Bass Connections report recommends that Duke should engage with its history, ties to slavery
Under the mentorship of Robin Kirk, co-chair of Duke Human Rights Center at the Franklin Humanities Institute, the Bass Connections team Constructing Memory at Duke has released a 100-page report analyzing current memory sites on Duke's campus, and making recommendations for additional sites to showcase a more inclusive and diverse perspective on Duke's history.
Kirk said that the idea for the project came from her human rights work and that the team hopes the report helps community members learn about Duke’s history and start conversations about their recommendations.
“But I'd like to point out that our report is unique. Along with Duke's ties to slavery, we also take on Duke's ties to white supremacy and discrimination in the 20th century. We also wanted to show what our campus could be, with new sites and initiatives that address the past and also lift up other forebears,” she wrote in an email. “Ultimately, we lay out a profoundly hopeful vision for what our campus could be.”
