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PHOTO JOURNAL

PHOTO JOURNAL. East St. Louis Work Weekend September 27-28, 2002. The journey begins…. We started off with a tour of East St. Louis, and a stop at the Catherine Dunham Museum.

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PHOTO JOURNAL

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  1. PHOTO JOURNAL East St. Louis Work Weekend September 27-28, 2002

  2. The journey begins… We started off with a tour of East St. Louis, and a stop at the Catherine Dunham Museum

  3. “The Katherine Dunham Museum is a celebration of the overlooked arts of humanity. Global in concept and in collection, the museum gathers art in both symbolic and functional forms from Africa, South America and the West Indies. A visit to the museum is an education in the aspirations and livelihoods of entire cultures.” -The Katherine Dunham Museum on Pennsylvania Ave. in East St. Louis

  4. After lunch at N.T.A.C. … Off we go to work!

  5. 10th and Tudor Clean up site Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, Clearing Brush…..

  6. Dave our MAN…. The only guy in our group…

  7. T.A. Bender, hard at work Yelias Bender, 1st year M.U.P candidate, helps Tayanna Crowder. “Bender” was our driver during the trip.

  8. Professors do the dirty work Trees have no chance when Bruce Wicks has a chainsaw in hand. Wicks is an Associate Professor for the department of Tourism and Recreation Michael Andrejasich, Interim Director of Architecture, removes branches from a debilitated tree

  9. 10th and Tudor Clearing the site took both days and many volunteers, but we all helped finish the job!

  10. Interview Time From left to right: Alex Bass, Peidi Chin, Tayanna Crowder, Alexis Gomez, Gretchen Minneman, Joanna Benjamin, Melissa Dorsey, David Sidney, Ms. King and Friend. Thank you, Ms. King!

  11. Ms. King As a long-time resident of East St. Louis, Ms. King offered valuable insight into the history and plight of her hometown. On Segregation and White flight: Melissa: …so, um, who lived in the South End? Was it mostly families? Ms. King: It was families. Um, black families. We did have the cotton belt. The cotton belt was the, uh, um, switching yards for the trains in that area which of course all of the engineers and guys were white. And so those children were bussed to inner schools in the white neighborhoods. They (stuttering), th-, they were not allowed to go to our schools. Melissa: Not allowed? Who made that law? Ms. King: Well, whomever. Melissa: Were they sent to St. Louis then? Ms. King: No, (voice gets stronger) that was here, that was here! Of course the bussing was nothing newwhen they started all the riggum-maroll about bussing-it was nothing new because these kids had been bussed past the black schools for years to white schools. So I don’t know what that land [unclear] because I don’t live out there. Anymore. Melissa: When was it that black kids started going to those schools? When were the schools integrated? When did it stop being so segregated, or was it always? Ms. King: Well, I don’t think that it ever became just…(very long pause) totally eliminated…

  12. Dinner at the Ramada Professor Bruce Wicks is patiently waiting to chow down after a hard day’s work. YUM YUM!

  13. Journal “A city of bubbles transforms before my eyes as I approach East St. Louis. It is a collection of translucent spheres, giving off shreds of light and glimmering all kinds of colors. As they float, clustered together and bound by their psychedelic rainbow patterns, they begin to take shape of tiny little worlds entrapped in a piece of glass. These snow globes take on their own aura, and each one glows a slightly different shade from the next. Neighborhoods of pinks, greens, silvers and baby blues mingle together with the bright fuchsias, the reds, the dark browns. Slowly, the bubbles change places with each other in a parade of soapy colors…” In East St. Louis, there is much similarity between this journal essay and its reality. The neighborhoods we encountered, South End, Alta Sita and Emerson Park, were slightly different from each other, and yet the same. The bubbles are metaphors for these neighborhoods and how they relate to each other. While each of the areas are situated directly next to each other and more or less share the same problems, they are in fact separate entities that receive different amounts of aid and attention, and thus experience different improvements.

  14. Another Journal “As I entered East St. Louis, I couldn’t help but picture in my mind a gem, one that perhaps through years and decades of wear has lost much of its luster and shine, and has become scuffed and chipped. The city and the people are all like this; gems whose value has been long forgotten. Investors who couldn’t see through the dirt are gone, off to other cities with more immediate and less hidden treasure. However, those who have remained have seen small and gradual polishing and revitalization in facets of the city. Glimmers of sunlight refract from street corners and the windows of old high houses where people are instigating change.” This journal was written before the trip to East St. Louis, so its author tried to fill in any questions she had about the city using her imagination…it turned out to be pretty accurate as an analogy. While in East St. Louis, the group felt as though they were helping to “polish the gem” and make the city more beautiful for its residents. Even if the results of our actions are not immediately noticeable, they hopefully will have an impact in the years to come-this is the sort of motivation that is crucial to social change and action.

  15. Melissa on removing vines… “Look! Instant gratification…. It’s there… (pulls out another handful of dead vines) now it’s GONE! CLEAN FENCE!” Peidi Chin shows how it’s done

  16. TA-DAH!! Our proud accomplishment at Lincoln Park

  17. Weeding the park…. Alex Bass works with the kiddies

  18. We found ourselves some little helpers! Left: Peidi Chin weeds with new friends Above: Gretchen Minneman gets help with garbage cleanup

  19. Lincoln Park Above: Tayanna Crowder pulls weeds Gretchen Minneman (Above right) and Melissa Dorsey (Below Right) smile

  20. Simple tasks such as cutting down overgrown weeds in the South End has more to it than being ‘busy work’. Sure, our efforts definitely helped the neighborhood look better, not just to the residents, but to visitors as well. It definitely feels better to come home to a well-maintained environment than a shabby one.

  21. The more aesthetically-pleasing surroundings also help residents to cultivate a sense of pride for their neighborhood, and hopefully, encourage them to do something to improve it. If we as outsiders can be so enthusiastic helping out, perhaps the residents would be spurred on to take action.

  22. The End

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