Case Review: Lanier v. Harvard (2021)

Descendant of enslaved people fights for property rights to their daguerreotypes commissioned by Harvard scientist

By Adetokunbo Fashanu.

Harvard University, founded in 1636, is one of the many American institutions that has to confront and atone for the consequences of its historical ties to slavery. From reviewing its collection of remains of enslaved African-Americans, held at the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, to removing insensitive lyrics from its alma mater and renaming buildings, Harvard is no stranger to this nationwide reckoning. Research by Harvard students indicates that at least three Harvard presidents owned enslaved people.[1] Harvard has publicly acknowledged these ties and has made some effort to address its past in a 2017 major public conference, Universities and Slavery: Bound By History, “exploring the long-neglected connections between universities and slavery.” [2]

However, the University falls short of “confronting the reality of a past in which academic curiosity and opportunity overwhelmed humanity” (to quote from current Harvard President Lawrence S. Bacow’s own words). Consider the case of Lanier v. Harvard (“the Lanier case”), which can be seen as a step backward in Harvard’s quest to make amends for its past connections with slavery.