Antigua and Barbuda wants Harvard University to fulfil its pledge on slavery compensation

WASHINGTON, Feb 12, – Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States, Sir Ronald Sanders, has formally written to the President of Harvard University, Dr Alan Garber, calling for the institution to honour its commitments to addressing its historical benefits from slavery in the Caribbean nation.

“Harvard’s historical ties to Antigua and Barbuda are clear. The wealth derived from the forced labour of enslaved persons on Antiguan plantations – including those owned by the Royall family – helped to fund Harvard Law School and other aspects of the University’s development.

“The lives and labour of those enslaved individuals were intrinsic to Harvard’s early financial capacity, and as such, Harvard bears not only a moral debt but a practical one to Antigua and Barbuda,” Sir Ronald said in the February 11 letter, addressed Garber.

The letter, sent on the instructions of Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister, Gaston Browne, expresses deep concern over Harvard’s abrupt termination of its Harvard Slavery Remembrance Programme (HSRP) research team and the unexplained transfer of its responsibilities to an external genealogical non-profit organisation without any notification to the Antigua and Barbuda government.

In the letter, the Antigua and Barbuda diplomat recalls that Harvard publicly committed to identifying and addressing the legacies of slavery tied to its wealth, particularly the contributions made from the sale of enslaved individuals in Antigua and Barbuda, whose forced labour helped finance Harvard Law School through the Royall family’s plantations.

He is calling for Harvard University to ensure that the research into these historical injustices continues with the same institutional rigour and, crucially, with the full involvement of the Government of Antigua and Barbuda.

“The people of Antigua and Barbuda are not seeking mere symbolic gestures but substantive and meaningful engagement. Harvard has an opportunity to lead by example in the global reparatory justice movement – through deepened and sustained commitment,” Sir Ronald wrote.

“I trust that Harvard will uphold its pledges and will ensure that this important work continues in a manner that is both transparent and inclusive of those most directly affected by the legacies of slavery,” he added.

The HSRP had identified nearly 1,000 individuals enslaved by Harvard donors, with several hundred specifically coming from Antigua and Barbuda.

“It is therefore with deep surprise and concern that we have learned that Harvard has terminated the work of the HSRP research team, including its Director, Dr Richard J. Cellini, and has transferred the responsibilities of the program to American Ancestors, a New England-based genealogical non-profit organization. This decision was taken without consultation or notification to the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, despite the significance of this initiative to our nation and its people,” Sir Ronald wrote.

The initiative had gained momentum following high-level meetings in January between Harvard officials and Prime Mister Browne.

However, Harvard has since laid off the entire research team and reassigned the work to American Ancestors, a New England-based genealogical non-profit, raising concerns about the future of the initiative,

The Antigua and Barbuda Ambassador has urged Harvard to ensure that any new research entity undertaking this work directly engages the Government of Antigua and Barbuda and keeps it fully informed.

He also emphasised that Harvard owes a practical debt, as well as a debt of conscience, to the people of Antigua and Barbuda, whose ancestors were integral to the financial foundation of the University.

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