EAST ST. LOUIS – Negative narratives, bad perceptions and stereotypical typecasting about the Illinois town is why former and current East St. Louis residents wanted to tell their own stories about their city.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT) Campus Center hosted “Meet the Authors: A Look at East St. Louis Through Real Community Stories” on Monday, April 11 in the SIUE East St. Louis Learning Resource Center.
“Since fall 2020, students have been collecting oral histories to highlight truths about East St. Louis and its residents,” said Connie Frey Spurlock, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Sociology and TRHT director, “with a goal of shifting the narrative from one controlled and dominated by falsehoods generated by outsiders to a narrative that is controlled and shaped by those who have a sense of belonging to the community.”
THRT debuted its documentary film, “We the Authors,” created and produced by Jesus Garcia, a senior majoring in applied communication studies. Starring in the film are Fannie Acoff, program coordinator of SIUE’s CORE T.E.A.M. (College Readiness: Transition, Engage, Achieve and Mentor); Darryl Cherry, coordinator of Student Retention for SIUE’s Student Opportunities for Academic Results (SOAR); Wesley Robinson-McNeese, MD, SIU System executive director for diversity initiatives and associate professor of internal medicine; Maracus Scott, SIUE ITS technical associate; Simone Williams, assistant professor and diversity and engagement librarian at SIUE’s Lovejoy Library; Markiysha Cunningham, SIUE student majoring in liberal studies; and Bob Gill, East St. Louis Historical Society member.
The film focused on three questions:
- How do others see East St. Louis?
- What do you see in East St. Louis?
- What does East St. Louis need to heal?
“Dangerous. Violent. A place no one would want to live,” said Scott. “But that is not representative of the totality of the city. East St. Louis is more than that.”
“People here are just like everyone else,” said Gill. “People in East St. Louis want a good place to raise their children and make a living.”
“We need to speak up and get the good message out about East St. Louis,” said Robinson-McNeese.
Following the documentary, a panel discussion was held with Acoff, Cunningham, Gill, and Scott.
The people of East St. Louis, was Scott’s answer to what the panel valued most about the city. “There is hope for the city if we start to come back,” said the entrepreneur. “We can make use of our talents, and the city will thrive. There is greatness in the people.”
“It takes a community to build a better place,” added Cunningham. “People have to be willing to add to the change and share the resources and networks.”
Former East St. Louis Mayor Alvin Parks asked Acoff, “How do you make students feel good about themselves and understand how to succeed, while not getting discouraged about the stigma of being from East St. Louis?”
“I start with my own personal story,” responded Acoff. “Their eyes light up when they find out I’m from East St. Louis. I go on to share that everyone in the world knows we’re known for producing great athletes and musicians, but we also have great business executives, entrepreneurs, and academic scholars. I tell them to have an open mind and consider things they may not normally consider as options.”
“I was fascinated and inspired to hear the stories of East St Louis residents and students,” said Kevin Leonard, PhD, dean of SIUE’s College of Arts and Sciences. “I was especially struck by the degree to which East St Louis residents – Black, white, and different ages – agreed about the challenges the city has faced and the strength and resilience of its residents.”
“It was heartening to realize SIUE has made a difference in the lives of the residents I heard speak,” Leonard added. “The University has been a positive force in East St. Louis. SIUE can build on its history and do even more to serve the community.”
The SIUE Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Campus Center will serve as a model for community-based racial healing and change in the St. Louis-Metro East region and seeks to dismantle a hierarchy of human value by connecting community agencies already engaged in anti-racism work, establishing new relationships between those community agencies and SIUE, and prepare college and high school students to work alongside community members as agents of social change. TRHT takes an anti-colonial position that leverages our privilege as an economically and socially powerful institution. As equal partners with all stakeholders, we will establish authentic, trusting relationships for the upbuilding of sustainable communities where people of all backgrounds can thrive.
With a focus on empowering people and strengthening communities, the SIUE East St. Louis Center is dedicated to improving the lives of families and individuals – from pre-school through adult – in the Metro East. Head Start/Early Head Start and a charter high school are among the programs that offer the community renewed hope and an opportunity to reach educational, career, and life goals. The Center also assigns first priority to encouraging, supporting, and improving the educational success of the residents of East St. Louis and surrounding urban communities. The Center provides comprehensive programs, services, and training in the areas of education, health, social services, and the arts.
