Wikipedia:Today's featured article/June 19, 2022

The 1838 Jesuit slave sale was agreed to on June 19 when the Maryland province of the Society of Jesus entered into a contract to sell 272 slaves to two Louisiana planters for $115,000. This was the culmination of a long-running debate among the Jesuits over whether to keep, sell, or manumit their slaves. In 1836, the Jesuit superior general authorized the sale on three conditions: the slaves must be permitted to practice their Catholic faith, the families must not be separated, and the proceeds must only be used to support Jesuits in training. It soon became clear that the conditions had not been met; the new owners separated families and did not allow most of the slaves to carry on their faith. The Jesuits were only partially paid, many years late. For humanitarian reasons, only 206 slaves were delivered. Many Jesuits were outraged by the sale, and the superior general removed the provincial superior for disobeying orders and promoting scandal, exiling him to Nice for several years.