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September 10th, 2026 edition

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St. Louis American The

SEPTEMBER 10 – 16, 2026

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

stlamerican.com

Vol. 98 No. 22 COMPLIMENTARY

Dueling rulings leave map in limbo By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American Missouri voters were left Wednesday without a clear answer about which congressional district map will be used in November after two courts issued conflicting orders over a new Republican-backed map enacted last year and aimed at giving the GOP another U.S. House seat. Within minutes Tuesday, U.S. Supreme

Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh rejected Missouri’s attempt to use the new map, only for a federal judge in St. Louis to temporarily require the state to use it. At the center of the dispute is the Kansas Citybased district represented by Democrat Emanuel Cleaver, one of Missouri’s two Black members of Congress. The new boundaries were drawn to make Cleaver’s district more

favorable to Republicans, who already hold six of the state’s eight congres-

St. Louis-area district represented by Wesley Bell, Missouri’s other Black member of Congress. The legal whiplash comes less than two months before the Nov. 3 election and after Missouri voters already nominated congressional candidates in August using the new districts. The rapidly evolving legal battle remained unsettled as The American went to press Wednesday.

sional seats. The new map made only minor changes to the

Art Hill becomes a field of remembrance

Kavanaugh acted first Tuesday, denying an emergency request from Missouri officials to put on hold a unanimous Missouri Supreme Court ruling that said the new map could not take effect unless voters approve it in November. Kavanaugh gave no reason for his decision and did not refer the request to the full U.S. Supreme

See Map, A11

McClure makes learning lifelong mission

U.S. Navy veteran Gladys Smith, who served 27 years, carries an American flag while helping with the Flags of Valor display in Forest Park.

By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American

Richard “Rich” McClure has spent a lifetime learning to appreciate the value of learning — not just for young people, but for himself as well. From his childhood in Springfield, Missouri, through 20 years in public service and a long corporate career to his later work with nonprofit and educational organizations, McClure, 73, has put what he has learned to use. On Saturday, Oct. 17, McClure will receive the Champion in Education award during the St. Louis American Foundation’s 39th annual

See McClure, A10 Richard McClure will receive the Champion in Education award at the 39th Salute to Excellence in Education.

Photo by Lawrence Bryant / St. Louis American

More than 7,500 flags honor those lost on 9/11 By Kenya Vaughn St. Louis American It felt as if the heat beat the sun outside as Flags of Valor STL volunteers began planting the first of more than 7,500 American flags across Art Hill to commemorate the 25th anniversary of 9/11. By 9:30 a.m., they were nearly done.

In less than three hours Saturday, Sept. 5, Art Hill was transformed into one of the nation’s largest 9/11 memorials — a tradition held every five years since the 10th anniversary of the attacks as part of America’s Heartland Remembers’ Flags of Valor. Each flag was handled with care. Volunteers wore white gloves as three-person teams positioned the flags

and identification tags. When a flag was installed, a team member said the name of the fallen before moving to the next. The field of flags and six large photo memorials honor all 2,977 people killed on Sept. 11, 2001. Thousands of additional flags recognize U.S. service members who died in the War on Terror.

See Art Hill, A11

Courtesy photo

Pancreatic cancer breakthrough brings hope By Sylvester Brown Jr St. Louis American. A groundbreaking once-daily pill nearly doubled median survival compared with chemotherapy in a major trial involving patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer — and St. Louis’ Siteman Cancer

Center helped test the new treatment. But the medical breakthrough comes with a staggering price. Rasonque, the brand name for daraxonrasib, has a wholesale list price of $39,800 for a 30-day supply — almost $478,000 for a year of treatment. The drug’s developer,

Revolution Medicines, set the price. Insurance coverage and financial assistance programs can substantially reduce what patients pay out of pocket. The cost and access questions take on added significance for Black

LIVING IT

Americans, who have the nation’s highest pancreatic cancer incidence and death rates. Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms of cancer, in part because it often is not discovered

until it has spread. Only about 14% of patients overall are alive five years after diagnosis. For patients whose cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, the five-year survival rate is just over 3%. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 67,000 people in the United States will be

diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year and more than 52,000 will die from the disease. The FDA approved Rasonque on Aug. 26 for certain adults with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma, the most common form of pancreatic cancer.

See Cancer, A10

SPORTS

Family, healing and hiphop culture shape Paint St. Louis festival

Venable guides White Sox to swift turnaround

Paint Louis was launched in 1997. In the decades since, the space that centered the visual art element of hiphop has grown into one of the world’s largest open-air art festivals.

Without much fanfare, Venable was named manager during the winter of 2024 and followed up last year’s 102-loss season with a first-place run that has now lasted for more than two months.

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