Preserving Local History through Community Organizing

StitchCast Studio Special Edition: The Divided City and The WHY of MY City are a series of unique conversations that bring historical context around recurring topics chosen by youth in the StitchCast Studio published podcasts, including: the preservation of black history and historical sites and the stories of Missouri's people throughout time.

Celebrate Juneteenth with The WHY of MY City, a new play by Saint Louis Story Stitchers, written by Mario Farwell and directed by Gregory S. Carr.

The story…Wanda, a young African American, returns to St. Louis after graduating high school.  She wants to explore opportunities, but Zoot Suit, a well-known gangster, entices her to come work for him. The community rallies to prevent Wanda from making a serious mistake and with the help of Scott Joplin, Madam CJ Walker, Cool Papa Bell and Tina Turner, they manage to save her from the clutches of Zoot Suit.

June 16 and 16 at 7:00 PM at the .ZACK Theater, St. Louis, MO.

Get your tickets on Metrotix.

In this Special Edition episode of StitchCast Studio for The Divided City and The WHY of MY City, our StitchCast, led by Emeara Burns, sits down with Angela da Silva to discuss preserving local history through community organizing with a focus on the Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing, a landmark riverside site of an 1855 slave crossing on  the National Park Service’s Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program.

Recorded live on April 15, 2023 on site at The Griot Museum of Black History in collaboration with Counterpublic, a civic exhibition that weaves contemporary art into the life of St. Louis.

Pick the City UP Art Interlude

Wade

Saint Louis Story Stitchers

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StitchCast Studio Special Edition: The Divided City is funded by The Divided City initiative. The Divided City is a joint project of the Center for the Humanities and the Sam Fox School, College of Architecture and Urban Design at Washington University in St. Louis. The Divided City is funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

The WHY of MY City is supported in part by Missouri Humanities Council, a state agency, which receives support from the State of Missouri.

Story Stitchers is supported in part by The Lewis Prize for Music’s 2021 Accelerator Award. The mission of The Lewis Prize is to partner with leaders who create positive change by investing in young people through music. 

Additional support for StitchCast Studio and Story Stitchers programs is provided by the Spirit of St. Louis Women’s Fund, City of St. Louis Youth at Risk Crime Prevention grant of 2023, Trio Foundation of St. Louis, Deaconess Foundation, and the Arts & Education Council. Saint Louis Story Stitchers and The Center is supported in part by Kranzberg Arts Foundation as a resident organization.