2008 Woodie Awards
St. Louis schools form dream team
WU, other area schools attend first annual Dream Keepers' Fair in Midtown
By: Lanz Christian Bañes and Amanda King
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: News
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Students from several area schools, including St. Louis University, Harris-Stowe State University and Webster University, came together April 19 on Compton Avenue in Midtown St. Louis for the first annual Dream Keepers' Fair.
"See the differences in our colors and backgrounds and orientations - this was Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision," said Evan Krauss, a Wash U graduate student and former SLU Student Government Association president. "This is like a portrait of the dream alive."
Dream Keepers is an organization dedicated to bridging the racial and economic divide both in the St. Louis area and nationally. Beginning as a collaborative effort between SLU and Harris-Stowe in April 2007, the organization has since grown to include
several other universities.
The name is derived from Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech - its organizers want to fulfill King's dreams of racial harmony.
The fair's location on Compton Avenue had a special meaning, Krauss said.
"It's a street that's symbolic of division. It's the one street that separates (Harris-Stowe and SLU), yet it's the one street that makes us feel miles apart. It's also symbolic of the division in St. Louis, North-South," Krauss said. "It was important we meet in the center - meet halfway.
"Keeping the dream alive
To start the fair, which was planned around the 40th anniversary of King's assassination, the crowd joined together in a two-minute moment of silence at noon, which was also observed by the St. Louis Cardinals before the first pitch of the day's game. The St. Louis Board of Aldermen called for a coinciding citywide
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