Students at Georgetown University have approved a fund that would benefit the descendants of slaves sold by the elite Jesuit school in the 1800s.
Creation of the reparations fund was approved in a student referendum and the results were announced late Thursday.
The Georgetown University Student Association (GUSA) said 2,541 students voted in favour of the measure while 1,304 opposed it.
It would levy a USD 27.20 fee on students each semester to create a fund for the descendants of 272 slaves sold by the university's Jesuit founders in 1838 to pay off debt.
The fund would be the first of its kind in the country. It would be administered by a board made up of students and descendants of the slaves to provide money for the education of descendants and other charitable purposes.
The results are not binding on the university, which was founded by Jesuits in 1789 and is located in the Georgetown neighbourhood of Washington.
Todd Olson, the school's vice president for student affairs, said the university "values the engagement of our students."
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