St. Louis Homegrown Unsung Civil Rights Heroes

The Organization for Black Struggle wants to know who you most admire!

Welcome to the Homegrown Unsung Civil Rights Heroes Collecting Initiative! We are seeking nominations for mini-biographies of everyday people who try to make others' lives better. Do you know someone who stands up for the civil and human rights of others? Someone who fights against racial injustice? Someone who advocates for the rights of workers, women, LGBTQIA+ individuals, or trans people? Their stories will become part of the WE ARE ST. LOUIS collection, ensuring that their efforts are memorialized and inspirational for future generations. Submit your nomination by December 31, 2026.

Who is Your Homegrown Unsung Hero of St. Louis' Long Civil Rights Movement?

Commemorating St. Louis in the Long Civil Rights Movement is a multifaceted and collaborative project. This project engages neighborhood organizations, community members, students, educators, and various stakeholders in a process to share and discuss local "homegrown unsung heroes" who have contributed to St. Louis' Long Civil Right Movement. This project first focuses on the North St. Louis historic communities of JeffVanderLou, St. Louis Place, and The Ville.

The framework offered in this form for selecting “homegrown unsung heroes” can help identify individuals whose contributions might otherwise remain in the shadow. Yet, they deserve acknowledgment and celebration.

Please share a bit about your hero with us. Before doing so, please ensure you have their permission to do so and that they have been active in the St. Louis area for at least 5 years.

When you use this form to submit your local Long Civil Rights Movement Hero, the information and media you share will become part of the online We Are St. Louis digital collection, where the broader public can learn more about these unsung heroes.

*This nomination criteria was first developed by Dr. Roz Norman and students at the Clyde C. Miller Career Academy for We Are St. Louis.

Name of Hero

Name of homegrown unsung hero of the St. Louis' Long Civil Rights Movement that you are submitting via this form. Please write the name as you (and the hero) would want to see it published.

Name of Person Submitting Hero

As the submitter, please share your own name.

Contact Information for Submitter

Please share your email address so we can reach out if we have questions.

Community Impact

Describe the community impact of your hero. Please touch on Significant Contributions: Demonstrated tangible, positive impact within their family or their neighborhood and/or the overall community. Sustainability: Efforts have lasting benefits or long-term potential.

Alignment with Values

What values does your hero embody? Please describe their alignment with following values. Social Justice: Advocates for equity, inclusion, and fairness. Cultural Preservation: Works to preserve and celebrate heritage and/or cultural traditions. Service-Oriented: Prioritizes the needs of others above personal gain. Selfless. Exudes a willingness to help others.

Underrecognized Efforts

This project seeks to recognize heroes who might otherwise go unnoticed or overlooked. Please explain how your submission might align some of the following related ideas. Modesty: Contributions may have gone unnoticed or uncelebrated. Driven by the potential of the good that might result from their unselfish dedication with no expectation of self-recognition. Lack of Formal Recognition: Has received little to no formal awards or public acknowledgment and/or at risk of being forgotten. Grassroots Nature: Operates outside of major organizations or institutions.

Consistency and Dedication

Discuss the consistency and dedication of your hero. Consider the following concepts: Commitment: Dedicated service over time. Resilience: Overcame challenges or obstacles to make a difference. Innovation: Used creative or unique approaches to address family, neighbor, and/or broader community issues.

Inspiration and Leadership

How might others be inspired by the leadership quality of your hero? Consider the following ideas: Role Model: Acts as an example for others to follow. Empowerment: Encourages and uplifts others. Collaboration: Recognizes a need. Cooperates with recipient(s) by identifying and/or providing resources.

Relevance to Current Issues

How is your hero's work relevant to current issues facing our society?

Adoption and/or Expansion

How do you view the wider influence of your hero? Discuss how their actions and strategies might be taken up for potential widespread adoption and/or expansion.

Keywords

Offer 3-4 keywords we could use on the website to make this biography easier to find when people search topics or areas that interest them.

Artifacts or other Media

Please use this area to upload any photos or media that give more insight into the work of your hero. We can publish these along with the biography you have drafted above.

Media Links

Please use this area to upload any media links that give more insight into the work of your hero.

OR:

Share a completed biography that aligns with the above questions If you would rather submit a brief completed biography that touches on the above questions you may do so in this section. (If you opt to do this, you do not need to answer the questions above one-by-one; instead, this a submission space for people who have already drafted a biography of their heroes in line with the submission criteria.)

I want to submit anonymously

Email me my submission