5 Ways Clint Smith III Is Reshaping The Narrative Of St. Louis History And American Memory

Clint Smith III has emerged as one of the most vital voices in contemporary American discourse, a celebrated writer, poet, and scholar whose work directly confronts the often-elided history of slavery and its enduring legacy across the United States, including the complex narrative of St. Louis. As of December 15, 2025, his influence continues to grow, particularly as his landmark non-fiction book, How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning With the History of Slavery Across America, continues to shape educational curricula and public conversations, forcing a deeper reckoning with sites of memory from New Orleans to the Gateway City.

The connection between Clint Smith’s rigorous scholarship and the city of St. Louis is profound, focusing on how public memory shapes our understanding of identity and place. His intellectual focus on systemic racism, historical monuments, and the long shadow of American slavery makes his work essential for anyone seeking to understand the socio-political landscape of Missouri and the broader Midwest. This article delves into his biography, his major works, and the specific ways his research provides a critical lens for viewing St. Louis's unique—and often painful—historical role.

The Definitive Biography and Profile of Clint Smith III

Clinton "Clint" Smith III is an American writer, poet, and scholar whose career is characterized by an unflinching examination of race, history, and social justice. Born on August 25, 1988, his path from a poet to a staff writer at one of the nation's most respected publications demonstrates a powerful commitment to narrative non-fiction and intellectual rigor.

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• Full Name: Clinton Smith III
• Born: August 25, 1988
• Hometown: New Orleans, Louisiana
• Education: B.A. in English from Davidson College; Ph.D. in Education from Harvard University
• Major Works: How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning With the History of Slavery Across America (2021); Counting Descent (Poetry, 2016)
• Current Role: Staff Writer at The Atlantic
• Major Awards & Honors:
  • #1 New York Times Bestseller (How the Word Is Passed)
  • National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction (2021)
  • Dayton Literary Peace Prize (2022)
  • NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Nonfiction (2022)
  • New America and Emerson Collective Fellowships
• Notable Public Service: Teaching high school English in Prince George’s County, Maryland, which informed his early writing on education and equity.

Smith's background as both an academic and a poet gives his writing a unique blend of historical depth and emotional resonance. His doctoral work at the Harvard Graduate School of Education focused on the relationship between incarceration and inequality, providing the foundational research that would later inform his broader examinations of American systemic racism.

How the Word Is Passed: A St. Louis Reckoning and Historical Memory

Clint Smith’s most acclaimed work, How the Word Is Passed, is a narrative non-fiction masterpiece that takes the reader on a tour of historical sites across the United States, exploring how the history of American slavery is remembered, or often forgotten, in public spaces. While the book begins in his hometown of New Orleans, its intellectual reach extends directly to St. Louis through the city's complex role in the antebellum South and its subsequent struggle with racial justice.

The book’s core theme—the examination of historical memory—is acutely relevant to the St. Louis metropolitan area. St. Louis was a major hub of the domestic slave trade, a "Gateway" not just to the West but also to the brutal realities of human bondage. The city is the historical backdrop for the infamous Dred Scott v. Sandford Supreme Court case, a landmark legal battle that denied citizenship to African Americans and escalated the national tensions leading to the Civil War. Smith's work encourages readers to confront the physical and cultural monuments in St. Louis that either obscure or selectively memorialize this history.

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The concept of "reckoning" that Smith champions is a call for St. Louis to fully integrate the history of slavery and segregation into its public narrative. This includes examining everything from the architecture of its oldest neighborhoods to the naming of its public parks and institutions. By engaging with Smith’s scholarship, St. Louis residents and historians can better understand the roots of contemporary issues, such as housing segregation and wealth inequality, which are direct descendants of the city’s racial past.

Clint Smith's Ongoing Impact: *The Atlantic* and His Role as a Public Intellectual

Beyond his books, Clint Smith's influence is amplified through his role as a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he publishes insightful articles on politics, culture, and education. His essays often bridge the gap between historical analysis and current events, providing a framework for understanding contemporary crises through a historical lens. This platform allows him to continually engage with topics of national significance, including issues like voting rights, educational equity, and criminal justice reform, all of which have a significant impact on St. Louis communities.

Furthermore, Smith’s commitment to public dialogue is evident in his participation in events and conversations that directly address St. Louis's social challenges. For example, he has been involved in discussions alongside other prominent intellectuals, such as Derecka Purnell, a St. Louis native whose work focuses on police abolition and criminal justice. [cite: 9 from first search] These dialogues highlight how Smith’s intellectual framework—which emphasizes how historical trauma informs present-day inequity—is being actively applied to the challenges facing St. Louis.

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The 2025 Young Readers Adaptation Tour: In the latter half of 2025, Smith has been touring to promote the adapted version of How the Word Is Passed for young readers. This project is a crucial step in ensuring that the next generation, including students in St. Louis schools, has access to an honest and nuanced account of American history. The adaptation underscores his belief that a true understanding of the past is essential for building a more equitable future. This work ensures that the conversation about historical reckoning remains fresh and accessible to a wider audience, solidifying his status as a key public intellectual.

The Power of Poetry: From *Counting Descent* to Social Commentary

Before his breakthrough non-fiction work, Clint Smith established himself as a powerful voice in contemporary poetry. His debut collection, Counting Descent, which won the 22nd annual Literary Award for Best Poetry in 2017, showcases his ability to convey complex emotional and social truths with lyrical precision. [cite: 5 from first search]

Smith’s poetry often explores themes of childhood, identity, and the experience of growing up Black in America. The poems offer a deeply personal counterpoint to the historical sweep of his non-fiction, exploring the microaggressions and everyday realities of systemic racism. This duality—the academic scholar and the empathetic poet—is what gives his work its distinctive authority and emotional depth. For St. Louis, a city with a rich literary history and ongoing social justice movements, Smith's poetic lens provides a necessary tool for processing collective trauma and advocating for change.

His use of language encourages readers to move beyond simple facts and statistics and to engage with history on a human level. This is particularly vital in St. Louis, where debates over police violence, economic disparity, and historical preservation often require a language that is both precise and emotionally resonant. By engaging with Smith's poetry and prose, individuals are equipped with a more comprehensive vocabulary to discuss the enduring impact of the past.

Clint Smith III is more than just a historian or a writer; he is a crucial interpreter of the American experience. His work provides an indispensable resource for understanding how St. Louis, and the nation as a whole, continues to grapple with the legacy of slavery and the ongoing fight for civil rights. Through his books, his articles in The Atlantic, and his public dialogues, Smith ensures that the word is indeed passed on, not as a sanitized tale, but as a truthful and necessary reckoning.