Delaware Apologizes For Slavery

By David Madden

DOVER, Del. (CBS) -- The state of Delaware this week officially apologized for the role it played in slavery in this country.

Governor Jack Markell signed a resolution that African-American historians in Wilmington have pursued for years. Delaware becomes the eighth state in the nation to formally make such an apology, along with the federal government.

"The great American historian David McCullough said that a nation that forgets its' past can function no better than an individual with amnesia," Markell told KYW Newsradio. "And I think that it's important that we recognize our past really as a way to pivot to make sure that we're focusing on moving forward."

But he added that just making an apology really doesn't go far enough.

"Unless we're committed to and really re-committed to each other to making sure we're making the kinds of investments to drive a better state for all of our people forward, then it's going to be for naught," Markell said.

That would include improving job prospects for those coming out of prison and putting more money into early childhood education.