The Annual College Forum—Confronting Our Past: The University of Maryland’s 1856 Project
May 06, 2022
Three panelists discussed the University of Maryland’s 1856 Project, which examines the role of slavery in the university's founding and history.
The 2022 Annual College Forum brought together three panelists to discuss the University of Maryland’s founding and its relationship to slavery. UMD archivists Joni Floyd and Lae’l Hughes-Watkins, and Morgan State University Assistant Professor of History & Geography Herbert Brewer, a UMD alumnus, discussed UMD’s 1856 Project, a new initiative that examines the university’s historical connections to slavery. The discussion situated the project’s work within the larger context of the Universities Studying Slavery Consortium, an international group of colleges and universities that encourage their campuses to think about their connections to slavery and address issues surrounding race and inequality in higher education.