July 16th, 2026 edition

WashU program gives students a closer look at medicine

St. Louis American See page A7

The

JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Serving, empowering and advocating for equity in St. Louis since 1928

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Vol. 98 No. 14 COMPLIMENTARY

Familiar choice, different visions

Bell, Bush bring contrasting views to 1st District rematch

By Sylvester Brown Jr. and Na’Porsha Williams St. Louis American Much has changed since Wesley Bell defeated Cori Bush in the 2024 Democratic primary for Missouri’s 1st Congressional District.

Bell is now the incumbent. Bush is trying to win back the seat she lost. The war in Gaza has reshaped political debate, and Democrats face a different political landscape under President Donald Trump.

But one thing has changed very little.

Cori Bush will challenge incumbent Wesley Bell in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary for Missouri’s 1st Congressional District.

Bell is now the incumbent. Bush is trying to win back the seat she lost.

Bell is again making the case that he is the pragmatic Democrat who can deliver results, while Bush argues the district

See 1st District, A11

Courtesy photos

Four Dems compete to succeed Sen. Brian Williams

Walker walks it off St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker follows through on his winning home run swing during the 2026 Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Walker became the first Cardinals player to win the competition.

North County state Senate race gets lost amid marquee contests

By Rebecca Rivas Missouri Independent

Photo courtesy of St. Louis Cardinals/mlb.com

$120 million isn’t all for tornado recovery Board Bill splits North St. Louis investment between storm recovery and redevelopment

specifically reserved for rebuilding neighborhoods damaged by the May 16, 2025, tornado.

A year after the St. Louis Rams footCity leaders and news reports have ball team left St. Louis in 2016, the described the city’s Rams settlement spending plan as directing $120 million to city, St. Louis County and the Regional Convention and Sports Authority sued the North St. Louis tornado recovery.

NFL and Rams owner Stan Kroenke for A review of Board Bill 22 reveals a violating the league’s relocation rules. more detailed story.

In 2021, the plaintiffs won a historic The legislation divides the $120 million into two separate funds with different $790 million settlement. After legal fees, St. Louis County received $169 million, purposes. The ordinance sets aside $89 the Convention and Sports Complex million for long-term tornado recovery Authority received $70 million and St. and $31 million to implement North St. Louis neighborhood plans. The disagreement is over how much money is See $120 million, A11

By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American

The disagreement is over how much money is specifically reserved for rebuilding neighborhoods damaged by the May 16, 2025, tornado.

Four Democrats are running to succeed state Sen. Brian Williams in North St. Louis County — and struggling to get anyone to notice.

Democrats are focused on turning out voters to oppose two constitutional amendments, while television and social media advertising is intensifying in the St. Louis-based 1st Congressional District rematch between incumbent Wesley Bell and former U.S. Rep. Cori Bush.

Perhaps the biggest draw in the district is the race Wilson, who for St. Louis County has not executive, where Williams himself is a endorsed a candidate. candidate, “It’s gonna be said longtime tough for the peoNorthwoods ple who don’t have resident John name ID,” said Terry Wilson, a Jennings Bowman councilman and likely has longtime North the strongest St. Louis County political organizer. name recog“People are going to nition. get drowned out by all of that.”

Whoever wins the Aug. 4 Democratic primary will be the overwhelming favorite in November against Republican Vernon Norman in the heavily Democratic 14th Senate District.

Wilson, who has not endorsed a candidate, said longtime Northwoods resident John Bowman likely has the strongest name recognition. Bowman is president of the St. Louis County NAACP, a political consultant and former state representative.

He said outgoing state Rep. Raychel Proudie of Ferguson also has a high profile because of her impassioned speeches during House debate that have drawn attention on social media.

See Senate, A10

Editorial / Commentary

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ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Guest Editorial

America 250 was narcissistic embarrassment “The 1976 celebration was a more vital and happy one because of a broad belief that two years earlier the system had worked, and we were celebrating a system that had cleansed itself. We were in a period of renewal and relief, and today we’re in a period of fear and loathing. We don’t have any reason to celebrate our founding documents, because we’re living in an authoritarian state that is quite different from the one that the founders created.”

— Jonathan Alter tended Great American State Fair, Trump denigrated immigrants as “murderers, gang members, drug dealers and dangerIn a proclamation declaring 1976 The ous criminals” and bragged about elimiBicentennial Year, President Ford called nating racial justice initiatives. upon “every man, woman and child to In 1976, the nation was struggling to celebrate the diversity of tradition, culrecover from one of the most notorious ture and heritage that reflects our people episodes of presidential corruption in our and our patrimony.” history up to that point: a political espiA half century later, President Trump onage program, illegally funded used the occasion of the nation’s by donor contributions, which 250th anniversary to celebrate the Nixon administration tried to Trump. cover up by destroying evidence, In 2016, a bipartisan act of obstructing investigators and bribCongress created the United ing burglars.

States Semiquincentennial The bipartisan resolve with Commission, branded which Congress confronted America250, to “foster shared the Watergate scandal seems experiences that spark imaginaunthinkable today. Not only did Columnist tion, showcase the rich tapestry a congressional committee vote of our American stories, inspire Marc Morial unanimously to subpoena audioservice in our communities, tapes that exposed the President’s honor the enduring strength and guilt, members of the President’s own celebrate the resilience of the United party stood ready to vote not only for his States of America”. impeachment, but for his conviction, and In 2025, the Trump administration urged him to resign. began diverting funds intended for the But the reforms passed in nonpartisan commission to the wake of the scandal did not “Freedom 250,” a public-prianticipate a future president vate partnership through willing to flout institutional President which donors could purchase norms and test the limits of access to Trump and millions Trump used every available safeguard. of dollars could be funneled the occaIn his Bicentennial speech, to Trump allies. Among the sion of the Ford asked, “Are the instievents it produced were an tutions under which we live nation’s IndyCar street race around the working the way they should?

National Mall and a mixed 250th anniAre the foundations laid in martial arts combat event on versary to 1776 and 1789 still strong the White House lawn. celebrate enough and sound enough to On July 5, 1976, President Trump. resist the tremors of our times?

Ford addressed newly naturalAre our God-given rights ized Americans in Virginia: secure, our hard-won liberties “‘Black is beautiful’ was a protected?” motto of genius which uplifted us far Fifty years later, these questions above its intention. Once Americans no longer sound like a celebration of had thought about it and perceived its American resilience—they stand as an truth, we began to realize that so are urgent test of whether our democracy can brown, white, red and yellow beautiful still summon the courage, accountability ... You came as strangers among us and and civic faith that once enabled it to coryou leave here as citizens, equal in funrect its own course. damental rights, equal before the law, Marc Morial is National Urban with an equal share in the promise of the League president and CEO. future.”

In a speech to open the sparsely-atBy Marc Morial

St. Louis American stlamerican.com

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Commentary

Children’s nutrition should not be for sale food and buying the cheapest calories available. A cut does not have to be large to be cruel. Sometimes the last $16 is the They are calling it a budget cut. But last straw. let’s be clear: when Congress cuts WIC, This is what cruelty looks like when it it is taking food from pregnant women, wears a green eyeshade. babies, toddlers, and young children.

We are told, endlessly, that this nation WIC is not cash welfare. It is not a cares about children. Politicians pose giveaway. It is one of the most efficient with babies, praise mothers, salute famand humane nutrition programs this ilies, and campaign on “values.” country has ever created.

But values are not measured by It provides targeted food slogans. They are measured by support, breastfeeding support, budgets. And a budget that takes nutrition counseling and health food from women and children care referrals to pregnant and tells us exactly whose lives are postpartum women, infants, and expendable. children up to age 5.

WIC also supports farmers, It helps families buy milk, grocers, and local food econoeggs, cereal, formula, fruits, mies. When a mother uses WIC Columnist vegetables and other basics that dollars, that money goes to make the difference between Julianne grocery stores, farmers markets, nourishment and hunger.

Malveaux dairy producers, food distribNow the House has decided utors, and growers. Less WIC that these families should do with money means fewer dollars circulating in less. local communities.

On June 4, the House passed the fisWhat kind of country negotiates over cal 2027 agriculture appropriations bill, the nutrition of infants? What kind of including a $200 million cut to WIC and Congress looks at pregnant women and a reduction in the fruit-and-vegetable toddlers and says, “You cost too much”? benefit. For a family already stretching What kind of Congress spends every dollar, that is not an nearly $2 billion a day on an abstraction. That is fewer undeclared war against Iran, apples. Fewer greens. Less then skimps on food for chilNow the House formula. Less food at the dren? very moment when food mat- has decided The House has acted. ters most. that these fam- The Senate’s version of the The numbers are stark. ilies should do bill — and whatever comproThe House bill cuts WIC by mise emerges between the with less. $200 million and reduces the two chambers — will decide fruit-and-vegetable benefit. whether these cuts survive.

The White House proposal That means advocacy matters goes even further, slashing now. Not next month. Not the monthly produce benefit for young after recess. Now. children from $26 to about $10. That is The ask is simple: fully fund WIC. a $16 cut per child each month — more Reject cuts to the fruit-and-vegetable than 60% — in the very part of WIC benefit. Preserve the virtual and remote designed to put fresh food on the table. services that make WIC accessible to Some will say that $16 a month is working mothers, rural families, and not much. But $16 is only “not much” those without easy transportation. Do not to people who have never been down balance the budget on babies. to their last $16. For a family living on Julianne Malveaux, a former college the edge, $16 is milk and bananas, eggs president, is an economist, author and and apples, bus fare to the grocery store, commentator based in Washington, D.C. or the difference between buying fresh

By Julianne Malveaux

Commentary

Our nation is forgetting its history

There is irony in President Trump’s love of President Andrew Jackson.

Jackson and his allies built the When we forget the first fights over Democratic Party with a founding promvoting rights, we forget who profits when ise: government should answer to the the many are divided. landless many, not merely the propertied Voting rights is back in the news few. because some people are still trying to Jackson’s democracy was badly decide whose votes deserve trust. In bounded. It excluded Black people, Georgia, the Justice Department and women and Native people. His politics FBI under President Donald Trump have also embraced slaveholding white reopened questions around Fulton supremacy. Still, he saw one County’s 2020 election records danger clearly. In his veto of the after agents seized hundreds of national bank, he warned that “the boxes of ballots. The Associated rich and powerful too often bend Press reports the FBI has the acts of government to their assigned 260 analysts and operaselfish purposes.” tions staff to review them.

That warning fits this moment.

Fulton County includes most Vote suppression has often of Atlanta and sits at the heart of Columnist worked by discrediting voters, Georgia’s transformation. It has dividing working people against Ben Jealous a large Black electorate, growone another, and depriving the ing Latino and Asian American many of their full voice so some communities, and many newer residents rich and powerful people can bend govdrawn by the Atlanta region’s jobs and ernment toward themselves. universities. It voted against President That was much of the logic of monTrump. Yet Georgia’s 2020 result was archy: divide and conquer. It was much not some partisan rumor. Local officials of the logic of Jim Crow: tell poor white counted the ballots. The state counted people their enemy is Black them three times, including once freedom. It was true in the by hand. Republican officials 1820s. certified the result. Each count It was true in the 1920s, confirmed the same outcome.

If we forget when immigrants from predomThat matters because vote that landless inantly Catholic countries like suppression has often followed white men Ireland and Italy were cast as the same pattern: discredit threats to real America. It is true once had the voters, divide the people, today, when immigrants from deprive enough citizens of the to fight for predominantly Catholic counballot, and move power upward. the vote, we tries like Haiti and Mexico are The country has largely forcan miss the made into scapegoats again. Tell gotten one of its earliest broad pattern when rural voters their enemy is city voting rights victories: the camvoters. Tell Election Day voters paign to end property qualifiit returns in enemy is mail voters. cations for white men. In many new clothes. their The burden comes as paperstates, a man could be white, work, deadlines, long lines, free, taxed, armed and called to missing names and ballots defend the Revolution — and questioned after the people have still be denied the vote because he did not spoken. Restricting mail ballots can tax own enough property. seniors, disabled voters, rural voters and Those men did not suffer as long as Black men, women, Native people or oth- caregivers.

The right is in the people. Every geners shut out of democracy. Their exclueration that won more democracy ultision still reveals the old fault line. Power mately did so by resisting efforts by the rightfully belongs to the people. Yet few to divide the many. That is our work wealthy interests have often tried to keep now: remember the history, reject the too much of it for themselves. division, and defend the vote for every Some people profit from our forgetone of us. ting. If we forget that landless white men Ben Jealous is a professor of practice once had to fight for the vote, we can at the U. of Pennsylvania and former miss the pattern when it returns in new president and CEO of the NAACP. clothes.

By Ben Jealous

“If the roles were reversed and you had three young Black men on a boat with a young white man and that young white man ended up dead, what kind of investigation would be being conducted by the Mississippi law officials?”

— Ben Crump, attorney for the family of Nolan Wells, who died during an outing with friends

News

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JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Trading summer comfort for rainforest science

St. Louis nonprofit sends next generation of Black female ecologists to Costa Rica six weeks of workshop preparation into practice.

In partnership with Friends of the Rain Forest and the Grace Clark admits Missouri Department of she is not exactly an “outConservation, they have side person.” The rising spent the early summer eighth-grader is a bit developing field research nervous about navigating her very first cold shower, skills.

Rather than just sightbut she isn’t letting a few minor discomforts stand in seeing, each student is the way of her opportunity. currently working on a research project that began Instead of a traditional right here in Missouri and summer vacation, Clark will span and nine other the duration students from of their trip.

St. Louis non“The purpose For her projprofit Black ect, Clark is Girls Do STEM is always to focusing on will spend five empower our local plants. days studying students.”

“I want to Costa Rica’s focus on the rainforest ecoflowers and systems. On July – Cynthia Chapple wild plants 26, the group because I will immerse don’t really themselves in know much about them,” the country’s ecosystems, she said. “I want to learn wildlife and native plants. more about different plants “What we’re going to that we might not see here be doing is more handsin America — what their on,” Clark said. “We’re purpose is, how they’re not going to the beach; made, and where they we’re not staying at an come from.”

Airbnb. We’re going to The curriculum is be outside learning and designed to help students getting that real rainforest understand how everyday experience. I am excitenvironmental choices in ed to learn more about St. Louis can affect ecowhat nature truly is in an systems thousands of miles environment that is more away. On their final night nature-oriented.” in Costa Rica, the program The trip is far from a will host a scientific symstandard vacation. The posium where the students students will be acting will present their final disas junior ecologists and coveries. conservationists, putting

By Na’Porsha Williams St. Louis American

Black Girls Do STEM students formulate their own lip balm during a hands-on cosmetic science workshop.

Courtesy photo

“The purpose is always to empower our students to act locally and understand how their local actions impact the global community,” said Cynthia Chapple, founder and executive director of Black Girls Do STEM. “And so we like to say kids can act locally to impact globally.”

To get to this point, the students had to prove they were ready for the realities of field research. Chapple noted that the program’s orientation often weeds out students once they hear the gritty details of the stay.

“We really want them to know what they’re signing up for,” Chapple said.

“You can’t flush tissue, and there’s really no hot

water. We really want the kids to understand what a field experience is.”

Each girl attending the trip has already completed at least one year in the Black Girls Do STEM “STEM Saturday Academy” program, which focuses on fostering a deep curiosity for science, technology, engineering, and math.

Chapple, a scientist herself, founded the nonprofit out of a desire to change the industry after realizing there was little to no representation of Black women in STEM fields.

According to data released by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, while Black

workers make up about 8% to 9% of the science and technology workforce, Black women make up just 2% to 3%.

“We want young Black girls to realize that they can achieve whatever they would like to,” said James Turner, founder of STEM on Wheels. “But they need to be introduced at a young age to give them time to develop the memory muscles and the foundation of what it takes to succeed.”

The impact of this international trip extends far beyond the five-day experience. Joy Barsh, a graduate of the program who attended the Costa Rica trip in 2024, said the

experience changed the way she thinks about conservation.

Barsh recalled the excitement of their daily hikes, exploring streams to study algae, native fish, and crustaceans. She was particularly inspired by Costa Rica’s reforestation history, witnessing how local communities stopped destroying ecosystems for quick profits, choosing instead to protect the land.

“My greatest takeaway from the trip is to be more selfless,” Barsh said.

“They had to put that personal gain aside and think about how they wanted the other plants and animals and microbiomes to live and survive as well.”

As the departure date approaches, Clark and her fellow students hope the St. Louis community will step up to back their academic journey.

“Think of it as not losing money, but pouring into young Black girls who are hoping to have a great experience in Costa Rica without worrying about if there’s enough money for this or that,” Clark urged.

“Think about it from your own perspective and how you would want somebody to pour into you.”

The organization is accepting donations to fund the students’ research gear and travel expenses through July 20.

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ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

News Briefs

Urban League, churches launch gun lock, Narcan initiative The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis and a coalition of 40 churches will begin distributing free gun locks and Narcan kits Saturday as part of an effort to reduce accidental shootings and opioid overdose deaths.

The initiative comes after several incidents involving youth gun violence, including the death of 7-month-old Kiyomi Parker, who was fatally shot in June. Organizers said

residents may obtain gun locks without providing identifying information, and the Urban League will offer home visits to help families install the devices and safely store firearms.

Supplies will be replenished every three to four months, and an updated list of participating churches will be available on the Urban League’s website, www.ulstl.com.

Kehoe signs downtown redevelopment incentive bill Gov. Mike Kehoe has signed legislation creating new economic incentives intended to encourage redevelopment in downtown St. Louis and other Missouri commercial districts.

The bill authorizes cities to seek state designation as “innovation zones,” making qualifying projects eligible for incentives that include

office-to-residential tax credits, tax abatements and infrastructure support.

Supporters say the law could help finance redevelopment of long-vacant downtown properties, including the AT&T Tower and the Railway Exchange building.

Charter to close Town and Country operations center Charter Communications plans to permanently close its Network Operations Center in Town and Country, eliminating 107 jobs, according to a notice filed under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.

The company did not disclose a reason for the closure. Charter said the affected employees are not represented by a union and will not have “bumping rights,” which allow senior workers to displace junior employees during layoffs.

Zion visitor center celebrates 100th anniversary Zion Cemetery will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its Visitor’s Center with a community event Aug. 1 at its 49-acre campus in Greendale.

The free event will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and include food, refreshments, live entertainment,

self-guided tours and family activities. Visitors also can explore the cemetery’s pet columbarium, native plant gardens, walking trails and bee hives. Zion Cemetery, founded in 1883, recently renovated the Visitor’s Center.

Health centers launch back-to-school care initiative Affinia Healthcare, Betty Jean Kerr People’s Health Centers and Family Care Health Centers have launched “STL First Bell Health,” a back-to-school initiative offering school and sports physicals, childhood immunizations, behavioral

health screenings and other preventive services.

The federally qualified health centers also will host events providing dental services, health screenings, referrals and connections to primary care and family support programs.

Commentary

The strongest people lift others

how much encouragement people need, especially when they’re quietly carrying burdens no one else can see.

If someone asked you to name the Sometimes it means mentoring someone strongest person you know, who would who reminds you of yourself years ago. come to mind?

Share your experiences, your mistakes, Would you picture someone who and the lessons you learned along the way. can bench press hundreds of pounds? A Investing in someone else’s growth is one successful executive? An accomplished of the most meaningful gifts we can give. athlete? Or perhaps someone who has Other times, lifting means becoming overcome incredible adversity? a sponsor instead of simply a supporter.

I’ve been thinking about that quesRecommend someone for an opportunity. tion lately, and I’ve come to realize Make an introduction. Speak their name in my definition of strength has rooms they’re not yet sitting in. changed over the years.

Your influence may be the bridge Today, I believe the stronthat helps someone reach their gest people aren’t necessarily next level. those who carry the most Lifting others also extends weight themselves. They’re beyond the workplace. Every the ones who make life a little community is strengthened by lighter for others around them. nonprofits working tirelessly to When I reflect on the leadmeet needs that none of us can ers, mentors, family members, solve alone. Whether you volunteachers and friends who have teer your time, serve on a board, had the greatest impact on mentor a young person, make a my life, one thing stands out.

Michelle charitable contribution, or simply None of them are memorable Tucker show up when help is needed, you simply because of their titles become part of something much or accomplishments. They are memobigger than yourself. Every act of generosrable because they lifted others. They ity strengthens the fabric of our community encouraged people to dream bigger, opened doors that otherwise would have and creates opportunities for someone else remained closed, shared their knowledge to thrive.

I’ve learned that lifting others isn’t an freely, and believed in others before occasional act of kindness. It’s a way of those individuals fully believed in themliving. Each of us has something someone selves.

That’s the kind of strength that leaves else needs, including our experience, our encouragement, our network, our compasa lasting legacy. sion, our resources or simply our willingWe’re often encouraged to focus on ness to care.. building something like our careers, Imagine what would happen if each of our businesses, our financial security or us intentionally lifted just one person every our next achievement. Those pursuits day. One encouraging conversation. One certainly have value. But I’ve come introduction. One volunteer hour. One gento believe our greatest success isn’t erous gift. One opportunity created. measured solely by what we build for Those moments would ripple far beyond ourselves. It’s measured by how many what we could ever measure, creating stronpeople are stronger because we crossed ger families, stronger workplaces, stronger their path. nonprofits, and stronger communities.

The good news is that lifting others I’ve come to believe the strongest peodoesn’t require extraordinary wealth, a ple aren’t remembered because of how leadership title, or unlimited time. Every much they achieved on their own. They’re one of us has opportunities to do it remembered because of how many people every single day. they helped rise.

Sometimes lifting someone begins That’s the kind of strength the world with something as simple as expresscould use a lot more of. ing gratitude. A handwritten note, an unexpected phone call, or a sincere text Michelle D. Tucker is president and message can remind someone that their CEO of United Way of Greater St. Louis. efforts matter. We often underestimate

By Michelle D. Tucker

Business JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Dispute clouds future of minority program

A5

PEOPLE On The Move

Sullivan lands Central Trust leadership position Kevin L. Sullivan has joined Central Trust as vice president and financial planning officer.

Sullivan brings nearly 20 years of experience in financial services, including advisory and financial planning roles with several firms. Most recently, he worked Kevin as a financial planSullivan ner at a national brokerage firm, where he helped develop a fiduciary financial planning program for highnet-worth clients.

Bridget Jones named interim president

Photo by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American

St. Louis County Council members meet as questions remain over the future of the county’s Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprise program.

Officials disagree over whether contracting ordinance has expired

By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American A dispute over when St. Louis County’s Minorityand Women-Owned Business Enterprise (M/WBE) program expires has evolved into a bitter political fight, with County Executive Sam Page’s administration and members of the County Council offering sharply different interpretations of the law.

At the center of the dispute is whether the ordinance governing the program auto-

matically ended disagree. it or whether the CouncilThe disagreeCounty Council woman must take formal ment centers Shalonda Webb, legislative action on language in D-4th District, before it can said county offithe ordinance. expire. cials previously Page says the gave the council original M/WBE a different timeordinance includline. ed a sunset provision that “We asked, ‘When was ended the program in May the renewal needed’ for 2026. Because the program the M/WBE program … was created by ordinance, we were told February of he says only the County 2027, and now this date or Council can reestablish it goalpost has moved to say through legislation. that it was the beginning of Some council members May or in May of 2026,”

she said.

The disagreement centers on language in the ordinance stating the M/ WBE program “will sunset in eight years from adoption of the program.” Because the County Council repealed and reenacted that section in 2022 — establishing the M/ WBE program “by adoption of this section” — Webb and other supporters argue the eight-year clock may have restarted.

The county commissioned See Dispute, A6

Blacks feel deepest impact of Trump budget law Health and food cuts weigh heavily on many households

By Jennifer Porter Gore Word In Black When President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act into law last July 4, health advocates, academics and economists warned that the spending legislation — which cut trillions of dollars from Medicaid and food assistance budgets — would force millions of people to forgo health care and push millions more to the brink of hunger.

The budget law and its anticipated effects were so See Budget, A6

Bridget Jones has been named interim president and CEO of Unleashing Potential, succeeding Darlene Sowell, who retired May 29.

A St. Louis native, Jones has more than 20 years of leadership experience with nonprofit organizations. She previously founded and led a workforce development orgaBridget Jones nization focused on expanding economic and digital opportunity and most recently served as president and CEO of the Youth and Family Center.

Jones holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Georgia and an MBA from Webster University.

Stafford named Children’s Hospital president Nikki Stafford, a pediatric health care executive with more than two decades of experience leading children’s hospitals and health systems, has been named president of St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

Stafford most recently served as president of American Family Children’s Hospital and system vice Nikki Stafford president of pediatric services for UW Health Kids in Madison, Wisconsin, where she oversaw pediatric operations and services across the health system.

Before joining UW Health, Stafford held leadership positions with Prisma Health Children’s Hospital-Upstate and other South Carolina health systems.

Dr. Martin honored by counseling association Dr. Claire Martin, an assistant professor in Webster University’s counseling department, has received the Ohana Award from the Counselors for Social Justice, a division of the American Counseling Association.

Martin also was elected president-elect of Dr. Claire the Association Martin for Multicultural Counseling and Development, the association’s largest division. She will become president on July 1, 2027.

She recently presented research at the International Association for Wellness Counseling’s annual conference on the relationship between epistemic injustice, racial trauma and health outcomes.

Envato photo

Experts say budget cuts under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act are falling hardest on low-income Americans, with Black communities expected to bear a disproportionate share of the impact.

Please submit your People on the Move item (including photo) to areid@stlamerican.com.

A6

Dispute Continued from A5 a disparity study completed in 2024. It found minorityand women-owned businesses received about 17% of county contract dollars despite representing roughly 40% of firms available to perform the work, and recommended continuing and refining the program.

Webb argues the study and the ordinance require additional review before the program can expire.

In a letter to Page, Webb — a self-described advocate of the M/WBE program — wrote that because of the repeal and reenactment of the 2022 ordinance, “there remains a legitimate question as to whether the sunset period should be measured from the original date or the 2022 reenactment.”

The dispute is the latest communication breakdown between the administration and some council members. Last month, a budget dispute over health care funding for the St. Louis County Jail and Juvenile Detention Center required the council to approve a $3 million emergency measure just days before funding expired.

The disagreement has since become increasingly personal.

Speaking with First Alert 4 on June 24, Webb

Budget Continued from A5 controversial that Vice President J.D. Vance cast the tie-breaking vote after the Senate split 50-50.

A year later, a range of experts say those predictions are coming true. The budget cuts are landing

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026 accused the administration of trying to dismantle the program without being transparent.

“For the county executive and the Department of Administration to try through the cover of night to dismantle that program and not be forthcoming and open about it is disrespectful and despicable,” she said.

Page disputes that characterization.

In a letter to Webb, the county executive wrote that although he believes the M/WBE program has sunset under the ordinance, he remains committed to expanding opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses.

He said his administration will continue promoting opportunities for minority businesses “whenever possible and as permitted by law.”

Page also urged the council to work with his administration on “a longterm strategy” and find “common ground on a path forward.”

Page spokesman Doug Moore rejected claims that the administration eliminated the program.

“Any statements claiming the program has been eliminated by the county executive are patently false,” Moore said, adding that only the County Council can reestablish the program through legislation.

Moore also blamed Webb for the impasse, saying she has refused for two years to move Chapter 107, a rewrite of the county’s procurement code that includes language supporting the M/WBE program.

“She has held this up for two years because she did not like the people in

the procurement office,” Moore said. “It is through her pettiness that we are where we are today.”

In a letter responding to Webb, Rodney Gee, director of the county’s Department of Administration, accused her of making “untrue assertions” and “spreading

lies” that misled fellow council members, county officials and the county executive’s staff.

Webb did not respond to Moore’s or Gee’s criticisms.

Council Chair Rita Days also did not respond to the St. Louis American’s request for

hardest on the low-income Americans who rely on them most — and hitting Black communities especially hard.

The law’s dismantling of the health and nutrition safety net is already measurable.

Medicaid and enrollment in the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, fell by 4.6 mil-

lion people nationwide between April 2025 and March 2026, according to an enrollment tracker by KFF, a nonprofit health policy research organization.

Enrollment in Affordable Care Act marketplace plans has dropped even further, from roughly 22.3 million enrollees in 2025 to as

few as 16.5 million this year. Average deductibles on ACA plans have simultaneously climbed 37% to a record $3,786, squeezing people who have managed to keep their coverage.

What’s more, the expiration of the enhanced ACA premium tax credits at the end of 2025 caused many households purchasing coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace to see their monthly premiums soar.

The cuts have hit Black Americans particularly hard because Black households depend on Medicaid, the ACA marketplace and SNAP at higher rates than the general population.

Almost 26% of SNAP participants, or approximately 10.2 million people, are Black. Participants receive an average of $187 a month — just over $6 a day.

The strain is also visible in the loss of health infrastructure that many Black and low-income communities depend on.

More than 1,000 hospitals, clinics and maternity wards have closed or reduced services since the law passed. Nearly 30 Planned Parenthood health centers have also closed, two-thirds of them in rural or medically underserved areas. Researchers caution that most of the law’s provisions will not be fully

phased in until 2027 and 2028, meaning the full scope of their impact on Black health outcomes is still to come.

The law also cut nearly $187 billion from SNAP funding — the largest reduction in the program’s history. The changes led to the nation’s first interruption of SNAP benefits last November.

By March, more than 4 million people, or 10% of enrollees, had lost SNAP benefits, and participation had declined in every state.

All but eight states saw decreases of at least 5%.

In 21 states, SNAP enrollment dropped by at least 10%, and at least 700,000 children nationwide lost food assistance.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has attributed the decline in SNAP participation to the administration’s efforts to prevent what it says is widespread fraud in the program and to an improving economy.

The law also defunded Planned Parenthood, contributing to the closure of nearly 30 health centers since July 2025. Two out of three of the closed facilities were in rural or medically underserved communities or in areas with shortages of primary care providers. All were located in counties considered

Photo by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American

Nicole Adewale speaks during a St. Louis County Council meeting as officials debate the future of the county’s Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprise.

comment after Moore said Page repeatedly sought meetings with her over the issue but that she had been “a no-show for at least four months.”

The St. Louis County branch of the NAACP has urged county leaders to resolve the uncertainty.

In a memorandum to Days, NAACP President Adolphus M. Pruitt II wrote that the ordinance contemplated both an eight-year time limit and a required disparity study before the program sunsets. While acknowledging Page’s position that the program has expired, Pruitt said the council should determine whether the ordinance has expired, remains partially operative, or should be reenacted or amended.

“The core question is whether the Executive’s position fully reflects what the ordinance actually requires,” Pruitt wrote.

The NAACP recommended the council review the disparity study, clarify the ordinance’s legal status and publicly explain which portions of the M/ WBE framework remain in effect.

For now, county officials, council members and community leaders remain divided over whether the ordinance automatically ended the county’s M/ WBE program or whether further legislative action is required.

“contraceptive deserts.”

Since the law took effect, Planned Parenthood says its distribution of birth control packs has fallen by 25%, visits for breast exams have dropped 20%, and STI testing has declined 10%.

Though the law has been in effect for a year, many of its largest Medicaid and SNAP changes will not take effect until 2027 and 2028.

Last year, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that the nation’s poorest households would lose about $1,200 in annual income on average because of the health care and food assistance cuts, while the wealthiest households would gain about $13,600 through the law’s tax provisions.

The Commonwealth Fund, a public-interest nonprofit, projected an even steeper impact for the lowest-income households, estimating they would lose an average of $1,600 annually while the highest-earning 10% of households would gain about $12,000.

Researchers say the full effect of the law on Black Americans — and on the nation’s health and wealth disparities — may not become clear for several more years.

HealthMatters your

‘Taking Care of You’ JULY 16 – 22, 2026

A7

Can your breakfast help lower cancer risk?

By Dr. Graham A. Colditz

Photo by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American

Journi Reese practices pipetting during a hands on lab session as Dayden Hentz observes through the PRIME Program at WashU Medicine. The four week program introduces high school students to careers in medicine, research and health care.

PRIME for success

WashU program gives students a closer look at medicine

By Lawrence Bryant St. Louis American Inside a WashU Medicine lab, science became something students could see, measure and try for themselves.

Participants in the PRIME, or Precollege Immersive Medical Training Experience, Program stepped into an RNA lab, practiced pipetting and learned about the precision researchers use when studying genetic markers connected to cancer.

For Journi Reese, a rising sophomore at McCluer High School, the program opened up a field she thought

“I never really thought of how many things go into being inside a medical career.”

– Journi Reese

she already understood.

“I never really thought of how many things go into being inside a medical career,” Reese said.

The four-week program gives high school students exposure to health care careers through workshops, simulations, shadowing experiences and guided tours of clinical and community health settings. It also includes classroom instruction and academic support in math and English, subjects that help students strengthen skills needed for STEM and health science careers.

National workforce data show why early exposure to these fields matters.

In 2021, Black workers made up 8%

Don’t sleep on the cancer prevention benefits of a healthy breakfast. Whether it’s oatmeal, whole-wheat toast, berries in Greek yogurt or other healthy combinations — starting the morning with simple, whole foods is a great way to help lower the risk of cancer while also energizing your day and boosting your overall health.

Try to steer away from refined and processed foods Dr. Graham like pastries, white A. Colditz bread, sugary cereals, sausage and bacon.

These are popular choices, but they can increase the risk of some serious diseases, including cancer. Other options that focus on low-fat dairy, whole grains, fruit and other healthy plant foods can be just as tasty — and are also rich in nutrients and other compounds that are quite good for us.

Here are some ways to get the most out of your mornings:

Try to steer away from refined and processed foods like pastries, white bread, sugary cereals, sausage and bacon.

Enjoy your coffee. Coffee has over 1,000 compounds that could help improve health. And studies have linked moderate coffee drinking with a lower risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, gallstones, Parkinson’s disease and some cancers. If you like your morning coffee, keep enjoying it. But try to keep it simple — and in moderation.

Unsweetened black coffee, or with just a little milk and sugar, is the healthiest choice. Specialty coffee drinks are often more like desserts, high in sugar and extra calories.

Mix it up. Experiment with new breakfast options that break the usual mold but keep things healthy. Add fresh spinach to your fruit smoothie.

See PRIME, A8

See Abortion, A8

Woman’s calling leads to national recognition

Family crisis inspires student’s mental health mission

By Jennifer Porter Gore Word In Black The conversation with her mother lasted only a few minutes. But for Kyra Wagner, it changed the trajectory of her life.

During the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wagner learned that one of her brothers was struggling with his mental health. Watching her family navigate a crisis shared by millions of American households, the Nashville teenager found herself asking a difficult question: Who helps children through moments like this?

The answer became her

A 21-year-old rising senior at Spelman, Wagner has been named the undergraduate recipient of The Jed Foundation’s 2026 Student Voice of Mental Health Award.

calling. Wagner enrolled at Spelman College to study psychology, determined to become a child therapist and help young people — particularly Black children

— find support before a crisis becomes a tragedy.

A family mental health crisis during the COVID19 pandemic inspired Kyra Wagner to pursue psychology at Spelman College.

Pandemic shapes a calling As rates of anxiety, depression and suicide among Black youth climbed during and after the pandemic, Wagner’s family experience became a lifelong mission. It has now earned her national recognition.

A 21-year-old rising senior at Spelman, Wagner has been named the undergraduate recipient of The Jed Foundation’s 2026 Student Voice of Mental See Mental, A8

Photo courtesy of the JED Foundation

HealthMatters your

‘Taking Care of You’

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

A8

PRIME

Kristen Taylor Harris, left, and Kamille White build their laboratory skills while working with pipettes during a PRIME cancer research session at WashU Medicine.

Continued from A7 of workers in STEM occupations, below their 11% share of the total workforce. Hispanic workers made up 15% of STEM workers, below their 18% share of the total workforce, according to the National Science Board.

The gap also shows up in medicine. In 2018, 5% of active physicians identified as Black or African American and 5.8% identified as Hispanic, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.

PRIME is a partnership among WashU Medicine, BJC Goldfarb School of Nursing, the Institute for School Partnership, Integrated Health Network and the FergusonFlorissant School District.

Students rotated through nursing, physical therapy, orthopedic surgery, oncology and medical genetics, with each week focused on a different field.

For Dr. Tracey Hermanstyne Jordan, assistant dean of Academic Pathway Programs at WashU Medicine, the goal is to place students in spaces where they can picture their own future.

“You cannot be something if you haven’t seen it,” Jordan said. “You can-

Colditz Continued from A7 Try a breakfast chicken salad made with olive oil

Photo by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American

not imagine yourself being in the space if you never saw community engagement research, if you never saw a scientist, if you never saw a surgeon.”

Jordan said the program is built to show students the many layers of health care, from hospitals and labs to community clinics.

The experience extended beyond the lab.

Students toured an inflatable colon to learn about cancer prevention and saw how health educators work

in communities to prepare people for screenings. The goal was to show that cancer care includes research, education, prevention and community outreach.

Vetta Sanders Thompson, the E. Desmond Lee Professor of Racial and Ethnic Studies at Washington University’s Brown School and a member of Siteman Cancer Center’s Cancer Education Research and Training Core, said students need to see the full range of

careers connected to cancer care and research.

Many young people think of doctors and nurses when they hear “medical field,” Sanders Thompson said, but there are many other roles that shape health care and medicine.

“Exposure to a real research lab is rare for most students,” Sanders Thompson said. “To see how the scientists are working, to see new technology that’s used in research, can be exciting.”

Sanders Thompson said representation matters because communities are often more willing to engage with screenings, vaccines and health education when they see people who look like them involved in research, treatment and community care.

For Franchezka Kiara Avidal, a student from the Philippines, PRIME made science feel reachable.

She said she first thought the experience would

and slices of apple and wrapped in a whole-grain tortilla. Or try a morning mixed green salad with vinaigrette along with your toast. Adding more healthy plant-based foods to your

weekly meals is a great way to help lower the risk of many diseases.

feel doubly so. But that doesn’t mean you need to skimp on, or skip, a healthy breakfast. Try quick, on-the-go options: a banana wrapped in a whole-wheat tortilla, whole-grain granola and berries added to a cup of Greek yogurt, or the ever-reliable peanut butter sandwich on whole-wheat.

healthier omelet with kale and turkey.

Grab and go — but healthy. Life is busy — and mornings can

Go ahead with eggs — but not too many. Eggs can be filling and really enjoyable — plus they’re a good source of protein and other important nutrients. It’s generally best to eat no more than one a day, and to pair them with healthy choices, like whole-wheat tortillas and avocado instead of foods like white-bread toast, bacon and cheese. Or try a

Mental Continued from A7 Health Award, which honors college students who are transforming the emotional well-being of their campuses and communities.

“I’ve always believed turning lived experiences into action is one of the most powerful ways to create change,” Wagner said. “I remain committed to building solutions that improve mental health outcomes for groups with limited access to resources or opportunities and inspire others to do the same.”

Wagner’s path to the award was shaped by her upbringing in Tennessee, where she was known for academic excellence and a deep commitment to family. Like many teenagers with divorced parents and blended families, she navigated shifting roles — the eldest child in one household but not the other — while watching her mother manage financial strain and family transitions.

But it was a pivotal conversation with her mother during the COVID-19 pandemic, while Wagner was still in high school, that became the “aha” moment, point-

Make it whole grain.

Whole grains and fiber lower the risk of cancer and other diseases, and can be as much a part of breakfast as your morning coffee. And only a surprisingly small number of us actually get the recommended amounts of whole grains each day. So, breakfast is a great opportunity to boost that number. Oatmeal, whole-grain dry cereal or whole-wheat toast can top the classic whole-grain breakfast list. You can also look for foods labelled “100% whole grain,” “100% whole wheat,” “100% whole-grain oats” or something very similar.

It’s said a lot, but a

ing her toward mental health advocacy. Her brother was struggling, and the family was unsure what to do.

The experience influenced Wagner’s decision to pursue a degree in psychology with the goal of helping children. Her brother’s struggle reflected what many Black families experienced during the pandemic.

Black youth at risk According to the CDC’s 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, about 29% of high school students reported using alcohol, marijuana or misusing prescription opioids. About one-third of those students reported using two or more substances.

A related CDC survey, the Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey, found that during the first six months of 2021, when much of the nation was under COVID-19 restrictions, 31.6% of high school students said they used tobacco, alcohol or marijuana to cope. Alcohol use alone reached 19.5%, with a notable share of students reporting binge drinking.

The toll was especially severe for Black youth ages 10 to 24. They experienced a 37% increase

be overwhelming, but it helped her make friends, build confidence and see the medical field more clearly.

“It gave me an open eye about the medical field,” Avidal said.

During the cancer research session, she said practicing with RNA and lab tools gave her an experience she had not had before.

“I always wanted to be a scientist,” she said.

“Now I’m able to see and experience the things that I thought I was unable to do.”

Reese entered PRIME thinking she wanted to become a pediatric nurse.

After shadowing patients during physical therapy week and learning about cancer research, she said the program showed her how broad the medical field is.

Reese said PRIME gave her pride and optimism for McCluer students.

“We are McCluer,” Reese said. “We are something.”

She said the experience helped her see more possibilities for herself and other students of color.

“I can do more than what people say I can,” Reese said. “I can be more than just what they expect for a Black person or someone of color to be.”

good breakfast really is an important way to start the day. And we don’t need to overthink it to get real health benefits. Many of the classic breakfast foods have healthy, easy options.

At the same time, there’s a lot of room to be creative and explore new foods and new approaches if we’d like.

Find out what works best for you — and your family. And turn a good morning into a healthy one as well.

Dr. Graham A. Colditz, an internationally recognized leader in cancer prevention, leads prevention research at Siteman Cancer Center at BarnesJewish Hospital and WashU Medicine in St. Louis.

in suicides between 2018 and 2021 — the largest increase of any racial group in the country.

At Spelman, Wagner has built a record of leadership rooted in community and entrepreneurship. She serves as the inaugural president of the college’s Center for Black Entrepreneurship and as co-director of events for the local chapter of the nonprofit Sisters in Sync.

Wagner is also conducting research examining how stress and financial pressures affect maternal mortality among Black women. She mentors young girls in her community and was selected as a Rare Impact Ambassador through Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty brand.

The Jed Foundation’s Student Voice of Mental Health Award recognizes students who build peer support systems and advance suicide prevention efforts on campus and in their communities.

Wagner’s selection places her among a small group of young advocates nationally recognized for transforming personal hardship into public service.

“This award reaffirms that the work I am doing matters and our stories deserve to be seen and heard,” Wagner said.

A9

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Mystikal transferred to Angola to serve 20-year sentence The Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections confirmed to TMZ that rapper Mystikal, born Michael Tyler, now resides at Louisiana’s infamous Angola prison. Officials placed the Grammy nominee in protective custody, where he will occupy a cell by himself.

Angola’s reputation precedes it. Nicknamed the “Alcatraz of the South,” the sprawling 18,000-acre penitentiary confines over 5,000 men and stands as the biggest maximum-security lockup in the country. Mystikal pleaded guilty in March 2026 to third-degree rape over a 2022 attack at his home in Ascension Parish, Louisiana and was sentenced to 20 years.

His original arrest carried charges of first-degree rape and false imprisonment, and a conviction on the top count could have meant life behind bars.

T.I. announces retirement from rap

Atlanta hip-hop veteran T.I. confirmed his retirement from the rap game in a new cover story for PEOPLE. He called his recently released album “Kill the King” his farewell project. “I’ve gotten everything I prayed for from the game,” the Grammy winner told the outlet. This October, the rapper celebrates 25 years since his 2001 debut, “I’m Serious.” “I feel blessed to have had such a long career,” T.I. said. “To go from the kid that was praying to be a part of something, to having such a significant role.”

Mystikal

***************************

Jay-Z’s Yankee Stadium run included a high-profile haircut, and a long delay Before the start of his three-night Yankee Stadium residency this weekend, Jay-Z received a haircut from wife Beyoncé as they sat inside the venue. Footage of the trim was released on their respective social media accounts.

For the final night, Jay-Z apologized to fans after the show of his three-night Yankee Stadium residency was delayed by more than three hours. “It was like ten thousand people outside, and we closed all the doors, and somebody rushed the door,” Jay-Z told the crowd. “They closed the door for you guys’ safety and everyone’s safety outside. I don’t want to start the music and people get trampled.

I’m really sorry for the inconvenience, but I had to make sure everyone was OK.”

***************************

Brandy responds to concerns about her appearance A visit to her hometown of McComb, Mississippi has compelled Grammy Award-winning singer and actress Brandy to respond to online speculation about her appearance. The R&B star received multiple honors recognizing her decades-long career, including the first-ever Key to Pike County. The City of McComb and state leaders also celebrated her.

And during her visit she announced a partnership through her Norwood Kids Foundation to provide musical instruments and expanded arts opportunities for students at C.D. Higgins Middle School. But the moment was marred by remarks about how frail she appeared.

Brandy took to Instagram on Saturday with a heartfelt post about the onslaught of remarks.

An excerpt from the post reads as follows: “I’ve learned that it takes Brandy only a moment to form an opinion about someone’s appearance, and a lifetime to understand what they’ve lived through. So may we become gentler with one another. Not because everyone is fragile, but because everyone is carrying a story we cannot see.

Before you speak about someone’s body, before you speak about someone’s face, before you decide who they are by what you see, remember, you are looking at someone’s child. Someone’s friend. Someone’s dream. Someone’s life. A soul.”

Jay-Z

Hot Sheet Sources:

Allhiphop.com, Instagram.com, People.com, TMZ.com

A10

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Senate

federal level at a time such as this where that knowledge can be helpful for the communities across this district,” he said.

Palm said the candidates largely share similar goals but believes his experience implementing programs sets him apart.

Continued from A1 Joe Palm of University City has spent decades in state and federal public health leadership, while Shante Duncan of University City has built a nonprofit serving women and girls and operates a political consulting business.

“I think everybody has a unique story,” Wilson said. “It’s a good field of candidates to choose from because they all bring some type of experience to the table, which is what we need.”

John Bowman Bowman’s organizing roots began in organized labor.

A North St. Louis County resident for more than 40 years, he spent most of his career as an electrician at the Chrysler plant while belonging to the United Auto Workers and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.

“I saw firsthand how

Raychel Proudie

John Bowman

Shante Duncan

Joe Palm

Raychel Proudie

powerful organized labor can be in lifting working families like mine and creating opportunities for advancement,” Bowman said.

His union work led him into politics, first as a Northwoods alderman and later as a state representative from 2004 to 2008, where he served on the House Budget Committee and sponsored a financial literacy requirement for high school students.

His tenure ended after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor tied to a bank scheme. Bowman said

he was not involved in the underlying fraud and accepted the plea rather than exhaust his family’s college savings on a legal defense. He later served as chief of staff to former Sen. Robin Wright-Jones before becoming NAACP president.

Bowman said he has spent years advocating for grocery stores in food deserts and greater equity in economic development.

“It’s an obligation for people like me,” he said, “who have the experience and knowledge of how to

get things done to stand in the gap.”

but as someone moving in communities,” she said.

“I have these relationships that I can leverage to help ensure that I am ready for the fight ahead.”

Shante Duncan As a young journalist, Duncan placed an advertisement in The St. Louis American seeking women interested in joining a sister circle called S.H.E.R.A.H. — Sisters Helping Each Other Reach Higher Heights.

The group focused on building community through activities such as yoga, meditation and mutual support.

“Then it took on a life of its own,” Duncan said.

Its growth eventually led her to open the Joan B. Quinn Safe House in 2018, providing housing for women recovering from domestic violence, sexual violence and sex trafficking.

While attending the University of Missouri–St. Louis, Duncan also created the LOVE Project, a self-esteem program that expanded into area schools. She said it has served more than 6,000 women and girls of color through workshops, healing circles and retreats.

Duncan later founded SMD Consulting, advising nonprofits and businesses before becoming a campaign strategist and regional field director for the Missouri Democratic Party.

“I do have experience, not as an elected official,

Joe Palm Palm began his public service career as a St. Louis firefighter, an experience he says shaped his approach to leadership.

“As a firefighter, you have to go in when people are running out,” he said.

“No matter what barriers you run into, you keep your focus on getting the job done.”

Over the past two decades, Palm has served in state and federal public health leadership. As chief of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services’ Office of Minority Health, he oversaw programs addressing the opioid crisis, violent crime and health disparities, including the rollout of COVID-19 testing and vaccination sites.

In 2022, President Joe Biden appointed Palm regional director for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where he oversaw operations across 15 states and territories.

Palm attended Berkeley Middle School and graduated from Ritenour High School before settling in University City.

“I have great experience on a local, state, and

Proudie, who grew up in Ferguson, began her career as an elementary school teacher in Baton Rouge after Hurricane Katrina, working with students displaced from New Orleans.

“Those children were still expected to perform on those tests,” she said.

“There wasn’t a deep appreciation, like it is now, for the trauma that those children experienced.”

The experience inspired her to earn a master’s degree in mental health counseling. After returning to Ferguson in 2016 to raise her nephew, she worked as a counselor in the Riverview Gardens School District, serving students from neighborhoods still affected by the aftermath of Michael Brown Jr.’s 2014 police shooting.

She was elected to the Missouri House in 2018.

Proudie points to legislation she has sponsored, including a law clarifying that pregnancy cannot prevent a divorce from being finalized, along with measures providing state assistance for testing toxic nuclear waste and banning race-based hair discrimination in public education.

As the only St. Louis County member of the House Budget Committee, she said she has secured millions for local infrastructure projects.

“We have to go about this another way, because that same old, same old, is how we found ourselves in this position in the first place,” she said. “So right now, we need different and we need stamina.”

A11

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

1st District Continued from A1 needs an independent progressive willing to challenge both Republicans and her own party.

The Aug. 4 Democratic primary offers voters two familiar candidates making sharply different arguments about how the district should be represented in Washington.

Three other Democrats — Carl E. Harris Sr. of St. Peters, Alissa Murphy of Clayton and Carl Ernest Henderson of Hazelwood — and Republicans Paul Berry III and Andrew Jones are also on the ballot, but none has raised enough money to emerge as a serious contender in the heavily Democratic district.

According to Federal Election Commission reports through March, Bell had raised about $1.9 million and reported about $1.2 million cash on hand.

Bush had raised more than $831,000 and reported about $120,000 cash on hand.

Governing philosophy Bell points to his record on criminal justice reform and says he’ll continue fighting the Trump administration while protecting affordable health care, lowering costs for working families and bringing federal resources back to the district.

He accuses Bush of missing votes and breaking with Democrats at critical moments.

“When she was in office, she voted against President Biden and the Democrats,” Bell said.

“While everyone else understood the assignment in the last election was keeping Donald Trump out of office, Cori — days before the election — was calling Biden and Kamala ‘fascists.’ That lack of judgment matters.”

Bush says voters deserve a representative willing to challenge both parties while continuing to advocate for universal health care, reproductive rights, voting rights and lower costs for working families.

She also says the dis-

$120 million Continued from A1 Louis received the largest share, about $280 million.

After months of contentious debate, the St. Louis Board of Aldermen voted 12-3 on July 2 to approve a $255 million spending plan directing the city’s share of the settlement toward tornado recovery, neighborhood redevelopment, infrastructure improvements, downtown revitalization and efforts to reduce vacant properties.

Sharon Tyus is the alderwoman for the city’s 12th Ward, which sustained some of the heaviest tornado damage. She expressed doubt that North City wards will receive a large portion of the settlement money.

When asked what she hoped to see the $120 million do in North St. Louis, Tyus gave a blunt answer.

“There is no $120 million coming,” she said.

Tyus said the $31 million designated for North St. Louis neighborhood plans is the portion she believes residents can count on.

Board Bill 22 confirms the distinction. It creates an $89 million Long-Term Tornado Recovery Fund for resident, housing and business recovery while dedicating $31 million to implementing neighborhood plans already adopted — or under development — in North St. Louis.

The neighborhood plans identify long-term housing, infrastructure, business and public-space projects in North St. Louis. The

trict should speak out on humanitarian issues, including the war in Gaza.

“I know people want to see their representative stand on the side of humanity,” Bush said.

“But also, not give money over to war when that money could be used right here in St. Louis for tornado relief, for education, for health care, for our community violence prevention, for economic development and so many of our current issues.”

Bush defended her vote against President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better legislation, saying she opposed the final version because provisions she fought to include were removed.

“My vote wasn’t against the bill,” Bush said. “It was to get the actual, true 30-year investment into roads, bridges and infrastructure — not the 10-year investment it was dwindled down to be.”

Campaign money The campaign has also featured sharp disagreements over fundraising and outside political groups.

Bush argues Bell has become too dependent on billionaire-backed super PACs and pro-Israel political groups.

Bell has questioned Bush’s 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, created after the May 2025 tornado, saying she has yet to demonstrate how it has helped tornado victims.

“I think Cori is about Cori,” Bell told The St. Louis American. “She literally set up a 501(c)(4), claiming that it was about tornado disaster relief … she exploited that and paid herself and her husband’s salaries.”

Bush has not publicly discussed the nonprofit in detail, and federal law does not require 501(c)(4) organizations to disclose their donors.

“I’m a former prosecutor,” Bell said. “I know a scam when I see one.”

Bush dismissed Bell’s criticism, arguing spending is the larger issue.

“It’s science,” Bush said. “We don’t have to match AIPAC, big crypto, big pharma, big real estate or any of these folks dollar-for-dollar. We need

$31 million is intended to carry out those plans rather than provide direct tornado recovery assistance.

Cristina Garmendia, policy director to Board of Aldermen President Megan Green, said the city already operates a tornado Recovery Office through Mayor Cara Spencer’s administration.

“The city’s Recovery Office primarily focused on coordinating FEMAreimbursable activities, like demolition and debris removal,” Garmendia said. Its primary purpose is to help with home repair and rental assistance for tornado-impacted households.

Garmendia said city leaders intentionally kept the Recovery Office’s mission narrowly focused.

The Rams settlement money, she said, will primarily focus on coordinating long-term home repair and helping tornado-impacted families access the resources they need to “hopefully return to their homes.”

Tyus remains skeptical.

She pointed to the “impact areas” listed in Board Bill 22, which include the Central West End, Skinker/DeBaliviere and Forest Park. All were damaged by the tornado, but they are not geographically located in North St. Louis.

Pointing to decades of disinvestment in North St. Louis, Tyus remained skeptical that North St. Louis neighborhoods like hers will receive as much of the Rams settlement money as many residents expect.

Kevin Bryant, founder

To the victor go the spoils

Photo courtesy of Sty. Louis Cardinals/mlb.com

Jordan Walker displays the Home Run Derby trophy he won with an epic performance on Monday night at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

enough money to hit the doors, have literature and truly organize.”

Bush has repeatedly criticized Bell’s relationship with AIPAC and its affiliated super PAC, the United Democracy Project, which spent millions helping Bell defeat her in 2024 and has committed more than $1.2 million to help defend his seat.

Gaza One major difference between this campaign and the 2024 race is the political climate surrounding the war in Gaza.

When Bell challenged Bush two years ago, he sharply criticized her calls

and president of Kingsway Development LLC., is the developer leading redevelopment efforts in Fountain Park, one of the neighborhoods hit hardest by the tornado.

Bryant admits he hasn’t been “engaged by City Hall thus far,” but wants to see the settlement money go toward communities that were “devastated” by the tornado.

“I would hope that money goes toward affordable housing primarily, as well as infrastructure,” Bryant said. “As a developer in Fountain Park, you would think some of those funds would go toward the housing crisis there.”

Margaret Starks, 84, said she’s attended several public meetings where politicians promised help for tornado victims. She’s lived in the Pershing/ DeBaliviere neighborhood for about 30 years and said she and several of her neighbors are still waiting for home repair assistance.

Starks said her home still needs roof and structural repairs. She’s frustrated because she hasn’t received enough help from her insurance company or the city. She wants to see the settlement money help homeowners repair their homes and bring them “up to code.”

“A lot of us are getting discouraged. We can pray but sometimes you gotta get up off your knees and do something,” Starks said. “With all this money coming in, I’m just hoping it will help people replenish their homes. I’m hoping it turns out well for all of us.”

Jackie Dupree, 64, has

for an immediate ceasefire and positioned himself as a strong supporter of Israel.

An AP-NORC poll this month found Democrats are increasingly supportive of Palestinians and more likely to believe the United States is too supportive of Israel than during the 2024 campaign.

Bell rejected accusations that Israel is committing genocide.

“There are things that all actors in this conflict — including us — that I disagree with, but Israel has the ability to wipe out Gaza. That’s why I push back on that description,” Bell said.

“What I want to see is durable and lasting peace

in that region so that Gazans as well as Israelis can live peacefully. I’m not a big fan of our president nor am I a fan of the prime minister of Israel right now. But I’m also not a fan of Hamas.”

Bush believes public opinion has shifted.

“Two years ago, a lot of people just didn’t know where the money was coming from,” Bush said.

“Now they know.”

lived most of her life in the 4400 block of San Francisco Avenue in North St. Louis. Her home suffered roof, window and structural damage during the tornado. She has received some government assistance, but not enough

to address all of the damage. There are still homes on her block with visible storm damage.

When asked how she hoped the settlement money would be spent in North St. Louis, Dupree offered a simple reply.

Campaign record Bell has also faced criticism over St. Louis County’s $500,000 settlement of a discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by a veteran prose-

cutor.

Bell defended the charging decision at the center of the dispute.

“I did that and I’d do it again,” Bell said.

Although Bell was the central figure in the allegations, workplace discrimination lawsuits generally are filed against employers rather than individual supervisors.

Campaign similarities and political differences aside, Democratic voters will decide Aug. 4 who will represent Missouri’s 1st Congressional District in Congress.

Sylvester Brown Jr. is the Deaconess Foundation Community Advocacy Fellow.

“I just want to see everything that was damaged by the tornado fixed and repaired.”

Sylvester Brown Jr. is the Deaconess Foundation Community Advocacy Fellow.

A12

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

“I see your beauty and I want to put those portraits up on the screen... I want us to see ourselves.”

– Mara Brock Akil

Living It B1 • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

King of Broadway

Cedric The Entertainer, Taraji P. Henson handle ‘Joe Turner’s Come and Gone’ with care

By Kenya Vaughn St. Louis American (New York, NY) – New York City may have the highest concentration of theater lovers per capita, but much of the crowd lining both sides of West 47th Street on Wednesday night was likely drawn to the Ethel Barrymore Theatre for a different reason: celebrity. St. Louis’ own King of Comedy Cedric The Entertainer and Taraji P. Henson — both with stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — headline the critically acclaimed Broadway revival of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, running through July 26.

The initial applause when Cedric and Henson stepped onstage was unmistakably for the stars. But once the performance settled in, the audience responded to the work — laughing, inhaling sharply, and talking back. Not because of fame, but because of the talent that earned it. Their portrayals were so

skilled and convincing that many who arrived hoping for an upclose encounter with celebrity quickly forgot they were watching anyone other than Seth and Bertha Holly.

The production marks the stage debut for both actors, yet they appeared fully at home as a couple running a Pittsburgh boarding house during the first wave of the Great Migration. Bertha is introduced as the voice of reason as Seth complains about a new lodger whose youthful behavior he fears may disrupt the home’s reputation. Cedric’s interpretation of Seth verifies his stage name — a performer who has parlayed comedy into film, television, literature, and now a commanding stage presence without relying on punchlines. His chemistry with Henson is natural, and their timing — together

and individually — is impeccable. Watching them interact evokes the ease of a long-married couple who understand each other’s strengths and share equal footing.

Wilson’s story centers on the residents of the Holly boarding house in 1911, each carrying histories of migration, separation, and searching. Seth and Bertha offer stability to boarders navigating a country still reshaping itself a generation after Reconstruction. The boarding house becomes a crossroads — a place where people confront what they’ve endured and what they hope to reclaim. The rhythm shifts when Herald Loomis arrives with his daughter, Zonia. Loomis, illegally imprisoned for seven years by Joe Turner, moves through the home with a guarded presence as he searches for his estranged wife and a sense of direction after years stripped of autonSee Cedric, B3

Wilson’s story centers on the residents of the Holly boarding house in 1911, each carrying histories of migration, separation, and searching.

Cedric The Entertainer

A hero’s story in motion

Afriky Lolo marks 20 years with ‘Sundiata: The King of Mali’ at the Touhill

By Kenya Vaughn St. Louis American When Diádié Bathily steps onto a stage, he carries West Africa with him. This month, he brings that legacy to the Touhill Performing Arts Center as Afriky Lolo presents Sundiata: The King of Mali, an original work inspired by one of West Africa’s most enduring historical epics.

Sundiata: Performed Friday and The King Saturday, July 17 and 18, of Mali is an the production marks Afriky original work Lolo’s 20th Annual Dance inspired by Celebration. Presented by one of West UMSL Music, it continues the Africa’s most company’s tradition of sharing enduring the richness and vitality of historical West African culture through epics. dance, music and storytelling.

“This story has lived in the hearts and memories of West African people for centuries,” Bathily said. “As we celebrate 20 years of Afriky Lolo’s African Dance Celebration, I wanted to honor a story that reminds us of the power of resilience, community and cultural identity. Sundiata teaches us that our challenges do not define us, but rather it’s how we rise.”

The production tells the legendary story of Sundiata Keita, founder of the Mali Empire, whose journey from a childhood marked by adversity to becoming one of Africa’s most influential leaders has inspired generations across West Africa. “Every See Afriky Lolo, B4

A hero built from scratch

Anthony Jones among storytellers uplifted through STL Filmmakers Showcase

By Kenya Vaughn St. Louis American

Photo courtesy of Afriky Lolo

Afriky Lolo will celebrate 20 years of dance celebration with ‘Sundiata: The King of Mali’ at 7 p.m. July 17–18 at the Touhill Performing Arts Center.

When Anthony Jones was a child, his family navigated housing insecurity and the instability that comes with it for a decade. But while everything around him shifted, one thing stayed constant.

“I always knew I was going to be a filmmaker,” “I always Jones said. knew I was That certainty became going to be a his refuge. When reality felt too heavy, he escaped filmmaker.” into stories — filling sketchbooks with heroes – Anthony Jones he created and writing adventures where courage conquered fear and hope had the final word. “My daydreams were my safe place,” he said. “If I could write them down, I could keep them forever.”

This weekend, one of those childhood creations — Kid Electric — will make its festival debut at the 26th Annual St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase, presented by Cinema St. Louis. The film screens Saturday, July 18 at the Hi-Pointe Theatre before heading to San Diego ComicSee Jones, B3

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ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

St. Louis American Calendar

CONCERTS Thur., July 16, 7:30 p.m. MATI presents Jon Baptiste Live: A Fantastical Musical Journey, The Fox Theatre, 527 N Grand Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63106. For more information, visit www.fabulousfox.com.

Fri., July 17-July 19, Music At The Intersection (MATI) 2026, various times and locations within the Grand Center Arts District. For more information, visit matistl.org.

Fri., July 17, 7:30 p.m., Avery Wilson, City Winery, 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO. For more information, visit www.citywinery.com.

Tue., July 21, 7 p.m.

The R&B Tour starring Usher and Chris Brown, The Dome at America’s Center. For more information, visit www.livenation. com.

Fri., July 24, 7 p.m. doors, Buddy Guy 90 with Carlise Guy & The Nu Blu Band, The Factory, 17105 N Outer 40 Rd, Chesterfield, MO 63005. For more information, visit www.thefactorystl.com.

Wed., July 29, 7:30 p.m., Babatunde: The HipHopera Tour, 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO. For more information, visit www.citywinery.com.

Thurs., July 30, 7 p.m., Lil Wayne: 20 Years of Carter Classics with

2 Chainz, Hollywood Casino Amphitheater. For more information, visit www.livenation.com.

Sat. Aug. 1, The City Winery welcomes Kindred The Family Soul, City Winery, 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO. For more information, visit www.citywinery.com.

Blues legend Buddy Guy returns to St. Louis with his Buddy Guy 90 tour at The Factory. See CONCERTS for more details.

SPECIAL EVENTS

THEATRE July 16 – July 22, The Muny presents Disney’s Newsies, The Muny, 1 Theatre Dr, St. Louis, MO 63112. For more information, visit muny.org.

July 17 - 26, 7 p.m.

Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Catherine B. Berges Theatre at COCA, 6880 Washington Ave, St. Louis, MO 63130. Various showtimes, for more information, visit www.cocastl. org.

July 17 – July 18, Sundiata King of Mali: Afriky Lolo 20th Anniversary Celebration, Touhill Performing Arts Center. For more information, visit www.touhill.org.

Saturday, July 25, 5 p.m., Be The Change presents Living Legends 2026.

This year’s honorees are Zaki Baruti, Arriel Givens-Biggs, Sheila Forrest, Sharee Nicole Galvin, Bernie Hayes, Wiley Price, Anthony Shahid and Lady Ada Taylor, Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd. Visit www. eventbrite.com for more information.

Thurs., July 30, 6 p.m., Black Tech Midwest presents SIP & TECH Mixer St. Louis Edition, The Post Building, 1190 Cole Street. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Sat., Aug. 8, 3 p.m., The Golden Era of Black Radio, the fundraising event will feature a tribute to the late Doug Eason. The Post-Dispatch Building, Tucker and Cole Street.

CWE Jazz and Blues Festival, Euclid and Laclede in the Central West End. For more information, visit cwescene. com.

July 27 – Aug. 2, The Muny presents Ain’t Too Proud, The Muny, 1 Theatre Dr, St. Louis, MO 63112. For more information, visit https://muny.org.

ART

COMEDY July 17 - 19, Special Event: George Wallace, Helium Comedy Club, 1151 St Louis Galleria St, St Louis MO 63117. For more information, visit https://st-louis.heliumcomedy.com.

Sun., July 19, 7 p.m., Shama Mrema, City Winery, 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO. For more information, visit www.citywinery.com.

Fri., Aug. 7, 7:30 p.m., D’Lai: I Beg Your Pardon Tour, City Winery, 3730 Foundry Way, St. Louis, MO. For more information, visit www.citywinery.com.

ST. LOUIS MUSIC SPOTLIGHT Fri., July 24, 9 p.m. Ish Ensemble feat. Alayna Lovelyy, The Dark Room, The Dark Room, 3610 Grandel Sq, St. Louis, MO

63103. For more information, visit https://kranzbergartsfoundation.org.

Sat., July 25, 9 p.m.

T-Dubb-O & The Blue City Syndicate: A Live Cinematic Recording Experience, The Dark Room, The Dark Room, 3610 Grandel Sq, St. Louis, MO 63103. For more information, visit https://kranzbergartsfoundation.org.

Sat., Aug. 15, 1 p.m.

Sat., July 25, 2 p.m.

Urban Arts Expo, 5261 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63108. For more information, visit https:// artbydeonne.com.

Sat., July 25, 8 p.m. Art, Mimosa and Pancakes, The Hawthorn, 2231 Washington Ave, St. Louis MO 63103. For more information, visit https:// ampexhibit.com/.

Through Aug. 9, Teaser by Ayana Evans, Contemporary Art Museum, 3750 Washington Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63108. For more information, visit https://camstl.org.

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Cedric Continued from B1 omy. His arrival unsettles the household, and Seth is the first to notice the depth of Loomis’ turmoil — a suspicion Cedric interprets with precision.

Bynum Walker, expertly portrayed by Tony Awardwinner Ruben SantiagoHudson, serves as the spiritual counterweight to Loomis’ pain.

Bynum believes every person has a “song” — a sense of identity and purpose that must be found and claimed. Through him, Wilson threads the idea that liberation is both physical and spiritual.

Bynum’s quiet insistence that Loomis must find his song places the boarding house at the center of a larger conversation about memory, loss, and rebuilding oneself.

Cedric’s portrayal leans into his natural comedic timing without oversaturating the role.

His Seth is humorous but grounded — a man with a legacy to uphold and a household to protect.

And he makes it clear that Bertha stands beside him, not behind him. Henson’s Bertha carries the throughline familiar in her work: women who command agency. Her Bertha is an anchor — a partner with opinions and equal stake in the home they provide for those seeking footing up north.

The chemistry established by Cedric and Henson ripples throughout the cast, including child actors Dominique Skye Turner and Christopher Woodley as Zonia Loomis and Reuben Scott. Debbie Allen’s direction is a masterclass in honoring Wilson’s language, understanding that its rhythm is as essential to Black audiences as the words themselves. She also gets to the heart of the familial camaraderie that extends beyond bloodlines — a constant element of the Black experience — especially in the ebb and flow between Bynum and the Hollys.

The technical elements are as rewarding as the performances. Scenic designer David Gallo was intentional about every

audience member’s experience, creating visual elements that draw the eye to the top of the stage — from floating windows to a steep, sturdy staircase that rises toward the curtain’s header.

Paul Tazewell’s costumes are meticulously accurate for the era, and sound designer Justin Ellington offers an early glimpse of the emotions that unfold through his Delta Blues soundtrack.

Joe Turner’s Come and Gone affirms that firsthand accounts of Black experience belong in the canon of American theater beyond characters crafted by others that reduce Blackness to the lowest common denominator. And Cedric The Entertainer embodies the strength with which Black men protected the small piece of the American dream they were afforded — and shared it with others seeking their own.

August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone continues through July 26 at The Ethel Barrymore Theatre. For tickets or additional information, visit joeturnerbway.com.

Anthony Jones will make his film festival debut when Heroes Among Us: Kid Electric screens on Saturday, July 18 as part of Cinema St. Louis’ 26th Annual St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase, taking place July 17–26 at the Hi-Pointe Theatre.

Photo courtesy of Anthony Jones

Jones Continued from B1 Con. “I grew up homeless for 10 years,” Jones said.

“Storytelling became the one thing that kept me grounded.”

Heroes Among Us: Kid Electric follows Warren Ryder, a homeless teenager whose electric powers are tied to his emotions.

As the story unfolds, Warren learns that becoming a hero isn’t about defeating villains — it’s about choosing compassion in a complicated world.

“I didn’t want another superhero who was chosen or born special,” Jones said. “I wanted a kid who had to build himself from scratch.”

The character grew out of moments when Jones felt pulled in different directions by peers and circumstances. “I remembered that I had written a story about a kid dealing with that — trying to get his powers under control because they were tied to his emotions,” he said.

“That’s where the inception of him came from.”

But Kid Electric is also Jones’ challenge to the narrow roles Black characters are often confined to.

“Why can’t a hero be dark-skinned?” he said.

“Why can’t that person also be a person of color? I don’t want to tell the slave stories. I don’t want to tell stories about us in the hood killing each other.

Those stories have been told. Now let’s start showing people where we want to go — what we want to be.”

Jones was one of three siblings born to a Jamaican mother. He lived all over before landing in the Metro East. A graduate of Collinsville High School, the 30-year-old said growing up Black and housing insecure meant adults often assumed they already

knew how his story would end. “They already had a narrative for me,” he said.

“But I didn’t want to be somebody else’s statistic.”

This year’s St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase takes place July 17–26.

The festival features 69 films across 14 curated programs, including work by 26 student filmmakers, 15 first-time directors, and 25 filmmakers under age 30.

Festival Director Emmett Williams describes the theme as “A Shared Light” — a reflection of the collaborative spirit fueling the region’s growing film community.

“Year after year, St. Louis artists push boundaries and capture the true heart of our film community,” said Cinema St. Louis Festival Director Emmett Williams. “This showcase proves that when we share our light, we show the world exactly who we are.”

Jones said that spirit is woven into Kid Electric.

“So many of the people who worked on this film are my friends,” he said. “We’ve all come up together. Nobody believed in us early on. This showcase gives all of us a chance to celebrate what we created together.”

The festival also includes new work from St. Louis filmmakers Cami Thomas and Travis Haughton, whose latest projects continue their commitment to telling emotionally grounded, community-centered stories.

Jones’ path to the showcase was long and often difficult. He attended Southwestern Illinois College before leaving to pursue filmmaking full time. He worked at Walmart by day and spent nights directing independent projects while building experience as a camera assistant and crew member. He later worked on productions across Louisiana, Texas,

California, and Arizona before returning to St. Louis to build his directing career.

“I just kept asking myself, ‘What’s the next set I can get on?’” Jones said. “I knew I had to keep getting better.”

That persistence paid off. He is a successful director of commercials.

And Kid Electric has already earned invitations beyond St. Louis, including its upcoming screening at Comic-Con. But Jones said premiering the film before a hometown audience may be the most meaningful moment of all.

“The filmmakers here have just as much to say as anybody coming in from out of town,” he said. “We can tell stories about this community because we live them.”

At its heart, Kid Electric isn’t about superpowers. It’s about choosing hope — and believing in possibility even when the world tries to define you by circumstance.

Asked what he would tell his younger self, Jones didn’t hesitate.

“Everything you believe about yourself — keep believing it,” he said.

“People are going to call you crazy and weird. Let them. One day your film will be at Comic-Con.” For Jones, this moment is simply another chapter in the story he started writing long before anyone else believed it could come true.

“And this is just 30-year-old me telling you that,” Jones said. “Imagine what 40-year-old me is gonna tell you!”

The 26th Annual St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase will take place from July 17–26 at the Hi-Pointe Theatre, 1005 McCausland Ave. (at McCausland and Clayton).

For tickets, additional information, and a full schedule of films, visit www.cinemastlouis.org.

Bridging world through art

create without boundaries. BAG understood that creativity was never meant to exist in separate silos.

Every city has a story. But Music informed painting. Poetry only a few cities create artistic inspired theater. Movement shaped movements that change the way visual art. Together, they built a the world sees itself. St. Louis is movement that still echoes today. one of those cities. We have always Through that creative ecosystem, been a city that nurtures artists Afro-Cuban painter Emilio Cruz whose gifts refuse to be confined came to St. Louis, facilitated by geography—artists whose work primarily through the vision and crosses neighborhoods, oceans, relationships of BAG cofounder cultures, and generations while Julius Hemphill. His presence, carrying the unmistakable imprint collaboration with other BAG of home. That is the power of art. It artists, and youth art classes travels, it transforms, and it builds strengthened the city’s place within bridges. the national Black Arts Movement.

As we close out July, I am That legacy continues through honored to help launch what I visionary visual artists born here believe will become an important in this city. Many St. new tradition in Louis–born Black our city’s cultural artists still thrive and landscape. At create here. Others Thursday Nights may have moved into at the Museum global spaces but hold on July 30, the this city in the heart of Missouri Historical their work, like Cbabi Society’s African Bayoc, D. L. Warfield, American History Ronald Jones, Suzanne Initiative (AAHI) Jackson, Vaughn Davis, presents Bridging Bill Murphy, and Worlds Through Solomon Thurman.

Art: An Evening Multimedia artists with Basil Kincaid, like Damon Davis, a new two-part Aaron Fowler, series celebrating Shabez Jamal, Brock internationally Lyah LeFlore-Ituen Seals, De’Joneiro acclaimed St. Louis Jones, and others artists whose work has continue expanding reached far beyond the boundaries of artistic practice our city while remaining deeply through painting, murals, film, rooted in it. The evening begins storytelling, design, and public with a community happy hour art. Through their beautiful minds at 5pm, followed by a conversation and hands, they all help define the at 6:30pm featuring internationally richness and depth of Black visual acclaimed fiber and textile expression emerging from here. artist Basil Kincaid and celebrated Collectively, they remind us that St. Louis–born artist, curator, and St. Louis remains one of America’s educator Lamerol Gatewood. This great centers of Black artistic is more than an artist talk. It is innovation. an intergenerational conversation As AAHI Director, I often say between two remarkable St. Louis that history is not something we natives shaped by different eras but simply preserve—it is something we connected by the same creative soil. activate. History lives in archives, Gatewood represents a generation but it also lives in quilts, canvases, that helped carry the artistic legacy murals, films, performances, and of St. Louis into institutions the stories artists dare to tell. They across the country, following in transform memory into meaning the footsteps of St Louis greats and remind us that culture is not like Oliver Lee Jackson. Kincaid static—it is alive. represents a new generation whose The work of an artist is never monumental textile works explore simply to create something ancestry, memory, and the Black beautiful. It is to leave behind experience with a vision that now a map that leads us back to our resonates internationally. ancestors—a map that helps Their conversation asks a us understand the present and question that reaches far beyond the points the next generation toward walls of a museum: What does it possibility. This is what most mean to be shaped by a city—and to excites me about this upcoming carry its mark across the world? program with the dynamic Basil Having grown up in a family Kincaid. Beyond that, the kinship where art was not simply admired I have developed with Lamerol but lived every day, I have long Gatewood makes this inaugural understood that creativity is one conversation especially meaningful. of our greatest inheritances. Art To witness them sharing the stage teaches us how to remember, how to is to witness one generation pouring dream, and, perhaps most important, into another while both continue how to see one another. teaching all of us. That is how That is why this moment legacy endures. matters. The artistic legacy of That is what the July 30 St. Louis did not begin with this program offers our city. Not simply series. It stretches back through the a conversation. A bridge. And if groundbreaking multidisciplinary St. Louis has taught us anything, Black Artists Group (BAG) it is this: When Black artists build founded in 1968, where musicians, bridges, generations find their way visual artists, poets, dancers, and across. actors challenged one another to

By Lyah LeFlore-Ituen

B3

B4

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN • JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Photos by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American Y’all better WerQ! When I tell you I got my whole life at the 7th Annual WerQfest Saturday at Atomic by Jamo! It goes without saying that I have a way with words, but I really feel like WerQfest is better experienced as opposed to explained. I will still try my best to describe the explosion of Black queer joy put together by two of my faves. Hey Tre and Shelton! Let me start with the lewks (yes, lewks). As an ally, I’m sure I appeared very demure with my clothing choices. But my nieces and nephews did the absolute most in the best way imaginable and were turning heads all up and through Jamo’s inside and patio. My favorites were the ones that looked regular at first sight but had a surprise. Did anyone see the young man sitting down in the unassuming black shirt and pants who stood up to reveal a cut out that had a turquoise thong covered in lace on full display? Then there was the talent! Kris Lay was serving so heavy I was almost ready to grow this menopausal mustache and beard out and rock it with a Catholic school girl uniform! And do not even get me started on the Veronica Frost revue! I got every bit of my life! You cannot tell me that drag performance is not a talent after seeing the Frost crew stomp and twerk the stage down! Especially with how she came in clutch and kept us occupied until JT hit the stage. I promise if she were on the mic at Yankee Stadium for the folks waiting on Jay-Z, that three hours would have flown by.

Girl, If you are still doing shows in 2071, I would love it if you would host the afterparty for my repast.

WerQfest round two: Late in more ways than one. I know that JT usually stands for Jatavia, but Saturday night it meant “just tardy.” This is absolutely no shade to Shelton and Tre for what they pulled off overall, but was I the only one who felt like JT could have kept that little bite-sized set? Every single body else on the bill brought it, only for her to end the epic night with a fizzle.

It felt even more underwhelming after how Veronica Frost, PBNJeffy and Tre Hitz held it down as we waited an extra hour and some change for those two (and a possible) little songs. The best part of her show was that superfan dynamic duo who rapped every word like the rent was due in lieu of her finale.

If I’m keeping it a buck, JT was a blip on the radar that was the epicness that was WerQfest 2026. I can’t wait to be in the mix for 2027!

Turning up with the grownups. I should have known that Gen X wasn’t gonna plop on their moo moos and shorts with closed-toe sandals and retreat to the couch to watch the stories or listen to the game on the radio in a lawn chair in the garage! These folks are out here at a certain age turning up! I didn’t have to bother changing out of my church clothes when I went to go kick at the Moonrise for the Aunties & Uncs Grown Up Rooftop party Sunday afternoon. Full disclosure, I was still in recovery from my full day (and night) of WerQfest shenanigans, but that roof was a whole vibe! Was I the only one who had to resist the urge to recreate that “Bon Jour” TikTok video because of how the sun was hitting my face?

You know the party is grown when there is a saxophone player in the DJ booth! I wasn’t mad at it, I’m just sayin.’ I also wasn’t mad at Mocha Latte’s little crochet hat. I really feel like I would look like I need to be perched on the shelf of somebody’s granny’s rag doll display shelf or guest room bed if I tried to pull it off. It was super cute on her though. What was also cute was Mocha and BJ the DJ tag teaming on the microphone to hype us up!

It’s MATI time! I know I’m not the only one super excited to take in the revamped vibe for Music at the Intersection 2026 this weekend! I’m gonna be wore out, but it’s gonna be worth it! I can’t imagine it will be hotter than

WerQfest co-creators Tre and Shelton with Vanessa (center) as the party got started Saturday afternoon at Atomic by Jamo

Lucy and Tierha at the Mentors In Motion Gala recently at Saint Louis University Kris was happy to pose with hip hop star Infinite Coles after their set Saturday night at WerQfest it was last year, but I used a wheelbarrow and a window unit to create my own portable a/c machine just to be safe. I’ll park it outside for the indoor shows.

Stay tuned for the recap.

Afriky Lolo

Founded in 2003, Afriky Lolo has become one of the Midwest’s leading ambassadors of West African dance and culture.

Continued from B1 history has its heroes,” Bathily said. “In West Africa, it is Sundiata.

He overcame all odds, triumphed over evil and rose to become the Mali Empire’s King of Kings.”

Audiences will journey through villages, kingdoms, sacred landscapes and historic encounters as the story unfolds through movement, rhythm and theatrical spectacle.

The milestone production comes during a landmark year for Bathily, who gained international attention in March after performing the traditional Zaouli dance of Côte d’Ivoire during the live broadcast of the Academy Awards as part of the musical performance from the film Sinners. The appearance introduced millions of viewers to one of West Africa’s most revered dance traditions and highlighted Bathily’s commitment to preserving and sharing authentic cultural traditions.

“This moment is for all African dancers in the USA and Africa who struggle every day and still believe in your dream,” he said. “Please follow your dream – it is your guide.”

Passed down through centuries by griots, musicians and oral historians, Sundiata: The King of Mali follows Sundiata’s rise from a young boy unable to walk to a unifying leader who defeats the sorcerer king Sumanguru Kanté and establishes one of the greatest empires in African history.

Through traditional West African dance, live drumming, music and theatrical storytelling, Afriky Lolo brings this story of perseverance, leadership and destiny to life on stage. Sixty artists are performing in the 20th Anniversary Dance

Photo courtesy of Afriky Lolo

Celebration, including adult, youth and alumni dancers, 10 musicians, three guest artists and five musicians from UMSL’s music department.

Founded in 2003, Afriky Lolo has become one of the Midwest’s leading ambassadors of West African dance and culture.

What began as something small has grown into a large, vibrant company.

Through performances, classes, workshops, school residencies and community programs, Afriky Lolo has introduced thousands of students and audience members to the richness and diversity of West African artistic traditions.

To prepare for Sundiata: The King of Mali, Bathily traveled to Mali to conduct research, gather music and deepen his understanding of the historical and cultural traditions surrounding the story. “Dance is also research,” he said. “I wanted to return to the source, to learn from the people, the music and the history so that audiences can experience the spirit of this story as authentically as possible.”

Drawing from both historical accounts and mythic elements, the production embraces the griot tradition, where history and storytelling intertwine to preserve cultural memory. The result is a visually striking and emotionally resonant performance that invites audiences into a world of prophecy, perseverance and triumph.

Afriky Lolo is a St. Louisbased nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing and celebrating West African dance with local, national and international communities through performances, classes, workshops, educational programs and cultural exchange. Founded

by Bathily, the company introduces audiences of all ages to the rich traditions, rhythms and stories of West Africa while fostering cultural understanding through the performing arts.

“For more than 20 years, I’ve taught African dance, bringing it from my birthplace in Ivory Coast, West Africa to St. Louis, the city I now call home,” Bathily said.

“This blessed community gave me the platform to carry my vision around the world and transform lives through dance and music.”

He said his gratitude for the St. Louis community cannot be overstated. “I am so thankful to everyone who has stood by me all of these years and believed in what I do,” Bathily said.

“Because of you, I can train and prepare the future generations and keep our culture thriving.”

Afriky Lolo’s 20th Anniversary Dance Celebration — Sundiata: The King of Mali 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday, July 17–18 Touhill Performing Arts Center, 1 Touhill Circle, St. Louis, MO 63121 For tickets and additional information, visit afrikylolo.org.

“That was the greatest Home Run Derby I’ve ever seen.”

— Baseball legend Barry Bonds, congratulating St. Louis Cardinal Jordan Walker after his derby championship

Sports

B5

JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Sports Eye With Alvin A. Reid

Wetherholt’s deal is financial music to Walker’s ears

Trout, $35.6M; Fernando St. Louis Cardinals Tatis Jr., $24.3M; Teoscar rookie second baseman Hernandez, $22M; Nick JJ Wetherholt signed Castellanos, $20M; an eight-year, $112.5 milStarling Marte, $19.5M; lion contract extension, Kyle Tucker, $16.5M; which kicks in next year.

Tyler O’Neill, $16.5M; With incentives, the deal Corbin Carroll, $13.9M. could total $132 million.

If I’m Walker’s agent, Jordan Walker received I’m seeking at least $22 a raise too. million per season for my Walker’s increase in client. And the deal would pay will likely wait until after the season — or until have to be for at least eight years. Thank you, JJ. after a Dec. 1 lockout if My guess is that pitchowners and players have er Dustin May is not reached a new traded by the Aug. collective bargain3 deadline, and ing agreement — his 2027 mutual but it’s coming. option — worth $20 Wetherholt’s million if exercised new deal paves the by both sides — way for Walker to would follow him make at least that to his new team. much, depending Alvin A. May has a mutuon the length of a Reid al option clause, new deal. He will meaning both he make considerably and the team would have more if he completes a to exercise it, and May second half of the season could decline it to test free that compares to the first. agency.

The All-Star right If May is gone, there fielder reached the break is more money availwith 22 home runs and a able for Walker while National League-leading the Cardinals continue 74 RBIs. His .294 batting rebuilding. average, 105 hits, and 32 Granted, he could walks mean he is consisreturn to mediocrity, but I tently on base. Walker doubt it. If he closes this also has a team-leading season strong and adds a 13 stolen bases and has productive 2027, Walker developed one of the most could command as much feared defensive arms of as $30 million annually. all MLB right fielders.

It would be better to According to Spotrac. sign him to an extension com, Walker’s 2026 comnow than wait until 2028 pensation is $799,400.

He’s obviously worth a lot and pay him considerably more. more than that, especially Wetherholt’s deal and since Wetherholt will be a pending extension for raking in an average of Walker leave me con$14.1 million per year. cerned. Shortstop Masyn Spotrac also lists the Winn could be the odd top 10 highest-paid right man out and left without a fielders in baseball as folticket on the money train. lows: Winn, like Jordan, is Juan Soto, $51 million; making $799,400. He Aaron Judge, $40M; Mike

4-3 Cardinals’ loss. He has made eight errors this season, compared to three in 2025. (Remember that he made 18 in 2024.)

Winn and Wetherholt make a dandy double-play combination, with Winn taking part in an NL-leading 57 double plays this year.

Winn’s future is bright but the pay level for a great shortstop is higher than a right fielder or second baseman. St. Louis will have to make a financial decision if Walker receives a deal that tops Wetherholt’s.

We don’t know where that will leave Winn.

For now, the Cardinals have been a pleasant surprise in 2026. It’s never too soon to talk about money, but for now I’m going to concentrate on baseball.

The Reid Roundup

Photo courtesy of mlb.com

JJ Wetherholt’s eight-year, $112.5 million contract extension will likely pave the way for a Jordan Walker deal soon. won a Gold Glove for outstanding defense in 2025 and has quickly become a favorite of Cardinals fans.

His .243 batting aver-

age is the lowest since his first 37 games in 2023, with just four home runs and 37 RBIs. His defense has also

been a bit suspect this year. His throwing error surrendered a ninth-inning run to the Atlanta Braves last Sunday in a

I’m thrilled for Jordan Walker but worried that he participated in Monday’s All-Star Home Run Derby even though he won it. Players in the past have plummeted offensively after the derby… Victor Scott II was hitting .190 when he was sent down to Triple-A Memphis and has not improved. In 90 at-bats, Scott is hitting just .200 with no home runs and eight RBIs… Nolan Gorman is doing even worse at Memphis.

Heralded as a star of tomorrow for several seasons, Gorman was sent down last month and he’s hitting a woeful .121, with three home runs and six RBIs.

Inside Sports With Earl Austin Jr.

Run 4 Roses puts STL in spotlight

When the second week that also attend, including of July rolls around, I several from the St. Louis take my annual trip to area. That is why I travel Louisville, Kentucky, to to Louisville. I love to watch the action at the watch our local girls comRun 4 Roses Classic. pete against the best in the Billed as the world’s country at this event. One largest girls’ basketball team that received a treshowcase, the Run 4 Roses mendous opportunity was has become a permanent the Napheesa Collier Elite part of my summer travel 17U team, coached by basketball schedWebster University ule. Nearly 1,000 head coach Jordan girls’ grassroots Olufson. basketball teams The Phee Elite from around the squad played a country convene nationally televised at the Kentucky game against Sister’s Exposition Center.

Keeper from Canada This was the on ESPN2. A big Earl sixth year I attendcrowd gathered Austin Jr. ed this event and at “Court 49” to I’m still amazed watch Phee Elite at the spectacle. It resembattle its way to a 61-58 bles a huge carnival of victory. The team was led basketball activity with by 6’3” junior Bridget games going on at nearly Fitzgerald of Incarnate 100 courts inside the conWord Academy, who vention hall and several scored 15 points. Senior exhibits outside to keep guard Nylah Scales of the players engaged. It is Cardinal Ritter added 10 quite a deal. points, utilizing her dazThe Run 4 Roses also zling speed and quickness. attracts some of the best I arrived early to make girls’ high school players sure I had a good courtside from around the country seat to watch our local along with a throng of col- girls show out on nationlege coaches from every al television. It was fun level of competition. sitting at the front table, There are many teams discussing St. Louis area from the state of Missouri girls’ basketball — which

Photo by Earl Austin Jr. / St. Louis American

was on full display — with the college coaches.

It is always an enjoyable trip to Louisville to visit with family and also see some great girls’ basketball. It is also fun to see our St. Louis area players perform well on the big national stage.

Catching up on football recruiting It has been some time since we last updated you on football recruiting

Cardinal Ritter College Prep guard Nylah Scales of Napheesa Collier Elite was one of the top local players on display at last week’s Run 4 Roses Classic in Louisville.

Scales scored 10 points in Phee Elite’s 61-58 victory over Sister’s Keeper in a nationally televised game on ESPN2.

around the St. Louis area.

As usual, St. Louis is producing some quality high school football talent and many players have already committed to colleges during the spring and early summer. Here are some of those commitments.

Kingston Miles, a fourstar running back from St. Mary’s, committed to the University of Missouri.

The 6’0”, 195-pound Miles had originally committed to Auburn before flipping to Mizzou. As a junior,

Miles rushed for 2,095 yards and 25 touchdowns in leading the Dragons to the Class 4 state semifinals. He also caught 12 passes for 236 yards.

Senior running back Tristan Moss of Lift for Life Academy has committed to Illinois. The 6’0”, 190-pound Moss played at Timberland last season before transferring to Lift for Life. As a junior, Moss rushed for 1,081 yards and 16 touchdowns. He averaged more than seven yards per carry.

Antonio Pinkston, a standout defensive end from Festus, has committed to Lindenwood University. The 6’2”, 250pound Pinkston had eight sacks and 12 tackles for loss while helping lead the Tigers to the Class 4 state semifinals last season.

Senior wide receiver Royce Searcy of De Smet has committed to Northern Iowa. The 5’8” Searcy amassed 910 all-purpose yards as a junior as a receiver and kick return specialist.

Senior wide receiver Isaac Hudson of Chaminade has committed to South Dakota State.

Hudson is a big receiving

target at 6’3” and 210 pounds. Senior defensive tackle Chase Dixon of Fort Zumwalt West has committed to Missouri State.

Dixon is a 6’4”, 325pound lineman who was an All-Conference performer.

Tarris Reed Jr. making an impact in NBA Summer League Former Chaminade College Prep basketball standout Tarris Reed Jr. is making a positive early impression in the first week of the NBA Summer League with the San Antonio Spurs.

The 6’10” power forward averaged a double-double in the two games at the California Classic in Oakland. He had 10 points and seven rebounds against the Miami Heat and followed that up with 12 points and 12 rebounds against the Los Angeles Lakers.

In his first game at the Las Vegas Summer League, Reed had 14 points, 10 rebounds and two assists against the Atlanta Hawks. Reed was the Spurs’ first-round pick, selected with the No. 26 pick of the NBA Draft.

Arts In The Lou B6

Zeeoma

JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Where African excellence is touched, worn and lived

On the second floor ion and lifestyle prodof West County Center ucts belong everywhere, sits St. Louis’ including in premier desSt. Louis, tination for Missouri.

The name excellence in Zeeoma Zeeoma means African craftsalso serves as “seeing goodmanship, lifea bridge. On style and herione side stands ness.” That is tage: Zeeoma. the creative the standard Founded by energy of the for everything a St. LouisAfrican contiinside the store. nent, with its based couple with roots designers, artin Nigeria, ists, weavers, Zeeoma was jewelry makers built on a single, simple and storytellers creating conviction: African fashoriginal works that reflect

Zeeoma is the premier destination in St. Louis for fashion, craft, and lifestyle experiences rooted in contemporary Africa — a concept store and creative marketplace, and the first space of its kind in the city. Ericsson Raphael models some of the store’s merchandise.

Photo courtesy of Zeeoma

its rich heritage. On the other stands St. Louis, the Gateway City, long recognized as a doorway

for pioneers, traders and explorers heading west.

Zeeoma brings the two together in one place and invites everyone in.

The name Zeeoma means “seeing goodness.”

That is the standard for everything inside the store and the spirit behind it: to look at Africa and see goodness — in its craftsmanship, its color and its people — and to help others see it, too.

Zeeoma is not a souvenir shop. It is a carefully curated home for African fashion and lifestyle, featuring clothing by leading and emerging Nigerian designers; hand-loomed Akwete and Aso-oke textiles; hand-dyed Adire fabrics; raffia bags and apparel; bold jewelry; beaded purses; art; beauty and wellness products; and books. Each piece is selected because it carries the story, artistry and skill of its maker. The point is not to argue for the ingenuity of African artisans.

The point is simply to display their work and let it speak for itself.

Zeeoma is also more than its shelves. It is a gathering place for conversation, for learning craftsmanship and for celebrating the people who embrace African fashion and lifestyle every day — the teacher wearing her gele to church on Sunday, the student in Adire palazzo pants on campus, the family that fills its home with the textures, colors and scents of the continent.

Here, African style is not a costume or a trend. It is a way of life, worn with joy, and Zeeoma honors the people who live it.

That spirit took center stage at the first Zeeoma Open Door, held in Lagos in July — the city where the story begins. The name says exactly what it means: a door held open between two worlds. The first door had to open at home, in Lagos, among the makers, the markets and the people who give Zeeoma its heart.

The day celebrated the journey ahead — one familiar to thousands of people in Africa and throughout the diaspora who have crossed an ocean while carrying home with

Photo courtesy of Zeeoma

Zeeoma is a curated home for African fashion and lifestyle. Mutiat Aromasodun, left, and Bisola Komolafe model some merchandise. them. To travel from Lagos to St. Louis is to carry a whole world in your suitcase: the fabrics, the flavors and the language of home. Too often, that world stays folded away.

Zeeoma unfolds it. What opened in Lagos now continues in St. Louis — rooted in heritage and reaching toward what comes next.

St. Louis has deep roots for a story like this. This is the city where Katherine Dunham carried African dance, ritual and pride into American life and taught generations that heritage is something you practice, not simply remember.

Zeeoma stands in that tradition. When the region asks what a rising Africa looks like on the ground, Zeeoma offers a living answer: African creativity, present and thriving, in the heart of the Midwest.

Zeeoma’s mission is to serve as a gateway to

African craftsmanship, lifestyle and heritage.

There is no better place to begin than St. Louis, the Gateway City, home of the Gateway Arch and a place built on the promise of passage. Zeeoma gives that promise a new direction. Walk through the door, and Africa’s finest craftsmanship is in your hands. Walk through the door, and discover a lifestyle you can wear and live. Walk through the door, and heritage is no longer far away — it is here.

Africa. Curated. Worn.

Touched. Lived. Bridged.

So come and see. Walk through the open door.

Run your hand along the cloth, try on the beads and ask where each piece began. Visit Zeeoma in St. Louis and discover what “seeing goodness” feels like when you can finally hold it in your hands.

THE

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Career Center ST. LOUIS AMERICAN

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general fire safety services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/ rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

Bids for Military Vehicle Compound, Fencing and Site Improvements at Jefferson Barracks, Project No. T2504-01, will be received

by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, August 11, 2026. Project information available at: http://oa.mo .gov/facilities

SEALED BIDS Bids for Replace Chiller & HVAC, Headquarters & Garage Buildings, Project No. R250701 will be received

by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, August 13, 2026.

Project information available at: http:// oa.mo.gov/ facilities

We Publish every Thursday

The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general janitorial services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/ rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

SEALED BIDS

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REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general Pest Control services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/ rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

The Hazelwood School District is seeking bid proposals to remove and replace electrical panels at Larimore Elementary.

Interested parties should submit their bid proposal through Bidnet via the district’s website at https://www. hazelwoodschools. org/Page/2238 on or before Tuesday, August 4, 2026 not later than 10:00 a.m.

PUBLIC NOTICE

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general Security Systems and Alarm services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/ rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

St. Louis american THE

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JULY 16 - 22, 2026

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

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Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District Requests for Quotes, Bids and Proposals are posted online for public download. Please navigate to www.msdprojectclear.org > Doing Business With Us > View Bid Opportunities Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general Landscaping services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartner ship.com/rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

INVITATION TO BID The Core Collective at Saint Vincent invites qualified contractors to submit bids for ADA Accessibility Upgrades at its historic 100,000-square-foot main building and adjacent outdoor restroom facilities.

This project will transform underutilized space into fully inclusive, multi-use community assets and support neighborhood economic and community development. The scope of work includes, but is not limited to: • Renovation of lower-level indoor restroom facilities and outdoor restroom facilities to meet current Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards; • Installation of two chair lifts to provide accessible mobility between the gymnasium, main floor, and lower-level recreation and training spaces; • Replacement of multiple non-compliant interior and exterior doors with ADA-compliant models, including push-handle hardware; • Associated electrical upgrades necessary to support accessibility improvements and equipment installation.

Contractors may submit bids for the entire project or for individual portions of the work.

Sealed bids must be received by July 10, 2026, and may be submitted by email or mail to: The Core Collective Attn: Karen Cummings, Chief Operating Officer 7401 Florissant Road St. Louis, MO 63121 Email: kcummings@theccstl.org Contractors are encouraged to visit the site prior to submitting bids. Building walkthroughs will be available on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Advance notice is required.

For questions regarding the project or to schedule a site visit, please contact Karen Cummings, Chief Operating Officer, or Elonzo Brock, Director of Maintenance, at 314-261-6011.

The Core Collective reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive any informalities in the bidding process.

Minority-owned, women-owned, veteran-owned, and disadvantaged business enterprises are encouraged to submit bids.

INVITATION TO BID Lemay Child and Family Center, at 9828 South Broadway Saint Louis Missouri, is soliciting bids for a parking lot resurfacing project at our location, 9828 S. Broadway St. Louis, MO 63125.

Interested parties to contact Denise Wiese at dwiese@lemaychildandfamily. org to request a bid information package that defines the scope of the project and bid requirements. All bids must be delivered to the Lemay Child and Family Center by no later than 5:00 pm on August 7, 2026. Sealed written bids can be dropped off at the facility or emailed to Denise Wiese at the above email address.

All bidders to be aware that this work will be awarded by August 10, 2026 and needs to be completed by December 31, 2026. All received bids will be privately opened and reviewed by selected Lemay Child and Family Center board members. Project to be awarded to the best overall proposal/bid received.

No bid bond or performance and payment bonds are required. All bidders to submit the other required info found in the bid information package.

By: Denise Wiese, Executive Director

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Career Center ST. LOUIS AMERICAN

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JULY 16 - 22, 2026

St. Louis american THE

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Bids & Public Notices ST. LOUIS AMERICAN

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general Trash Removal services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/ rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ABATEMENT/ THIRD PARTY ABATEMENT MONITORING AND AIR MONITORING RFP 2026 The Saint Louis Zoo seeks bids from qualified vendors.

Bid documents are available as of 7/15/26 on the Saint Louis Zoo website: stlzoo.org/vendor.

NETTING & INSTALLATION SERVICES RFP 2026

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St. Louis american THE

SEALED BIDS Bids received by Zion Travelers Community Involvement Association

The Saint Louis Zoo seeks bids from Bids for Commercial Flat Roof Replacement qualified vendors. Bids for A/C Units w/ Warehouse Ceiling Bid documents Fans Full Details Available are available as of At: ZTCIA.ORG 7/15/26 on the Saint Louis Zoo website: stlzoo.org/vendor.

CANDIDACY FILING 2026 On Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, the Castle Point Street Light District will be looking to fill one seat (six-year term) on the Board of Directors who operate and maintain streetlights in the Castle Point Subdivision. Candidates must appear to file a declaration of candidacy on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, from 8:00 a.m.

-11 :00 a.m. and Tuesday, July 28 from 3:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. Must come to the Lewis & Clark Library 9909 Lewis & Clark Blvd. (Hwy. 367). Ask Sharon, Secretary.

Candidates must be 18 years or older, have a current MO State Driver’s License or Missouri State ID which shows an address within the Castle Point Subdivision, possess a current military ID

Visit us online at www.stlamerican.com

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of the County of St. Louis (the “LCRA”) and STLVentureWorks (“STLVW”) requests proposals from qualified contractors to provide general HVAC services at five (5) different properties located in St. Louis County. The requested services shall be for a one-year period with two successive options for renewal for terms of one year each. A copy of the RFP is available at https://stlpartner ship.com/rfp-rfqs/. Proposals must be received no later than 3:00pm CST on Friday, August 7, 2026.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

B9

JULY 16 - 22, 2026

SEALED BIDS

SEALED BIDS

OA-FMDC, State of MO will have the following MO National Guard projects that will be open for public bid through September 2026, subject to available funding.

When released, bid documents will be available at https://oa.mo. gov/facilities/ T2411-01 Construct Solar Array, Whiteman AFB ANG Readiness Center, Knob Noster T2526-01 Install New Emergency Generator, Hangar Helicopter AASF, Whiteman AFB ANG Readiness Center, Knob Noster

Bids for New Outdoor Pavilion, Missouri Veterans Home, St. James, MO, Project No. U261001 will be received

by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, July 30, 2026. Project information available at: http://oa.mo. gov/facilities

ST. LOUIS HOUSING AUTHORITY SOLICITATION RD26-38 ROOFTOP HVAC REPLACEMENT James House Apartments 4310 St. Ferdinand Ave., St. Louis, MO 63113 The St. Louis Housing Authority (SLHA) seeks bids to perform the following project: The General Scope of Work for this project consists of but is not limited to the removal and replacement of the rooftop HVAC equipment including air cooled chiller, energy recovery units, CHW pumps, air separator, expansion tanks, air handling units, pump starter, and associated piping, ductwork, and electrical work. The anticipated performance period for this project is 180 calendar days.

The pre-bid conference will be held at 10:00 AM (local time), Tuesday, July 14, 2026 at the project site.

Sealed bids are due at 1:00 PM (local time) Tuesday, August 4, 2026 via QuestCDN or hand delivered to the SLHA Main Office at 3520 Page Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63106.

Latasha Barnes Contracting Officer AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Religion

B10

JULY 16 – 22, 2026

Rising Black pastor reaches audiences in MAGA circles

Georgia megachurch, hosts the event, which draws tens of thousands of participants to his home state.

But Franklin is not simply For years, Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell, founder another megachurch pastor. of Atlanta’s rapidly growFranklin, the senior ing 2819 Church, has built pastor of Free Chapel, a national following by a nondenominational, preaching biblical authorimulti-campus church, has ty, discipleship spent years as and cultural one of Trump’s conservatism trusted adviswhile resisting Pastor ers, praying easy political Franklin, the with him at the labels.

White House senior pastor He’s also avoided the of Free Chapel, and publicly defending the Black church a nondenompolarizing tradition of inational, president. This social justice multi-campus week, Franklin and civic serves on the church, has engagement, instead spent years as president’s Religious emphasizing one of Trump’s Liberty personal holitrusted advisCommission ness and what and delivered ers. he describes the invocation as orthodox at Trump’s Christianity.

America 250 That includes preaching to Black parents Great American State that they should stop blam- Fair event on the National ing police for the deaths of Mall.

“Lord, … touch our Black children and instead teach them to obey author- president, touch his cabinet,” Franklin said. “Bless ity. our Supreme Court, bless Now, Mitchell has our Congress and bless our appeared as a featured Senate.” speaker at Forward Conference 2026 — a Star lineup massive annual gathering for evangelical youth and At Forward Conference young adults, convened 2026, Mitchell joined by a preacher with close a lineup that includties to President Donald ed Franklin, evangelist Trump.

Reggie Dabbs, Elevation Rhythm, Girls Gone Bible Franklin and MAGA and several other speakers and worship leaders.

Jentezen Franklin, the Conference promotional charismatic founder of a

By Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware Word In Black

Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell, founder of Atlanta’s 2819 Church, was among the featured speakers at Forward Conference 2026, an evangelical gathering hosted by Pastor Jentezen Franklin, a leading supporter of President Donald Trump and the MAGA movement.

Courtesy photo

materials prominently featured a photo of Mitchell, in his signature black hoodie, among the event’s headliners.

Though there’s little reporting on what he said, Mitchell’s presence was apparently well received, according to Franklin’s Facebook page.

“Night one of Forward Conference was something special,” Franklin wrote in a post just after midnight Friday. “Thank you, Philip Anthony Mitchell and Free Chapel Music. Day two, we’re ready.”

Mitchell’s presence on that stage is significant because conferences often function as evangelical

Christianity’s informal credentialing system.

Invitations signal not only popularity but theological trust, institutional acceptance and growing influence.

Sharing a platform with nationally recognized pastors introduces speakers to new audiences and embeds them within networks that shape the future of American evangelicalism.

That network has been expanding for Mitchell, a new-media-savvy millennial preacher whose ministry and personal aesthetic draw heavily from rap and hip-hop.

Over the past several years, Mitchell has

increasingly appeared alongside influential evangelical leaders. That includes Tim Timberlake of Celebration Church in Jacksonville, Florida.

Besides appearing together on tour, Timberlake and Mitchell co-host the “Street Preachers” podcast.

Elevated profile His association with Franklin, however, puts Mitchell on a new level.

Although their ministries differ in style — for example, Franklin favors tailored suits in the pulpit, while Mitchell’s preaching uniform is black jeans, a black hoodie and Nike

Dunks — they share several defining characteristics. They preach biblical authority, prioritize church growth, rely heavily on digital platforms and appeal to younger, racially diverse Christians who often feel disconnected from traditional denominations.

Though Mitchell does not have an obvious political profile, his theological commitments — including traditional views on sexuality, gender, biblical authority and abortion — largely align with the broader movement that has overwhelmingly supported Republican candidates over the past decade.

For generations, the Black church has served not only as a spiritual institution but also as the moral and political center of Black civic life.

Mitchell represents a younger cohort of Black pastors who continue to preach orthodox theology while placing less emphasis on institutional activism and more on discipleship, personal obedience and spiritual formation.

Whether that trajectory ultimately reshapes Black evangelicalism — or simply broadens Mitchell’s own national platform — remains to be seen.

But his appearance alongside Franklin at Forward Conference suggests that one of Black Christianity’s fastest-rising pastors is no longer speaking only to the Black church.