Racial relations has become one of the hot topics of the news recently. This past Thursday, one university in particular made huge strides to improve the broken relationships they had created with their former involvement in slave trading. Georgetown University released a statement apologizing for its role in the slave trade, and even offered special ways to make amends for the crippling effects slavery had on the African American community. Although the school’s history is something widely recognized, the recent uproar about race relations, specifically on college campuses, has brought it into direct light. The university will now be offering admissions preferences to students who are descendants of those who were sold to benefit the school. Now, these descendants will receive the same treatment as children of faculty and staff.

This decision came after a panel of students, alumni and faculty reviewed the school’s previous involvement in slave trading to either benefit the school or pull it out of debt. A sale occurred in 1838 that resulted in $115,000 ($3.3 million today) being spent to directly benefit Georgetown University. There were also hundreds of enslaved people working for and in the school. Not only was this a direct blow to human dignity, but it tore families apart, families that still live on today. It pulled women away from their children and men away from their wives. Not to mention, once sold, many slaves were sent to Louisiana where they worked under extremely harsh conditions where owners typically tended to have no mercy on them.

The response to the recent decision has been emotional to say the least. Many who trace their lineage directly back to the slaves sold in 1838 are overjoyed that they are finally being recognized. Finally, there will be no absence of an apology. Still, as Craig Steven Wilder stated, “the significance of such a gesture would rest heavily on the degree to which Georgetown invested in outreach to descendants, including identifying them, making sure they are aware of the benefit's existence and actively recruiting them to the university.” Statistically, there may be 12,000 to 15,000 living. With such a large number, the university certainly has its work cut out for it.

It’s no secret that much of America’s history is built on the backs of those who were enslaved, mistreated, and exploited; but it’s also no secret that we are a progressive nation working to repair the mistakes made in the past. Georgetown University has made a remarkable step in the direction of freedom, atonement and justice. Learning from your sins is never easy, but it will always be worth it.