Eric Vickers, 65, died Friday, April 13, 2018. He was buried the following day in a traditional Muslim service. 

Vickers found a penchant early for social justice when his family moved to University City and participated in a successful student sit-in that led to more teachers of color hired in the district. 

Vickers, an East St. Louis native, first gained a national reputation when he served as the city’s attorney under the first Officer administration. He later gained further national attention in July 1999, when he orchestrated an I-70 shutdown that brought Rev. Al Sharpton to protest the paltry 3 percent involvement of minority contracts for Missouri’s infrastructure at the time. The act led to a groundbreaking deal of a 30 percent minority inclusion for public projects, a deal that is still in effect.