Second survey highlights downturn in support for the Dutch king

DutchNews, April 27, 2022 

Photo: Robin Utrecht 

RVD A second survey has highlighted the downturn in support for king Willem-Alexander and the criticism of the way he acted during the coronavirus crisis. 

Last week, a poll involving 26,000 people for television show EenVandaag showed just 54% have faith in the monarch and now an Ipsos survey for news channel NOS paints a similar picture. 

Just 47% of those in the NOS survey have confidence in the way the king does his job and only similar percentage think he performed well during the past two years. Before coronavirus hit, 75% thought the king was performing well. 

The two years of coronavirus have been particularly damning for the royals, following a string of blunders over holidays, and culminating in a small party for oldest daughter Amalia when she turned 18 during the lockdown at the end of last year. 

The Ipsos survey gave the king a personal score of 6.7 out of 10, which is well down on the 7.7 he scored in 2020. Queen Máxima’s score of 7.6 is virtually unchanged on 2021 but down on her 2020 rating of 8. Seven in 10 of survey respondents said they thought she was doing a good job. 

Despite the criticism, 58% still support the monarchy as an institution, roughly in line with the EenVandaag figure.

Harvard creates $100 mn slavery reparation fund

Yahoo – AFP, April 26, 2022 

Harvard University has announced a $100 million fund to atone for its role
in slavery (AFP/Maddie Meyer) (Maddie Meyer)

America's prestigious Harvard University announced Tuesday it will commit $100 million to redress its role in slavery, as more US institutions move toward reparations for historical injustices. 

Harvard said it was putting the money into a fund to help tackle the educational and social gaps caused by the legacies of the slave trade and racism. 

The move follows a wide-ranging internal review of the university's role in slavery, the results of which were posted on its website. 

The 100-page report made several recommendations about how the money should be spent, including the improvement of educational opportunities for descendant communities, honoring enslaved people through memorials and research, and creating partnerships with Black colleges and universities. 

It also recommended identifying and supporting direct descendants of Black and Native American enslaved individuals who labored on Harvard's campus and who were enslaved by previous Harvard leaders. 

"Harvard benefited from and in some ways perpetuated practices that were profoundly immoral," Harvard president Lawrence Bacow wrote in a letter to students and staff posted on the institution's website. 

"Consequently, I believe we bear a moral responsibility to do what we can to address the persistent corrosive effects of those historical practices on individuals, on Harvard, and on our society," he added. 

Harvard was founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1636. 

The report found that Harvard staff, including four presidents, enslaved more than 70 individuals until slavery was outlawed in the state in 1783. 

The report also found that the university "benefited from extensive financial ties to slavery," including donations from slave traders. 

It said that from the mid-19th century well into the 20th century Harvard presidents and prominent professors promoted race science and eugenics and "conducted abusive 'research,' including the photographing of enslaved and subjugated human beings." 

Harvard's announcement comes as US institutions grapple with how to make amends for their role in slavery. 

Last year, the leaders of the Jesuit conference of priests vowed to raise $100 million to benefit the descendants of slaves it once owned. 

In 2019, students at Georgetown University approved a fund that would benefit the descendants of slaves sold by the elite Jesuit school in the 1800s.