St. Louis University’s student government association unanimously passed a resolution on April 24 calling for the university’s administration to immediately reconcile its history of slavery and repay the descendants for the harm it has caused their families for centuries.
The student leadership organization’s Senate Resolution 007-24 demands the university implement a path toward repair for the Descendants of the St. Louis University Enslaved, a coalition of descendants calling on the university to pay reparations for its past harms.
It also demands that SLU integrate the descendant families into the campus community to help make strategic reparative plans and connect with other Jesuit colleges and universities that have created initiatives in response to reconciling their racist histories. The leaders also want the university to create a memorial to honor the enslaved people.
Not atoning the university’s past connection to slavery is in direct contrast with SLU’s social justice mission, said Ryan Tisdale, president of the student government association.
“With SLU being a social justice institution … and all the things that are connected to our Catholic Jesuit mission at SLU, that the university really shouldn't be claiming to follow that mission if we're not willing to stand up for things,” he said.
Tisdale and two other student government leaders wrote the resolution after hearing a presentation in early April from Robin Proudie, the founder of the descendants’ coalition, on SLU’s role in slavery.
The resolution also includes a timeline of events that occurred at SLU since the creation of the university’s ties to slavery study in 2016. It goes on to provide updates on meetings the descendants had with the administration over the years and the recent lack of communication between the descendants and the administration.
“We don't want to speak for SGA, we want the descendants to be able to speak for themselves, and the university hears their stories as they are,” Tisdale said. “This was just serving as another opportunity for us to uplift and elevate and bring back to the attention of the administration that this is what we're looking at.”
On Feb. 8, the descendants held a press conference and teach-in at SLU to make the campus community aware that enslaved Black people helped Jesuit missions in Missouri by constructing the university. The descendants estimated the value of the labor stolen by the institution at $361 million to $74 billion.
At the time, an SLU spokesperson said the university would have conversations with the descendants to find a path to reconciliation. Since the February press conference, Proudie said there has been some effort from the administration, but not enough, and the students' help could prompt the administration to redress what has been done to the descendants.
“It's really important for students to get involved so that we are continuing to elevate the voices of those who have been historically marginalized and oppressed and helping them advocate for what they deserve,” Tisdale said.
The descendants provided their 10-point plan to the administration last week that outlines the work that can be done with participation of the university and the descendants. It includes remedies such as a formal apology from SLU, a schoolwide initiative to continue its slavery research, commemorations and memorials and direct economic support from the university.
“We've done this work, so we don't need to wait,” Proudie said. “Now, we can just go and talk about setting up an action plan.”
She said the university representatives want to meet with the descendants, but no date has been set.
St. Louis Public Radio reached out to SLU administration with a request for comment but received no response.
“The harm was multidimensional, and it was intergenerational, so the repair should be multidimensional, and intergenerational, and we want this to be a community effort,” Proudie said. “When you take a look at the plan, you will see that we also are trying to do things that will impact the community as a whole.”
She hopes the institution puts the descendants at the center of the table to be co-creators of reparative justice.
“Some descendants are just done, because nothing has happened after all this time,” she said. “So, that's why it's so significant that the students have supported us. We know that the students have a voice, and that this school will listen to them, hopefully.”
