




By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American
stronger police accountability for more than 130 days. She has met twice as an appointed member of the Ferguson Commission created by
n “So many of these stories are, ‘I was walking home from school,’ or ‘I was walking to my grandma’s house.’”
– Brittany Packnett
Gov. Jay Nixon. Last week, President Barack Obama selected Packnett to serve on a White House taskforce to study “21st century policing” and
By Rebecca Rivas Of
Out of 34 public and private institutions, Harris-Stowe State University currently ranks number one in graduating African Americans with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. Building on this base, the university aims to become a regional and national leader in graduating African Americans and other underrepresented groups with STEM degrees –or degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Harris-Stowe President Dwaun J. Warmack announced recently that Emerson will donate $500,000 over five years to help the university reach this goal. The gift will provide STEM scholarships for North County students to attend Harris-Stowe and will expand on
Families Advocating for Safe Streets mourns those lost in 2014
By Chris King Of The St. Louis American
African Americans in St. Louis do not mourn only victims of police violence, as critics of the Ferguson protest movement frequently claim. In fact, this New Year’s Eve will mark the 23rd annual prayer vigil for victims of violence organized by Families Advocating for Safe Streets.
“It’s for people who lost their lives to violence in the past year,” said St. Louis Alderman Sam Moore, vice president of the organization. The 23rd annual prayer vigil will be held 4 p.m. New Year Eve’s at William’s Temple Church of God in Christ, 1500 Union Blvd. at
n “We’re continually trying to bring to the forefront that our problem is not just with police killing people.”
– Alderman Sam Moore
Martin Luther King Boulevard. “We commemorate those who lost their lives,” Moore said. “We light candles, read the names of all the victims and release 149 balloons – hopefully it’s still at 149, but
Azealia Banks vs. T.I. beef reheated over Iggy Azealia Banks has come for T.I. once again. Her issue is not with being jealous of his protégé Australian rapper Iggy Azalea. It’s about how white artists discredit black artists and appropriate their way into black culture and hip hop for their own mainstream success.
“I feel just like in this country whenever it comes to our things— like Black issues or Black politics or Black music—there’s always this undercurrent of kinda like a [expletive] you,’” Azealia told Hot 97.
“That Iggy Azalea [expletive] is not better than any [expletive] Black girl that’s rapping today,” she said. “The Grammys are supposed to be accolades for artistic excellence. Iggy Azalea’s not excellent…”
you created for yourself.”
“You got [expletive] coon head [expletive] T.I. out here trying to promote this [expletive],” Azealia ranted. “You got your priorities mixed up…You’re a [expletive] shoe-shining coon…Your wife can’t read.”
Is Nicki Minaj caught on tape?
She added, “All it says to White kids is, ‘You’re great; you’re amazing. You can do whatever you put your mind to and what it says to Black kids is, ‘You don’t have [expletive.] You don’t own [expletive], not even the [expletive]
Rapper Nicki Minaj was in her feelings on Twitter Monday night. Her emotional tweets could easily lead one to believe Sarafee Samuels – with whom she recently ended a 12 year relationship – is making threats to sell some sort of tape of the two and attempting to blackmail his former boo because of it.
“Told you it was the wrong move. I sheltered and protected you for years. Loyal for years. Com on Selling vids? Cuz I’m happy now? Disgusting,” Minaj tweeted. “I gave you my blessing. I still love. I still love. I’ll always love. So disappointed. No one puts fear in my heart! Cuz I know god is real. He’s seen me be loyal to the point people said I was stupid. So dig your Grave. 30K watch the night my cousin was killed like a dog. More than rappers. But it was never enough. Don’t make me. Threatening me? Blackmail? Jump. Even when I try to protect people, they still try to take advantage of me. Haven’t you learned that God is in control? Stop while you’re ahead.” (*)
K. Michelle still devastated because of ‘Dris?
K. Michelle readily admits her latest album ‘Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart’ was inspired her ill-fated romance with Hollywood heartthrob Idris Elba.
Sunday night on Instagram, she shared some new song lyrics she where she talks about a ‘certain someone’s fans not thinking she’s good enough for him.’
“You own what happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should’ve behaved better,” Michelle said.
“I own everything about myself, I’ll even own my reaction to your behavior, but what I won’t own is the sympathy you expect me to have towards you. Save you when you never saved me? I may not be the most upright politically correct person for you, but I’m sure I was the most honest and loyal –loyal to the real u.
I’m judged by your fans for going through, they even say “she ain’t good enough for you,” oh but if they only knew, I was the one who kept you strong
and going through.”
Tyler Perry dishes on being a new dad
Tyler Perry recently chatted it up with The Grio’s Chris Witherspoon about how he’s adjusting to fatherhood as well as those sleepless nights that new parents know so much about.
“I wish I could say that I’m up all night, but Mommy is doing a lot of work,” Perry said.
The 45-year-old producer and director, his Gelila Bekele, opted not to hire nannies to assist with their son, Aman.
“We have no nannies, we have no help. She wants to do it all. So we’re doing it all. I’m getting a little sleep, but she’s not getting any.” They welcomed a son in November. “The greatest gift I’m being given right now is the opportunity to give the little boy in me everything I never had, so that’s what I’m excited about.”
Sources: Eurweb.com, The Grio, Instagram, Twitter.
* Spelling and grammar as it originally appeared on Twitter and Instagram.
By Bridjes O’Neil
Of The St. Louis American
With thousands of residents in the City of Jennings, Lt. Jeffrey Fuesting has observed that only a small portion attend his “Coffee with the Commander” events. Fuesting, with St. Louis County police, is Commander of the Jennings Detail.
In 2011, the Jennings City Council voted to dissolve its own police department and contract with county police. Qualifying Jennings officers were hired by the county. Since then, Fuesting reports that crime is down and relations between police and the community have improved. One reason for that change, he said, is events like “Coffee with the Commander.”
Once a month, he and a few officers meet with a diverse group of residents and city officials for one-on-one and group dialogue. They meet early on Saturdays at the McDonalds located at 8983 Jennings Station Road. The most recent event was held on Saturday, December 13.
“We have an open dialogue about what they think about their police department, what we can do better, and what we’re doing right,” Fuesting said. “Now more than ever is the time for us to come together and have serious discussions about what’s going on.”
For about an hour over a free cup of coffee, they discuss crime trends, hot spot policing, and address community concerns including those relating to recent events in nearby Ferguson. Former Jennings School Board Member David Green attended a recent town hall at Jennings High School where he heard “disturbing” youth accounts about their encounters with police and said he fears for his sons.
“We may have our own Michael Brown situation right here in Jennings,” Green said.
march was one way to take the classroom civics lesson to the streets.
At the police station, students presented a list of demands that included increasing the department’s minority hiring and body camera use by November 2015. Fuesting said the department has taken a strong stance to increase its minority hiring, adding how crucial it is for officers to reflect the communities they serve.
Fuesting said minorities hold two of six supervisory roles and account for 20 percent of commissioned officers in Jennings. African-American commissioned officers form 14.3 percent of the Jennings command. In the 2010 Census, Jennings’ population was 86 percent black.
Minorities account for nearly 13 percent of commissioned officers in the St. Louis County Police Department overall.
Fuesting said St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar plans to outfit all uniformed officers with body cameras, stating that the department is currently seeking out a vendor.
Brown, an unarmed teen, was shot and killed on August 9 by then Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson – who previously had served in Jennings before the city dissolved its force.
Fuesting spent a considerable amount of time recapping a meeting three St. Louis
n “Now more than ever is the time for us to come together and have serious discussions about what’s going on.”
–
Lt. Jeffrey Fuesting
County police officers had with Jennings students and staff on December 11.
Some 80 students and 10 staff members, including Jennings School District Superintendent Tiffany Anderson, marched from Jennings Senior High School to the city’s police department. Anderson said the
Fuesting said he plans to meet with students within the district once a month – it’s an opportunity for students to voice their concerns. And he wants his officers patrolling the Jennings to do same.
“We’re going to break those barriers and build that trust,” he said.
Fuesting hopes more youth will attend his public events. Most of those in attendance on December 13 were older, with more whites than blacks. A steady stream of young black men and women filed past the group seated inside the lobby – none joined the group.
One way Fuesting hopes to reel them in is through the fourth annual Teen Leadership Academy, beginning January 6 for youth in seventh grade through high school. Over the course of 12 weeks, youth will learn what it takes to work in law enforcement. They will receive mentorship, gain leadership skills, take a field trip to the police academy, and investigate a mock car crash involving a drunk driver.
For information on the Teen Leadership Academy, call Officer Andrew Dacey at 314-679-2135 or visit http://stlouisco.files. wordpress.com/2013/12/teen-registrationform-2.pdf.
Follow this reporter on Twitter: @ BridjesONeil.
By Orvin Kimbrough For The St. Louis American
Our aspirations for change in this region and nation must be ambitious: every child will succeed; every adult will be self-sufficient; every older adult will be independent; and every neighborhood will be safe. I am not so far removed from reality, so disconnected by time from struggle, so unaware of the unforgiving nature of some of our communities to not see what a great challenge we have before us.
We have communities right here in this region where poverty is more than double the national rate, where young people have convinced themselves that there is no correlation of effort to positive outcomes. I regularly encounter people who feel ashamed and judged by the current condition of their lives and, under the heavy weight of judgment, they transpose and confuse temporary destination for destiny.
n I believe we can rally and over time put in place the conditions that will change the trajectory of a generation of young people.
I came into an understanding of just how unfair life destinations can be as an 8-yearold kid whose mom died of complications connected to alcohol and drug abuse. The outcome of my life could have easily been so different, and many would argue that my failure to launch from that point was justified. I refuse to plant that mustard seed of doubt. I have heard it stated that “to accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.” It took a region to raise me, to act kindly toward me, to dream for me when my dreams were arresting nightmares. It took one person to believe in me and to challenge me to believe in myself. There is no replacement for belief in self in the success equation. For all of you who invest in the potential of others – thank you. Like you, I also want great things for our region. I see each of your commitment in the way that this region rallies to mobilize resources every year through United Way for this community. With your help, I believe we can rally and over time put in place the conditions that will change the trajectory of a generation of young people.
Orvin Kimbrough is the president and CEO of United Way of Greater St. Louis.
$1O
Thank God for faiths that can help overcome addiction, loneliness or stress; for institutions that can help raise the children among us. Those were never meant to be easy, ephemeral tasks. And they may be religion’s true reward. As Jesus himself prayed to the Father before he died, “Not my will, but thine, be done.”
– Newsweek, Dec. 17, 1990
Christmas is celebrated widely by believers and nonbelievers alike because of the impact of the birth and teaching of Jesus Christ on humankind.
In the spirit of the anniversary of His birth, we have a special obligation to remember His mission
to feed the hungry and heal the sick. He taught His followers to serve others. Whether or not you are a
n “What the Lord requires of you is to do justice, love and mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
Christian, Jesus message’ of love and compassion strikes a universal chord. In this blessed land of material plenty, a deepening poignancy and irony centers on the plight of the growing numbers of homeless and
hungry. Many conservative Americans profess to be children of God but offer disdain and ridicule for the poor and powerless in our society. They see themselves as being in a battle against the secular, anti-religious views of the political left, while ignoring the Bible’s message of charity and love toward one’s fellow man.
Of all the seasons, Christmas compels all of us to reach out to the lessfortunate with tangible help, not just pious expressions of sympathy. “What the Lord requires of you,” wrote the Prophet Micah, “is to do justice, love and mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
The American’s annual Christmas message.
The City of St. Louis’ Personnel Department performed a study on testing between 1974 and 1994 called “Fire Service Testing In A Litigious Environment: A Case History.” This study chronicles several promotional exams administered for Captain and Battalion Chief by the Personnel Department during that time period. The Personnel Department has moved strategically to eliminate blacks on the St. Louis Fire Department since that study.
Before the study and prior to 1974, the city’s Personnel Department relied heavily on multiple-choice tests, making that portion of the test as much as 45 percent of the total grade. They recognized, because of a lawsuit filed by F.I.R.E. and the U.S. Justice Department, that there were inherent problems with this type of test and a change was needed. That is the reason fire scene simulations and assessment center type tests were administered.
According to the All Business Report, the Personnel Department changed the weight of the multiple-choice portion of the exam from 45 percent to pass/fail. Anyone who scored above a designated passing level would be eligible to take the next part of the exam. The assessment center – a speaking portion of the exam scored
by outside firefighters – was instituted as well. The study showed the assessment center portion to be the fairest type of test, with neither blacks nor whites having an advantage. As a result, the courts mandated, between 1974 and 1994, that the city’s Personnel Department use the assessment center portion of the exam to rank candidates. As a result, the numbers of black firefighters on the St. Louis Fire Department increased: Firefighters from 10 percent to 40 percent, Fire Captains from 2 percent to 32 percent, Battalion Chiefs from 0 percent to 50 percent, and Deputy Chiefs from 0 percent to 75 percent
According to the All Business Report, one big reason for the increase in blacks was because of the change in testing. It went on to say that the change not only brought minority staffing levels to a point that approximated population figures of the city, it also preserved the excellent reputation of the St. Louis Fire Department.
Now that the city’s Personnel Department knows the results of that study, they have gone back to making the multiple-choice portion of the exam 40 percent. Sound familiar? Here are the results of all the tests since 1997:
• 1997 Battalion Chief exam: 16 white promoted, 4 black
• 2000 Battalion Chief exam: 2 white promoted, 0 black
• 2000 Captain exam: 18 white promoted, 4 black
• 2004 Battalion Chief exam:
We welcome the revisions and updating of the 2003 guidance on the use of race by federal law enforcement issued by Attorney General Holder. This guidance is a major and important step forward to ensure effective policing by federal law-enforcement officials, but it is one piece of many necessary long-term systemic criminal justice reforms.
President Obama’s historic opening to Cuba is long overdue – and has a chance of hastening the Castro dictatorship’s demise. Critics of the accord should explain why they believe a policy that has failed miserably for half a century could ever work. What is it about Cuba that makes reasonable people take leave of their senses? The United States maintained full diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union throughout the Cold War. Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, hardly a couple of peaceniks, opened the door to China. History argues powerfully for engagement as the best way to deal with repressive, adversarial regimes.
I went to Cuba 10 times between 2000 and 2004 while researching a book, “Last Dance in Havana.” Each trip gave me more regard for the Cuban people – and less for the Castro regime. The Cubans I met were energetic, ambitious, welleducated – and thoroughly stifled by a gerontocratic government that ruled through a combination of calibrated repression, impenetrable bureaucracy and tropical whimsy. What was permissible today might be outlawed tomorrow. I remember once reading a decree listing hundreds of occupations that citizens had briefly been permitted to practice as entrepreneurs – working for themselves, not the state – but that were again being put off-limits. Among them was
“birthday party clown.” Cuba is much poorer than it should be, given its abundant human capital. This is almost entirely due to abysmal economic theory and management; communism, as the rest of the world has realized, is no way to create wealth. But antagonistic U.S. policy has provided the Castro brothers with a convenient scapegoat – and a rationale for repression.
One afternoon, back when Fidel Castro was still large and in charge, I heard The Bearded One speak to a Havana auditorium filled with young athletes. Amid what was basically an extemporaneous paean to patriotism and physical fitness, he worked in boilerplate references to the bloqueo, or blockade – the U.S. trade embargo – and the relentless “aggression” of the hegemonic great power to the north.
For more than 50 years, the Castro government has told Cubans that such luxuries as freedom of expression and assembly unfortunately cannot be granted because of the constant threat from the United States, which sought to destroy the Cuban revolution and erase its accomplishments. I’ve met few Cubans who swallowed this line uncritically. But I’ve met many, including bitter critics of the regime, who believed U.S. policy was counterproductive if only because it gave the Castros a nominal reason for clinging to power. If he follows through on the agreement to establish full diplomatic relations, President Raul Castro will essentially be abandoning this time-tested line of argument. Which suggests he must be pretty desperate. Indeed, the Cuban economy
is so moribund that the government has been forced to permit a once-unthinkable expansion of the private-sector economy. Cubans can now legally buy and sell property, and entrepreneurship – while still limited – is encouraged. The reforms may be tentative and half-baked but they reflect a grudging acknowledgement that socialist principles won’t put food on the table.
This desperation is why Obama won a deal so lopsided in favor of the United States. He released three Cuban spies who have already served long terms in prison. In return, Cuba released Alan Gross – who never should have been arrested or imprisoned in the first place – and Rolando Sarraf Trujillo who spied for the United States inside Cuba, plus a reported 53 political prisoners who have been languishing in Cuban jails. Establishing full diplomatic relations should be seen as a U.S. gain, not a giveaway. As we have learned from experience with the rest of the erstwhile communist world, anything that gives Cubans more exposure to American values and ideals is for the good. Vocal opponents of the Castro regime should be pressing Congress to completely lift the travel ban and the trade embargo. Fill Havana’s hotels with sales reps and property developers; flood Varadero’s beaches with sunseeking U.S. tourists.
The agreement should properly be seen as leverage that can, and I believe will, move the Cuban regime toward deeper and more meaningful reforms. History will record this as a very bad week for the Castro brothers and a very good week for the Cuban people.
Now, we call on the Obama Administration to urge adoption of this guidance at the state and local law enforcement levels in all cases, and not only cases where they are working with federal task forces, along with other reforms, including providing specificity in data collection and training and mandating that law enforcement officers, who violate the guidance, be held criminally liable.
We have painfully witnessed both in Ferguson, MO, and Staten Island, NY along with communities across the country the dangers of high levels of racial profiling, police discrimination and no accountability. Therefore, while we are encouraged by this step forward in updating this guidance, there is still significant progress to be made to end racial profiling once and for all.
Cornell William Brooks, President and
CEO, NAACP
During this time of unrest in America, in the wake of the tragic deaths of Michael Brown Jr. and Eric Garner, it is important to avoid the seduction of expecting government to solve our problems. It is up to the people to get involved in government. If each citizen can develop a passion to have a better society, which includes life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for all, then a commitment to this vision will be solidified. Then as we take action, which includes effective training and education that supports having a better society, catering to these concepts will become a welcomed norm. In essence we will have a society of people
9 white promoted, 3 black • 2004 Captain exam: 49 white promoted, 14 black • 2013 Battalion Chief exam: 4 white promoted, 2 black • 2013 Captain exam: 24 white promoted, 6 black The totals: 31 white and 9 black promoted to Battalion Chief, and 91 white and 25 black promoted to Captain. If you don’t make Captain you won’t make Chief, and if you don’t make Chief you won’t be a part of the final decisions when it comes to hiring, discipline and policies. All in all, it’s a form of control. This is not surprising from a city that strategically demoted and forced out the first black Fire Chief and discriminated against the next black Deputy Chief in line for the top spot, Deputy Chief Charles Coyle.
F.I.R.E. has given the city suggestions, based on the All Business Report, outlining how we can move forward with inclusion. To date, nothing has been implemented. F.I.R.E. and the African American Fire Service Institute will continue to prepare our members for these exams, even though the All Business Report says the deck is stacked against us. We are currently holding classes for those who would like to become a firefighter as well. Email us at firefightersinstitute@yahoo. com for more information. Abram L. Pruitt Jr. is President of Firefighters Institute for Racial Equality (F.I.R.E.). Follow him on Twitter @firechair.
who wake up each day and say, as former President John F. Kennedy put it, “What can I do for my country?”
Minister Allif H. Dove St. Louis
We are pleased to see this much needed improvement and expansion of the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2003 Racial Profiling Guidance. Since the beginning of the Obama administration we’ve met with Attorney General Holder and many officials at the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security with the hope of seeing a new guidance that would modernize, strengthen and expand antiracial profiling protections for all Americans. This new guidance moves the nation a
long way forward in doing just that. It expands the definition of racial profiling and protections covered in the 2003 Guidance, of perceived race and ethnicity to now include gender, religion, national origin, gender-identity and sexual orientation. It also expands federal government agency accountability beyond the Justice Department to now include many of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security officers such as, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Border Patrol, Federal Air Marshalls, and DHS officers protecting federal buildings. We look forward to continuing our work with the Administration to see the U.S. Department of Justice Racial Profiling Guidance full implementation and further improvement.
Hilary O. Shelton, Director NAACP Washington Bureau
By Eugene Robinson Washington Post
It is absurd to have to say this, but New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, activist Al Sharpton and President Obama are in no way responsible for the coldblooded assassination of two police officers in Brooklyn on Saturday. Nor do the tens of thousands of Americans who have demonstrated against police brutality in recent weeks bear any measure of blame.
A disturbed career criminal named Ismaaiyl Brinsley committed this unspeakable atrocity by himself, amid a spree of insane mayhem: Earlier in the day, he shot and critically wounded a woman he had been seeing; later, on a subway platform, he shot and killed himself.
Brinsley’s reported claim to be acting in some warped sense of revenge for the deaths of Michael Brown Jr. and Eric Garner was delusional and illegitimate. Reasonable people understand this, of course. But we live in unreasonable times. Not for the first time, one of the loudest and least temperate voices has been that of former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. “We’ve had four months of propaganda, starting with the president, that everybody should hate the police,” Giuliani said on Fox News. “I don’t care how you want to describe it, that’s what those protests are all about.” No, no, no. The demonstrations sparked by the exoneration of the officers who killed Brown and Garner were pro-accountability, not anti-police. As I’ve pointed out many times, no one better appreciates the need for an active, engaged police presence than residents of high-crime neighborhoods. But nobody should be expected to welcome policing that treats whole communities as guilty until proved innocent – or a justice system that considers black and brown lives disposable.
New York police officials and union leaders should explain this to the officers who bitterly turned their backs on de Blasio – their commander in chief – as he arrived to pay his respects to slain policemen Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos. Yet Ed Mullins, president of the police sergeants’ union, made this inflammatory charge: “Mayor de Blasio, the blood of these two officers is clearly on your hands.” And Ray Kelly, a former New York police commissioner, accused de Blasio of running an “antipolice” mayoral campaign and said there was a “firestorm” of anger within the department over remarks de Blasio made regarding Garner’s death.
n The demonstrations sparked by the exoneration of the officers who killed Brown and Garner were pro-accountability, not anti-police.
What did the mayor do to provoke such ire? During the campaign, he spoke out against the city’s stop-and-frisk policy – a stance validated by a federal judge who found the practice discriminatory against African-Americans and Hispanics. And more recently, in talking about the Garner case, de Blasio told of how he had counseled his biracial son to be especially cautious and deferential in any encounter with police. Saturday’s execution-style
killings were immediately condemned in the strongest terms by Sharpton. Yet Sharpton later reported receiving death threats, apparently because of his role in calling attention to the Brown and Garner cases and helping organize the “Hands Up” and “I Can’t Breathe” demonstrations. Those protest rallies were timely and necessary, however, as most police officials across the country seemed to understand. In New
York, peaceful demonstrators marched while phalanxes of NYPD officers cleared the way. It should be obvious that hating perceived injustice is not the same thing as hating the police.
Brinsley had a long police record and a history of mental problems. Authorities say that early Saturday morning he went to a gated apartment complex in Owings Mills, a suburb of Baltimore, and shot a woman identified as Shaneka Nicole Thompson; she was critically injured but survived.
Brinsley then traveled to New York, announcing via social media his intention to kill police officers. In one post, he wrote, “I’m Putting Wings On Pigs Today. They
#RIPMikeBrown This May Be My Final Post.” In Brooklyn, Brinsley walked up and coldly shot Liu and Ramos as they sat in their police cruiser. Neither had the chance to unholster his weapon. I don’t know the right way to make sense of such depravity. But I am certain that the way not to make sense of it is to blame nonviolent protesters, exercising their constitutional rights of assembly and speech, for the acts of a deranged killer. Eugene Robinson’s email address is eugenerobinson@ washpost.com.
‘Love token’ from community to mother of Michael Brown Jr.
By Bridjes O’Neil Of The St. Louis American
The St. Louis County NAACP recognized Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown Jr., during the branch’s fifth annual Jazz Brunch on Saturday, December 20. McSpadden, joined at the event by several members of the Brown family, was privately presented with a check for an undisclosed amount.
It was a small “love token” of their appreciation, said John Gaskin III, local NAACP youth leader and national NAACP board member, “to let her know that she’s loved and that the county civil rights organization is remaining true to the fight for justice for her and her family.”
The event was held at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton – a short distance away from where a St. Louis County grand jury chose not to indict then Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson in Brown’s fatal shooting on August 9. Money for the gift came from an outpouring of support from the community.
Gaskin said, “Ever since August they’re saying, ‘How can we get this to the Brown family?’ There are several things in our office that are being mailed to Ms. McSpadden, all types of stuff that people want them to have for Christmas.” Ferguson Mayor James Knowles III and Councilman Dwayne T. James sat at a
Continued from A1
recruitment, retention and graduation of STEM majors at HSSU.”
The Emerson Scholarship for North County residents is ideal since more than 40 percent of students enrolled that graduate from Harris-Stowe live in North County, said Pat Sly, Executive Vice President at Emerson. The company initiated the gift as part of their efforts to help rebuild Ferguson.
“It began with a meeting with Dr. Warmack,” Sly said. “He was a breath of fresh air. We discussed ways we could help with STEM scholarships for citizens from Ferguson.”
table on the opposite side of the room from the Brown family. Behind them sat St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar, whose department investigated the killing of Brown and policed the protests in August and November.
Knowles said he has known St. Louis County NAACP President Esther Haywood since his days as an intern in the state Legislature. Knowles said he received an invitation in the mail about a month ago and saw it as a way “to help
n “Ever since August they’re saying, ‘How can we get this to the Brown family?’”
– John Gaskin III, St. Louis County NAACP
bridge that gap and increase our outreach efforts.”
“The City of Ferguson has always been committed to being a progressive community,” Knowles said. “I think a lot of issues have come to the forefront since August –and those are things the city’s going to continue to work on moving forward.”
“We can’t only see each other in times of hardship,” Belmar said. “We’ve got to see each other in times of joy, otherwise we don’t build those relationships.”
Belmar said he worked closely with the NAACP during the weeks of unrest in
Sly is among the 16 members of the Ferguson Commission, which has met several times to discuss public policy topics relevant to the crisis in Ferguson. However, he said he is looking forward to beginning talks about education.
“Education has got to be a high priority for us on the commission,” Sly said.
He described the first two meetings as having “a lot of disruption from people who wanted to have a voice in a public forum.”
“That’s fine,” he said. “We should be doing more listening than we are talking initially.”
STEM degrees are the fastest-growing majors at HSSU. Moreover, 40 percent of all African-American males enrolled in mathematics degree
Ferguson that stemmed from Brown’s death. “They really facilitated a lot of positive things for us,” he said. KMOV’s Brittany NobleJones and “BAPs” reality TV star Gina Cheatham served as co-emcees. A portion of the proceeds from the event will benefit the ACT-SO Scholarship Program, as well as day-to-day operations of the branch, Gaskin said. ACT-SO – short for Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics – is a yearlong national program for AfricanAmerican high school students. More than 260,000 young people have participated in the program since its inception. Gaskin said there’s a tremendous need for the program, which the branch re-launched regionally back in September. It has been well over 20 years since the St. Louis area had an ACTSO program of its own, said general chairperson Andreal Hoosman.
“We’re way off on where we need to be,” Hoosman said. “We’re just hitting the ground running.”
Gaskin said the goal is to raise $100,000, which the branch hopes to reach when it hosts its golf classic Tuesday, September 1, 2015 at the Norwoods Country Club. For sponsorships, please call 314477-9338
Follow this reporter on Twitter: @BridjesONeil.
programs out of the 13 public four-year institutions statewide are from HSSU.
“Emerson is proud to support under-represented students as they pursue educational opportunities and careers in STEM disciplines,” Sly said. “We believe STEM careers will be critical as the economy changes.”
Students who are awarded the scholarship will also participate in undergraduate research and will be able to present their research at regional and national conferences.
Vice President of Academic Affairs Dwyane Smith said, “The Emerson Scholarship program will be pivotal in our efforts to attract scholars to our STEM programs.”
Continued from A1
however many.”
When Moore was interviewed on December 18, and still at press time, there were 149 homicides in St. Louis in 2014. Of those 149 people killed in the city, two –Kajieme Powell and VonDerrit Myers Jr. – were killed by police officers.
“It’s a travesty and a shame,” Moore said. “We’re continually trying to bring to the forefront that our problem is not just with police killing people.”
Not that Moore is an apologist for police shooters.
“The shooting of Kajieme Powell needs to be addressed,” Moore said. “VonDerrit Myers needs to be addressed. Even the death of Cary Ball Jr.” – a black man shot 25 times and killed by St. Louis police in 2013 – “is under the table.”
But Moore and his organization, which was founded and is still led by Jeanette Culpepper, also work with police to solve homicides in the city.
“We go to the site where a murder occurred and pass
Continued from A1
A native of North St. Louis County, Packnett wants to make sure children’s voices aren’t “lost in the conversation.”
“I have the unique perspective of talking to so many young people,” she said. “They have been very honest about the experiences they have with law enforcement and the kind of relationship they would like to see.”
In her professional work, she witnesses how poor relationships with police officers affect children’s education, she said. Teach For America corps members
out flyers asking people to give information about the murders,” Moore said. “We tell them how to remain anonymous and ask people to come forward.”
It is not easy, Moore said, because many people distrust the police – and fear criminals.
“People don’t want to cooperate because there are repercussions,” Moore said. “Witnesses get hurt and killed. But we hand out flyers telling them they can remain anonymous.”
Moore urged people with information about unsolved murders in St. Louis to call 314-241-COPS or 314-2311212.
“If anyone lost a loved one, you’d want that same information about your loved one,” Moore said. “We need to come together, come to a consensus and get these people off the street so we can have a safe environment.”
The enemy on the street is formidable, Moore said, as he sees street criminals adapting to police better than the cops sleuth them.
“Criminals in my ward know the police patterns,” Moore said. “The mean streets of St. Louis have not been taken care of.”
largely work in predominately African-American neighborhoods and schools.
“We need to do a lot of researching on how policing affects adolescents,” she said.
“So many of these stories are, ‘I was walking home from school,’ or ‘I was walking to my grandma’s house.’”
Last week, President Obama signed an executive order to create the taskforce and announced its 12 members. The goal is to “strengthen community policing and strengthen trust among law enforcement officers and the communities they serve,” according to a White House statement.
One crime story Moore does not buy is the reported racial tensions between blacks and Bosnians following the street murder of a young Bosnian man, allegedly by a group of black and Hispanic teens.
“I am sickened by what happened to the young man, the Bosnian man beat to death with hammers on the South Side,” Moore said. “But to say blacks don’t like Bosnians is a diversionary tactic. How do I know who a Bosnian is? We don’t know who Bosnians are. It was an isolated incident.”
Moore is focused on his North Side 4th Ward, which badly needs redevelopment. There are seven empty lots on the very block where he lives. He offered pop cultural comparisons to describe North City’s underdevelopment.
“We live like Flintstones compared to the Jetsons,” Moore said. “The Jetsons go, ‘Zip!’ and are off into space, while we are still running with our feet on the ground.”
But even he was caught up in the excitement that swept the world, starting with protests in Ferguson and St. Louis. He said, “A lot of people never knew that black people in St. Louis had this kind of spirit bottled inside of them.”
The taskforce includes law enforcement representatives, community leaders, academics, and youth leaders. Packnett is the only member from the St. Louis area.
However, she met another member, Jose Lopez, last month when several young protest leaders from around the country were invited to speak with Obama. Lopez is currently the lead organizer at Make the Road New York, a Brooklynbased non-profit community organization focused on civil rights, education reform and combating poverty.
“Jose is brilliant,” she said. “He is exactly the kind of person we need,” on the taskforce.
The two chairs of the group are Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey, who also serves as president of the Major Cities
Chiefs Police Association, and Laurie Robinson, professor of Criminology, Law and Society at George Mason University and former Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs.
The taskforce’s Executive Director is Ron Davis, director of DOJ’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office.
The taskforce is charged with preparing a report and recommendations for the President. The group’s meetings and outreach details, including the online public comment process, will be announced soon. Their initial report is due by March.
“He is feeling urgent about this,” she said of Obama. “In
the Oval Office a few weeks ago, I could tell he is taking this very personally. He wants to see some clear, thoughtful action come from this.”
The group will hold listening sessions where they will hear testimony from invited witnesses, as well as their recommendations. They will also invite comments and questions from the public.
The first session will be held in Washington, D.C. in midJanuary.
Packnett said listening is the first and most important step.
As a Ferguson Commissioner, Packnett has been hearing the concerns of people in St. Louis for several weeks.
“I want to make sure that I am thoughtfully and dutifully representing those
perspectives” on a national level, she said.
Packnett’s roots in
– and social justice
deep. Her mother,
is assistant vice chancellor of academic affairs at University of Missouri – St. Louis. And her father Ronald Packnett (who passed in 1996) was a former pastor of Central Baptist Church.
“Social justice has always been the family business,” she told The American in 2012. “It was always made clear to me that excellent education and the power of knowledge was what was going to unlock any door I could ever want and that my peers could ever want. A just society is one that educates all of its children well.”
Last week, some state elected oicials, including Attorney General Chris Koster and Auditor Tom Schweich, iled a lawsuit alleging that 13 north St. Louis County municipalities have exceeded the 30% cap on traic ticket ine revenue as a percentage of total municipal revenue. he cap was set in 2013 by the state legislature and signed into law by Governor Nixon. Several community leaders, groups and others have joined this attack on mostly African American municipalities that are led by African Americans who were elected by the voting public.
None of us wants to see people’s lives unravel because of court ines. he vast majority of our municipalities’ elected oicials support municipal court reforms as needed. We have been working together with judges, attorneys and police to do so before any of the other publicized current eforts came to light. In most of our municipal courts, the judges already work with defendants to create monthly payment plans, but defendants must show up in court to get a payment plan.
Just as we do not want to see anyone indebted by court ines, we also do not want to jeopardize the safety of residents and others passing through our communities. North County municipalities’ residents deserve to be protected from those who drive under the inluence of drugs or alcohol, speed, run stop signs and red lights, and drive without proper registration, license or insurance. Several municipalities’ police have oiciated at traic tragedies where adults and children have been killed by such irresponsible drivers. Our municipalities will hold all drivers accountable for their own actions because if we don’t, the lives and safety of our residents and those passing through are put at risk. We will not tolerate this threat to the safety and security of our communities.
It is time to set the record straight and put in perspective all the political and limelight-driven grandstanding that has permeated the media in the last weeks and months. We ask the general public, and Mr. Koster and Mr. Schweich, to consider the following facts, not opinions or innuendo.
1) Until just a week before the lawsuit, the state had never provided any guidelines or deinition on how to calculate the percent of total revenue that is traic ines. Missouri Municipal League and municipal auditors have been asking the state for over a year to name the speciic sources of revenue that should be included in the calculation.
2) One reason speciic deinition of sources of revenue is so important is because the majority of the ‘court costs’ defendants are charged on each citation are not retained by the municipalities, but sent directly to various state and county funds, including the Wieman Shelter for abused women and children, state and local police oicer training, and judicial training funds. Howev er, Mr. Schweich stated for the irst time last week, via a press release, that ‘court costs’ are to be included in the municipal reve nue calculation, even though municipalities do not retain all of that revenue.
3) On September 19, 2013 the Missouri Municipal League iled suit challenging the 30% law on several grounds. he case is still in appeal. Even though a section of the law was stayed by the court, the state is proceeding with their lawsuit against 13 munici palities.
North County municipalities were not contacted by any State of Missouri oicials indicating they had a problem with the reporting of the traic ine numbers. he irst time municipalities got any deinition of the terms for the calculation was in a press release dated December 10, 2014 by Missouri State Auditor Schweich announcing the guidelines he and his staf “will use when they begin auditing municipal courts throughout Missouri.” Where have these guidelines been for over a year? Municipal auditors were let to decide on their own what revenues should or should not be included for the required inancial reports to the state, although providing such direction is a state responsibility. Now the state disagrees with some of the assumptions municipal auditors were forced to make and is iling a lawsuit. his is a disagreement that they never communicated in any way to the municipalities – instead they jumped right to a publicly announced lawsuit. he irst the municipalities heard of the guidelines was in a press release only days before the lawsuit was iled. his is shameful politics and posturing.
Other examples of this blatant disrespect include a bill pre-iled by a state senator representing the City of St. Louis to eliminate all villages in St. Louis County. Not only did that senator fail to contact any village chairperson before pre-iling this bill, the senator also did not contact this area’s state representatives or state senator, not even County Councilwoman Hazel Erby in whose district most of the villages reside. 10 of STL county’s 22 villages are in the greater Normandy/North County area and are predominantly African American.
We are not perfect, but we have been doing good work together. his year, East-West Gateway Council of Governments gave an Outstanding Local Government Award to the 24:1 local government collaborative of 24 municipalities that make up the Normandy Schools Collaborative. he award was given to our area’s municipalities because of what we have done to save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars on everything from trash collection and street repairs to municipal tree and vehicle maintenance. Most of our municipalities are delivering services to our residents efectively and eiciently. hose municipalities still facing challenges are ofered, and most are receiving, help to overcome those issues.
Finally, while we will continue to work to make sure our courts don’t unfairly burden people, we hope courts don’t become a distraction from bigger, deep-rooted issues that contribute to the cycle of poverty. Unless we ix our education systems to ensure that ALL of our children receive a quality education, our people will continue to struggle to ind good paying jobs. We hope the other leaders will work with us on that and many other important issues facing our communities.
Signed:
St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert P. McCulloch has become a national laughingstock for his misleading handling of a police-involved shooting where – as he admitted on live radio –he called before the grand jury witnesses that he knew would commit perjury.
McCulloch may not be laughing, if the Missouri Bar Association or Missouri Supreme Court moves against him for knowingly violating Rule 4-3:3, Candor Toward the Tribunal – Offering Evidence, in the Missouri Rules of Professional Conduct. This rule, in part, “requires that the lawyer refuse to offer evidence that the lawyer knows to be false, regardless of the client’s wishes. This duty is premised on the lawyer’s obligation as an officer of the court to prevent the trier of fact from being misled by false evidence.”
a paying client, but rather an elected prosecutor representing the public. Furthermore, it was an elected prosecutor handling a controversial case where there was a public outcry for him to be removed from the case – and where the outcome of the grand jury process was so volatile that the Governor declared a State of Emergency so he could call up National Guard troops before the decision was handed down.
The EYE hopes that McCulloch is censored for these knowing acts of professional misconduct. There are other reasons – other abuses of office – for which he should also be investigated.
In presenting Witness 40 (and unnamed other known perjurers) to the St. Louis County grand jury weighing evidence in the Darren Wilson case, McCulloch failed in his professional “obligation as an officer of the court to prevent the trier of fact from being misled by false evidence.” Since the grand jury’s deliberative process is secret, we do not know to what extent Witness 40’s false evidence about the fatal shooting of Michael Brown Jr. “misled” the grand jury that decided not to indict Wilson. Certainly, her false evidence that Brown charged Wilson like a football player with his head down misled pro-police pundits and apologists like Fox News’ Sean Hannity It is particularly disturbing and offensive that the lawyer who knowingly violated this professional rule of conduct was not a jailhouse lawyer trying to pull a fast one for
Consider his public accusation that St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley was guilty of “corruption.” McCulloch made this claim in a political campaign ad for Steve Stenger, the South County attorney and councilman who ran against and soundly beat Dooley in the August primary. But on December 12, the U.S. Attorney made it clear why McCulloch was only talking about Dooley being corrupt in a political ad, rather than presenting evidence of his corruption before a grand jury. That is because there was not enough evidence to charge Dooley with corruption.
In a letter dated December 12, U.S. Attorney Richard G. Callahan told Dooley that the federal investigation into alleged corruption in the handling of a St. Louis County Police contract “has been completed with no finding of any criminal wrongdoing. Consequently, our office has now closed its file on this matter.”
When he received this letter, Dooley remembered very clearly the prosecutor who called him corrupt in the
Stenger campaign ad.
“The allegations made were made with malice,” Dooley said in a statement. “The prosecuting attorney knew the allegations were bogus, but it served a purpose and that was to create a certain image of me and my administration prior to the election.”
The American was shocked to see a prosecutor accuse an elected official of corruption in a political ad, rather than before a grand jury or judge. When questioned about this, McCulloch resorted to semantics worthy of Bill Clinton after an Oval Office sexual affair. McCulloch told The American that “corruption” could describe unethical conduct that was not criminal. That is, McCulloch did not
this alleged but nonexistent corruption.
“In a perfect world, we do try to keep our investigations out of the public eye,” Callahan told St. Louis Public Radio, adding that such allegations should “only become known if we find evidence of criminal wrongdoing and file a charge.”
Callahan should tell McCulloch more directly: don’t talk publicly about an elected official’s alleged corruption unless you “find evidence of criminal wrongdoing and file a charge.”
think he abused the power of his office as a prosecutor by accusing an elected official of corruption when McCulloch knew he did not have the evidence to bring charges against the official, because “corruption” might only mean unethical conduct that is not criminal.
When McCulloch talks about unethical conduct that is not criminal, he clearly knows what he is talking about, since this describes his highly public professional conduct throughout 2014.
As for Callahan, he is a team player with longtime ties to McCulloch and McCulloch’s most powerful enabler, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill. Yet even Callahan was offended by the public controversy over
The other culpable party here is the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, both its news staff and editorial board. Dooley has been dogged by more than a dozen Post news reports claiming he was corrupt, relying only on anonymous sources. Despite the EYE’s low regard for the Post’s news judgment in this case, Post reporters and editors must have had a very credible official source to run front-page news stories alleging corruption with no named source. The EYE suspects Stenger and McCulloch are very likely suspects for the Post’s Deep Throat for its bogus corruption series on Dooley – which was accompanied by a series of biting editorials and (finally) a strong endorsement of Stenger.
Why? Because on that Friday “the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Missouri issued a subpoena for a slew of documents and correspondence related to a contract to build a new crime lab. The FBI had been asked by County Police Chief Tim Fitch to investigate the matter.” (Fitch is another unsavory story.) With that tone of presumption found only in Post editorials and Jeff Rainford’s pronouncements, the editorial continued: “Here’s what those officials, from County Executive Charlie Dooley on down, need to know: Once a federal subpoena is issued, you’ve already lost.”
Yes, you have already lost – if you have a prosecutor, councilman and daily newspaper willing to stretch out a witch hunt against you, based on that subpoena, for more than a year. The EYE does not love public apologies or set much store by them, but the Post certainly owes Dooley a public apology. It is likely that Stenger would have defeated Dooley without the witch hunt based on anonymous sources, but the Post rushed to judgment in an investigation that resulted in no finding of guilt and should apologize.
For example, in August 2013 the Post published a long editorial that addressed Dooley as if he were a domestic worker, ordering him to “clean house … quickly.”
The editorial begins with a presumption of guilt in the police contract case.
“Since last Friday, a number of high-ranking government officials on the 9th floor of the County Government Center in Clayton have been scrambling for legal cover,” the Post editorial board wrote.
“Scrambling for legal cover” – sounds guilty to the EYE.
As for Stenger – the EYE realizes that many politicians lie and deceive in order to win. It worked out for him. Based on his campaign, he is not to be trusted.
As for McCulloch, we think Dooley has the right idea.
“To have a sitting prosecuting attorney give credence to baseless allegations and use those allegations as a campaign attack was unprecedented and it certainly had an impact with voters,” Dooley stated. “His actions bear investigation, not mine.”
By Durrie Bouscaren Of St. Louis Public Radio
About 50 protesters who marched to St. Louis City Hall on Wednesday, December 17 were greeted with locked metal grilles barring the doors. For approximately two hours, employees were unable to go in or out, and residents hoping to pick up paperwork were turned away.
Protesters briefly blocked traffic at the intersection of Tucker Boulevard and Market Street, before they were ordered to the sidewalk by police. Then, about 25 laid down in front of City Hall for a “die in,” while others sat nearby.
Mayor Francis Slay said he chose to order the doors locked because of the people who were in the crowd.
“Police intelligence told me that some of the same members who assaulted a law enforcement officer last time they were here and damaged city property were among the group. We wanted to make sure we keep our employees safe,” Slay said.
A spokesperson for the city said the damage to City Hall from the previous protest included a broken door.
Protest organizers said their action Wednesday was to call for all criminal charges related to protests over the past four months to be dropped. Through
Laney said they exaggerated a non-existent threat to “continue a narrative that black people, black men especially, are violent.”
Photo by Lawrence Bryant
a megaphone, protester Derek Laney said police have unfairly targeted protest leaders and exaggerated the details of what happened.
“What they want to do, is they want to intimidate us. They want to smear our name. They want to continue a narrative that black people, black men especially, are violent,” Laney said. At an earlier protest at City Hall, while participating in a “die-in” to block traffic, Laney was arrested and charged with 3rd degree assault of a police officer. He denies that he assaulted anyone. “I’m not even going to try and explain how I didn’t assault him. It’s a lie that’s made up,” Laney said.
A small group of City Hall employees and residents who had gone to City Hall for business gathered outside the doors, waiting to see when the doors would re-open.
Edward Thirdkill had driven from Earth City after a 12-hour work shift to pick up a copy of his marriage license, unaware that a protest was going on.
“Everybody has a right to do what they want to do,” Thirdkill said, chuckling at the timing. “This just caught me off-guard.”
Protesters dispersed around 2:30 p.m., and city officials said the doors were re-opened by 3 p.m.
Reprinted with permission from news.stlpublicradio.org.
has been a member of the U.S. Army for 25
in California. The surprise occurred during a school
American staff
Traffic offenders, whose outstanding warrants were lifted by the City of St. Louis in October, have until the end of the month to get a new court date to face the charges against them. If they do not schedule a new court date, they will go back into warrant status.
Warrants that stemmed from moving and non-moving traffic violations – except for alcohol-related charges, DWI/ DUI, and leaving the scene of an accident – have been canceled. New court dates are
granted without charge, but offenders must get a new date to satisfy their obligations to the law.
To date, only about 3,300 people have taken advantage of the warrant forgiveness, which has cleared more than 10,000 total cases. Nearly 71,000 others face warrants again if they do not schedule a new court date by December 31.
People facing minor traffic offenses can search the City’s Municipal Court website (http://www.stlcitycourt.org/) for their name, date of birth, and zip code. They can then
schedule a new court date by coming to the Municipal Court at 1520 Market Street (enter off 16th Street) or by calling the Court at (314) 6223231 for more information. Inability to pay a fine will not land a traffic offender in jail. The St. Louis Municipal Court has special dockets, payment plans, and alternatives to fines and incarceration, like community service, for people who cannot afford to pay. The City of St. Louis also offers warrant forgiveness anytime during regular business hours for first-time hardship cases.
By Nikole Hannah-Jones Of ProPublica
On August 1, five students in satiny green-and-red robes and mortarboards waited in an elementary school classroom to hear their names called as graduates of Normandy High School. This ceremony, held months after the official graduation, was mostly for students who had been short of credits in May.
One of those new graduates was Michael Brown Jr. He was 18, his mother’s oldest son. He had been planning to start college in September.
Eight days later, he was dead, killed in the streets of nearby Ferguson, by a white police officer in a shooting that ignited angry protests and a painful national debate about race, policing and often elusive justice. Many news reports after Brown’s death noted his graduation and his college plans. The implication was that these scholarly achievements magnified the sorrow.
But if Michael Brown Jr.’s educational experience was a success story, it was a damning one. The Normandy School District is among the poorest and most segregated in Missouri. It ranks last in overall academic performance. Its rating on an annual state assessment was so dismal that by the time Brown graduated the district had lost its state accreditation.
About half of the black male students at Normandy High never graduate. Just one in four graduates makes it to a four-year college. The college where Brown was headed is a for-profit trade school that recruits those it once described in internal documents as “Unemployed, Underpaid, Unsatisfied, Unskilled, Unprepared, Unsupported, Unmotivated, Unhappy, Underserved!”
Just five miles down the road from Normandy lies Clayton, the wealthy county seat where a grand jury recently deliberated the fate of Darren Wilson, the officer who killed Brown. Success there looks very different. The Clayton public schools are predominantly white, with almost no poverty to speak of. The district is regularly ranked in the top 10 percent in the state. More than 96 percent of its students graduate. Eighty-four percent head to four-year universities.
Decades of public and private housing discrimination made St. Louis one of the most racially segregated metropolitan areas in the country. A network of school district boundaries has, to this day, divided students in racially separate schools as effectively as any Jim Crow law.
Michael Brown Jr.’s education was not exceptional, then, but all too typical, and it illustrates the vast disparity in resources and expectations for black children in America’s segregated school systems.
As hundreds of school districts across the nation have been released from courtenforced integration over the past 15 years, the number of what researchers call “apartheid schools” — in which the white population is 1 percent or less — has shot up. The achievement gap, narrowed during the height of school integration, has widened.
According to data compiled by the Department of Education, black and Latino children nationwide are the least likely to be taught by a qualified, experienced teacher, to be offered courses such as chemistry and calculus, or to have access to technology.
“American schools are disturbingly racially segregated — period,” Catherine Lhamon, head of the Education Department’s civil rights office, said in a speech in October.
Since August 9, the day Brown’s lifeless body lay for
hours under a hot summer sun, St. Louis County has come to illustrate the country’s racial fault lines in police conduct and the criminalization of black youth. But most black youth will not die at the hands of the police.
In 1954, when the United States Supreme Court rejected the notion of separate but equal schools in its Brown v. Board of Education decision, St. Louis ran the second-largest segregated school district in the country.
After the ruling, school officials promised to integrate voluntarily. But the acceleration of white flight and the redrawing of school district lines around black and white neighborhoods allowed metropolitan St. Louis to preserve its racial divide. Nearly 30 years later, 90 percent of black children in St. Louis still attended predominantly black schools. In 1983, a federal judge ordered a desegregation plan for the entire metropolitan area. At its peak, some 15,000 St. Louis public school students a year attended 16 heavily white suburban districts. Another 1,300 white students headed in the opposite direction to 27 new magnet schools in St. Louis.
The program left another 15,000 of St. Louis’s black students in segregated, inferior schools. But for the transfer students who rode buses out of the city, the plan successfully broke the deeply entrenched connection between race, ZIP code and opportunity. Test scores for eighth- and 10th-grade transfer students rose. The transfer students were more likely to graduate and go on to college. In surveys, white students overwhelmingly said they had benefited from the opportunity to be educated alongside black students. The St. Louis model was heralded as the nation’s most successful metropolitan desegregation program.
But from the moment it started, the St. Louis desegregation plan was under assault. The cost would eventually reach $1.7 billion. In 1999 the program was made entirely voluntary. Today, about 5,000 students get to escape the troubles of the St. Louis public schools — a small fraction of the number who apply for the privilege of doing so. Incorporated in 1945, Normandy became a destination for St. Louis’s fleeing white working class.
Nedra Martin’s family was among the black strivers who began to make their way to Normandy in the 1970s. Martin, who still lives in Normandy and works in human resources at Walmart, said her parents settled in the town in 1975. They both worked in government jobs — her dad was a welder for the city, her mom an aide in a state group home. But as black families like the Martins moved in, “For Sale” signs went up and whites fled to new exurbs. After 1970, black enrollment in the Normandy schools exploded, more than doubling within eight years to 6,200. By 1978, only St. Louis itself enrolled more black students than Normandy. For years, Normandy’s schools struggled to meet minimum state requirements for student achievement. Then, in 2009, the state decided that the Normandy school district would absorb the ailing Wellston School District.
Wellston was also highpoverty, and Missouri’s only 100 percent black school system. State officials had called conditions in Wellston’s schools “deplorable” and “academically abusive.”
But its students were not sent to the high-performing, mostly white districts nearby. Michael Jones, a state board of education official, was blunt about the reason: “You’d have had a civil war.”
rising eighth grader, was sitting in the audience that night with her mother. Hers was one of the few brown faces there, and the girl said she wiped away tears.
“It made me heartbroken because they were putting us in a box,” Mah’Ria said. “I was sitting there thinking, ‘Would you want some other parents talking about your kid that way?’ ”
In the fall of 2013, nearly 1,000 Normandy students — about a quarter of the district’s enrollment — switched to schools in accredited districts.
More than 400 headed to Francis Howell.
Mah’Ria said that she was, in fact, welcomed into her new middle school by students and teachers. Despite the fears, recently released state data show that with the exception of one district, test scores in the transfer schools did not drop.
But there was a cruel twist.
announced that Normandy children were no longer welcome.
Martin and other parents sued, asserting that the state had no legal authority to reconstitute the district to change its accreditation status.
On August 15, after the school year had begun in some districts, a state judge granted a temporary injunction allowing the plaintiffs to enroll their children in the transfer districts.
“Every day a student attends an unaccredited school,” the judge wrote, the child “could suffer harm that cannot be repaired.” The state is fighting the ruling, but most school districts have reopened their doors to the transfer students.
By the time Michael Brown Jr. was a high school junior, he had spent most of his educational career in racially segregated and financially disadvantaged schools. Behind in credits, he entered Normandy High in the spring of 2013.
The state’s most recent assessment of Normandy’s schools was spectacularly bleak: Out of Missouri’s 520 school districts, Normandy, among the state’s poorest and 98 percent black, was marooned at the very bottom.
But last year, the Normandy district was thrown an unlikely lifeline. Its schools had failed so badly that the state had formally stripped it of its accreditation. And the Missouri State Supreme Court had just upheld a state law allowing students in unaccredited districts to transfer to accredited ones.
Nedra Martin had a daughter stuck in Normandy’s failing schools. Just like that, the state’s decision erased the invisible, impenetrable lines of segregation that had trapped her child. “I was elated,” Martin said.
Parents in the school district that had to take Normandy’s students — Francis Howell, an 85 percent white district 26 miles away — were not. Officials there held a public forum to address community concerns. More than 2,500 parents packed into the high school gym.
Would the district install metal detectors? What about the violence their children would be subjected to, an elementary school parent asked. Wouldn’t test scores plummet?
The issue wasn’t about race, one parent said, “but trash.”
Mah’Ria Pruitt-Martin, a
The state required any failing district whose students were allowed to transfer to pay the costs of their education in the adjoining districts. The payments drained Normandy’s finances. Normandy closed a school and laid off 40 percent of its staff.
“In order to save the district, they killed the district,” said John Wright, who spent stints as superintendent in both St. Louis and Normandy.
The state then announced that it was taking over the Normandy Public Schools district and reconstituting it as the Normandy Schools Collaborative. As a new educational entity, the district got a clean slate. It no longer was unaccredited, but operated as a “state oversight district.”
The transfer law, the state claimed, no longer applied.
One by one, transfer districts
Students who spend their careers in segregated schools can look forward to a life on the margins, according to a 2014 study on the long-term impacts of school desegregation by Rucker C. Johnson, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley. They are more likely to be poor. They are more likely to go to jail. They are less likely to graduate from high school, to go to college, or to finish if they go. They are more likely to live in segregated neighborhoods as adults. Their children are more likely to attend segregated schools, repeating the cycle.
“You know how hard it was for me to get him to stay in school and graduate?” Michael Brown Jr.’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, cried on the August day he died. “You know how many black men graduate? Not many.” Michael Brown was buried in the old St. Peter’s Cemetery. It lies next to Normandy High School. This is excerpted from a longer article published by ProPublica.
The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. State Celebration Commission of Missouri will host its 29th annual kick-off program on Saturday, January 10, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. at HarrisStowe State University’s Main Auditorium.
Dr. Freeman Hrabowski III - President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and one of TIME Magazine’s 10 Best College Presidents – will serve as the
keynote speaker for the event, which is themed, “Emerging Leaders Called to Action: A Time for Healing.”
Dr. Hrabowski has served as president of UMBC since 1992. As a front-runner in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), his research and publications focus on science and math education, with special emphasis on minority participation and performance.
He recently chaired the National Academies’ committee that produced the report, “Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads.” He was also recently named by President Obama to chair the newly created President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for AfricanAmericans.
In 1963, at the age of 12, Dr. Hrabowski joined the Children’s Crusade march during the Civil Rights Movement’s Birmingham campaign. The outcome of those efforts gave Dr. Hrabowski a life mission, and he has since been a devoted and tireless campaigner for equality, education and excellence.
This year’s celebration will honor area leaders including some on the rise surrounding the events in Ferguson. The 2015 honorees include: The Jazz Edge Orchestra, Distinguished Community Service Award; Wyman, Distinguished Service to Youth Award; Cortex Innovation Community, Distinguished Organization Award; and the United Way of Greater St. Louis, Distinguished Social Action Award. The evening will also include special performances by Ronni Gee; Excel Performing Arts; Point of View Jazz Ensemble and the Harris-Stowe State University Concert Chorale. Howard Richards, color analyst for Mizzou football and Courtney Z. Stewart, vice president of strategic communications for the Missouri Health Foundation will serve as the evening’s emcees. Danita Mumphard and band will entertain those attending the post-reception sponsored by Anheuser-Busch immediately following the program. The event is free and open to the public.
By Rebecca Rivas
Of The St. Louis American
The St. Louis Municipal Court adopted a new rule on December 18 to take into account people’s ability to pay when doling out fines for minor traffic and municipal offenses.
For months, activists and local attorneys from public interest law offices have urged the courts in both St. Louis City and St. Louis County to establish payment plans and fine alternatives. The idea is to help keep impoverished residents out of a cycle of debt due to minor offenses, such as parking or speeding tickets.
Brendan Roediger, professor at Saint Louis University School of Law and counsel with the its Legal Clinics, said the city’s court and elected officials reached out to the clinic for reform suggestions, and they listened.
“It’s wonderful,” Roediger said. “I think it demonstrates that some of this can be fixed quickly.”
However, the municipal county courts have contended that making such changes to the court system will be a “hard, long process,” he said.
“The city is serving 10 times as many people as the municipal courts,” he said, “and it managed to do it rather quickly and in a common sense way.”
The administrative order, entered by
n According to Thomas Harvey of Arch City Defenders, the current bench warrant system in the region leads poor residents into a “black hole” of court debt.
Presiding Judge Gordon Schweitzer of the St. Louis City Municipal Court, gives judges the ability to determine the fine payment and payment schedule for municipal violations based on offenders’ ability to pay.
The St. Louis Municipal Court has
a special needs docket, payment plans, and alternatives to fines and incarceration, like community service, for people who cannot afford to pay. Judges will not impose the fine payment date for four weeks, allowing defendants to receive another paycheck before having to settle their debt with the court. Judges may also allow additional time for a defendant to make payments.
In the county, a reform committee – headed by attorney Frank J. Vatterott, a municipal judge in the City of Overland – is currently reviewing similar ideas to implement in the municipal courts.
According to Thomas Harvey, executive director of the Arch City
Defenders, the current bench warrant system in the region leads poor residents into a “black hole” of court debt. First, they get tickets for traffic or other minor infractions. Since they can’t pay them, they don’t go to court for fear of getting thrown in jail – subsequently getting warrants for failing to appear. Having warrants, they can’t get jobs, drivers’ licenses or sometimes aid from homeless shelters, he said.
“The fines should not be as high as they are, and they should proportioned to income,” Harvey said.
“You wouldn’t have near as many problems as you have now.”
Harvey has presented the idea of holding a hearing to consider evidence of a defendant’s ability to pay fines and court costs prior to assessing fines.
In the municipal courts, Vatterott said this was unrealistic.
By Jason Rosenbaum Of St. Louis Public Radio
Missouri Attorney General
Chris Koster is suing 13 St. Louis County municipalities for violating a state law that caps the percentage of ticket revenue that can be in a city’s budget. The statute in question – known as the “Mack’s Creek” law –stipulates that traffic fines and court costs can only comprise less than 30 percent of a city’s budget. Anything in excess has to go to schools.
n Koster is suing to revoke the cities’ municipal courts from jurisdiction over traffic-related offenses until they’re in compliance with the law.
“The Mack’s Creek law was enacted to protect plaintiffs from predatory ticketing,” said Koster. “This problem has been felt nowhere more acutely than in north St. Louis County. As we continue to identify areas for reform, an important first step is to require that St. Louis municipalities, and all municipalities around the state, follow the Mack’s Creek law to the letter.”
Municipalities that Koster sued include: Bellerive Acres, Beverly Hills, Breckenridge Hills, Crystal Lake Park, Hillsdale, Mackenzie, Moline Acres, Normandy, Pagedale, Pasadena park, Uplands Park, Velda Village Hills and Vinita Terrace. At a press conference in St. Louis on Thursday, December 18, Koster said some of the cities – such as Pasadena Park, Breckenridge Park, Upland Park, Beverly Hills and Pagedale – didn’t submit
financial reports showcasing how much of their budget consisted of fine revenue. Others – like Velda Village Hills, Mackenzie, Hillsdale and Crystal Lake Park – failed to indicate how much of their operating revenue was derived from fines.
Koster said four municipalities – Bellerive Acres, Moline Acres, Normandy and Vinita terrace –submitted reports suggesting they exceeded the cap.
Koster is suing to revoke the cities’ municipal courts from jurisdiction over traffic-related offenses until they’re in compliance
See REFORM, B6
Leonora Muhammad, RN has been promoted to Regional Clinical Services Manager for the Western Region Jails at Corizon Health, a correctional healthcare company. She will provide clinical leadership and education for 13 jail facilities over eight states, including California. She previously held the position of Director of Nursing at the St. Louis City Justice Center. She is a graduate of the University of Missouri-St. Louis and earning her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Brandman University.
Jaylen Bledsoe, Hazelwood West High School junior, technology entrepreneur and motivational speaker, was recently recognized by EBONY Magazine as one of America’s Top 100 Influential African Americans in 2014. He was given the award for his work with motivating and inspiring young people to start their own businesses and pursue personal excellence. “Changing lives is what inspires me,” the youth said.
Kori Logan was among the outstanding educators recognized recently by the Iota Phi Lambda Sorority Inc. Alpha Zeta Chapter. Logan, who is Hazelwood East High School mathematics and aerospace engineering teacher, received an Apple of the Teacher award for her contributions to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education.
Bruce Green was among the outstanding educators recognized recently by the Iota Phi Lambda Sorority Inc. Alpha Zeta Chapter. Green, who is Hazelwood Central High School principal, received an “Apple of the Teacher” award for his work with students for more than a decade.
Devan Cason was part of a Think Tank team that won first place for their home alarm mock-up system at the MidAmerica Association of Educational Opportunity Program Personnel (MAEOPP) PreCollege Student Leadership Conference. Cason is a Madison County High sophomore and TRIO Upward Bound (BEM) program student. Eighteen teams competed from the 10 states that make up MAEOPP’s region.
Micah Evans was selected to participate in the World Aquarium’s Aquatic and Marine Science Institute, which will allow him to gain focused, hands-on field research experience in marine biology. Evans participated in a six-session course at the City Museum and then will had the opportunity to travel to Florida State University’s coastal and marine laboratory to apply his experiences firsthand.
On the move? Congratulations! Send your good professional news and a color headshot to cking@stlamerican. com.
By Jason Alderman
Is it ever too late to plan for retirement? No, as long as you’re willing to be thrifty and extend your working years and be mindful of your individual and employer-based retirement savings options. Building a successful, comfortable retirement depends on a variety of individual factors, including where you live, how long you plan to work, your health and your other investments and assets. The IRS recently announced an update for your options, including costof-living adjustments that will give many taxpayers the advantage of putting more away during 2015. Here’s a summary:
Regular contribution limits for 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal employee Thrift Savings Plan. Increased from $17,500 (for tax year 2014) to $18,000 (for tax year 2015). The catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 in these plans is increased from $5,500 to $6,000. Contribution deadline: Dec. 31.
Annual contribution limits, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA). For both traditional and Roth IRAs, the annual contribution limit is not subject to a cost-of-living adjustment and remains at $5,500. The over-50 catchup contribution amount is
$1,000. There are particular restrictions (http://www.irs. gov/publications/p590/index. html) based on income levels, workplace retirement plan coverage among other issues. Contribution deadline: April 15.
Higher 2015 income phase-out levels for traditional IRA contributions. For singles covered by a workplace retirement plan, the 2015 cutoff is now increased to a modified adjusted gross income (AGI) between $61,000 and $71,000. The IRS website details other significant increases and updates in phase-out levels for married couples and singles.
Higher 2015 income
phase-out levels for Roth IRA contributions. The IRS website also updates higher phase-out levels for married and single taxpayers on its website. For married couples filing jointly, the 2015 level is now $183,000 to $193,000. Here’s what you can do if you’re in your 50s and you haven’t yet saved much for retirement:
Get qualified financial advice. Organizations such as the Association for Financial Counseling Planning and Education (http://members. afcpe.org/search), Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards list qualified financial advisors, and your state CPA society can suggest tax professionals in your area.
Budget and downsize.
Want to retire? Start living like a retiree while you’re still working. Most experts believe late starters (50 and over) need to put away at least 10 percent of gross income to start making headway. Create a realistic budget, trim debt and consider cheaper housing, transportation and lifestyle options.
Take advantage of “catch-up” contribution limits. Retirement savers over the age of 50 have the option to put more away not only in traditional and Roth IRAs but also 401(k) plans – not including SIMPLE 401(k)s, 403(b) plans, SARSEP and 457(b) plans (see Annual contribution limits, IRAs above).
Keep working… strategically. If you’re lucky, you love your work or are in a position to change careers to one with better retirement savings options. If so, consult an expert on ways to keep earning and investing effectively.
Bottom line: The government’s cost-of-living adjustments will allow you to save more for retirement in 2015, but don’t wait until then to evaluate your goals to set – or reset – your retirement planning going forward. Jason Alderman directs Visa’s financial education programs. To Follow Jason Alderman on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ PracticalMoney.
By Tracey Clark Jeffries For The St. Louis American
Don’t let the holiday season get in your way to begin planning for the quarter ahead. December is National Write a Business Plan Month and whether you’re gearing up for a new start up or you are seeking to redirect your company goals, a business plan can help you map out every aspect of your strategy and approach.
When structuring your plan there are four areas you should consider and are essential to your business.
Increasing Revenue. Often times when people say revenue they think of sales or income but all of these have different meanings. Increasing revenue refers to your profit from sales.
To increase your revenue:
Review your pricing strategies. Finding out what your competitors pay and charge can give you advantages to either lower or raise your prices. If you lower your prices, this can increase revenue and make up for lower margins and raising your prices can be perceived as higher value to consumer and increase your margins.
Expand your distribution channel. Changing where you sell your product or service can increase revenue without you having to change your marketing or pricing. So consider whether online, direct mail, hiring sales reps or the use of wholesales/retailers/ distributors to expand your business.
Diversify your business. If you are a seasoned company you may want to consider adding a new product or service.
Or if you feel you have saturated the market this may be a good time to evaluate the products your customers buy that you are not selling and replace your old products with new ones.
Developing Relationships
but have the same target market as you for cross promotions.
The more people you meet and tell about your business the more people promote your product or service. You may also want to network with other companies that you do not compete with
Change of Marketing Strategies. Evaluate your current method of marketing your products. While traditional marketing is your grassroots, everyone is online. So don’t be afraid to join tech world and promote your business. Creating a mixture of marketing activities this will help your business grow and drive traffic into your doors as well as online sales.
Online involves: creating/ maintaining a blog, scouting for online customers, social media and online purchasing that includes incentives for purchasing online. For your traditional marketing make good use of good floor
Continued from B1
“If we held a hearing on whether or not they could pay, that would… we just can’t do that,” said Vatterott, in an October interview with The St. Louis American. “It would take 10 times as long in court. These are people’s courts. If everyone had a hearing, you would be there until 5 a.m.”
In most St. Louis County municipal courts, the judges and prosecuting attorneys are part-time, and they only come to the court for a few hours each month. Roediger said one of the benefits of having full-time court judges is that it prevents the excuse that there isn’t enough time to give appropriate punishments. Roediger said he personally supports a unified judiciary with full-time courts, judges
displays, effective mailings to your target market and customer service.
Raise customer satisfaction
The key to a great business is knowing how to respond to your customer needs, handling problems and responding to issues timely. Listening to your customers and interacting with feedback demonstrates you are concerned. Look to treat the customer the way you want to be treated (offer assistance and don’t challenge disgruntled customers), let your customers know that you value their support of your business.
Hiring reliable and effective employees When you are seeking to hire someone most of us look for the basics which are skills, experience and demeanor but as business owner, while those qualifications are the standards, you want employees who are consistent with the
n “It’s a question of whether you believe courts are places of justice or are places that just collect fines from people who can’t pay.”
– Jeff Ordower, MORE
and prosecuting attorneys.
“It’s their job to follow the Constitution,” he said. “That raises the question whether you should have court for only two hours each month.”
Under the Constitution’s equal protection clause, it states that people can’t be incarcerated due to their inability to pay, he said. “To prevent that is to take the time to figure out the ability to pay for each individual,” he said. Jeff Ordower, executive
goals of your company. Therefore when hiring, seek candidates who have positive attitudes, great work ethics, excellent communication skills, who come prepared for the interview, reliable, hardworking and are loyal. For assistance in preparing your business plan please visit the SBA- https://www. sba.gov/offices/district/mo/ st-louis for a list of resource organizations such as SCORE, SBDC or WBC in the area.
Tracey Clark Jeffries is president and owner of Capital Consulting Services, a management consulting firm that focuses on providing strategic planning and growth opportunities to small businesses, community and economic development. Visit www. capitalconsultingservices. com or email tjeffries@ capitalconsultingservices.com.
director of Missourian for Reform and Empowerment (MORE), said he hopes the city’s rule will help set a precedent in all of St. Louis County. He believes the municipal courts have the ability to make this change as well, despite their common resistance to the idea.
“Judges are getting paid,” he said. “They should be running a court. It’s a question of whether you believe courts are places of justice or are places that just collect fines from people who can’t pay.” St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said the point of police issuing tickets is to change behavior, “not break the bank for poor and working-class people.”
“A $100 fine for someone working a minimum-wage job is a real burden,” Slay said in a statement. “For them, the punishment far exceeds the severity of the crime.”
guard Russell Westbrook
commitment to the University of Texas.
The 5’9” Sutton is rated one of the top junior point guards in the country. She received more than two dozen offers, but eventually chose the Longhorns over Louisville, Maryland, Tennessee, UCLA and Nebraska.
Sutton enjoyed a breakthrough summer nationally while playing for the Missouri Phenom. She was the Most Valuable Player of the Super 64 Tournament in Frisco, TX. and the Adidas Nationals in Atlanta after leading the Phenom to the championship in both
Santa must have a second home Dallas. I don’t know how else to explain the early Christmas present that arrived in Dallas for Dirk Nowitzki and Co.
Rajon Rondo was acquired from the Boston Celtics with Dwight Powell for spare parts and pocket change Jameer Nelson, Jae Crowder, Brandan Wright and draft picks. With the point guard that keeps on giving (assists), the Dallas Mavericks are now the best team in the NBA.
Before you dismiss my dec-
laration as malarkey or write me off as a delusional fanboy, find your nearest internet searching machine, find the Mavericks starting roster and point out the weakness. There is none.
Rondo, Monte Ellis, Chandler Parsons Dirk Nowitzki and Tyson Chandler now represent the deepest and most well-rounded lineup in the league. Ellis and Nowitzki get buckets by the bushel. Rondo is a do-itall distributor who can shut down opposing point guards. Chandler is another defensive
n After going three straight games without giving up a touchdown, the Rams gave
In the aftermath of the St. Louis’ Rams loss to the Arizona Cardinals over a week ago, Rams’ tight end Jared Cook ruffled some feathers when he said the Rams were “outcoached and outplayed” after losing a close game 12-6 that mathematically eliminated the Rams from the playoffs. The words chosen by Cook applied in the 37-27 loss to the New York Giants. The Rams got completely outplayed by the Giants, who came into the game sporting a 5-9 record. Giants’ quarterback Eli Manning fared a lot better against the Rams than his older brother Peyton did. Manning had the Giants marching up and down the field. The Rams’ defense that has carried this team over last few weeks had one of their worst games of the year. After going three straight games without giving up a touchdown, the Rams gave up four. The Rams also gave up over 500 yards of offense. Yes, 500 yards of offense. And coming into the game the Giants ranked 10th in the NFL on third down conversions, according to Pro Football Reference, and they stayed the course, going 8/17, while the Rams only managed one first down on six attempts.
Giants’ receivers Rueben Randle and Odell Beckham Jr. did some damage to the Rams secondary combining for 280 of Eli Manning 391 passing yards. The Rams’ defense looked like they were in the Christmas spirit, donating large amounts of turf to Randle and Beckham Jr. to run untouched and unabated. Manning looked very comfortable in the pocket. He made it look so easy. He had plenty of help from the Rams who reverted back to self-inflicting wounds. game had stank all over it. You could feel it or smell it the instant sure-handed running
With Mike Claiborne
Tis the holiday season, and it’s time for Santa Claibs to extend some holiday wishes. This was the most intriguing year in our community with sports being a part of it. While there were other issues that certainly garnered our attention, it would only be fitting that Santa Claibs have something for all. A lump of coal is too good for some but here goes.
Nelly … Yes, it was a good year for him and Santa Claibs thinks he was more than good. His entertainment skills are well documented and his reality show is more than watchable as BET’s ratings would indicate. There is more to Nelly than just the next road tour. When Ferguson broke out, unlike some, Nelly was one of the first with boots on the ground and had a message instead of looking for a photo op. His words were more poignant than any politician before, then and after. Yes, he cares about his community. For Nelly, another year of wisdom, success and being a St. Louisian we all wish we had more of.
Rams fans … The truth and nothing but the truth on where their mailing address will be after 2015. An owner whose fans really want to know and a team of players who show up every Sunday instead of what we have seen this year. I would say hang in there, but that speech has already been used enough.
Blues fans … More hope that this will be the year that they play into June. Forty seven years is a long time but Santa Claibs still holds out hope that they will win the Stanley Cup before retirement.
Cardinals fans …Two plays more last season that will get them to another World Series. Jason Heyward will answer the prayers for having an African American in the starting lineup that can really play.
Saint Louis University and Missouri Basketball fans … Patience. This will take at least two years for them to get straightened out.
Jon Jay … More respect from the media. Jay has been on winning teams at every level and that is
no coincidence. Jay was challenged last year for his job. He handled it like a pro on and off the field and he was rewarded with an incredible second half when he helped the Cardinals win the division. Yes, he is the Cardinals centerfielder and that says a lot considering Flood, McGee and Edmonds all held that position and they turned out to be some of the best the game has ever seen.
Jason Heyward … A chance to show just how good he can be and hopefully in a Cardinal uniform for years to come.
earned it and he will only be better with time.
Jeff Fisher … More players who can play like they have been there.
Stan Kroenke … Any personality and ownership skills for a pro team in St. Louis other than what he has now. Money obviously does not buy everything.
Floyd Irons … A chance to coach again. Yes, he has paid his debt and it’s time to move on. A Junior College in need of a makeover would be a good start. Floyd Irons always knew the game. So why waste it in not being able to teach it?
Frank Cusumano … More years of friendship.
can get on with taking care of the athletes who have made the NCAA a multibillion dollar operation
Roger Goodell … Just his resignation. Any time this year would be fine.
Demetrious Johnson Hope that his fire continues to burn in doing for his community not enough have chosen to do. More high school games as he has emerged as a very good analyst who has made the games must-watch.
Gary Pinkel … More offensive linemen to have an even greater impact on the SEC. The continued desire to have his kids graduates.
happens after that.
Jim Crewes … Just one player who may be one and done and four other guys who want to play hard and be coached.
Bernie Miklasz … More of the passion that he has in his writing and impact on what happens in St. Louis.
Kobe Bryant … A body that can keep up with his desire to continue to win.
The Los Angeles Lakers A heart transplant.
Michael Wilbon … The continued ability to remain credible at ESPN.
By
It was another exciting year of football in the St. Louis metro area. To top off the season, the Class 6
The NCAA … Mass resignations so college sports
Bob Ramsey and Earl Austin Jr. … A trip to the semifinals of the NCAA tournament. Who cares what
Mike Alden and Chris May (Athletic Directors at Missouri and Saint Louis University) … A quiet room
Earl’s best players at the area’s big schools
state championship trophy returned to St. Louis after a long absence, thanks to the CBC Cadets, who defeated Kansas City Rockhurst 31-24 in the Show-Me Bowl. It was a magical year for CBC, which
is one of the big reasons why the Cadets are well-represented on the 2014 St. Louis “All” American Large Schools Football Team. Here are the members of the St. Louis “All” American Large
Schools Team. We will feature the Small Schools next week.
Large Schools
Offense
QB – Mike Glass (Hazelwood Central), Sr.
RB – Calen Taylor (CBC), Sr.
RB – Nate Strong (East St. Louis), Sr.
RB – Deon Lewis (Fort Zumwalt North), Sr.
WR – Jeff Thomas (East St. Louis), Soph.
WR – Mike Million (CBC), Sr.
WR – Amonte Mason (Kirkwood), Sr.
TE – Brendon Scales (Lafayette), Jr.
OL – John Chamberlain (CBC), Sr.
OL – Trevour Simms (East St. Louis), Jr.
OL – Kenny Knight
Coach Marvin Neals More time on the bench to mold young people into being responsible men in leading our community. Not to mention a few more wins to get to 700.
The late Bryan Burwell As much time as you need with God to help your golf game and messages to keep us strong and focused here on Earth.
Halle Berry … One more chance to date a sports columnist and broadcaster.
Donald M. Suggs … The ability to let your coolness become contagious.
The NFL Players Association … A real clue on how to get really paid considering the risks you take.
Chris King … More hours in the day to put out a great edition each week and just a few more hours of sleep and tweets.
Ozzie Smith … 60 more years of being classy and more chumps to take to the woodshed on the golf course.
Protestors … A real understanding on why and who you protest and when and how to have your voices heard. We will only have one kick at the can; let’s not pick the wrong fights.
Most elected officials. A future in the private sector, as many of you failed your community, especially Ferguson.
The NBA … A bigger truck full of money to back up to the players after the next contract negotiations.
Rene Knott … More credit for being the hardest-working Sports Director in St. Louis. Wiley Price … More accolades for being the best photographer in St. Louis and he has the hardware to prove it. Dre Montez … More air time.
Tony Thompson … More time to continue to be a true civic leader.
Maurice Drummond … More air time. He and Steve Savard make Channel 4 watchable again. Mo Drummond is one of the most respected and trusted men in his field for one reason. He has to negotiate the two schools playing each other in basketball in two years.
Readers of The St. Louis American … Great health and eyesight for 2015 to continue to read and support America’s number one weekly. Enjoy your holidays.
(East St. Louis), Sr.
OL – Tydarris Griffin (Hazelwood West), Sr.
OL – Marquise Prophete (McCluer North), Sr.
AP – Tre Bryant (CBC), Jr.
ATH – Sherand Boyd (Belleville West), Sr.
Defense
DL – Terry Beckner, Jr. (East St. Louis), Sr.
DL – Nate Howard (Ladue), Sr.
DL – Kevin Williams (CBC), Sr.
DL – Quintin Wynne (CBC), Sr.
LB – Mike Jones (CBC), Jr.
LB – Cameron Turner (Hazelwood East), Jr.
LB – Mario Whitney (Ladue), Sr.
LB – Arsante Conners (Oakville), Sr.
DB – Cam Hilton (Webster Groves), Sr.
DB – Roderick Campbell (Chaminade), Jr.
DB – Damian Baker (CBC), Sr.
DB – Cameron Price (Hazelwood Central), Sr.
RET – Jerod Alton (Kirkwood), Jr.
ATH – Fontez Davis (Edwardsville), Sr.
Offensive Player of the Year: Mike Glass (Hazelwood Central)
Defensive Player of the Year: Terry Beckner, Jr. (East St. Louis)
Lineman of the Year: Terry Beckner, Jr. (East St. Louis)
Freshmen of the Year: Tionne Harris (Vianney), Kaleb Eleby (Pattonville)
With Maurice Scott
ESL star tackle basking in college recruitment
process here locally.
East St. Louis Senior High star defensive tackle Terry Beckner Jr. leaves for the Under Armour All-American Game after Black Santa leaves town. The FirstTeam Illinois All-State defensive tackle and All American will begin a journey that will garner the attention that he hasn’t seen
Continued from B3 back/kickoff return man Benny Cunningham fumbled a kickoff after a field goal by former Rams kicker Josh Brown. As soon as you could blink the Rams were down 10-0. Again, the Rams showed a lack of discipline. Second year linebacker Alec Ogletree ignited a brawl on the New York Giants’ sidelines when he hit Odell Beckham Jr. out of bounds. The end result was the Rams lost defensive end super-sub William Hayes. who got ejected for participating in the scrum. We shouldn’t still be talking about discipline, but it remains at the forefront of why the Rams wallow in submediocrity.
We’re about to close the books on another losing season in St. Louis. This team is so inconsistent, and you can only say it’s youth for so long. But, sooner or later the Rams need to make strides trending up or it’s time to find another coach that can get the job done. Jeff Fisher is being paid playoffcoach money, but hasn’t
Continued from B3 chise’s only championship was the first straw. Striking out in the poor and misguided pursuits of Dwight Howard, Deron Williams and Carmelo Anthony were nearly the last. The acquisition of Ellis via free agency was the first decent move by the Mavs brass in quite a while. It was enough to keep the team competitive, but not to truly cement itself as a bona fide championship contender. In the offseason, the team followed by bringing back Chandler and backup point guard J.J. Barea, two key contributors from the 2011 championship. Toss in oft-injured but competent combo guards Devin Harris and Raymond Felton and the team is batting 1.000 in recent transactions. If the Mavericks can find an athletic big man to rebound and block shots off the bench in place of the departed Wright (Josh Smith anyone???), opposing players might as well start planning those off-season family vacations because Disney World is not going to happen. Whenever a player of Rondo’s caliber is traded to a contender during the season, team chemistry becomes the biggest question. This shouldn’t be a big issue in Dallas because Rondo is a pass-first point guard on a
Sure, everyone in the Metro East media has written and talked about the athletic 6’5” 295-pound Beckner. But, the national attention he’s about to receive after being tabbed the No. 1 rated high school player could possibly be overwhelming, if not downright unfair.
The key for Beckner and his family is to have fun and be humble in the days leading up to signing day the first week in February. And knowing him and having coached him, the gentle giant won’t have any trouble at all dealing with all the attention and possible distractions coming his way. Beckner made an official visit to Florida State a few weeks ago. He has upcoming visits to Auburn, Ohio State, Oregon and Missouri. There will be pressure from coaches, media and sponsors of the All American game
to want Beckner to announce his intentions, or at least tip his hand or shed some light as to where he will continue his education. In recent years, many high school players make there announcement during the annual All American game. Not Beckner. “I want to take my time and enjoy the recruiting process with my family,” he said. “No reason to rush and make a commitment now. I will decide when my family and I finish the process of my recruitment.”
Championship and a Super Sectional appearance under former Flyers head coach Ray Coleman his freshman year.
Throughout his high school and middle school years, Beckner has been a very talented basketball player as well. He led Lincoln Middle School to a State Championship, a Southwestern Conference Freshman
Opting to focus on his school work and the recruiting process, Beckner decided not to play basketball this year under current Flyers head coach Tony Young.
Having the label of one of the top recruits in the country, many seem to understand the decision not to play basketball this year. “I do miss not playing the sport I love also,” Beckner said. “I have played basketball all my life, but I had to be realistic about my recruiting process, and be fair to my former teammates on the basketball team as it relates to the time being away from them in
cracked at least eight wins. Since Fisher has come aboard, the Rams have gotten better. We were elated when the Rams went from 2-14 to 7-9. Now it’s time to flip those numbers over. This is year three under
team full of scorers. Rondo, a daily triple-double threat, is a supreme floor general. He quietly became the Celtics best player while Paul Pierce Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were still on the roster. Rondo will give Mavericks players and fans flashbacks to the days when Jason Kidd was the boss of the backcourt. Even Kobe Bryant chimed in on the deal, telling ESPN.com, “It obviously makes them a much, much better team. On top of [being]
the Jeff Fisher/Les Snead regime and they’ve flirted with .500 and that’s been about it. Flirting can only get you so far if you are the Rams. The Rams at best will finish 7-9 but that means they would have to beat the Seattle Seahawks in Seattle.
a great distributor [and] an orchestrator, he’s a phenomenal defensive player as well. Makes them even more lethal.”
It is safe to say that the Black Mamba, who has dissed the likes of Shaquille O’Neal, Dwight Howard and LeBron James over his career, is not generally the most praise-effusing player on the planet. The fact that he used the word “lethal” to describe the Mavericks should tell you all you need to know.
Rondo was able to help orchestrate a victory over the
preparation for the Under Armour game and my official visits. But I will be at every game cheering them on when I’m here during the season.” Beckner been seen at every Flyers game when he’s in town. In addition, his sister is a Flyers’ cheerleader as well.
Many wonder where the talented defensive tackle will play during his collegiate career. All of his official visits are major college programs, with both Ohio State and Oregon in the National Championship hunt.
What about Mizzou?
Earlier some felt that the Tigers might be the leading candidate for Beckner’s services. Many wonder if the loss of defensive coordinator Dave Steckel, a mainstay on Head Coach Gary Pinkel staff since 2001 will have an impact on Beckner’s decision. Steckel is leaving Mizzou after the Citrus Bowl to
New York Giants linebacker Devon Kennard attempts to tackle the Rams’ Tavon Austin during action at the Edward Jones Dome on Sunday. The Giants defeated the Rams 37-27.
Best of luck with that one. I’d like to wish all of our readers a happy and safe holiday.
For more Rams Roundup, please subscribe to youtube. com/stlamericanvideo.
Spurs in his Dallas debut. The Spurs rested several key players so I won’t get carried away by the win. Remember though, the Mavericks were the only team to make the Spurs break a sweat during the 2014 playoffs, pushing the eventual champs to seven games in the very first round. The Mavericks have clearly improved this season. I’m not so sure the same can be said about the Spurs.
become the new head coach for the Missouri State Bears. Will former teammate and former Flyers’ Greg Taylor, a future Tiger, have an impact? Some say former Missouri Tigers Eric Wright (49ers) and Johnnie Poe (New Orleans Saints) sure would love to see the talented Beckner play for the Tigers. More importantly, I hope Terry and his family enjoy the process. And I will be rooting for him regardless of his choice. Good luck, Terry!
Thanks, Jackie Longtime Flyer cheerleading coordinator and athletic administrator Jackie Howard-Wright retired last week after 40 years at the high school. Thanks for your service to our youth, and our community!
For those who want point to the Golden State Warriors’ stellar record, I’m sorry but I’m not buying them as legitimate title contenders yet. They are certainly a talented team, but I have a strong feeling they’ll fall off mid-season much like the Portland Trailblazers did a year ago. Even if they finish as the top seed in the West, they’re not built for the grimy grind of the NBA playoffs.
They can shoot the lights out, but they lack the grit needed to keep opposing stars from shining. Rondo and Chandler give the Mavs that edge. Looks like good ol’ St. Nick will be bringing a championship to Dallas this season. Merry Christmas!
Follow Ishmael and In the Clutch on Twitter @ IshmaelSistrunk
Continued from B1 with the law. He added, “If these municipalities will work with my office to come into compliance, then we will work with them.”
“I understand that the failure to comply could be highly impactful on the financial stability of these municipalities,” Koster said. “It is not my goal to financially destabilize these communities. But it is our goal to bring them, and all cities in this state, into full compliance with the Mack’s Creek law.”
Koster said that he worked with Auditor Tom Schweich’s office to retrieve the financial reports from municipalities. Schweich – who is auditing a group of municipal courts –said in a statement that he’s “pleased that the attorney general has joined in my efforts to increase transparency and accountability among our municipal courts.”
“I look forward to working with our partners of both parties in the General Assembly in the upcoming session to bring about change for the benefit of the citizens of the affected communities,” Schweich said.
Only a handful of the municipalities that St. Louis Public Radio contacted about the lawsuit responded.
Normandy Mayor Patrick Green said that he would need to talk with his legal team before commenting – adding that the call from this reporter was the first time he heard about the lawsuit.
Vinita Terrace attorney Mark Kramer said in an interview that the city’s fiscal report spans a time when the Mack’s Creek law was changed.
“So, the information that was provided to Mr. Koster’s office – and properly so – was the information on any tickets given on the state road for the first six months. Because that was the first six months of our tax year,” Kramer said.
“And after Aug. 28 was on any moving violation in the village of Vinita Terrace. So, when we figured it all out, it was like 15 percent of what we all had of the total revenue that came in for all moving violations.”
Kramer said he was “surprised” that Vinita Terrace was included in the lawsuit.
“All you have to do is make a request and the municipalities will give the information,” Kramer said. “If the purpose was for publicity, then he did what he wanted to do.”
Since Michael Brown Jr.’s death, some St. Louis County municipalities have come
under intense scrutiny for their municipal court systems. Some attorneys and political figures contend an aggressive posture toward ticketing fostered a hostile relationship between law enforcement and citizens.
Koster said the heightened awareness of the issue – which included national exposes in the Washington Post and The New York Times – made a difference.
“I have been late in coming, I think, to the recognition of the importance of the Mack’s Creek law,” Koster said. “The Ferguson situation raised it up to our attention. And I
just don’t think that it’s been something that this office has focused on.”
(Koster also emphasized it was unclear “who is the actual prosecutor in the Mack’s Creek statute.” He also said that changes in the law made in 2013 altered how cities were in violation of the statute.)
Ferguson Commission co-chairmen Starsky Wilson and Rich McClure joined Koster at his press conference. Both men stated that pairing down the power of municipal courts was a major priority for the commission.
Wilson said aggressive
ticketing by some municipal police departments fostered a hostile relationship between police and citizens.
“Today’s action, which goes to enforcement to laws on the books for those who are outside of compliance, really gets to responding to the pains of people who stood in our meetings,” Wilson said.
“[They] shared their tales, quite frankly, of difficult times in these courts – including feeling that they were preyed upon by the courts, feeling that they were supporting a system that oppressed them and, quite frankly, expressing
pain because they felt that these systems should protect and care for them.” Koster’s lawsuit comes as lawmakers are considering lowering the Mack’s Creek law threshold. State Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Glendale, proposed a bill earlier this month lowering the percentage city’s could procure from tickets to 10 percent.
St. Louis Public Radio reporter Rebecca Smith supplied information for this story. Reprinted with permission from news.stlpublicradio.org.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, creator of Kwanzaa
By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American
“I want people to know that Kwanzaa is a celebration of blackness,” said Dr. Maulana Karenga, creator of Kwanzaa. “That’s hard to imagine, because who celebrates blackness?”
The people who filled the upstairs area of Better Family Life, Inc. headquarters hanging on to his every word were the exception to the rule. Karenga was the featured speaker for the New African Paradigm Study Group Lecture Series in conjunction with Better Family Life, Inc.’s Kwanzaa Celebration – a celebration of blackness themed around Karenga’s holiday concept that has been taking place for nearly 30 years.
n “Love is a practice and it needs to be renewed. We need to renew our love for each other as black people.”
– Dr. Maulana Karenga
The audience had the invaluable opportunity for the first-hand back story for the week-long annual observance that honors African heritage in AfricanAmerican culture, from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a feast and gift-giving.
“You have to have respect for black people. If you have respect for the people, you will have respect for their life and their culture and their rightful way of being human in the world,” Karenga said.
“Each people and culture is a unique and equally valid and valuable way of being human in the world. Did you hear that? I said, ‘Equally valid and equally valuable.’ What the oppressor did with black people is problematize your very life. He made a problem – as Malcolm would say – from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet. He said your hair wasn’t right, your color wasn’t right, your nose wasn’t right.” Through the creation of Kwanzaa, Karenga hoped to create a counter-narrative. “You are divinely chosen to bring good into the world,” he said.
Karenga gave special insight and perspective on the holiday that is nearing its 50th anniversary, speaking on the seven principles dedicated
Nelly says scholarship opportunity in works at Vatterott in slain youth’s name
By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American
The event is for the worthy cause of providing an opportunity for young people to receive a full scholarship to Lindenwood University.
But lightheartedness, local and national celebrity stargazing, fashion and fun have been the main attractions for Nelly’s Black And White Ball over the years. There was still plenty of all of the above, but the 9th Annual Black And White Ball would address what has become a defining moment – and subsequent international movement – for the area since immediately after Michael Brown Jr. was gunned down by now former Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson. In a special live interview before a couple hundred of St. Louis’ most influential citizens, master of
See NELLy, C4
Oleta Adams and IN UNISON in perfect harmony for ‘A Gospel Christmas’
By Kenya Vaughn
How to place a calendar listing
1. Email your listing to calendar@stlamerican. com OR
2. Visit the calendar section on stlamerican.com and place your listing
Calendar listings are free of charge, are edited for space and run on a space-available basis.
Fri., Dec. 26, 8 p.m., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Gamma Omega Chapter presents End of the Year Jam The Machinists Hall, 12365 St. Charles Rock Rd., 63044. For more information, call (314) 973-9801 or (314) 303-4082.
Sun., Dec. 27, 3 p.m., Afro World presents Kwanzaa Celebration. Special guests include actress/life coach Redina Medley and percussionist/poet David A. N. Jackson. 7276 Natural Bridge Rd., 63121. For more information, call (314) 3895194 or visit www.afroworld. com.
Through Dec. 27, Chase Park Plaza presents The Annual Holiday Extravaganza. A month-long event featuring Christmas carolers, cookie decorating, a gingerbread house, elves, a Hanukkah Celebration, a special Kwanzaa display, and free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus. The festivities begin with the outdoor arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus by a Holidaythemed horse drawn carriage as Caroling St. Louis, dressed in period costumes, perform in the hotel lobby. The evening also includes complimentary
cookies, hot chocolate and hot cider. Tour the Chase’s elegant lobby as it is transformed into a magical Winter Wonderland. 212 N. Kingshighway Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www.chaseparkplaza.com.
Sun., Dec. 28, 12 noon, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. & Saint Louis Art Museum present KWANZAA: Holding Our Past, Strengthening Our Present, Saint Louis Art Museum and The Farrell Auditorium at The St. Louis Art Museum for Musical Performance. For more information, visit www. dstslmac.com
Sun., Dec. 28, 6 p.m., The Ambassador presents Holiday Bash – Mindless Behavior. 9800 Halls Ferry Rd., 63136. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.
Mon., Dec. 29, 12 p.m., The Botanical Garden hosts Kwanzaa: The Festival of the First Fruits. Kwanzaa is a Swahili term that means “irst fruits,” and this contemporary African-American holiday centers on the feast table of the harvest. A Kwanzaa ceremony highlights a day of storytelling, craft and jewelry displays, and authentic African drumming and musical performances. 4344 Shaw Blvd., 63110. For
The Ambassador presents Holiday Bash – Mindless Behavior. See HOLIDAY HAPS for details.
more information, visit www. missouribotanicalgarden.org.
Wed., Dec. 31, Harry’s New Years Glow Party. Once again, Harry’s and Horizon will be hosting their annual NYE bash. This party has sold out weeks before NYE for the last 5 years. The party will feature 4 amazing DJs, a premium open bar all night long, a complimentary shuttle to all downtown hotels, and some very special surprises. If you are making NYE plans, this is where you want to be. 2144 Market, 63102. For more ticket information, call (314) 750-5605.
Wed., Dec. 31, 6 p.m., First Night in Grand Center. In celebration of the 250th Birthday of the City of St. Louis, this year’s First Night will be an evening to remember! The winter celebration features visual and performing arts, musicians, storytellers, dancers, magicians, actors, puppeteers and visual and media artists.
This year’s theme is “St. Lou-minous.” The opening ceremony begins at 6:00 p.m. on the Main Stage at Grand and Lindell. There will be a children’s ireworks show at 9:00 p.m. and Grand Finale Fireworks at midnight. Grand Center District, Grand and Lindell, 63103. For more information, call (314) 2891500 or visit www.grandcenter. org.
Wed., Dec. 31, 7 p.m.,
Marriot St. Louis Airport hosts 2015 New Year’s Eve Ball. With an exceptional dance loor, elegant Grand Ball Room, exquisite meal, premium open bar, elaborate 5 star lodging and the best NYE entertainment in St Louis the 2015 New Year’s Eve Ball will once again set the benchmark for New Year’s Eve Productions in St Louis. The attire for the evening is dressycasual. Don’t let this event sell out before you get in. 10700 Peartree Lane, 63134. For more information, visit www. StLouisNewYearsEveBall.net
unforgettable night as you send off 2014 in style with an open bar all night long, a delicious dinner and dessert buffet, fun party favors, a champagne toast, and a variety of unexpected surprises. Orlando’s Event Center, 2050 Dorsett Village Plaza, 63043. For more information, call (314) 846-9043 or email tickets@nyestlparty.com.
or call (314) 291-7371.
Wed., Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m., St. Louis Symphony presents New Year’s Eve Celebration David Robertson and the STL Symphony bring the year to a spectacular conclusion with the annual New Year’s Eve Celebration. Full of surprises and enchanting music, this best-kept secret is a memorable way to ring in the New Year. 718 N Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, call (314) 534-1700 or visit www. stlsymphony.org.
Wed., Dec. 31, 8 p.m., Liquid Assets presents New Year’s Eve at The Complex with special guest K. Michelle 2619 Washington Blvd. https://kmichellenewyearseve. eventbrite.com. For more information, call (314)6802775.
Wed., Dec. 31, 8 p.m., The St. Louis New Year’s Eve Party. The St. Louis New Year’s Eve Party is a BYOB for Steppers, Boppers, Line Dancers and anyone looking for a quality New Year’s Eve Party! Included with admission are: A buffet dinner catered by Royal Choice Catering, champagne toast, party favors, and a video DJ. There will also be: Flat Screen Raffles, 50/50 Raffle, Door Prizes, Picture Man Soul Train Line, and Drink Set-Ups. VIP Tables are also available. Machinists Hall, 12365 St. Charles Rock Rd., 63044. For more information, call Roderick - (314) 952-0853 Sherman - (314) 504-4348 or Trish - (314) 800-4041.
Wed., Dec. 31, 8 p.m., LaDeDa Entertainment & Events presents NYE with the Dirty Muggs. Enjoy an
Wed., Dec. 31, 6 p.m., First Night in Grand Center. In celebration of the 250th Birthday of the City of St. Louis, this year’s First Night will be an evening to remember! The winter celebration features visual and performing arts, musicians, storytellers, dancers, magicians, actors, puppeteers and visual and media artists. This year’s theme is “St. Lou-minous.” The opening ceremony begins at 6:00 p.m. on the Main Stage at Grand and Lindell. There will be a children’s ireworks show at 9:00 p.m. and Grand Finale Fireworks at midnight. Grand Center District, Grand and Lindell, 63103. For more information, call (314) 2891500 or visit www.grandcenter. org.
Wed., Dec. 31, 9:30 p.m., Gateway Arch Riverboat New Year’s Eve Cruise. Ring in the New Year on a 19th century replica steamboat, cruising down the Mississippi. Enjoy a 3 1/2 hour cruise featuring beef medallions, shrimp, potatoes, vegetable medley, salad and the chef’s special dessert. The cruise also includes an open house bar, DJ, party favors and a champagne toast at midnight. Leonor K. Sullivan Blvd., 63102. For more information, visit www. gatewayarch.com.
Dec. 26 & 27, Jazz at the Bistro in Grand Center presents Good 4 the Soul. This explosive four-piece outfit, led by John King on bass, with Adaron “Pops” Jackson on keys, James Jackson on drums, and Shaun Robinson on guitar, draws upon jazz, funk, fusion, gospel, and R&B repertoires to deliver a powerful and unapologetic sound that excites and thrills audiences. When this band hits the stage, there are no boundaries. The only guarantee is a night of world-class music that is Good 4 the Soul. 3536 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.
jazzstl.org.
Mon., Dec. 22 and 29, 7:30 p.m., The Gramophone hosts Open MIC Night. 4243 Manchester Ave., 63110. For more information, call (314) 531-5700 or visit www. thegramophonelive.com.
Fri., Dec. 26, 6 p.m., The Dark Room presents Mo Egeston (Mo E All-Stars). Pianist Mo Egeston will play a mix of original soul, jazz standards, bossa and more. 615 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www. moegeston.com.
Fri., Dec. 26, 6 p.m., The Dark Room presents Mo Egeston (Mo E All-Stars). Pianist Mo Egeston will play a mix of original soul, jazz standards, bossa and more. 615 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www. moegeston.com.
Mon., Dec. 29, 7:30 p.m., The Gramophone hosts Open MIC Night. 4243 Manchester Ave., 63110. For more information, call (314) 531-5700 or visit www. thegramophonelive.com.
Sat., Dec. 27, Café Soul and STL Kings of Comedy present a Tribute to Richard Pryor featuring Jessie Taylor, Lil Rock and Jovan Bibbs. Rustic Goat, 2619 Washington.
Sat., Dec. 27, 6 p.m., The Saint Louis Dazzling Diamonds host a Majorette Workshop, Pinx Academy of Dance, 6357 Olive Blvd. For more information, call (314) 690-3299.
Sat., Jan. 3, 2 p.m., Omicron Eta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and the Ivy Foundation of St. Louis, Incorporated presents The 25th annual “Little Miss Fashionetta.” Little Miss Fashionetta® is a six-month experience for young AfricanAmerican girls between the ages of 9-12. The culminating event is a spring pageant where the girls will receive awards, showcase a talent and be presented to the community in debutante attire. The pageant generates funds to benefit scholarships for our youth and other philanthropic endeavors. 6701 Delmar Blvd., 63130. For more information, email littlemissfashionetta@ aka-omicronetaomega.org.
Sat., Jan. 3, 7 p.m., The Scottrade Center presents Harlem Globetrotters Fans Rule World Tour. The world famous Harlem Globetrotters have been thrilling families and millions of fans for 88 years, all the while innovating the game in exciting new ways. Last year, the Globetrotters did something unparalleled in the history of sports and entertainment, letting fans vote on new rules
to be used in actual games. It was so much fun, we are doing it again, and there are cool new rules to choose from: Hot Hand Jersey, Make or Miss, or Trick Shot Challenge Take your kids to www. harlemglobetrotters.com/rule to vote for their favorite, craziest rule. Then, get your tickets to the game, where you will see the winning rules put into live action. 1401 Clark Ave., 63103. For more information, call (314) 622-5400 or visit www.scottradecenter.com.
Mon., Jan. 12, 7 p.m., Left Bank Books hosts author Scott L. Miller, author of Interrogation. The first in Scott Miller’s St. Louis-based crime series introduces the reader to Dr. Mitch Adams, a Ph.D. Social Worker in private practice. Life is good, Mitch is in love, and all is right with the world. Until his girlfriend’s boss, her ex-husband, and a deranged caller derail his whole world. Could the man at the heart of everything be one of his patients? 399 N. Euclid Ave., 63108. For more information, call (314) 3676731 or visit www.left-bank. com.
Tues., Jan. 13, 6:30 p.m., Maplewood Public Library presents An evening with Julius Hunter. Mr. Hunter, St. Louis native, journalist, and writer, will be discussing his new book “Priscilla and Babe.” It is the story of two former slaves who made St. Louis their home and became wealthy brothel owners during the Victorian era. You will experience drama, heartbreak, scandal, mystery, political maneuvering, and even humor. Mr. Hunter will be signing the book and answering questions. 7550 Lohmeyer Ave., 63143. For more information, visit www.maplewood.lib.mo.us.
Mon., Jan. 19, 7:30 p.m., Tavern of Fine Arts presents River Styx: Kiki Petrosino and Eric Lundgren Ms. Petrosino is the author of Hymn for the Black Terrific: Poems. The book offers vibrant, inventive meditations on darkness in many forms, including the colored body. The Mulattress series disassembles a sentence from Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia, which claims people of color “secrete less by the kidneys, and more by the glands of the skin, which gives them a very strong and disagreeable odor.” The collection concludes with the creation of “the eater,” an entity less a physical being than a center of intersecting desires. 313 Belt Ave., 63112. For more information, call (314) 367-7549.
Jan. 7 – Feb. 1, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner Loretto-Hilton Center for the Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Rd,, 63119. For more information, call (314) 9684925 or visit www.repstl.org.
Jan. 13 – 18, Peabody Opera House presents The Book of
Liquid Assets presents New Year’s Eve at The Complex with special guest K. Michelle. For more information, see HOLIDAY HAPS.
Jan. 7 – Feb. 1, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. LorettoHilton Center for the Performing Arts, 130 Edgar Rd,, 63119. For more information, call (314) 968-4925 or visit www.repstl.org. (found in THEATRE)
Mormon. The story of two young Mormon missionaries sent to a remote village in northern Uganda, where a brutal warlord is threatening the local population. Naïve and optimistic, the two missionaries try to share the Book of Mormon, one of their scriptures—which only one of them has read—but have trouble connecting with the locals, who are more worried about war, famine, poverty, and AIDS than about religion. 1400 Market St., 63103. For more information, call (800) 745-3000 or visit www. ticketmaster.com.
Jan. 22 – 25, Peabody Opera House presents Sesame Street Live: Let’s Dance. Elmo uses his imagination to ‘Do the Robot,’ Cookie teaches all ‘feets’ to dance, and Ernie shares the fun of dance with the Sesame Street favorite “Shake Your Head One Time.” Favorite friends join the audience on the floor –dancing with fans, not just for them. It’s Sesame Street Live like you’ve never experienced it before. 1400 Market St., 63103. For more information, call (800) 745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.
Through Jan. 4, St. Louis Art Museum presents Atua: Sacred Gods from Polynesia Explore, in unprecedented depth, the relationship between art objects and Polynesian concepts of atua—gods, ancestors, and spirit beings that are fundamental to the Polynesian cosmos. Organized geographically, Atua leads visitors across the vast span of Polynesian islands. With the arrival of missionaries, artworks associated with atua often were destroyed or exported to the West as
souvenirs of conversion and colonialism. Among those sculptures that did survive this period, the most powerful and celebrated objects are presented in this exhibit. One Fine Arts Dr., 63110. For more information, call (314) 7210072 or visit www.slam.org/ atua.
Thur., Jan. 15, 6 p.m., St Lou Fringe 2015 Fringe Festival Submissions Go Live. At 6 p.m. sharp (CST) you can submit your online application to secure one of our 20 (10 local and 10 national) firstcome first-served spots at St. Louis Fringe Festival. In 2014, these spots filled up in a matter of seconds! So be prepared. Producers of all genres of performing arts are invited to submit. Details, including submission guidelines, are available at www.stlfringe. com.
January 23, 6 p.m., Opening reception for Moments of Silence: A Response to the Ferguson Experience Exhibition, This exhibition by the Coalition of Artists for Peace is on display at the Don and Heide Wolff Jazz Institute and Art Gallery on the campus of Harris-Stowe State University. The primary theme of the exhibition will
focus on the state of human relationships in response to a national crisis. Fifteen visual and performing artists will present approximately thirty original pieces. This exhibition will include the works of several local and national artists including Cbabi Bayoc, Lucia Garcia, and Fabio Rodriguez. Don and Heide Wolff Jazz Institute and Art Gallery Henry Givens Administration Building, Rm 003, HarrisStowe State University 3026 Laclede Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63103. For more information on other touring venues contact the Coalition of artists for Peace at: coalitionofartistsforpeace@ gmail.com.
Through Jan. 4, 2015, The St. Louis Science Center presents The International Exhibition of Sherlock Holmes. Step in to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Victorian London and work sideby-side with his legendary detective. You will become Holmes’ eyes and ears as he tackles a baffling new case in a world steeped in innovation and experimentation. Along the way you’ll see a dazzling array of original manuscripts, publications, period artifacts, film and television props and costumes. You’ll learn to use investigative tools and techniques from Holmes himself, and test yourself with exciting, interactive crime-solving opportunities. Come Solve the Mystery. 5050 Oakland Ave., 63110. For more information, call (314) 289-4400 or visit www.slsc.org/watson.
Tues., Jan. 6, 8 p.m., Maryville University presents 2014-15 St. Louis Speaker Series feat. Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Ali was born in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1969. The daughter of a political opponent of the Somali dictatorship, she grew up in exile. As a young child, she was subjected to
female genital mutilation. As she grew up, she embraced Islam and strove to live as a devout Muslim. But she began to question aspects of her faith. In 1992, Ayaan was married off by her father to a distant cousin who lived in Canada. In order to escape this marriage, she fled to the Netherlands. In 2004, Ayaan gained international attention following the murder of Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh had directed her short film Submission, a film about the oppression of women under Islam. The assassin, a radical Muslim, left a death threat for her pinned to Van Gogh’s chest. 718 N Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, call (314) 534-1700.
Sat., Jan. 17, 8:00 a.m., American Heart Association and American Stroke Association present Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Health Fair and Luncheon with special guest Richard Smallwood. Enjoy a free lunch at the health fair beginning at 11 a.m. St. Louis Union Station Doubletree, 1820 Market St., 631303. For more information or to RSVP, call (314) 692-5642 or visit www.heart.org/stlouis.
Wed., Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m., Southern Mission Baptist Church Watch Night Service with special guest speaker Pastor Michael Tyler of Greater Paradise MB Church, Southern Mission Baptist Church(SMBC), 8171 Wesley Ave., Kinloch, MO. For more information, call (314)521-3951.
Thur., Dec. 25, Unbroken starring Jai Courtney and Finn Wittrock opens in theatres nationwide.
n “We want to send kids to school in the name of Mike to make sure no one ever forgets this situation.
Continued from C1
ceremonies Mike Claiborne managed to mix in some of the tough questions facing the community in the wake of the Ferguson unrest – including how Nelly sees his role in making a difference – during the celebratory evening Sunday, December 21 at The Four Seasons.
“That’s what happens sometimes when tragedy strikes your community – it’s a wakeup call,” Nelly said. “Sometimes it takes a situation to wake people up. Not for the worse, but for the better so the generations and the community can come together.”
Shane Williamson, Lindenwood University’s dean of first-year student programs who helped present the full scholarships for 2014, proudly announced that one of this year’s recipients, Savoy Smith, is actually from Ferguson.
“Kaylon and I are a beaming light in Ferguson,” Smith said of himself and his co-recipient Kaylon Michael Grant when accepting his scholarship.
“Every single day I keep realizing the full impact of this full ride,” Grant said during his brief remarks.
The fact that they understood how the award will change their lives touched Nelly as well.
“I want to thank the young brothers for even taking advantage of the option,” Nelly
said. “That’s what we need more of – we need more kids to understand that there are options and situations that can help them out and change their lives so that they can change the lives of their loved ones and their community – it’s called a domino effect. The best place to start is with education.”
The scholarship is in conjunction with Lindenwood University Black Student Union, Plaza Motors and Nelly. According to Williamson, the award is worth about $22,000 annually.
“I’m hoping that these kids – whatever they learn from this opportunity – that they take it back to their communities to help bring a positive light to help create change,” Nelly said. Williamson said over the past nine years, 12 students have been awarded funds to completely cover tuition and housing for up to five years.
Four recipients have graduated college – and one from nursing school – while the remaining scholars maintain a 3.0 GPA.
“We have to grab the kids from those communities to help them get an education so they can go on and run the communities, because they know the communities,” Nelly said. “It shouldn’t have been, ‘Hey, you, get out of the street.’ It should be, ‘Hey, Michael, come on. Move out of the way. Don’t do that. I know your mama and I’m gonna call her as soon as I get back to the station.’”
Michael’s mother Lesley McSpadden and her husband
Continued from C1
during Kwanzaa: Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (SelfDetermination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity) and Imani (Faith).
He encouraged the audience to join him in repeating the principles as he offered an expanded definition of each one and why it is so imperative that they be practiced.
“We must reach deep inside ourselves and within the depths of our own culture and extract and recommit ourselves to those values that represent the best of what it means to be African and human in the fullest,” Karenga said.
“Let us celebrate the good – the good of community, culture and life and every
- Nelly
Louis Head were among the notable guests in the Four Seasons Ballroom for the invite-only affair.
“I want to send my personal strength to you and the whole family,” Nelly said. “I appreciate having you in our presence tonight. I don’t want you to ever think that the city of St. Louis doesn’t understand that you lost a son. I want to let everybody know that we will be starting the Michael Brown Scholarship Foundation with Vatterott.”
Vatterott Technical College – which partners with Nelly for his E.I. exTreme Institute – was where Michael Brown Jr. was scheduled to attend before his life ended tragically on August 9.
“We have commitments from everybody from myself, TI, Nick Cannon, Kevin Hart, Al Sharpton and Rosie O’Donnell, Dwight Howard and I know I’m forgetting some people,” Nelly told the crowd.
Nick Cannon was among the esteemed guests who also included Jon Jay of the St. Louis Cardinals and St. Louis Blues legend Brett Hull.
“Get ready, it’s a lot of work,” Nelly said to McSpadden, implying that she will have a hands-on role in the Michael Brown Scholarship at Vatterott.
“We want to send kids to school in the name of Mike to make sure no one ever forgets this situation. We’re talking about bringing to light the positive of Mike’s situation and him wanting to go to college.”
living thing. That is at the heart of the season and celebration of Kwanzaa: having a time for African people all over the world to come together and reaffirm the bonds and meditate on the awesome meaning of being African in the world.”
He spoke of getting e-mails from people on several continents sharing their appreciation for the space to celebrate their blackness in harmony with descendants of the diaspora at the same time all over the world.
“It’s because of you,” Karenga told the crowd. “If you didn’t embrace it, see it as something of value to teach yourself and your children, the best of what it means to be African it wouldn’t be what it is today.”
Brazil, Columbia, China, Korea and Europe were among the regions he mentioned in his roll call of places where he knows Kwanzaa is observed.
“Above all Kwanzaa is a
celebration of the love for our family, community and culture,” Karenga said. “Love is a practice and it needs to be renewed. We need to renew our love for each other as black people – if that’s not the central message, I don’t have one.”
In that renewal, Karenga feels there is responsibility and action that must be taken to effectively pay respect to the rich history and legacy of one’s blackness.
“Let us recommit ourselves to dare to struggle to constantly bring good into this world – to increase it and sustain it in honor of our ancestors, out of respect for ourselves and in the interest of future generations,” Karenga said.
“This is the sum of our obligation in the world – to know our past and honor it, to engage our present and improve it, and to imagine a whole new future and forge it in the most ethical, effective and expansive way.”
Continued from C1
The performance struck the audience to the point where she was given room for an encore amidst the jam-packed musical program.
Although more subdued, the audience also acted as “the amen chorus” when Adams performed her gospel hit “Holy is the Lamb.” Adams proved herself to be an impeccable talent over the course of the evening – especially with her performances of “There is Still My Joy” and “Everything Must Change.”
The appreciation for the experience offered through IN UNISON’s “A Gospel Christmas” proved mutual
when Adams extended her performance to include a few selections not listed on the program.
“You know what time it is,” Adams said, just before gracefully stroking the keys of the grand piano to deliver the opening chords of “Get Here,” the Brenda Russell cover that put her on mainstream music’s radar.
“Go ‘head, Oleta,” “sing that” and other responses came from the crowd as they basked in the delightful surprise that she would indeed be performing her signature hit. Her voice was still as pristine before a live audience as it was when the song was on the airwaves nearly 25 years ago.
“She sang that,” an audience member said after Adams effortlessly showcased
her deep vibrato during the bridge of “Get Here.” Adams sang the audience out the door with another selection she spontaneously added to the program as a token of her appreciation for such a receptive audience.
“Anybody who doesn’t want to stay, my feelings will not be hurt,” Adams said before offering a scaleddown performance featuring herself and her band as people prepared to head for the exit.
A number of guests stopped midway through their tracks to partake in her surprise second helping.
“This has been amazing,” Adams said, just before finally bidding the audience farewell and bowing to IN UNISON and the orchestra for their accompaniment.
“Black or White” Ball win. It was the time of year where one of our city’s stars brings the best and brightest to get glammed up in black and white so that worthy students can have a change at a better future. Nelly’s 9th Annual Black And White Ball actually should have been called the “Black OR White” Ball, because most of the guests seemed to commit to one shade or the other as opposed to a blend. It was a cute affair as it returned to the Four Seasons for a second year Sunday night. 2014 didn’t rank too high as far as the celeb star power goes. But what I love about the ball is that it’s no longer really about the national names. The event is now officially a place where local stars can shine. Nelly, Nick Cannon, Brett Hull and Jon Jay were about the size of the A-list action. I really caught life with how Jon Jay and his brunette Lisa Simpson (yes, Bart’s little sister) hair swag was personality plus. He would give the busiest social butterfly a run for their money. I know y’all are waiting for shade, but I enjoyed it to the point where I honestly don’t have any. Well, except to say that the folks seem utterly bothered by the fact that Nelly was boo’d up with Miss Jackson. I know y’all adored him with Ashanti, but he clearly likes Chantel because she’s quietly the only one he’s actually claimed They are on a show together and were on the red carpet at the Black and White Ball together. It’s officially official, so get with it or get over it. In somewhat related news, I also took note of a few absences that left me scratching my head. I didn’t see Murphy Lee or Kyjuan anywhere. Let me know if I missed them. I was hoping to see them in formalwear without their dreads for the first time ever. And their respective life partners Asia and the artist formerly known as Seviin Li are typically two of my favorite dressed divas. I was also in search of Mocha Latte, who never disappoints with her black and white ensembles either. To end on a positive note, I want to say that I especially enjoyed Nikko Smith and his band. He’s great with delivering an extra dose of R&B to those soul-inspired pop tunes. And I’d be remised if I didn’t commend Nelly for announcing he and a few famous friends will be starting the Mike Brown Scholarship at Vatterott!
Belles of the Black or White Ball. You’ve waited for it, and now it’s time to pay homage to 2014’s most pulled together of the evening. I spoke of rap wives earlier – and two in particular were among the evening’s most stunning. They actually wore black AND white too. Mrs. Ludy and Mrs. Ali were giving me everything. All.Of.It. As for everyone else, I’m forced to pic between team white and team black. Shaki’s curve hugging tux, Gabby Davis, Lisa West and Melanie of The Marquee with her glorious old Hollywood Glamour had me ready to roll with the blacks. Then Naretha Hopson had me riding with neutral because of her bronze sequined cocktail ensemble. At the end of the day team white came in the final lap and took the surprise win. Nelly’s daughter Chanelle, Tavonda and the bootyliciousness of Sinita Wells proved impossible to beat. Sinita would’ve had Serena Williams feeling second fiddle in the thickness department! And envisioning her in that goddess gown it had me seriously considering doing lunges up ALL the World’s Fair Pavilion stairs for all of next year so I can have a coke bottle shape as my main accessory.
I know y’all hate for me to be full of good news, but I must say I don’t really have much “when bad fashion happens to good people” episodes for this black and white ball either. There were a few underdressed (as in leggings to a ball, girl … really? And panties under a lace shell … at a ball, really?) but the vast majority of the folks were downright snatched!
Oh, I almost forgot the fine men! Blu Bolden’s son Mike might have been my favorite. And I actually have to give the man of the hour props on pulling off a shiny tux jacket. On anybody else it would’ve looked like a body double for the 1980s Temptations, but Nelly made it work!
Cool on Corey Holcomb. It’s been more than a month since I laughed until my lower back got to bothering me, but I was expecting to do so Saturday night when the disgracefully funny Corey Holcomb headlined the Ambassador. Now don’t get me wrong, I cackled. It didn’t have much to do with Corey though. That Jessie Taylor and his bit about the woman’s “coonpossum” coat had me gagging all the way home. “I’ll bet she be out here like ‘I don’t know why I always want to jump into dumpsters and trash cans when I go outside.” But Corey – who typically has me howling, sounded like he just came up with his act on the ride from the airport. I’m just saying. The good thing is that it was blues show packed up in that piece, so it had to have been a win for the promotions side. And except for the marginally funny ATL comic, folks who don’t know any better probably thought they had a good quality grown folks comedy hour.
Saturday night live. Somebody tell me they were giving away iPhone `11’s or something, because the Marquee was packed as all get out on Saturday night. I’m talking like Times Square New Year’s Eve on Locust and 19th. It was absolutely bananas! Can somebody tell me if Diddy was in there hand delivering pineapple Ciroc? Because it was too crowded to see who was who. All a girl could get a glimpse of from my vantage point was people and packed out VIP booths.
Grand New Year’s Eve Opening. Speaking of New Year’s Eve, Liquid Assets is bringing K. Michelle to the all-new club Complex (also known as the old Coliseum). I’m excited to see that she will be breaking in the club, because she brings out the masses every time. Is it extra messy of me to want Phil and ‘nem to announce Idris Elba as the surprise celebrity DJ so we can see what an episode of Love and Hip-Hop North St. Louis might look like?
room and board at Lindenwood University. Nelly also announced that he will be joined by several celebrity friends in creating the Mike Brown Scholarship at
To my niece, Jada King Happy 8th Birthday on December 27. She’s cute, smart and loves to shop and dance. Your Tee Tee Erica D. West loves you to pieces!
Wishing my friend of 19 years, Aesha Phillips, very happy, beautiful birthday on December 28. Thirty-seven is looking good on you honey! Love you, Nikki
Happy 1st Birthday to Isaiah G. Pennington on December 28. You are a blessing from God and we enjoy spending time with you. It is very important for us to give you part of your foundation so you will become an outstanding young man in the future. Love: Mom and your Grandparents
Beaumont High Class of 1965 is planning a 50th reunion. Searching for classmates who are interesting in celebrating. Please email your contact information to bluejackets65@ gmail.com.
Beaumont High Class of 1970 is looking for team members to plan its’ 45th year reunion.
Interested? Please email Beatrice Palmer (Vanzant-Smith) at bvanzantsmith@yahoo.com or bsmithrealtor@att.net.
Beaumont High Class of 1984 can stay updated via our Facebook page “Beaumont Class of 1984”. We meet the last Friday of every month. Contact Rochelle Williams at rochellewilliams001@yahoo. com.
Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri District 3 would like to invite you to an Alumni Event. We are looking for anyone who worked in or was a member of Girl Scouts in St. Louis City. If you would like to participate, please contact Essie Harrison at essie.harrison@att.net or call (314) 400-4602 with your
name, address, phone number, and email address.
Sumner High School Class of 1965 is planning a 50th year reunion for June 12-14. 2015. Please join us via Facebook: Class of ‘65 Sumner High School St. Louis, MO.
St. Louis Community College needs your help identifying STLCC alumni. Alumni are encouraged to visit the website: www.stlcc.edu/foundation/, to become members or update information. For more information, contact Ashley Budde, coordinator of alumni relations, at abudde6@stlcc. edu, or 314-539-5145.
Sumner Class of ’59 Alumni presents 37th Annual Oldie
But Goodie Dance, Sat. Jan. 17 at 7 p.m.. There will be music provided by Baby O & Master Blaster. Machinists Hall, 12365 St. Charles Rock Rd., 63044. For more information, call (314) 6808324 or (314) 791-5504.
Sumner High Class of 1965 is planning its 50th Reunion on the second and fourth Mondays at 7 p.m. at the Lower Level of Ronald L. Jones Funeral Chapel. For updates and/or to leave your contact info--visit our Facebook group Sumner Class of ‘65.
Sumner High Class of 1970 is planning its 45th Reunion. Please provide contact information to: cshsco70@yahoo. com or J. Fox at 314-606-3506
for more information.
Sumner High Class of 1975 has started planning its 40th reunion. Please provide contact information to sumnerclassof75@gmail.com or C. Jackson 314-477-6785 for more information.
Upward Bound (Webster University ) Class of ‘66 thru ‘70 of Kinloch, Beaumont, Vashon, Summer, Central, Soldan, Northwest, McKinney and Laboure, we are the process of planning a reunion around June/ July 2015. Please respond by contacting via email or Facebook Lawrence (Larry) Lewis: lewis3936@gm.com or Kenneth W. McClendon irisingridarlene@aol.com.
Do you have a celebration you’re proud of? If so we would like to share your good news with our readers. Whether it’s a birth, graduation, wedding, engagement announcement, anniversary, retirement or birthday, send your photos and a brief announcement (50 words or less) to us and we may include it in our paper and website – AT NO COST – as space is available Photos will not be returned. Send your announcements to: kdaniel@stlamerican. com or mail to: St. Louis American Celebrations c/o Kate Daniel 2315 Pine St. St. Louis, MO 63103 FREE OF CHARGE
Reunion notices are free of charge and based on space availability. We prefer that notices be emailed to us!
However, notices may also be sent by mail to:
Kate Daniel, 2315 Pine St., St. Louis, MO 63103
Deadline is 10 a.m. on Friday. If you’d like your class to be featured in a reunion profile, email or mail photos to us. Our email address is: reunions@ stlamerican.com
our Past,
Winter Celebrations at the Saint Louis Art Museum concludes this weekend with the Museum’s annual Kwanzaa extravaganza. With an extraordinary lineup of African dancers and musicians, a spoken word artist, and many more activities, this is sure to be the Museum’s best Kwanzaa celebration yet! Starting at 12:00 pm, visitors can explore the galleries with a scavenger hunt that teaches the seven principles of Kwanzaa and make their own zawadi (gift) during the Family Sunday art activity. At 2:00 pm, the excitement moves to The Farrell Auditorium for drumming, dancing, and a spoken-word performance. Experience traditional African dance performed by Afriky Lolo and Diadie Bathily and be amazed by a stilt walking show featuring the Nan Foule Folklore Society. There also will be an inspirational spoken-word performance by poet Tracey Berry-McGhee and presentations by members of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter. Following the program, visitors are invited to enjoy free Kwanzaa-related treats in the auditorium lobby. Throughout the month of December, the Saint Louis Art Museum has offered visitors an opportunity to explore different cultures and holiday traditions with Family Programs: Winter Celebrations. Working in collaboration with the Mexican Cultural Society of St. Louis, the Saul Brodsky Jewish Community Library, and the St. Louis Christmas Carols Association, the Museum has
St. Louis’ 250th anniversary year is spinning toward the history books but there’s still loads of excitement left in 2014.
Before ending the year at St. Louis’ First Night, an evening chockfull of fun events, families can observe Kwanzaa at a couple of St. Louis celebrations. Kwanzaa is a Swahili word meaning “first fruits,” and the contemporary African-American holiday honors African heritage, family and community.
The Saint Louis Art Museum’s popular “Kwanzaa Celebration: Honoring Our Past, Strengthening Our Present” is an annual collaboration with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter as part of the museum’s Family Sunday programs.
The event will be held from noon to 4 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 28 and will feature traditional African dance with Afriky Lolo, stilt dancing, and a spoken word performance. Families can make their own zawadi (gift) and participate in a scavenger hunt with clues teaching about the principles of Kwanzaa.
The program is free but tickets are required for auditorium events. You can get them in person at the Museum’s Information Centers (no charge) or from MetroTix, with a $3 per ticket service fee.
at midnight. Another fireworks display pops off at 9 p.m. so youngsters can enjoy the action and still make bedtime.
Outdoor activities are free. A First Night button gets you into the indoor activities. Buttons are $12 for adults; $6 for children in advance and $14, adults; $7, children at the event.
presented cultural days celebrating the Fiesta of Our Lady of Guadulupe, Hanukkah: the Jewish Festival of Lights, and Christmas. Visitors learned about each holiday with themed art activities, scavenger hunts, and special auditorium performances. All Family Sunday activities are free and open to the public. While the performance is free, a ticket is required for entry to the auditorium. Tickets can be reserved in person at the Museum’s Information Centers or through MetroTix (314.534.1111). Tickets reserved through MetroTix incur a $3 per ticket service charge; the charge is waived for tickets picked up at the Museum. For more information
please
SAVE THE DATE
Friday, January 16. 7:00 pm. Free Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Freedom Celebration: The Dream Marches On Saint Louis Art Museum, The Farrell Auditorium
Join us for a remembrance of the Selma-to-Montgomery March on its 50th anniversary and explore why the dreams of the 1965 march still have relevance today.
Family Sundays are sponsored by Wells Fargo Advisors.
Families can also celebrate Kwanzaa at the Missouri Botanical Garden’s “Kwanzaa: Festival of the First Fruits” from noon to 3 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 29. A Kwanzaa ceremony, storytelling, craft and jewelry displays and authentic African drumming and musical performances are part of the fun. Garden admission is required.
First Night in Grand Center is the place to ring out the old year and ring in the new on Dec. 31. The community celebration steeped in the arts and welcoming the New Year promises six hours of entertainment and hands-on activities—some free.
Activities begin at 6 p.m. Visitors can get a last look at some of the 250 birthday cakes that have decorated the area this year as St. Louis’ year-long celebration of its 250th birthday draws to a close.
You can also watch artist demonstrations, make art yourself, let airbrush artists paint your face, make a “St. Louis Is All A Glow” hat, decorate a masquerade mask, participate in a final cake hunt, and watch the Missouri History Museum’s film 250 Years in 250 Seconds on a two-story digital screen among other things.
Grand Center will be filled with many genres of live entertainment. Here’s a sampling:
• Farfetched Collective
• G. Wiz
• Gateway Men’s Chorus
• Gentlemen of Vision
• Kreative Pandemonium Folkloric Drum & Dance Ensemble
• Gene Dobbs Bradford Blues Experience
• Illphonics Unplugged
• Adam Rugo & The Circus
• Harmony Band
• Coco Soul with Mo Egeston
• Unifyah
• Will Robinson Check out the entire schedule at grandcenter.org.
Spectacular fireworks cap off the evening
Life doesn’t slow down in the Gateway City when January blows in.
The beloved Harlem Globetrotters bring their brand of athleticism, theater, and comedy to the Scottrade Center on Jan. 2.
The stage version of the award-winning 1967 film “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” comes to the Rep’s MainStage at the LorettoHilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves Jan. 7 to Feb. 2 (dates vary). The story…an interracial couple must deal with issues of race, fear and cultural beliefs.
An exciting new multi-disciplinary theatrical production, “The Clothesline Muse,” will be on stage at Washington University’s Edison Theatre in the Mallinckrodt Center Jan, 16. Using the clothesline as a metaphor for the AfricanAmerican community lifeline, the play celebrates the role of African-American washerwomen in history and society.
Whether January is cold or warm, the 10th Annual Ice Carnival in the Loop Neighborhood Jan. 16-17 is a great way to celebrate winter.
Saturday festivities—all about ice—are free. They include live chainsaw ice carving demonstrations, ice slides for the kids, human dog sled races, 5k and 10k frozen buns runs, frozen turkey bowling, snowball races and more. Eagle Days—a St. Louis tradition— happens at the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge Jan. 17-18. Watch our national symbol soar, roost and swoop down for fish, and then check out the warming tent for activities and an up-close and personal visit with an eagle. Lewis and Clark history demonstrations will be held at the Missouri and Illinois bridge entrances. If the weather’s a challenge, just bundle up and go. The colder/snowier, the more likely the eagles will be out.
he was
By Bridjes O’Neil
Of The St. Louis American
The Rev. Osagyefo
Sekou appeared in Ferguson Municipal Court on Tuesday, December 16 on a refusal to disperse charge – the first of a series of charges relating to his participation in non-violent civil disobedience acts. Sekou, of the First Baptist Church of Jamaica Plains, Massachusetts, flew in late on the afternoon before to make his court appearance.
Sekou’s September arrest occurred while he knelt in prayer in front of armed police during what they described as an unlawful assembly at the Ferguson Police Department. His attorney, Jerryl T. Christmas, disagrees.
“Ferguson October” Moral Monday protest at the Ferguson Police Station.
“I will not submit to be charged with praying, nor do I accept the righteousness of the some 60 charges laid against those participating in the Moral Monday protests during Ferguson October,” Sekou said.
n “I will not submit to be charged with praying.”
“The police arbitrarily call peaceful assemblies ‘unlawful assemblies’ so that they can start arresting people and squash people’s ability to exercise their First Amendment rights,” Christmas said. Sekou was held for roughly 90 minutes in a blood-stained police van and let go after protestors demanded his release. Two weeks later, he was re-arrested along with Dr. Cornel West during a
– The Rev. Osagyefo Sekou
“The only signs of assault, disorderly conduct, and disturbance of the peace I saw that morning clearly came from the garrison of riot police protecting the state citadel from a group of singing, praying, peaceful clergy, seminarians and members of the community.”
After meeting with prosecutors on December 16, Christmas recommended that the case be dismissed. A continuance was issued for January 27, at which time, Sekou intends to plead not guilty and request that the case be moved from Ferguson Municipal Court to allow for a jury trial
“They really want to aggressively go after these cases rather than be conciliatory in any type of way,” Sekou said, adding that the municipal court system should be
for Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment.
reformed.
It’s a sentiment Sekou shares with many. Looking around the courtroom, Sekou said he took notice of a group of mostly African Americans –some without lawyers – being ordered by a judge to pay costly fines.
“For me sitting in the court was an embodiment of what this movement has always said, ‘It is not just simply about a bad apple. It’s about a rotten system.’”
It’s a system Derek Laney, an organizer for Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment, said his organization is trying to fix by challenging the system to change the way it deals with poor people.
“Poor folks are penalized for
being poor,” Laney said. He joined his friend in court – for support, he said. Laney is facing charges of his own. His most recent arrest came during protests after a St. Louis County grand jury’s non-indictment decision against former Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown Jr.
If there is a jury trial and Sekou is found guilty for praying, he is prepared to suffer the consequences. For him facing fines or jail time is the least he can do to show his solidarity with youth protest leaders, he said.
“You can put individuals in jail,” Sekou said, “but you can’t jail this movement.”
Follow this reporter: @ BridjesONeil.
In the spirit of the times, I was wondering about what it really means to have a personal relationship with God, the operative word being personal. I’m learning that as one starts his or her journey towards the Almighty, it becomes more and more obvious that when you get to the inevitable fork in the road, which path you take is a matter of choice, not circumstance, not fate and certainly not an accident.
Once you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, what’s in your heart takes priority over what’s in your mind and certainly what comes out of your mouth! When faith takes over, the claim of ignorance as defense for unholy actions, unholy practices and hypocritical conduct fall by the wayside. The proof is in the heart. Like the child who responds in silence to the parent, who states, “I know you know the difference between right and wrong, or, I know you know, you weren’t raised that way,” the silent child knows in his or her heart that their parent is correct. No answer is the answer. And I believe so it is with God. No matter the situation or the circumstance, when you acknowledge God, you can no longer use the excuses that you didn’t know, or you didn’t have control or, well, after all it was an accident. This is God we’re talking about, and it’s your heart He’s talking to. You can deny it if you want to, but no answer is an answer and no decision is a decision.
Faith in the face of temptation does not automatically mean we’ll always make the right choices or decisions. As a matter of fact, more often than not, we’ll let God down as well as ourselves. A true understanding of faith, however, will not allow you to stay down. Through faith and a personal relationship with God, each of us can get up and try again. For a true believer, if God ain’t happy, you ain’t happy. Until you know the source of this angst and this anxiety, the choices you make will continue to be wrong. When you submit to the will of God, I promise you’ll begin to see the path that God has laid out for you. Hence, when you choose incorrectly, it’ll become obvious that you’re headed in the wrong direction. You’ll understand God hasn’t moved. You have.
“Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never counts against him.” Romans 4:7-8. Is this possible? I understand it is if I can just get to, “… circumcision of the heart by the (Holy) Spirit…” Romans 2:29. Attempt to walk with God and trust me, you’ll know when you’re out of step. You’ll feel it. It will make you stop and think. You will not have peace, and we all know what it does to you when you don’t have peace where and with whom it counts the most.