At its inception, public housing in St. Louis intended to provide “decent, safe and sanitary dwellings” for the poor, yet by the end of the 1960s, living conditions had become unendurable. This exhibition tells the story of the Black women-led rent strike that fought for tenants’ rights to dignity in affordable housing and reshaped the landscape of urban public housing.

Candace Borders organized the “Our Only Hope” exhibition for WashU Libraries as part of the Community Curator Program.