visit the new website launched in conjuction with the book. Print copies of Yale and Slavery may be purchased at bookstores, online retailers, or the Yale University Press website.
Get in touch
With questions about the Yale and Slavery Research Project, including queries about ongoing and future research, please contact Hope McGrath, Research Coordinator for Yale, New Haven, and Connecticut History at the Beinecke Library, Yale University.
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