The Ivy League’s Ties to Slavery Raise Questions for Prospective Students
This op-ed talks about grappling with the racist history of elite colleges and universities.
By Tigerlily Theo Hopson (SL Network Alum, ’21), Teen Vogue
April 8, 2020
I first heard the name Elihu Yale two years ago. It was a hot, July afternoon, and I was taking a tour of Yale University’s New Haven campus, mesmerized by the Collegiate Gothic buildings covered in winding ivy. As we walked along, our guide, a jovial rising senior with light blonde hair, mentioned that Yale’s namesake was an East India Company merchant. I thought nothing of this, but then my mom leaned over and whispered in my ear, “That means he was a slave trader!”
With that, the fantasy of the Ivy League came crashing down. These universities, like most long-standing American institutions, were built on the backs of enslaved Black Americans. And in the summer of 2020, my generation rose up against this history. We marched with Black Lives Matter signs until our feet ached, organized protests, and wrote articles and posts on social media critiquing institutional racism. I had spent my high school career organizing actions and fighting for social justice — was it hypocritical for my dream school to be one whose history represents everything I have fought against?
