S. Kingshighway exit ramp at Highway 64/40

In March 1965, civil rights activists Ivory Perry and Ernest Gilkey carried out a powerful protest in St. Louis to spotlight the brutal violence being inflicted on peaceful civil rights demonstrators in Alabama. During rush hour, the two men intentionally disabled their truck at the Highway 40 and Kingshighway exit ramp, creating a massive traffic jam. Perry then lay down on the roadway, physically blocking oncoming vehicles. This nonviolent act of civil disobedience was designed to jolt the public into awareness and action during a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.

The protest drew widespread attention and symbolized the urgency and moral weight of the struggle for racial justice. Just weeks later, on March 25, 1965, Perry joined 19 busloads of demonstrators from St. Louis in traveling to Alabama to participate in the Selma to Montgomery March, led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Perry’s actions reflected the local commitment to the national fight for voting rights and equal justice under the law.