Capturing Community Elders’ Voices: The History Maker Marker Project

• In Event: The Ecology of Black Education in a Chaotic Political Landscape: Recreating Community, Advocacy, and Engagement

Abstract

Purpose
This Youth Research project led by Good Journey Development Foundation (GJDF) captures the inter-generational stories of elders from Academy-Sherman Park Neighborhood, a predominantly Black St. Louis, Missouri neighborhood. The Academy-Sherman Park Neighborhood sits north of the “color line” in St. Louis, divided by a street called Delmar Boulevard that has long served as a racial and socioeconomic dividing line. Most white people live on the south side of Delmar, and predominantly Black neighborhoods are on the north side of what has become known as “The Delmar Divide” (Morris et al., 2022). Youth identified the safekeeping of elderly Black residents’ stories and cultural artifacts and the passing on of this knowledge to future generations as crucial, given the aging Black population and impending gentrification. Guided by SANKOFA, a West African concept that means to “reach back and fetch that which was lost,” GJDF:
1. Center and preserve Black residents’ voices;
2. Develop intergenerational stories to share with future generations;
3. Inspire teams in other communities to engage in similar projects;
4. Introduce research as a career to youth.

Through life-story oral history interviews/videos and the placement of QR codes on signposts in the community garden, we capture what life was like for Academy-Sherman Park Elders growing up and their thoughts on strategies to ensure the neighborhood thrives. We named our community garden Bustani Ya Upenda (Kiswahili for Garden of Love).

Theoretical Frameworks
A community-based participatory research (CBPR) paradigm guides our research activities because "CBPR develops projects from the ground up, with those whose lives are most impacted by the problem at hand, in an effort to create needed changed" (Leavey, 2022, p. 224). We also use Critical Race Theory (CRT), which emphasizes counter-storytelling so that oppressed or marginalized people can voice their lived social realities (Bell, 1992; Delgado, 1990; Dixson & Rousseau, 2018; Ladson-Billings & Tate; Morris & Parker, 2018).

Research Methods
Since the summer of 2022, youth researchers have begun interviewing residents who have lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years. The team is editing the interviews, developing a video, and then placing it on a QR code on a wooden stand in the community garden for visitors to access using their cell phones or other electronic devices. A culminating event in 2023 will showcase the video.

Data Sources
Sources included oral history interviews with up to 15 Elders and archival and census records. Sample questions:
· What was life like growing up in the neighborhood?
· What were some important events that affected your family and neighborhood?
· What advice would you give to younger generations?

Results
Youth have learned about the purposes of and strategies for conducting research. We have spoken with several residents about their experiences, who described the need to capture Elders’ voices. Interviews will conclude by early summer 2023.

Conclusion
This project captures community residents’ voices and allows an intergenerational team (youth and adults) to address a community’s needs. A key goal is to positively represent, archive, and share residents’ stories.

Authors

• Dionne Ferguson, Good Journey Development Foundation

• Marquise Nettles

• Willow Kenyatta

• Chase Henderson

• Joseph Johnson, N/A

• Stephanie Humphries