Report of Commission on Memorials

In 2003, Brown University President Ruth J. Simmons appointed a broad-based committee of faculty, administrators, and undergraduate and graduate students to investigate the University’s history with regard to slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. The Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice devoted three years to uncovering, discussing, and understanding that history, as well as to the “complex historical, political, legal, and moral questions posed by any present-day confrontation with past injustice.”1 In October 2006, the Steering Committee issued its final report. Among the recommendations was that the University memorialize the history revealed by the Committee by creating a “living site of memory, inviting reflection and fresh discovery without provoking paralysis or shame.”2 The University issued an official response to the report of the Steering Committee that the Brown Corporation endorsed in February 2007. The response includes a “Plan of Action” that, among other things, calls for the formation of a commission representing the city, state, and the University to “determine how this history should be memorialized in the state, city, and on College Hill.”3 The Commission met throughout the 2007–2008 academic year. This report details its process and offers recommendations for next steps.