November 24, 2006

After Brown U.'s Report on Slavery, Silence (So Far)

Few other universities appear ready to investigate their historical ties to the slave trade

By THOMAS BARTLETT

In 1764, a ship christened Sally set sail from Providence, R.I., for the Windward Coast of Africa. Its mission was to trade goods — tobacco, candles, onions, and rum — for enslaved human beings. The traders hoped that most of the slaves would be sold in the West Indies at a tidy profit. The ship's master also had special instructions to bring four slaves, preferably young boys, back with him to Providence.

The trip did not go as planned. It took months to round