Apologizing for slavery.

In a debate rarely seen at the North Carolina legislature, senators--both black and white--talked about their experiences with racism and intolerance.

Senator Tony Foriest spoke of how, as a child, his family planned their vacation stops based on where they would be permitted to stay for the night. Senator Bill Purcell struggled with knowing his grandfather had been a slave owner. And Senator Jim Jacumin told of how his Waldensian ancestors--some of whom now live in western North Carolina--were enslaved for their religious beliefs.

In the end, the North Carolina Senate passed a resolution that expressed "profound regret" for the practice of slavery and apologized for official actions that promoted legalized discrimination over four centuries. The resolution acknowledges the state's "profound contribution for the official acts that sanctioned and perpetuated the denial of basic human rights and dignity to fellow humans."

"What we're talking about is state-sponsored discrimination," says Foriest. "The state went out of its way to deny its people the right to life and liberty."

The measure recounts a long history of discrimination against North Carolina's black population, from the first slaves in the British colony of "Carolina" in 1669 through the Civil War, and Jim Crow laws that promoted inequality into the mid 1900s.

The resolution, co-sponsored by 35 of the Senate's 50 members, also called on "all citizens to take part in acts of racial reconciliation."

Black senators said colleagues need to back their words with actions aimed at improving the quality of life of blacks who still suffer from the effects of slavery and discrimination. They called for improvements to the state's education system and access of black-owned businesses to state contracts.

"When you dehumanize a human being, it's one of the worst things that you can do," says Senator Larry Shaw. "This is a noble gesture but I urge you, don't let it end here. There's plenty of work to be done."

The House followed by approving both its own resolution and the broader Senate one.

In February, the Virginia General Assembly voted unanimously to express its regret for that state's role in slavery. Maryland lawmakers approved their own apology for slavery in March, and lawmakers in Alabama, Georgia and Missouri are considering similar legislation.