Annapolis has joined a handful of jurisdictions across the country to officially apologize for its role in the American slave trade.

 The City Council passed a resolution unanimously Monday, with aldermen Michael Christman and Julie Stankivic abstaining.

 Sponsored by aldermen Richard Israel and Sam Shropshire, the measure went through substantial revisions, with the final version, drafted by Israel, expressing "profound regret" and recommending that the last week in October be a week for studying slavery.

 "The citizens can be proud that Annapolis is the first municipal body to apologize for its past support of slavery and segregation," Shropshire said.

 Annapolis was one of the Chesapeake region's earliest slave ports, yet had a large class of free blacks. Slavery was abolished in Maryland in 1864. [MORE]