Georgetown University to raise $400000-a-year for reparations to benefit descendants of slaves

A fund expected to raise $400000 to pay for reparations to the descendants of slaves sold by Georgetown University is in the works at the school, which has decided not to rely on student fees that would have raised the same amount.

Georgetown said it won’t ask students to pay a $27.20-per-semester fee that was approved in a non-binding referendum vote six months ago to pay for a similar fund.

Instead, the nation’s largest and oldest Catholic university expects it can come up with roughly the same amount of money through voluntary contributions from alumni, faculty, students and philanthropists. 

Georgetown University said it won’t ask students to pay a $27.20-per-semester fee that was approved in a non-binding referendum vote six months ago to pay for reparations to the descendants of slaves sold by the institution to cover debts in the 1800s

Frank Campbell, one of the 272 enslaved people sold by in 1838 to help cover Georgetown University's debt, is pictured above with two unidentified children

Frank Campbell, one of the 272 enslaved people sold by in 1838 to help cover Georgetown University’s debt, is pictured above with two unidentified children

Pictured are some of the more than 100 descendants of slaves sold by Georgetown University who attended a 'Liturgy of Remembrance, Contrition and Hope in April at the school

Pictured are some of the more than 100 descendants of slaves sold by Georgetown University who attended a ‘Liturgy of Remembrance, Contrition and Hope in April at the school

‘The University will ensure that the initiative has resources commensurate with, or exceeding, the amount that would have been raised annually through the student fee proposed in the (r)eferendum, with opportunities for every member of our community to contribute’, wrote Georgetown’s President John J. DeGioia in a letter to members its university ‘community’ on Tuesday.

Georgetown is just the latest school looking for ways to make reparations for its ties to slavery. 

The Princeton Theological Seminary also this month said it was to set aside funding, but a much larger $27million, in support of scholarships as well as ‘cross-cultural’ changes to its curriculum as a way of ‘repenting for its past ties to slavery’, the school announced.

The theological institution’s board of trustees unanimously endorsed a reparations plan, which came about after students pressured the Presbyterian school to offer reparations.

Students at Georgetown had voted in favor of a referendum seeking the establishment of a fund that benefits the descendants of enslaved people who were sold by the school in the 1800s to pay off its debts back in April. 

More than 2,500 undergraduates at the Washington DC campus voted in favor of what of a ‘Reconciliation Contribution’ fee. The Georgetown University Student Association Elections Commission said those in favor (2,541) represented 66 per cent of votes.

The fee was opposed by 1,304 students and voting turnout was 57.9 percent.

University administrator Todd Olson didn’t commit to the fund’s establishment after the vote, but said it provided ‘valuable insight into student perspectives’.

The Princeton Theological Seminary (pictured) also this month said it was to set aside funding, but a much larger $27million, in support of scholarships as well as 'cross-cultural' changes to its curriculum as a way of 'repenting for its past ties to slavery', the school announced

The Princeton Theological Seminary (pictured) also this month said it was to set aside funding, but a much larger $27million, in support of scholarships as well as ‘cross-cultural’ changes to its curriculum as a way of ‘repenting for its past ties to slavery’, the school announced

The student-led proposal had aimed to atone for the Jesuit-organized sale of 272 slaves in 1838.

The history of Georgetown, which was founded in 1789 by John Carroll, is rife with benefit at the expense of enslaved people.

In September 2015, DeGioia formed a working group of faculty, staff and students to study the issue of how the school could address its checkered past, but little action has resulted save removing names from buildings following student demonstrations.

Students even held a rally in support of the referendum, titled ‘GU272’ ahead of the non-biding vote.

It had been anticipated that it would raise around $406,000 in its first year, based on the school’s 2018-2019 undergraduate enrollment of 7,463 students, according to data compiled by US News & World Report.

‘We embrace the spirit of this student proposal and will work with our Georgetown community to create an initiative that will support community-based projects with (d)escendant communities,’ DeGioia wrote on Tuesday in the university’s follow up to the referendum, and decision to pass on the fees.

‘This work will be grounded in our academic mission of education, research, and service; will provide opportunities for student leadership; and will be guided by extensive consultation and engagement with (d)escendants.’ 

Georgetown will next establish an advisory group to develop a plan for how to proceed and request ideas for projects, DeGioia says. The referendum called for funding projects in the 2020-2021 academic year. 

Advisory groups are also being formed to continue the school’s work on academic and research initiatives and public history efforts. 

‘We envision that students, faculty, staff, alumni, and (d)escendants will serve on each of these groups and that they will engage our broader community on their progress and activities,’ DeGioia explains in Tuesday’s letter.

‘All of these steps will be taken with the deepest respect and consideration of (d)escendant perspectives,’ he adds, ‘and while ensuring that the process of dialogue underway continues to be supported and prioritized.’

Georgetown University is pictured in this illustration as it appeared in 1830, less than a decade before the school would sell 272 slaves to cover its debts

Georgetown University is pictured in this illustration as it appeared in 1830, less than a decade before the school would sell 272 slaves to cover its debts

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk