The St. Louis African American Community and the Exodusters

by Bryan M. Jack

For many Exodusters, former slaves who made their way from the South to the Kansas plains in the aftermath of the Civil War, St. Louis was a key stop in the journey west. However, many landed on the St. Louis levee destitute, and city officials refused aid for fear of encouraging more migrants. Bryan Jack tells how the city s African American community organized relief in response to this crisis, but he also shows that black aid to the Exodusters was more than charity community support was a form of collective resistance to white supremacy and segregation as well as a statement for freedom and self-direction. The St. Louis African American community understood that if the Exodusters right to freedom of movement was limited, so would be the rights of all African Americans. He also discusses divisions within that community and among its leaders regarding the nature of aid and even whether it should be provided.

192 pages, Hardcover

First published January 3, 2008

Reviews

[David Shelton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is interesting in that it covers a group of people in the Exodusters and a period in St. Louis history that I did not know much about. The writing is not great however. I would only recommend if you're really excited about the topic.