About DSLUE - Descendants of the St. Louis University Enslaved

“We hope to inspire present and future generations of the human family to honor and respect the humanity of all.” Thurman Stephens, Jr.

How We Came to BE

In 2019, the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), a Catholic order of priests, and Saint Louis University (SLU), informed us that we are descendants of human beings their predecessors enslaved and forced to labor at the first Jesuit mission in Missouri, St. Stanislaus, Saint Louis University (SLU), St. Francis Xavier College Church, and other local churches, farms, and schools from 1823 to 1865.

The research revealed, the Jesuits were active participants and benefactors of local, national, and global systems of slavery since their origins in 1534. To empower themselves economically, they enslaved thousands around the world, and during the time of their U.S. Midwest and southern expansion, they trafficked upwards of 200 black human beings. Many of whom were our Ancestors.

In 2021, led by a desire to commemorate and honor our Ancestors and rejoice in the legacy of their resistance and perserverance, descendants came together, with a group of amazing allies, to form the Descendants of the St. Louis University Enslaved, Inc., or DSLUE.

In 2023, DSLUE became a registered 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.

Our Mission

To bring together the descendants of Ancestors enslaved by the Jesuits and Saint Louis University to collaborate with other descendant communities, allies, and stakeholders to honor and commemorate our Ancestors, to research and preserve heritage and legacy, to repair historical harms, and to educate the broader public about this history now, and in the future.

Our Vision

To be an inspirational heritage preservation and cultural education organization – one that is mission focused, and will inspire present and future generations of the human family to honor and respect the humanity of all.

The Descendants of the St. Louis University Enslaved, Inc., is a registered 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.

Robin A. Proudie

Founder/Executive Director

Robin A. Proudie a native St. Louisan, served seven years in the U. S. Navy, and seventeen years as a civil servant working alongside senior-level government and military officials, and foreign diplomats based in Washington, D.C.

For nine years, she held a top-secret/sci clearance as a member of the intelligence community at the Pentagon. In this capacity, she was responsible for the special accreditation of the Corps of Military Attachés and Distinguished Foreign Visitors from over 95 nations.

Robin has held positions with the Department of Justice, serving as a special assistant to the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, and she supported mediation for communities in conflict as a specialist at the Community Relations Service. She also served as a confidential assistant with the Department of Agriculture, and helped to facilitate specialized training, technology, administrative and program support services to federal judges serving in the Judiciary.

She credits the diversity of her experience with helping to hone the skills needed to accomplish what she describes as the most important mission of her life – to honor and commemorate the lives of her Ancestors enslaved by the Jesuits, to repair historical harms that impact descendants today, and to educate the broader public about this history now, and in the future.

To accomplish this mission, Robin organized known descendants and allies to form the Descendants of the St. Louis University Enslaved, or DSLUE. DSLUE is a descendant-led 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization based in the St. Louis metro area.

Robin is also a founding board member of the Maryland-based White Marsh Historical Society (WMHS). The WMHS is a descendant-led 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization dedicated to perpetuating the memory and heritage of the enslaved families that labored at the former Jesuit-run White Marsh plantation. In 2023, the WMHS became co-stewards of an abandoned African American burial site to ensure upwards of 500 graves of enslaved families and their descendants are properly restored, preserved, and memorialized.