When Robin Proudie walks St. Louis University's campus, she treads ground traversed by relatives generations before her. Those forebears were not alumni. They were Black men, women and children who were enslaved by the school's Jesuit Catholics in the 1800s. So becoming a student at SLU this past fall was a deeply considered choice with great meaning and purpose.
"I was accepted to other universities," Proudie said. "I wanted to go to St. Louis University. My ancestors were forced to labor there during the time [others] were getting an education. So it's symbolic to me. I'm going to walk across this stage in 2027 with a degree they were not afforded."
Being a student at the institution that held her great-great-grandmother and two dozen other kin in bondage expands upon work Proudie has led as the founder and executive director of Descendants of St. Louis University Enslaved, a nonprofit organization formed a few years after Proudie's family received word of their enslaved history from the Slavery, History, Memory and Reconciliation Project in 2019. Getting access to SLU's historical archives through that project aligned with her personal quest for answers.
"I was already on a website looking for my ancestors when [the researchers] contacted me. I learned everything I could and just kept going, and became a subject matter expert in all things Jesuits, St. Louis University and my ancestors," Proudie said.
Of the nonprofit's three pillars — remembrance, reconciliation and reparative justice — the third has been most challenging. A March 2025 ceremony centered around a formal university apology to descendants of enslaved Black people was postponed when Descendants of St. Louis University Enslaved pulled out of the event, citing the absence of focused attention to, discussion about and institutional denial of cash reparations for their ancestors' forced labor.
There's no clear timeline for the rescheduling of the event, especially given the university's transition to a new president, Edward J. Feser, over the past several months. But Proudie has kept things pushing as the group's leader and a newly minted Billiken herself. In her first term, she submitted an application to create SLU's first chartered, student-led organization whose activities honor ancestors like hers who helped make the university what it is today. So far, she's connected with 10 students who want to be part of a group.
Proudie hopes to hear word on that application soon and looks forward to working with Feser to explore avenues for reparative justice, including SLU scholarships for descendants and other education and economic opportunities. In the meantime, she said she'll continue to work for the enslaved relatives who came before her — people whose lives remain profoundly intertwined with hers.
"Every time I walk on that campus, because it's hallowed ground, I do feel the presence of my ancestors," Proudie said. "It's like what [W.E.B.] Du Bois talked about when he said double consciousness, right? It's really difficult, but it is rewarding. … I'm on a mission."
To hear how the labor of Robin Proudie's ancestors helped build St. Louis University's St. Francis Xavier College Church, what Robin presented at the UN about universities' role in enslavement and reparative justice, and why DSLUE's efforts resonate with groups working with higher ed institutions in New Jersey, Virginia and Washington, D.C., listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube, or click the play button below.
Related Event
What: Missouri Emancipation Day event
When: Jan. 8 | happy hour at 5 p.m., program at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Lee Auditorium and MacDermott Grand Hall, Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63112
"St. Louis on the Air" brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Darrious Varner is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
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