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Read the Research in Action report on the West Side Flats displacement
Mayor proposes expanding Inheritance Fund to “finally own up” to City’s role in West Side displacement
From the Flats to the Future
Our work today as a community organization is rooted in our history here on this land, the West Side of Saint Paul. That means that all of our work is grounded in the histories of displacement that have affected the West Side, from the forced removal of the Dakota people in 1851, to the destruction of the immigrant community on the West Side Flats in the early 1960’s, to today’s displacement of low-income people of color due to gentrification.
To organize for a just and joyful West Side today, we must also learn about and understand the lessons from our past. We hear our neighbors demanding justice for the harm caused by displacement from the Flats, and we invite you to join our From the Flats to the Future campaign to take action.
Above: flooding on the West Side Flats. Image: PBS
The history of the West Side Flats
The West Side flats is a part of our West Side neighborhood in Saint Paul, Minnesota that has changed dramatically over the generations. It was the first neighborhood that many immigrants arrived in when they came to the city, and grew into a vibrant neighborhood with Jewish, Mexican, white, African American, Lebanese, Syrian, and many other communities. In the early 20th Century, Mexican immigrants began putting down roots and creating a rich cultural neighborhood including places of worship, stores, schools, and homes.
The Mississippi River flooded the neighborhood frequently, including a series of devastating floods in the early 1950s. Later, these floods were the pretext used to displace families from their homes to build the Riverview Industrial Park. The MN Historical Society reports that 2,147 people were displaced from the Flats.
Learn more about the history of the West Side Flats
Research in Action
The West Side Flats Displacement Research Project is an in-depth research project that seeks to understand and document the many forms of injustice that took place when West Siders were forced from their homes. WSCO is partnering with Research in Action, a local Black, queer led urban research, strategy, coaching and engagement firm. The findings from this research will be put into action in WSCO's From the Flats to the Future campaign.
Learn more about the research and read the report
Stories from the Flats
This oral history project uplifts the voices of those who grew up on the West Side Flats before the neighborhood was destroyed.
"Every other year they had the flood down here and the city or the state never did anything about it. And then they made my family move because they were going to build the industrial center down there, and then they put the flood control in. There should be some kind of acknowledgement of what they did, instead of just wiping it under the rug. Because as time passes, everybody forgets. It was really an injustice, what they did to the Mexicans down on the old West Side. To make them move like that, and not compensate them, and give them the bare minimum. What they did to destroy a community like that is wrong. It's really wrong.”– George Avaloz, pictured, above. Photo: Elizabeth Leonardsmith
Explore the full gallery of portraits and interviews
In the news
"Displaced But Not Forgotten: New Report Addresses West Side Flats Displacement" – The Voice
Mayor proposes expanding Inheritance Fund to “finally own up” to City’s role in West Side displacement
"Families uprooted from St. Paul's West Side seek redress from the government" – Star Tribune
"Former West Side Flats residents have mixed memories about their old neighborhood." – Minnesota Public Radio
Watch the short documentary "The West Side Flats" – On PBS's Lost Twin Cities
Click here for more news coverage of WSCO's work