Students at Emory University are protesting a column written by their university president James Wagner, in which he applauded the three-fifths compromise of 1757, which counted each slave as a fraction of a person for census-taking purposes. The column lauded the compromise as a lesson for today’s lawmakers on making hard choices.
In addition to facing student protests, Wagner has been censured by a faculty group, and has been accused of selectively cutting programs that are used by minority students.
Wagner has denied any racist intent and has apologized for the article, stating that he finds slavery “heinous” and asking for forgiveness for his “clumsiness and insensitivity.”
Wagner met with delegates from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Friday where he spoke about the fight for racial equality. Approximately 45 students marched outside the speech venue in protest.
The president of the Black Student Alliance at Emory, Jovana Jones, said she had forgiven Wagner.
With files from The New York Times
