Under The Arch

St. Louis’s political landscape has transformed dramatically over the past decade. The city is home to a vibrant, radical organizing network that is hard to find anywhere else in the country. Jails have closed, reparations commissions have been established, and progressive leaders have been elected. Much of this change traces back to the pivotal event of Mike Brown's killing.
 
In this season finale episode, hosts Blake and Kayla reflect on the 10-year anniversary of Mike Brown’s killing and the Ferguson Uprising, how the region has honored his legacy, and the need for further structural change. We also hear reflections from friends and former guests of the podcast—Congresswoman Cori Bush, Damon Davis, Jae Shepherd, Mike Milton, Fran Griffin, Brittany Ferrell Young, and Cathy (Mama Cat) Daniels—on what Mike Brown means to them and their hopes for the future of the movement. 

Mike Brown forever!

In this episode of "Under the Arch," we speak with law professor and activist Justin Hansford about the challenges college students face in today's political climate. Hansford unpacks the evolving role of universities in fostering activism and social change among students. Reflecting on his own experiences as an educator and activist, he highlights the importance of empowering young voices in the fight for racial equity and systemic reform. 

Drawing parallels to the legacy of Michael Brown and the transformative impact of his tragic death, Hansford explores how today's youth engage with issues of racial justice, activism, and community empowerment. 

From pop culture to affirmative action, join us as we examine the pressure and expectations that young folks face.
 
This week’s music minute is "Buy You the World" by Doug (@dougmorestl) 

How does our creativity ignite the soul of social movements and turn our visions into reality? This week, come along for a dive into the intersection of social change and creative expression with two St. Louis natives using art to fight for access and equity in our community. 

Damon Davis is an Emmy-award winning Post-Disciplinary Artist, Founder of @wearefarfetched, & Co-Director of @whosestreets. His work extends across many different mediums and his storytelling explores how identity is shaped by power and mythology. Tracy Stanton is an internationally acclaimed poet, Director of Movement Building & StoryTelling at Freedom Community Center, & Founder of @some.thingsmustbeheard. In addition to being a motivational speaker and wellbeing coach, she inspires growth across many change-based organizations.  

Through a uniquely artistic lense, this episode goes outside of the box and back to the roots of what inspires us. Listen as Damon and Tracy break free from conventional legal & social frameworks and call us all to live more creatively. 

This week’s Music Minute features the song “Go Flex” by Daemon. Follow him @songsbydae on social media and listen to his music on your favorite platform.

After emptying the notoriously hellish Workhouse jail in June of 2022, the City of St. Louis promised the community would decide what happens to the site and the land around it. It established a committee of people impacted by the jail to survey the community and put forward a proposal to re-envision the site, which has since been released. But this spring, the Jones administration ignored the community’s recommendations and announced plans to continue St. Louis’ history of disappearing vulnerable people onto the Workhouse site.

“Building tiny homes at the Workhouse is unconscionable. I am disgusted at the idea of it, and everyone involved in putting this plan together ought to be ashamed,” says Inez Bordeaux, Deputy Director of Community Collaborations at ArchCity Defenders and a lead organizer with the Close the Workhouse campaign. “It is incredibly clear that while we were engaging in this process that the mayor had no intentions of following the recommendations put forward.”

This week, we talk to Inez about her journey from nurse to organizer extraordinaire, the findings of the Re-Envisioning the Workhouse committee’s report, and the environmental and moral concerns of Jones’ plan to move St. Louis unhoused to the Workhouse site.

Read the Re-Envisioning the Workhouse report here. 

This week's Music Minute features the song "Can Tell Me Nun" by MC Tres. Follow him @mctres on social media and listen to his music on your favorite platform. 

Picket lines are in the headlines. Recently, there’s been a surge of energy and attention on the labor movement, particularly union strikes. But at the same time, worker unionization is at an all-time low. This week, we ask: what’s the current state of the labor movement and what role does labor play in achieving equity for all?  

To answer our questions, we're joined this episode by Jeremy Al-Haj, founder and Executive Director of the Missouri Workers Center, who speaks about how to unionize and go on strike, the intersection of race and labor, Missouri’s current labor landscape, and valuable lessons from the historic Fight for $15 Movement. 

This week's Music Minute features the song "Meant to Be" by Tech Supreme. Follow him @TechSupreme on social media and listen to his music on your favorite platform. 

ArchCity Defenders and Action St. Louis present the premiere collaborative podcast, "Under The Arch." Your hosts Blake Strode, Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders, and Kayla Reed, Director of Action St. Louis, explore the issues facing our community and the people working to transform them. 

In this episode, Nick Speed, Founder & Executive Director of Ujima, joins us to talk about food apartheid, community engagement with environmental and food justice issues, and how local Black residents are reclaiming food and land. 

Ujima combats the racialized history of food access in a couple of ways, one of them is urban farming. In recent years, their local community gardeners have grown an increasing amount of fruit and vegetable produce, herbs, and flowers at various sites. Through this, Ujima sparks a connection between people and the food we eat, a connection that racism and scarcity has jeopardized. “Our communities look like this for certain reasons,” Nick says. Hear more about what Nick, Ujima, and St. Louisans are doing to transform the places they call home and the food on our plates in this episode.  

Join the conversation around this week's episode using #UnderTheArch and send us your feedback at [email protected]. This week's Music Minute features the song "Purple Cotton Haze" by Whitworth. Stream on your favorite streaming platform.

ArchCity Defenders and Action St. Louis present the premiere collaborative podcast, "Under The Arch." Your hosts Blake Strode, Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders, and Kayla Reed, Director of Action St. Louis, explore the issues facing our community and the people working to transform them. 

In this episode, our hosts speak with Invest STL CEO Dara Eskridge about the good, the bad, and the ugly of community development in St. Louis. Some efforts prioritize residents’ histories, resources, and vision while others bulldoze memorable places because someone in power said to. Hear how Invest STL is working with residents to reflect the changes and improvements they want to see on their block and in their neighborhood. 

As an urban planner, architect, and philanthropic leader, Dara Eskridge works to advance opportunities to build wealth and power in Black and other racially and economically marginalized neighborhoods through equitable development and investment practices.

Since 2019, Dara has been proud to serve her incredible team and board as the first CEO ofInvest STL. Prior to Invest STL, Dara served in various design, planning, policy, and senior leadership roles in places including Urban Strategies, St. Louis County and St. Louis City governments, and the Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport, CT. 

Join the conversation around this week's episode using #UnderTheArch and send us your feedback at [email protected]. This week's Music Minute features the song "Freedom" by Monkh. Follow them @_monkh_ and stream on your favorite streaming platform.

ArchCity Defenders and Action St. Louis return with Season 5 of the premiere collaborative podcast, "Under The Arch,” where your hosts Blake Strode, Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders, and Kayla Reed, Director of Action St. Louis, explore the issues facing our community and the people working to transform them.

To kick off our fifth season, we talk about an issue permeating our political landscape and personal lives: abortion. Blake and Kayla talk to Mallory Schwarz, Executive Director of Abortion Action Missouri, about the current state of abortion access, the lasting impacts of the fall of Roe, and Abortion Access Missouri’s campaign to end the total abortion ban in the Show Me state.

This week's Music Minute features the song "Make Love in the Middle of War" by Katarra Parson & Ryan Marquez. Follow them @katarramusic and @consciouskeys, and stream their music on your favorite platform.

For the final episode of Under the Arch season four, we wanted to end with a bang by bringing back one of our favorite guests: Congresswoman Cori Bush.  

Our hosts speak with Congresswoman Bush about her latest efforts to fight white supremacy on the federal level, including two bills introduced this summer: the Reparations Now Resolution and the End Solitary Confinement Act. We hear from Congresswoman Bush firsthand what each of these bills seeks to accomplish, why they’re imperative now, and how her work in Congress is strengthened by local fights for racial justice in St. Louis and around the country.  

Learn more about the Reparations Now Resolution here. 

Learn more about the End Solitary Confinement Act here. 

Join the conversation around this week's episode using #UnderTheArch and send us your feedback at [email protected]. This week's Music Minute features the song "Beach Journey" by the Kaleb Kirby Quintet. You can find more of their music on your favorite streaming platform. 

ArchCity Defenders and Action St. Louis present the premiere collaborative podcast, “Under The Arch.” Hosts Blake Strode, Executive Director of ArchCity Defenders, and Kayla Reed, Executive Director of Action St. Louis, explore the issues facing our community and the people working to transform them. 

In this episode, our hosts speak with Kristian Blackmon, coalition coordinator for Homes for All St. Louis, about the movement’s efforts to achieve housing justice and her personal experience with organizing efforts, including teachers’ unions, Occupy Wall Street, and most recently, Right to Counsel. 

Join the conversation around this week’s episode using #UnderTheArch and send us your feedback at [email protected]. This week’s Music Minute features the song "Shoveling Rocks" by the band Furthest. Stream more of their music on Bandcamp. Know a local artist who'd like to feature their song in our Music Minute segment? Email us with the subject “Music Minute.”