This website was created in 2019 as part of a UC Berkeley initiative announced by then-Chancellor Carol Christ to mark the 400th anniversary of the forced arrival of enslaved Africans in the English colonies. This was an important national initiative that aligns with UC Berkeley’s values and goals of improving the climate for racial and ethnic diversity on our campus and with implementing campus strategic initiatives on Inequality and Opportunity; and, Democracy, Values, Governance and Freedom of Speech. The anniversary served as an opportunity for UC Berkeley to provide learning opportunities to delve into this history, understand the continuing impact of slavery and oppression, and to explore the extraordinary struggles for freedom and justice continuously fought by African Americans. This website is no longer being updated but still serves as an archive and resource hub with materials related to the year-long initiative.
Click to read more about this initiative.
Check out our interactive timeline tracing 400 years of Black struggle in the US.
Watch videos from our past events
