The Memory Project, part of UVA's Karsh Institute of Democracy, promotes research, develop curricula and programming, and create opportunities for public engagement to address issues of public memory, memory conflict, and memory politics in the wake of the right-wing violence that came to Charlottesville in August 2017. As the events of 2017, the legacies of slavery in the United States, and the problematic history of Charlottesville and the University in particular raise a host of unique challenges for scholars, policy makers, and public officials, the Memory Project aims to demonstrate that Charlottesville and the University of Virginia are at the forefront of a growing trend toward a more objective examination of the past in the service of creating a more equitable and ethical future. The Memory Project is partially funded by generous grants from the Mellon Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
