Fact Check: "Cellini estimates 10,000 living descendants of enslaved individuals tied to Harvard."
What We Know
Richard J. Cellini, an attorney and scholar, has been appointed to lead the Harvard Slavery Remembrance Program, which aims to identify the descendants of enslaved individuals connected to Harvard University. Cellini previously founded the Georgetown Memory Project, which successfully identified over 10,000 descendants of enslaved people sold to fund Georgetown University (source-1; source-2). His work at Georgetown involved meticulous genealogical research, which he plans to replicate at Harvard. Cellini has expressed confidence that many descendants will be found in the Cambridge and Boston areas, suggesting a significant number of living descendants (source-2).
Analysis
The claim that Cellini estimates there are 10,000 living descendants of enslaved individuals tied to Harvard is partially true. While Cellini's previous work at Georgetown indeed identified over 10,000 descendants, it is important to note that this figure specifically pertains to the descendants of enslaved individuals sold by Georgetown University in 1838, not directly to Harvard (source-5).
At Harvard, the project is still in its early stages, and while Cellini anticipates finding a significant number of descendants, he has not publicly stated a specific estimate for Harvard's context. His confidence in finding many descendants in the local community is based on historical ties and the long-standing presence of these families in the area, but it does not equate to a confirmed estimate of 10,000 living descendants specifically linked to Harvard (source-2; source-8).
The reliability of the sources is generally high, as they include statements from Cellini himself and reports from reputable institutions like Harvard University and The Guardian. However, the interpretation of Cellini's statements can vary, and the lack of direct evidence linking the 10,000 figure to Harvard specifically raises questions about the accuracy of the claim.
Conclusion
The claim that "Cellini estimates 10,000 living descendants of enslaved individuals tied to Harvard" is partially true. While Cellini has successfully identified over 10,000 descendants in a different context (Georgetown), there is no current estimate specifically for Harvard. His ongoing work aims to uncover these connections, but definitive numbers have yet to be established.
