To the editor:

I am writing to commend the members of the Bristol Town Council for their wise decision at their meeting on Sept. 21 to support the proposal of the Bristol Middle Passage Committee to erect a memorial to the people affected by the slave trade here in Bristol. This is a distant but important chapter in Bristol's history and participation in the UNESCO Middle Passage and Port Markers Project will be another valuable contribution that Bristol makes to recognizing our town's divers history and its role in the American experiment. In this we join other neighboring towns and cities as well as many others worldwide.

However difficult it may be, Bristol’s acknowledgement of the events that occurred here as part of the slave trade will be appreciated by many visitors to our community, who may be drawn here to see the memorial, as well as by our own citizens. This will be a positive and unifying touchstone to our past.

Peter Dorfman
42 High St.