February 16th, 2012 Edition

at Shalom Church last Saturday.

Stakeholders shut out of local control

Sinquefield calls public schools a KKK conspiracy

Says statement was ‘ill-timed’and ‘inappropriate,’ but not inaccurate

By Rudi Keller Columbia Tribune

Billionaire conservative activist Rex Sinquefield seemed to embrace an unusual theory of why the U.S. has public schools speaking last Thursday in St. Charles – he said the Ku Klux Klan is responsible and that it was part of the racist hate group’s program for

By Rebecca S.Rivas Of The St.Louis American

Feb. 14 Board of Alderman public safety committee meeting. Sitting at that cloistered table were Mayor Francis G. Slay’s office, the POAand ASafer Missouri, a group funded by Rex Sinquefield, the billionaire and conservative policy activist. The language they created will appear on the November 2012 ballot if the sig-

“We were surprised at often how we said ‘yes’and how often the mayor’s office said ‘yes.’” – Jeff Roorda, St.Louis Police Officers Association

nature-gathering effort funded by Sinquefield succeeds. Roorda told St. Louis aldermen that the POAgot almost everything they were asking for in the initiative for local control – an issue the association has adamantly

“Decades ago, the Ku Klux Klan got together and said how can we really hurt the AfricanAmerican children permanently? How can we ruin their lives? And what they designed was the public school system.”

– Rex Sinquefield

TEACHINGDIVA

Kendall Gladen to headline Opera Theatre production

By Kenya Vaughn Of The

“And I hope that they see it’s possible.” They should. The opera star walked in the students’musical shoes a generation before them in the

Gladen returned to her St. Louis roots last week and spoke with some of the current Artist-In-Training students as a part of an eight-day resi-

North Tech grads show impact of policy

Educated in Hazelwood but not eligible to work on district projects

By Rebecca S.Rivas

Of The St.Louis American

John W. Davis, a 2004 Hazelwood East High School graduate, has not been able to get a construction job within the same school district that taught

Photo by Wiley Price

Kendall Gladen last week teaching public school students at Dunbar Elementary School.

Photo by Michael DeFilippo

See GLADEN, A6

Hotsheet special edition: The tragic passing of Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston found dead at 48

The world is mourning the loss of a music icon after Whitney Houston died suddenly on Saturday afternoon. The 48year-old Houston died Feb. 11 at a hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., just hours before she was set to perform at producer Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy Awards bash. Officials say she was underwater and apparently unconscious when she was pulled from a bathtub.

The autopsy for Houston is complete, but results will not be released, pending toxicology reports, which could take up to six to eight weeks.

“I know there are reports that she maybe was drowned, or did she overdose, but we

won’t make a final determination until all the tests are in,” said Ed Winter of the Los Angeles coroner’s office at a news conference on Sunday. He added that “there are no signs of foul play.”

Houston had a groundbreaking and trailblazing career that began with the release of her 1985 self-titled debut and spanned more than two decades with countless awards and more than 170 million records sold.

her 18-year-old daughter Bobbi Christina – whose father is R&B singer Bobby Brown. Houston and Brown divorced in 2007 after 14 years of marriage. In the wake of Houston’s death, Bobbi Christina has been hospitalized twice and Bobby has bowed out of the New Edition tour currently underway to support his daughter in her time of need.

Jennifer Hudson,LL Cool J honor Whitney Houston at the Grammy

Whitney Houston’s sudden death one night before the Grammy Awards did not leave

much time to put together a proper tribute but her presence was still felt as Grammy host LL Cool J began the show with a prayer for Whitney and Jennifer Hudson sang a haunting rendition of “I Will Always Love You” in Houston’s honor. Hudson constantly fought back tears as she delivered her gracefully

hits, she knew how to be a star.”

-Aretha Franklin (Houston’s godmother)

“She was the ultimate legend. Her voice was perfect. Strong but soothing. Soulful and classic. So many memories are attached to a Whitney Houston song. She is our queen and she opened doors and provided a blueprint for all

“It’s so sad. Ashford & Simpson first made me aware of Whitney when she was just 16, and I always regretted not having had the opportunity to work with her.”

“R.I.PWhitney Houston... Atrue icon of our time. Gone too soon. My heart goes out to the family in their time of distress.”

THE STUFF THAT HAS PEOPLE TALKING

Governor Christie distorts Civil Rights history

Assembly Speaker teaches history lesson to Republican leader

By Marc H. Morial National Urban League

“No minority should have their rights subject to the passions and sentiments of the majority. This is the fundamental bedrock of what our nation stands for.” - Newark Mayor Cory Booker

In recent weeks, outrageous statements targeted at minority citizens have come out of the mouths of a number of conservative politicians – everything from the assertion that African Americans prefer food stamps over pay checks to the claim that “black people” are using “other people’s money” to get ahead.

suggest that civil rights movements have not played a necessary and positive role in ensuring that the promise of freedom, equality and democracy is made real for every citizen. We think

the Governor owes the people of New Jersey and all Americans a clear explanation. Morial is President and CEO of the National Urban League.

Sheila Oliver, New Jersey闇s irst African-American woman Assembly Speaker, took issue with Christie闇s characterization of the civil rights struggle, adding, “Governor, people were ighting and dying in the streets of the South because the majority refused to grant minorities equal rights.”

But Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey may have topped them all when he declared, “People would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights rather than ighting and dying in the streets in the South.”

The Governor’s statement was made in the context of his proposal that the issue of same-sex marriage in New Jersey be settled by a voter referendum. But his words amounted to an insult to generations of men and women who put their lives on the line for equal rights. They also ignore the fact that the sole purpose of any civil rights struggle is to gain rights for minority citizens that the majority has historically and consistently denied.

The nonsense of Christie’s statement was made all the more apparent by the fact that during the heyday of lynchings, poll taxes and “separate but equal schools” any referendum on voting rights and civil rights for African Americans would have excluded many of the very people seeking those rights.

In fact it was only because the majority for centuries had irst enslaved and then discriminated against African Americans that it became necessary for people of conscience to organize in protest against such treatment.

Christie should remember that in the 18th century, it was not a referendum but a revolution that formed the United States of America. In the 19th century, it was not a referendum, but a civil war that ended slavery and uniied our nation. And in the 20th century, it was not a referendum, but a series of non-violent civil rights struggles that defeated Jim Crow and secured voting rights for women, African Americans and other disenfranchised minorities.

Sheila Oliver, New Jersey’s irst African-American woman Assembly Speaker, correctly saw Christie’s proposal to submit same-sex marriage rights to the whims of voters as a shirking of responsibility.

She said, “The major issues of our time such as women’s suffrage and civil rights were rightly decided legislatively. We are elected by the people of New Jersey to protect civil rights. We do not pass on such tough decisions.” Oliver also took issue with Christie’s characterization of the civil rights struggle, adding, “Governor, people were ighting and dying in the streets of the South because the majority refused to grant minorities equal rights by any method. It took legislative action to bring justice to all Americans, just as legislative action is the right way to bring marriage equality to all New Jerseyans.”

It is almost unthinkable that a sitting governor would either be so uninformed so callous to

Guest Columnist Marc H. Morial

EDITORIAL /COMMENTARY

Abolish the death penalty in MO

We strive to work within what is possible, here and now, in taking policy stands and calling for change. Moving into a major election year when we will elect a president, a governor, a U.S. senator and many other key positions, it’s not a promising time, in a conservative state like Missouri, to realistically call for a major progressive policy change like abolishing the death penalty. But conscience compels us to renew our call for Missouri to outlaw this barbaric, racist, ineffective and expensive practice.

We are not alone. The level-headed League of Women Voters is calling for the elimination of the death penalty. State Rep. Penny V. Hubbard, D-St. Louis, has iled a bill (HB1496) that would outlaw the death penalty in Missouri and halt all pending executions. Nationally, the NAACP has acted on the widespread outrage over the execution of Troy Davis to rally support for death penalty states to abolish capital punishment. The Pew Research Center reports that public support for the death penalty is at 62 percent, far down from highs in the 80 percentile range.

Both the League of Women Voters and Rep. Hubbard point out the large number of inmates who have been wrongly accused and sentenced to death on the testimony of witnesses, only to later be exonerated by analysis of DNA evidence. To think that the state can commit cold-blooded murder by executing a wrongly convicted person alone should move us to restrict the state from meting out the ultimate punishment based on our faulty system of justice.

The NAACP, as it should, emphasizes racebased disparities in issuing the death penalty. While African Americans make up less than 13 percent of the total U.S. population, they comprise 42 percent of those awaiting execution, and 35 percent of defendants executed in the U.S. since 1976. There can be no justice in any demographic being executed at three times the proportion of its representation in the population.

“The death penalty is a direct descendent of

lynching,” says Christina Swarns of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. She points out that the states with the highest number of lynching also have the highest number of executions. Missouri recorded 69 lynchings between 1882 and 1968, according to the Archives at Tuskegee Institute, placing it 13th highest in lynchings among the states. It ranks 18th highest among the states in executions from 1609-2011, with 353 executions in that time, according to statistics compiled by The Guardian

In addition to being unjust and racist, the death penalty is ineffective. The FBI Uniform Crime Report from 2008 showed that Southern states had the highest murder rate, but also accounted for over 80 percent of executions. Conversely, the Northeast, which has less than 1 percent of all executions, had the lowest murder rate. Execution may answer blood lust for revenge, but the threat of the death penalty does not prevent murder.

In addition to being unjust, racist and ineffective, the death penalty is expensive at a time when states across the country are slashing budgets for essential services. Pursuing capital punishment can cost more than $1 million more than the cost of a non-death penalty trial. In 2008, the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice found that the state spent an estimated $137 million per year on the death penalty

We also believe an appeal to common ethical sense is in order. If ending someone else’s life is so abhorrent, then why should the state be in the business of ending people’s lives? If we are so outraged at homicide, why should we give ourselves the right, in effect, to commit homicide in the name of justice? We know where we are, and in what kind of political season. But we join Rep. Hubbard, the League of Women Voters and the NAACP in calling for the Missouri Legislature and Gov. Jay Nixon to act in the name of justice, eficiency, iscal prudence and morality and abolish the death penalty in Missouri.

COMMENTARY

Romney’s overriding ambition

Criticism of Mitt Romney for lacking a coherent message is grossly unfair. He has been forthright, consistent and even eloquent in pressing home his campaign’s central theme: Mitt Romney desperately wants to be president.

Romney is passionate about the need, as he sees it, to defeat President Obama – but vague or selfcontradictory as to why. The lyrics of “America the Beautiful,” which Romney has recited as part of his standard campaign speech, don’t solve the mystery; Obama, too, is on record as supporting spacious skies and fruited plains.

Beyond personal ambition, what does Romney stand for? Obviously, judging by Rick Santorum’s clean sweep last Tuesday, I’m not the only one asking the question. I suspect an honest answer would be something like “situational competence” – Romney boasts of having rescued the 2002 Olympics, served as the Republican governor of one of the most Democratic states in the nation and made proitable choices about where to invest his money. But with the economy improving and the stock market soaring, Romney’s president-as-CEO argument loses whatever relevance it might have had.

As I See It - A Forum for Community Issues

Do corporations have more rights

In a landmark 2010 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court in its Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision declared that corporations are people and that the money they spend to inluence elections is the same as free speech. By a 5-4 vote, the court ignored precedent and overturned decades of restrictions on corporate campaign contributions, allowing campaign contributions to be unlimited and anonymous. The conservative majority determined that corporations have the same free-speech rights as people and can therefore spend as much as they like on political campaigns.

Several elections later, we now have a glimpse of what the future may hold for the primary and general elections in 2012 – record amounts of anonymous donations looding the campaign coffers of closely contested elections and elbowing out the inluence of average voters.

President Obama famously rebuked the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling during a State of the Union address while looking directly at the Supreme Court justices in attendance. “I don’t

think the American elections should be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities,” the president said. “They should be decided by the American people.”

The speed at which corporations, organizations and groups not directly tied to a candidate or political party are spending millions to inluence elections is of great concern to me, and it begs the question: Do corporations now have more rights than people in this country?

Today, there are plenty of reasons why we should be concerned about the fact that corporations have more inluence and power over politicians than the people these leaders are elected to represent. When corporations can spend freely on elections, politicians cannot properly support the well-being of the people while fearing the inancial backlash of corporate money going toward defeating them in the next election.

Simply put, the Citizens United decision has dramatically diluted the voice of every American who does not control a large corporate treasury, and has unleashed billions of dollars in corporate money to dominate elections at all levels of government.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Corrections

Last week’s news report on the Metropolitan Sewer District’s response to a push by the NAACP for greater minority inclusion included a few errors. A recent change to the MSD board will not allow for passage of new inclusion goals as long as two of Mayor Slay’s three appointees still oppose those goals, since board resolutions and ordinances require two afirmative votes from the three City Trustees and two afirmative votes from the three County Trustees.

The Rev. Elston K. McCowan, not Claude Brown Sr., is the current 1st Vice President of the NAACP – St. Louis City.

costs the public many times more than a sentence of life in prison.

Of course the most important reason for opposing the death penalty is that there is never a justiication for taking another’s life.

Sydell Shayer, Creve Coeur League of Women Voters

Casinos should not be singled out

Missouri legislators want to increase taxes on casinos to make up for shortfalls in veterans’ homes funding, created when lawmakers tapped those funds for other purposes.

This outcry has manifested itself in several ways, but none more important than state and municipal-level resolutions that call for the end of corporate personhood and elevate the voices of Americans all over the country to a level that can be heard by Congress. These efforts have sprung up in cities like New York City; Los Angeles; Oakland, Calif.; Duluth, Minn.; and Chapel Hill, N.C. and in state legislatures in California, Maryland, Vermont, and Massachusetts.

Momentum around this issue is growing. If we really want to change the political landscape around the country we need to collectively decide “who” or “what” is more important – the rights of individuals or the rights of corporations that have unlimited funds and inluence. The Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission decision has disrupted the key elements of our democracy and allows money and power to control America. We need to join this growing movement, and tell Congress to intervene and reverse this horrible act against the American people.

And though politically this issue has been masked as partisan, the implications of this decision transcend party lines and political ideology. People from all over the political spectrum have expressed the need to pass a constitutional amendment that puts people ahead of corporations, and re-establishes this country as by and for the people.

providing an alternative narrative, highlighting an altogether different type of breast cancer charity, to the last week’s discussion about breast cancer and underserved communities. The St. Louis American continues to be an important media outlet in the region and a vital connection to the African-American community.

Sarah Thompson St. Louis

To conservative groups, Romney can sound like a true believer who never met a tax or a labor union he could abide –and not at all like a “Massachusetts moderate,” which is what Newt Gingrich claims Romney really is.

But Romney will never be able to match Gingrich’s record, for better or worse, as one of the key igures in the development of the modern conservative movement. And Romney –who once was pro-choice – will never be able to get to the right of Santorum on social issues. The intended centerpiece of the Romney campaign – his 160-page economic plan – is really just a list of proposed measures with no discernible ideological framework holding them together. “Much of what he pledges to do on “Day One” has already been accomplished, or is promised, by Obama. Romney wants to cut the corporate tax rate; Obama has said he wants to lower rates while also closing loopholes. Romney wants to forge new trade agreements; Obama signed into law free-trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama. Romney wants to weed out burdensome regulations; Obama has such a project underway. Romney wants to survey and safely exploit U.S. energy reserves; Obama says essentially the same thing. There are some departures, but they are dumb. Romney says he would ask Congress to cut “non-security discretionary spending” by 5 percent, or $20 billion; this would fail to make a scratch in the deicit. He wants to end the federal role in job training, thus abdicating presidential responsibility for meeting one of the central challenges facing the U.S. economy. He wants to sanction China for

manipulating its currency, rather than continue ongoing negotiations. He wants to discourage the use of union labor on government projects.

And, of course, Romney wants to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, whose centerpiece, the individual insurance mandate, was pioneered in Massachusetts. By Romney.

On foreign policy, Romney offers a lot of blah blah blah about “restoring the sinews of American power” and the like, but nothing as distinctive as, say, Santorum’s extreme hawkishness on Iran or Ron Paul’s isolationism. It’s hard to ind any substantive differences between what Romney would do and what Obama is already doing.

Romney does accuse Obama of “appeasement,” and perhaps the charge would have some credibility if Obama hadn’t ordered the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, or used unmanned missile-iring drones to decimate the international jihadist leadership, or helped eliminate dictator Moammar Gaddai, or demonstrated in countless other ways that no one can call him some kind of lower-power peacenik.

One distinction – and, really, this may be the most original position that Romney takes on anything – is that he has ruled out negotiations with the Taliban and apparently wants to extend the U.S. troop commitment in Afghanistan indeinitely. Wish him luck with that on the campaign trail. He’ll need it. Eugene Robinson’s email address is eugenerobinson@ washpost.com.

Though an MSD spokesperson did describe to a reporter that some professional service contracts can be awarded for 10 years or more, “with the exception of rare circumstances” (MSD writes) “all multi-year professional contracts are structured to be for 1-year, with annual 1-year renewals, exercised at the discretion of MSD’s board.”

Abolish the death penalty

For the irst time in the Missouri legislature, there is signiicant bi-partisan support for the elimination of the death penalty. This coincides with a national decline in the use of the death penalty. Public opinion is also moving away from support of the death penalty.

The League of Women Voters supports the abolition of the death penalty. Forty state representatives sponsored an abolition bill in the house this past week.

We have known for years that the death penalty has been used arbitrarily. In Missouri , there is little consistency in the application of the law between and within counties. Unfortunately, there is consistency in the fact that one is more apt to be sentenced to death if one is black, poor or the victim is white.

Since DNA testing has become available, many death penalty and other inmates have been exonerated. There is great concern that an innocent person will be executed, and that can never be reversed.

But a very practically and compelling reason to oppose the imposition of the death penalty is inancial. Capital punishment

The proposed additional $1 per-patron admission fee would amount to a bottom-line hit of $53 million a year in new taxes for Missouri casinos, which already contribute nearly $500 million in gaming tax revenue a year. Such a hit could necessitate cuts in casino marketing and capital projects.

If passed, this tax legislation also could impact jobs at the state’s 12 casinos, which now employ more than 11,000 Missourians.

The gaming industry has contributed more than $160 million in fee revenue to the Missouri Veterans Commission Capital Improvement Trust Fund since gaming began here in 1994. Last year, the veterans’ fund received $6.6 million from the state’s share of casino admission fees, a $2 per-visitor fee that is paid by the casino companies.

Missouri should not single out one industry for increased taxes, particularly not an industry that already generates more tax money for the state than all of the other 60,000 Missouri corporations combined.

Mike Winter, Executive Director Missouri Gaming Association

Vital connection

Thank you so very much for running the editorial piece written by Robin Smith about breast cancer and the nonproit Gateway to Hope. Overlapping with the unforeseen media attention of the Susan G. Komen/Planned Parenthood story, the response and resonance of Robin’s letter was quite great. Talk about timing. It worked out well, especially in

Columnist Eugene Robinson

Guest Columnist Sen. Maria ChappelleNadal

Citizens Academy Class at STLPD

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department will host a Citizens Academy Class March 7 to May 23, meeting Wednesday nights from 6-9 p.m.

The program is designed to strengthen the bond between the department and the community. Citizens will gain a better understanding of the inner workings of the department through instruction in the department’s history and structure, predicting and analyzingcrime patterns, gang intelligence, homicide investigations and community policing techniques. Nearly all instruction is provided by commissioned police officers.

Participants will have the opportunity to meet Chief Daniel Isom and the Deputy Chiefs of the department. They will also interact with police canines, the police bomb robot, tour the 911 call center and use the driving and shooting simulators.

Applications for the program can be found on the department’s website, www.slmpd.org, and will be available online until February 22. Applicants must be St. Louis city residents or business owners, must be at least 18 years of age, must have no outstanding arrest warrants and must agree to a criminal background check. There is no fee associated with attending the Citizens Academy.

Citizens who have questions about the Academy can contact the department at 314-444-5638 or by e-mailing citizensacademy@slmpd.org.

Deadline forMissouri Gaming scholarships

Missouri high school students applying for the for 15th annual Project 21 Scholarship competition must complete their articles, posters or videos addressing the issue of underage gambling and display them in their schools by February 28, and submit their application to the Missouri Gaming Association by March 4. The Missouri Gaming Association will award six higher education scholarships totaling $7,000.

The scholarship competition is open to all Missouri high school seniors who plan to attend an institution of higher education in the United States. Students may write an essay for publication in a school newspaper or magazine, or create a poster or video. Submissions must be published in the student’s school newspaper or magazine, or displayed at the school for at least a week between January 1 and February 28.

In Missouri, gambling in a casino is not permitted for anyone under the age of 21.“Project 21” is a public awareness campaign designed to empower young people to educate other youth about the dangers and consequences of underage gambling.

Applications are available at www.missouricasinos.org or by calling (573) 634-4001. Written requests for applications can be sent to PO Box 305, Jefferson City, MO65102.

Losing big at Grace Hill

Grace Hill Water Tower Health Center employees are competing in a site-specific “Biggest Loser”weight reduction contest.Shown counter clockwise are:Tenika Porter,Michelle Brooks,Zainab Oyebamiji,Sandra Williams,Romanita Arthur,Iris Butler,and Lisa Bishop.Not shown is Paulette Jackson.Each employee vowed to lose weight for 12 weeks during the contest.The members weigh in each Monday and share their weight results with the group.Each participant pledged $20.At the end of the 12 week contest,the “biggest loser”wins the cash.

Public library gets grant foryoung readers

The St. Louis Public Library received a Summer Library Program Grant in the amount of $14,040. The grant will be used to implement two reading programs targeting children under the age of two, groups from daycares, summer schools, day camps, teens and teen parents.

The theme for the children’s group is Dream Big and the Own the Night program will target teens. The Magic House will provide theme-related programs at the branches and three family nights for reading club members. Programs for teens include a Comic Jam night and disaster preparedness workshops presented by the St. Louis Zombie Squad. Theme-related summer reading club arts and craft programs will be held at the library in June and July. Afterhours events will be held for families and teens to help sustain interest in the reading program throughout the summer months.

The Missouri Secretary of State’s Summer Library Program grants are funded by the Library Services & Technology Act through the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, which is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. In the 2012 Fiscal Year, the Missouri State Library has approved a total of 37 grant applications, distributing $270,686 in federal awards to libraries throughout Missouri.

Student success begins in the classroom

By the Rev.Doris Ann Graham For The St.Louis American

“Student success begins in the classroom.”

Over 40 years ago these words were spoken to me by Mrs. Sara Scroggins, Director of the Northside Reading Clinic in the St. Louis Public School System. She had asked me to join the International Reading Association (IRA).

She listened to my excuses as to why I should not become a member of the IRA. Mrs. Scroggins was heavily involved in IRAat the local, state, national and international level. She wanted our St. Louis City Council of IRAto grow and become very active.

She finally convinced me that as a fifth grade classroom teacher at Clark Elementary School I was in the best place to make sure that my students achieved and that reading was the key. She said, “Student success begins in the classroom.”

Mrs. Scroggins was right! I joined IRAand have continued my membership until now. Not only did I join but, my 50-year best friend, Judith DicksonDurham, also joined. Judith was a Reading Specialist at the time. Together, we followed Mrs. Scroggins lead in promoting reading wherever and whenever we could. Yes, student success does begin in the classroom with a good teacher!

One of the premises of No Child Left Behind was that school districts should hire the best qualified teachers possible. When a teacher enters the classroom, he/she must enter it prepared to teach and to give their best efforts to every child, not just to the smart child but to the struggling child, to those with challenges, to those who have no hope to those with low self-esteem, to those who are abused, hungry, sleepy or undisciplined. Classroom teachers must be concerned about the physical, emotional and social aspects of the child as well as the academics. This happens when you have a good classroom teacher who loves and cares and is committed to improving the educational experience of every child that they encounter.

As a former board member of the Ferguson-Florissant School District (23 years), I recommended our motto to each teacher, “Teach each child as if he/she was your own.” Just as you should want the best instruction for your own child, you should want the best for your students.

Successful teachers should strive to create miracles in their classrooms. Through patience, dedication, and inspiration, classrooms can be transformed into foundations for greatness, where excellent student achievement is the standard, not the exception. It’s time.

Rev.Doris Ann Graham

CONTROL

Continued from A1

opposed for more than 20 years.

“We were surprised at often how we said ‘yes’and how often the mayor’s office said ‘yes’in the process,” Roorda said. “I know this is a prickly subject for you folks at the Board of Aldermen because you weren’t directly involved in that. In hindsight, that probably was a bad decision.”

Community organizations and the Board of Aldermen –who have been fighting for local control for years – were not at the deal table for the ballot language. And the initiative contains language that takes away power from the board and community, some said at the meeting.

“Anumber of major stakeholders were left out of this discussion before this thing was pushed forward,” said Alderman Terry Kennedy. “And now it’s out there to the people.”

The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri (ACLU-EM) and the Coalition Against Police Crimes and Repression

GLADEN

Continued from A1

dency. She taught at area schools and performed at churches, a Roosevelt Alumni luncheon and the Regional Business Council Young Professionals reception.

Her biggest hope was to inspire students – students of color, in particular – to embrace opera. She offered a sample of her breathtaking mezzo soprano voice and gave instruction to Artist-InTraining students after hearing them sing.

Twenty years had passed since Dello Thedford –Gladen’s choir director at

(CAPCR) testified that they will fight the ballot initiative, though both groups have long pushed for local control. This ballot initiative, they claim, would make it more difficult for the public to access records on police who are under investigation for wrongdoing and to establish a civilian review board. John Chasnoff, an ACLUEM and longtime CAPCR activist, read the language that hinders this authority: “The civil service commission of the city may adopt rules and regulations appropriate for the unique operation of a police department. Such rules and regulations shall reserve exclusive authority over the disciplinary process and procedures affecting commissioned officers to the civil service commission.”

The ACLU-EM has filed a lawsuit challenging the initiative because the ballot summary approved by the Missouri Secretary of State fails to inform voters of this provision, as well as another that creates an exemption to the Missouri Sunshine Law, which protects citizens’rights to public records.

In fine print not summarized for the voter, the initia-

Roosevelt High School –pointed out that she had an “operatic timbre to her voice” and introduced her to Opera Theatre of St. Louis.

“Like many of us, I didn’t grow up with opera playing in my home,” Gladen said. “But he introduced me to the art form – and the Artist-InTraining program – and that’s how I fell in love with it.”

She had been complimented on her voice while singing in church and school choirs, but Opera Theatre of St. Louis made her consider a career in music.

“I thought I would be a lawyer or an accountant or something like that,” Gladen said. “But as my voice grew I was like, ‘I really can sing this

tive states that records prepared for disciplinary purposes shall be “confidential, closed records available solely to the civil service commission.”

Arecent analysis by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch found that in the five years ending in 2010, St. Louis officers fired up to three times more often, per reported violent crime,

music.’And I decided this is something I wanted to pursue to expose it to all types of people.”

This spring, the 1994 Roosevelt graduate will fulfill this ambition. In May, she will become the first Artist-InTraining (AIT) alum to headline an Opera Theatre of St. Louis production when plays the title role in the iconic opera Carmen “I’m trying to find the words to fully describe how this feels,” Gladen said. “I’m sure I’ll have a ‘thank you,

than those protecting other, similar-sized populations.

From January 2007 through Sept. 30, 2011, the department cleared more than 96 percent of the shootings by officers.

The police department also does not always readily provide public records regarding investigations on police officers’wrongdoings. The

God’moment in my dressing room where I’ll be thinking, ‘Here I was at 16 just being introduced to opera.’”

“Opera should transcend color lines.And that’s what I hope that my career will help people realize.”

– Kendall Gladen

After her participation in the Monsanto AIT program, Gladen was selected for Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ Gerdine Young Artists Program, where she performed in the chorus of Carmen during the 2004 season. She went on to sing the role of Carmen in several productions throughout the U.S. and Europe.

“This career is not easy,” Gladen said. “You have the

Committee chair Alderman Greg Carter listened to Alderman Terry Kennedy at the Feb.14 Board of Alderman public safety committee meeting,when Jeff Roorda of the St.Louis Police Officers Association defended the ballot initiative for local control of the city police funded by Rex Sinquefield, the billionaire conservative policy activist.

ACLU-EM filed and won a lawsuit against the department regarding this issue.

“We’ve always been proponents of having St. Louis control its own police department,” said ACLU-EM Executive Director Brenda Jones, “but we shouldn’t have to sacrifice open records, open government or independent

tedious homework of learning languages, of acting and music history. It’s not just about singing. There’s way more homework than that, and the field requires you to be very disciplined.”

She has enjoyed the support of her family, especially her sister Rolanda Gladen, and stayed true to her roots.

“I want every one of the AITstudents to know I am a hometown girl,” Gladen said.

“If I could talk to each one from now on I would tell them, ‘I was just like you and if I could do it so can you.’”

She had this effect on Kamaria Keely, AITstudent and junior at McCluer North High School.

civilian review of police to get it. That’s what this initiative will do if it passes, and the summary does not make that clear to voters.”

The committee meeting lasted for three hours. At the beginning, Alderman Craig Schmid said he thought the city would be able to establish a civilian review board under the initiative. After hearing Chasnoff read the language, Schmid said, “I agree with you. It seems on its face that the language is restrictive of any civilian review board.”

Roorda said repeatedly throughout the meeting that the association was opposed to a civilian review board. He also called the issues the ACLU and CAPCR were raising “divisive” and a “distraction.”

“Civilian review boards have been used to secondguess police officers and to stir up dissention between the community and the police,” he said. “That’s not what we are looking for.”

Police Chief Daniel Isom disagreed with Roorda. “We can stand the scrutiny of a civilian review board,” Isom said. “I think what it does is gives us more legitimacy.”

“Just knowing that she came through the AITprogram, it gave me hope. It let me know I could do that too. I actually knew it from being a part of this program, but seeing her reinforced it.” Gladen hopes that Keely’s newfound passion for opera becomes the rule instead of the exception.

“It is our art form to – not just a white or an Italian art form,” Gladen said. “Opera should transcend color lines. And that’s what I hope that my career will help people realize.”

“When she came and sang for us, I was absolutely astounded. I hate to say it, but you’re not used to seeing black women sound like that,” Keely said.

Photo by Wiley Price

One reason Davis can’t get a job with the Hazelwood School District is because a Board of Education policy restricts the district to hiring workers from white-dominated apprentice programs for construction projects, said St. Louis NAACPPresident Adolphus Pruitt in a Feb. 13 letter of complaint to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights Attorney Linda White.

Of 16,000 regional participants in these apprenticeship programs in 2009, only about 500 were minorities and less than 100 were women, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Region 5 Office of the Employment and Training Administration.

Davis is not the only student who has graduated from the Hazelwood School District and attended North Tech, Pruitt said in the letter. Since 2002, 1,600 African-American students have graduated from the schools and several have been Hazelwood students, he said.

The letter detailed that the St. Louis NAACPhas added the St. Louis County Special School District to a Dec. 15 complaint and investigation of discrimination in the Hazelwood School District’s

SCHOOLS

Continued from A1 keeping blacks suppressed. During a lecture at Lindenwood College, Sinquefield explained his opposition to teacher tenure this way:

“You know what. There was a column written and I hope I don’t offend anyone,” Sinquefield said. “There was published column by a man named Ralph Voss, who was a former judge in Missouri. He now owns and writes for a

apprenticeship policy. At a Dec. 13 meeting, Pruitt presented the NAACP’s original complaint to Hazelwood school board members and requested that the district stop all construction activity until it brings its contracting practices in line with federal civil rights laws.

“North Technical High School opened its doors in 1968 and claims to provide ‘cutting-edge’technical and career training to high school students such as John Davis, one of its graduates,” Pruitt wrote.

The school’s mission is to create partnerships for student success, he said. Its purpose is to provide quality technical and academic education which prepares students for entry into post-secondary education and/or the workforce.

Davis has not benefited from the mission or purpose, Pruitt said.

On average, only 2.45 percent of the graduating students of North Tech high school are entering a postsecondary (technical) institution, such as the apprenticeship programs.

“We offer this as further evidence that the majority of North Tech graduating students suffer a disparate impact from Hazelwood’s policy restricting hiring from union-operated postsecondary institutions only,” Pruitt wrote. African-Americans students

newspaper in Central Missouri called the Unterrified Democrat – what a name – and it’s in Osage County, Missouri.

“And he starts off, something like this, he said a long time ago, decades ago, the Ku Klux Klan got together and said how can we really hurt the African-American children permanently? How can we ruin their lives? And what they designed was the public school system.”

The remarks were captured on video by former Tribune reporter Jason Rosenbaum, reporting for The Beacon on www.stlbeacon.org.

make up about 73 percent of North Tech High School’s current population, according to enrollment data, and 70 percent of the Hazelwood School District’s current population.

The St. Louis American obtained a copy of the letter making allegations about the Special School District. Provided with a summary of the allegations, Nancy Ide, communications director of the district, said the district did not know anything about the letter and could not comment on its contents.

Also on Feb. 13, the NAACPsent a letter of complaint to U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan, stating that Hazelwood School District has engaged in racial discrimination and has violated Title VI as a recipient of federal funds.

The NAACPfurther alleged that the district has discriminated under the two primary theories of Title VI: intentional discrimination/disparate treatment and disparate impact/effects.

Pruitt pointed to Hazelwood school board member Mark J. Behlmann’s comments at a Jan. 17 board meeting regarding his preference of hiring union-trained apprentices.

Behlmann, who owns a construction company and has been on the board for 14 years, said, “The good thing about having the unions involved is that they have a federally-

Judge Draper sworn onto Supreme Court

approved apprenticeship program that we know if we use a union contractor that the people who are coming to the job site are trained.”

Based on Behlmann’s public statements, Pruitt said the NAACPis concerned that the district’s construction program activity violates the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. ARICO case requires a pattern of racketeering activity. “In this case, the pattern of racketeering activity is alleged to be organized acts of violating State statutes governing Project Labor Agreements, creating a union only work place,and

“To call the work of educators in public schools a KKK conspiracy shows how out of touch billionaire Rex Sinquefield truly is.”

– MNEA President Chris Guinther

The Missouri NEAwas among the first to react.

MNEAPresident Chris Guinther called on politicians who accept the large donations provided by Sinquefield to return them.

“To call the work of educators in public schools a KKK conspiracy shows how out of

touch billionaire Rex Sinquefield truly is,” Guinther said. “This is a slap in the face of every educator who has worked tirelessly in a public school to improve the lives of Missouri’s children. Rex Sinquefield needs to explain himself and apologize to all students, parents and

affecting interstate commerce,” he states.

Provided with a summary of these allegations, the Hazelwood School District’s spokesperson Diana Gulotta responded to the American that the district has not received the letter.

“We further allege that the Hazelwood School District has formed a loose association-infact of individuals and groups as a pro-union network, united by a common ideological purpose of promoting union-only construction contracts,” Pruitt states in the letter to Callahan.

In the letter to White in the U.S. Department of Education,

Missourians.”

Sinquefield did not explain himself. He did apologize for making the statement, though he did not retract it or claim that his statement is inaccurate. He merely said the statement was “ill-timed” and “inappropriate.”

“The public discourse on these issues is too critical for an ill-timed, inappropriate reference,” Sinquefield said in a statement.

For the record, the idea that government, state and national, should fund public schools is older than the Klan, and, in fact, older than the U.S.

New Missouri Supreme Court Judge George Draper III was welcomed to the bench by Judge Thomas H.Newton of the Missouri Court of Appeals Western District and Chief Justice Rock Teitelman after his swearing in ceremony in St.Louis on February 10.Draper became the second African American in Missouri to serve on the state’s highest court, following Judge Ronnie L.White.

Pruitt also points to Behlmann’s comments as reaffirming the NAACP’s position that Hazelwood’s policy was crafted to specifically ensure that only union-trained apprentices work on district projects.

“The Special School District working in partnership with the Hazelwood School District is either ignorant or complacent with respect to the discriminatory policy,” Pruitt wrote in the letter to White, “and due to board member Behlmann’s public statements, the Special School District may be criminally complacent in supporting a ‘union only’ policy.”

Constitution. The first national government to set education policy for the states was the Continental Congress, operating under the Articles of Confederation. In one of the few lasting acts of our first national government, the Congress in 1787 set aside 640 acres in each township as it was surveyed, with proceeds from the sale of the land being used to establish public schools.

Edited, updated and reprinted with permission from Rudi Keller’s blog on www.columbiatribune.com.

Photo by UPI/Bill Greenblatt

Special to The American Writer, activist, entrepreneur and public speaker Kevin Powell will speak at HarrisStowe State University at noon Friday, February 24 in the Emerson Performance Center’s Bank of America Theatre.

Powell’s presentation will address President Barack Obama, leadership, hip-hop, and the American dream, with a special session geared toward black males to follow.

Powell has written for Esquire, Newsweek, The Washington Post Essence Rolling Stone, The Amsterdam News, huffingtonpost.com and Vibe. He was

Not pictured: the black political community

In journalism, there is a standard practice of listing people “not pictured” in photographs where the reader might have expected those people to appear. In the photo coverage of Susan Montee announcing her candidacy for Missouri

Lieutenant Governor at St. Louis City Hall last week, the people “not pictured” list is very interesting and tells a story that was missing from reports of her announcement. Consider the people not pictured with Montee, because they were not present: U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay, President of the Board of Aldermen Lewis Reed, Comptroller Darlene Green County Executive Charlie A. Dooley, License Collector Michael McMillan, Treasurer Larry Williams, state Sen. Robin Wright-Jones, state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal state Rep. Steve Webb (chair of the Legislative Black Caucus), state Rep. Tishaura O. Jones, state Rep. Chris Carter, state Rep. Jamilah Nasheed, state Rep. Penny Hubbard, state Rep. Clem Smith, state Rep. Karla May Alderman Terry Kennedy (chair of the Aldermanic Black Caucus), Ald. Greg Carter

an even more telling story.

POLITICAL EYE

Do you get the drift? These are all African-American elected officials who represent parts of the St. Louis region – and the list could be extended to include many other black elected officials, current and former. These are black people who know where to find votes – mostly black votes. They did not stand beside Susan Montee when she announced a statewide campaign as a Democrat in a majority-black city. If you wonder how a Democrat could lose to incumbent Republican PeterKinder after the rough 2011 he had, Montee seems to have found the blueprint. ADemocrat could lose by not energizing the base. Montee is well on her way to not energizing the base. This is a terrible omen for the Missouri Democratic Party going into a presidential election year when a black man is at the top of their ticket and black turnout will be a decisive factor in many elections.

‘Why should I support her?’

Ald. Marlene Davis, Ald. Sam Moore, Ald. Frank Williamson, Ald. Kacie Starr Triplett, Ald. Antonio French, Ald. Tamika Hubbard

The EYE spent some time

corresponding with and talking to black elected officials who were not pictured with Montee on her big day. Some had been invited; others were not aware of an invite. No one was surprised at the nearly “Whites Only” turnout.

One state representative said Montee didn’t hire black people to work for her when she was State Auditor or when she was chair for the Missouri Democratic Party. “Why would she do anything different now?” he asked.

Others recalled all the talk

This official initially received a personal call from Montee asking for support and participation at the press event, which was granted. Later, a Montee campaign staffer contacted the elected official’s chief staffer to say that Mayor Francis G. Slay wasn’t too excited about sharing the limelight with this particular black elected official. “I told the guy who called me, ‘Let me make this easy for you,’the black citywide official’s staffer said. “I told him to take our name off everything and forget about it.”

about recruiting a black statewide candidate to replace Secretary of State Robin Carnahan. That never happened. Ayoung white man from Kansas City (state Rep Jason Kander) came out of the gate with every endorsement in the state. Others recalled that Montee as party chair was supposed to find a Lieutenant Governor candidate. She found herself.

Four of these elected officials who were not pictured with Montee go to work every day in City Hall, the very building where Montee held her press event. What would it have taken them to walk down the hall and stand up in support of a fellow Democrat?

One of these citywide elected officials remembered when Montee’s office was auditing the City of St. Louis. He said, “All those months they were in and out of here, auditing this majority-black city, I never saw one single African American who worked for her. Not one. Why should I support her?”

The Slay factor

Asenior staffer for another citywide elected official told

Indeed, understanding why none of these black people were pictured with Montee, one need only look at who is pictured. Their presence explains most of the absences.

Start with Slay, Montee’s host. The EYE understands how Montee might have thought it was a coup to have the mayor’s support. Kinder has called Slay a friend, and Slay has supported Kinder in the past. Slay and his core advisors love to think in terms of toxicity, who is and isn’t politically toxic. This event seemed to be an announcement that Kinder had turned toxic and Slay was supporting the candidate from his own party for a change.

For this, Montee seemed willing to trade in all of the public support from black elected officialdom in the St. Louis metropolitan area. St. Louis County Councilwoman Hazel Erby seemed to be the only black elected official willing to join the Slay party for Montee. Again, a terrible omen for the Missouri Democratic Party.

Wahby’s buddy

But Slay did not come to his party alone, not quite. Opposite him was Brian Wahby, the chair of the city’s Central Democratic

Committee. That is important, right? Having the city Dem’s chair there?

Not so much. Wahby seems determined to remain chair of the Central Committee during a presidential election cycle even though he is one of the candidates on the ballot. What is more, Wahby is running for Treasurer, calling for reforms of the office as managed by incumbent Larry Williams who is said to be stepping down after waves of bad press following the indictment of a staffer.

Larry Williams is an African American who has held his seat, approximately, forever. Treasurer is thus seen in local political circles as a “black seat,” so Wahby filing for it made him no new black friends. Further, Williams has always been very supportive of Wahby, giving him work and contracts, so Wahby is seen as a back-stabber as well.

Standing up there with Wahby isn’t earning Montee any new friends, either. Who else do we have in this picture? The other white man in the Treasurer’s race, Ald. Fred Wessels. Wessels’ support is sure to drive away most of the black folks who weren’t already driven off by Slay and Wahby. We also have staunch aldermanic allies of Slay and Martin Casas, Young Democrats operative and a sort of Brian Wahby Jr. Casas is another non-black person who has filed for a black seat, the newly redistricted state House seat being vacated by Tishaura Jones to run for Treasurer. Casas will have an African-American primary opponent in Michael Butler, a staffer for Robin WrightJones. You can add Butler to that long list of people “not pictured.” You can add Casas as another (minor) turn-off for garnering black support.

Former Missouri State Auditor Susan Montee was welcomed to the podium on February 7 by St.Louis Mayor Francis G.Slay and supporters at St.Louis City Hall as she announced she will run for Lieutenant Governor.

Photo UPI/Bill Greenblatt

BUSINESS

– 22, 2012

PEOPLEON THE MOVE

Andrea N. Hayes has been named the Hazelwood School District Teacher of the Year. She teaches 7th

settlement

First-come, first serve in receiving benefits from five mega mortgage lenders

By Rebecca S.Rivas

Of The St.Louis American Missouri taxpayers and the state will receive more than $196 million as part of the $25 billion national mortgage settlement, said Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster at a press conference Thursday. The joint federal-state agreement addresses allegations of foreclosure abuses, unfair mortgage servicing practices and fraud by the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers: Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Ally Financial. Residents who lost their homes to foreclosure from January 1, 2008 through Dec. 31, 2011 and suffered service abuse from one of the five banks are eligible for an estimated

$2,000 cash payment – which will roughly total $31 million statewide. The settlement also instructs banks to offer refinancing for residents whose homes are worth less than they owe and are current on their payments – an estimated $38 million in benefits.

Diversity bioscience effort leads to majorgrants

National recognition for local partnership in entrepreneurial efforts

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Missouri exports hit record high in 2011

Missouri exports achieved a record high in 2011, according to data released last week by World Trade Center St. Louis and the World Institute for Strategic Economic Research. In 2011, the total dollar value of Missouri exports reached $14.1 billion, an increase of more than half a billion dollars from the last peak in 2007 ($13.5 billion). Canada, Mexico and China, respectively, are the top international customers for Missouri companies.

China’s consumption of Missouri goods was particularly strong with 18 percent growth in 2011 and 44 percent growth in 2010. Copper scrap, fan parts, lead ores, aluminum scrap and semiconductor devices were among China’s most demanded Missouri commodities. Missouri’s total exports to China were $1.2 billion in 2011.

Mason Tillman Associates, which did IDOTstudy, gets nod

By Rebecca S.Rivas

Of The St.Louis American

The Metropolitan Sewer District Board of Trustees approved the adoption of a $385,000 disparity study contract with the California-based Mason Tillman Associates at the Feb. 9 board meeting. Mason Tillman is a 100-percent minority-owned company, led by Dr. Eleanor Mason Ramsey. The three subcontractors proposed to assist in the study’s three-stage process are: ADE Consulting Service, Davis and Associates, and Project Controls Group Inc. All are local companies and certified disadvantaged business enterprises.

The disparity study comes after the board voted down a resolution to increase minority participation on construction and service contracts in December. Opposing trustees said the district must complete a disparity study before a policy can be passed. Many local governments and public agencies have started conducting disparity studies after the

See MSD, A12

American staff

BioSTLand its regional partners are the only bioscience cluster in the country to be awarded both the highly competitive i6 and Jobs and Innovation Acceleration Challenge (JIAC) grants. The St. Louis regional bioscience collaboration was one of six nationwide to receive the i6 award and one of 20 to receive the JIAC award. The St. Louis partnership was forged by semi-annual diversity meetings convened by BioSTLthat focus on greater engagement of minority individuals and businesses in bioscience companies, organizations and research institutions.

Crim

7 Administrator of the US Small Business Administration) and Michael Holmes (Executive Director, St.Louis Agency on Training and Employment) The St.Louis partnership was forged by semi-annual diversity meetings convened by BioSTL that focus on greater engagement of minorities.

Matt S. Erskine, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Chief Operating Officer for the Economic Development

CEO

the

Administration, came to St. Louis to recognize the BioGenerator, an affiliate of BioSTL. BioGenerator deployed and leveraged the $1 million i6 grant, matched by $1 million from BioSTL, to create eight new bioscience companies in the last year. Many of the companies were founded by individuals displaced from Pfizer and other St.

Community college sells out certificates forbonds

St. Louis Community College recently sold more than $6.4 million in leasehold refunding revenue bonds to refund the college’s Series 2003 Leasehold Revenue Bonds. These bonds are the primary type of debt financing the college issues and are used to raise funds for capital projects. The 2003 series initially was sold to finance the design, engineering and construction of the college’s South County Education and University Center as well as the college’s Wildwood campus. By refunding the Series 2003 bonds and replacing them with the Series 2012 sold in late January, the college will save $737,685 over the next 10 years.

Art Museum exceeds $145M capital campaign goal

The Saint Louis Art Museum has exceeded its $145 million goal for the Campaign for the Saint Louis Art Museum, with $147 million in commitments toward the institution’s physical expansion and operating endowment. The announcement was made on the two-year anniversary of groundbreaking for the museum’s new East Building, designed by British architect Sir David Chipperfield, which is scheduled to open in mid-2013. It’s the largest capital campaign for a cultural institution in St. Louis history.

Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Last Thursday Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster discussed with the press the $25 billion national mortgage settlement reached with the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers (Bank of America,Citigroup,JPMorgan Chase and Ally Financial) for allegations of foreclosure abuses,unfair mortgage servicing practices and fraud.

Rodney

(Pres.&

of

St.Louis Development Corporation), Pat Brown-Dixon (Region

What savings alternatives are available?

As an investor, it’s important to have a portion of your holdings in savings. Opinions differ, but most financial advisors agree that adequate savings should form the basis of any sound investment strategy. There are a number of savings alternatives that will help you accumulate adequate savings and earn a reasonable rate of return.

Certificates of Deposit

Certificates of deposit are really just short-term loans to a bank, credit union, or savings and loan. They offer a moderate rate of return and more safety because they are insured by the FDIC for up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution in interest and principal.

Asset Management Accounts

These accounts are much like checking accounts, except

that they may be held by a brokerage instead of a bank. You can use your money to trade stocks and bonds and buy into money market funds. Many brokerages will automatically sweep your earnings into a money market account.

Series EE Savings Bonds For many years, when bonds were mentioned, people thought of U.S. savings bonds. Series EE savings bonds are sold in par values that range from $50 to $10,000 if purchased in paper form or from $50 to $5,000 if purchased electronically. Tax on the interest is deferred until maturity and may be eliminated if the proceeds are used to pay for a college education.

I Savings Bonds These bonds are designed to offer protection from inflation. By linking the return of the

PERSONAL FINANCE

By Charles Ross

bonds to an inflation index, the bonds are always guaranteed to earn a fixed rate above the inflation rate. They are a sort of hybrid between Treasury Inflation Indexed bonds (which are issued as marketable securities) and EE bonds. I bonds can be purchased at banks where EE bonds are currently sold or electronically. They are available in $50, $75, $100, $200, $500, $1,000, and $5,000 denominations. You can purchase up to $5,000 per Social Security number per year.

Charles Ross

If borrowers’homes are worth less than they owe and they are behind on payments but they could afford to make payments at a reduced rate, they will receive an estimated $86.5 million in principal reductions and other borrower assistance.

Koster’s office has launched a hotline where consumers can get more information about the settlement at 855-870-7676. Residents should not delay in calling, as the benefits work on a first-come, first serve basis.

“This settlement even helps homeowners who cannot benefit from the refinancing programs by imposing comprehensive new standards for mortgage loan servicing and foreclosures,” Koster said.

An outside monitor will ensure compliance by the five settling institutions, he said.

MSD

Continued from A11

1989 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the case of City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co The Supreme Court ruled that the City of Richmond’s minority participation program for municipal contracts was unconstitutional, after finding that the city failed to identify the need for remedial action.

Like St. Louis, Richmond had a black population of just over 50 percent and had set a 30 percent goal in the awarding of city construction contracts, based on its findings of local discrimination and lack of access for minority-owned businesses.

The ruling required that a fact-based approach determine whether or not qualified

“We’re going to make sure that the banks live up to their end of the bargain,” said President Obama, in a press conference on Feb. 7.“If they don’t, we’ve set up an independent inspector, a monitor, that has the power to make sure they pay exactly what they agreed to pay, plus a penalty if they fail to act in accordance with this agreement.”

As part of the settlement, Missouri will receive $40 million to the state’s general revenue fund to be used in the state budget. Gov. Jay Nixon announced he will use the $40 million to restore funding for the state’s public colleges and universities. The national deal is the largest of its kind since a multi-state agreement with the tobacco industry in 1998. This agreement holds the banks accountable for their wrongdoing on robo-signing and mortgage servicing, which is just one of many

minority firms have been underutilized. The Croson decision led a number of local and state governments to abandon their MWBE programs, while others proceeded to conduct disparity studies that addressed the court’s requirements for proof of harm from discrimination.

Disparity studies provide legal validity to inclusion programs. However, they can also provide evidence of racial discrimination and bring about lawsuits from the minority and women business communities.

Mason Tillman conducted the 2010 disparity study for the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), which found racial discrimination in the department’s contracting process.

The study – contracted by IDOTin 2009 – found that disadvantaged business enterpris-

Money Market Funds

In a money market fund, your investment is pooled with that of other investors. The resulting fund is invested in a diverse portfolio of short-term debt securities.

Money market funds offer a high level of safety and moderate income.

Money market funds are neither insured nor guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Although money market funds seek to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose

Director of Enforcement

fraudulent practices being investigated.

However, this settlement does not end state attorneys general investigations of Wall Street related to financial fraud or the financial crisis. It does not release any criminal liability, any private claims by individuals or any class action claims. It also does not release claims against Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems or claims related to the securitization of mortgage backed securities, which were at the heart of the financial crisis.

The settlement instructs banks to offer refinancing for residents whose homes are worth less than they owe and are current on their payments.

On January 27 U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, along with Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

es (DBEs) represent 25.55 percent of the available construction firms. However, they only received 8.25 percent of the construction prime contracts under $500,000 from 2006 to 2009, according to the study conducted by Mason Tillman.

At the Jan. 26 board meeting, MSD Executive Director Jeff Theerman said the district should pass an interim policy while waiting for the disparity study’s completion.

The voted-down resolution (3001) proposed in December would have set separate subcontracting goals for MBE (25 percent) and for WBE (5 percent) for all construction and professional service contracts of $50,000 or more.

Professional service contracts $50,000 or above would have aimed at 25 percent MBE and 5 percent WBE goals.

It would have also set a new minority workforce goal of 25 percent on construction contracts and 6.9 percent female workforce. All prime professional service providers would have had a local office

Robert Khuzami and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the formation of the Residential MortgageBacked Securities Working Group. The group will investigate those responsible for misconduct contributing to the financial crisis through the pooling and sale of residential mortgagebacked securities. Many have called this one of the most egregious of the mortgage-lending crimes.

At the press conference, Koster said that he is working closely with New York on any possible prosecutions of these crimes, having experience as a prosecutor.

money by investing in money market funds.

Mutual funds are sold only by prospectus. Please consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing. The prospectus, which contains this and other information about the investment company, can be obtained from your financial professional. Be sure to read the prospectus carefully before deciding whether to invest.

Interest-Bearing Checking Accounts

These accounts combine the interest-earning capability of a savings account with the check-writing convenience of a checking account. They are offered through many banks, savings and loans, and credit unions. Some charge a fee if you fail to maintain a minimum balance.

Robo-signing indictment

Earlier last week, Koster announced that he has obtained a grand jury indictment against DOCX LLC and its former president, Lorraine Brown, for their alleged role in the robosigning scandal. This is the first indictment in the country against a corporation for these practices.

The settlement’s investigations began in September 2010, when Ally Financial halted foreclosures in 23 states after discovering flaws in the way the eviction paperwork was processed, according to a Washington Post report. Just before this, a single employee of Ally was accused of signing off on tens of thousands of foreclosures without properly reviewing the documentation in a lawsuit.

This so-called robo-signing issue was not just an Ally Financial problem. Soon, other banks were joining Ally freezing foreclosures. Less than two

weeks later, J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank of America both announced that they would temporarily stop foreclosures in some states due to concerns over improperly prepared documents.

On Oct. 13, 2010, attorneys general from all 50 states announced that they were joining together to launch a probe into the fraudulent or mishandled documents.

“No compensation, no amount of money, no measure of justice is enough to make it right for a family who’s had their piece of the American Dream wrongly taken from them,” said President Obama.

“And no action, no matter how meaningful, is going to, by itself, entirely heal the housing market.But this settlement is a start.”

Koster’s office has launched a hotline where consumers can get more information about the settlement at 855-870-7676.

MSD inclusion numbers on the table

than $50,000

• 10 percent MWBE on non-Building Construction subcontracting goals for projects over $50,000, (with at least 5 percent MBE)

• 20 percent MWBE for professional service contracts $50,000 or more

• 14.7 percent minority and 6.9 percent women

(with at least 5 percent MBE)

MBE and 5 percent WBE on each project)

cent

“Jeremy Lin is a good player, but all of the hype is because he’s Asian.”

INSIDE SPORTS

With Earl Austin Jr.

Beloved singer made ‘Star Spangled Banner’a hit

The late Whitney Houston will be remembered as one of the greatest vocalists of all time. And with good reason. Who can argue with her 170 million albums sold, her countless awards and seven consecutive No. 1 hits, plus the influence she had on so many young female singers who followed in her footsteps through the years.

As we all look back on a wonderful talent whose life ended way too soon last week at 48 years old, let us not forget that Whitney Houston also provided us with one of the most epic moments in American sports history. Her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner before Super Bowl XXVin January of 1991 is the gold standard of all performances of this song. It also came at a time when this country needed it the most. The war in the Persian Gulf was just beginning, and patriotism was in the air at Tampa Stadium in Florida as everyone waved American flags throughout the pre-game ceremonies.

After getting the introduction from veteran NFL announcer Frank Gifford, Whitney proceeded to give a performance of the ages. I was at a big Super Bowl party at a friend’s house, and everyone was in a trance. Many people cried during Whitney’s performance. It was that powerful and meaningful.

In just those few short moments, Whitney Houston captured the soul of this country while at the same time letting the troops know how much we all loved and appreciated them as they entered the field of battle. Let’s go kick some serious butt in the Desert. This beautiful woman with the angelic voice really brought it home on this night as nobody else has done before or since.

I was at a big Super Bowl party at a friend’s house, and everyone was in a trance. Many people cried during Whitney’s performance.

– Boxer Floyd Mayweather on the New York Knicks’ newest star By

Super Whitney Road to Mizzou

At the end of the song, Whitney raised her arms in exultation. That merely put the cap on what was one of the greatest performances on the biggest stage in our nation’s history.

I almost felt sorry for the New York Giants and Buffalo Bills, because their game became somewhat of a sideshow to the brilliant performance which preceded the kickoff. How do you top that? Even the players were caught up in the wave of emotion. Despite the fact that they were about to play the most meaningful game of their lives, they cheered with the same emotion as the rest of us after Whitney’s performance.

Not surprisingly, Whitney’s version of the Star Spangled Banner became a smash hit on the pop charts. It was released as a single and it reached No. 20 on the Billboard Top 100 charts. It was the only time in history that the Star Spangled Banner was released as a single. Like everyone else who followed Whitney’s career and loved her music, I had my favorite songs. “You Give Good Love” and “I’m Your Baby Tonight” are my personal favorites. However, when I visited YouTube to listen See

By

Top area wrestlers head to state

District tournament play begins

We are now in the final week of regular season play for Missouri Class 4 and 5 schools in the St. Louis area. That means the Road to Columbia begins next week as district tournament play begins for the schools on the Missouri side of the river. I am looking forward to a very exciting postseason as several teams are capable of getting hot and advancing to the Final Four in Columbia in MidMarch.

is a look at some of the upcoming district tournament action next week. For a complete listing of all of the district tournaments, you can check out the Missouri State High School Activities Association website at mshsaa.org.

Final Four caliber The Class 5, District 8 tournament at McCluer is one that everyone will be watching. No. 1 seed McCluer North, No. 2 McCluer and No. 3 Hazelwood Central are all Final Four caliber teams, but only one can advance. Barring any upsets, McCluer and Hazelwood Central will meet in the semifinals next Thursday with the winner meeting McCluer North on Saturday, Feb. 25. That is, of course, barring any upsets.

Magical season

It has been a magical season for the Vianney Golden Griffins. Vianney won its own tournament and then won the Meramec Holiday Tournament for the first time. The Golden Griffins also won their first Metro Catholic Conference title and entered the USAToday National Top 25 rankings for a short time. They are the No. 1 seed in the Class 5, District 5 tournament at Fox.

Elusive title

Soldan will be seeking that elusive Class 4 state

Whitney Houston’s rendition of the Star Spangled Banner before Super Bowl XXV in January of 1991 is the gold standard of all performances of this song.It also came at a time when this country needed it the most.

Earl Austin Jr.

McCluer North High senior forward Jordon Granger will lead the Stars into next week’s Class 5,District 8 tournament at McCluer. The Stars are the No.1 seed in the loaded district that includes Suburban North Conference rivals McCluer and Hazelwood Central.

Earl Austin Jr. Of the St.Louis American

If you do not know by now,

I am a fan of the NBA. I am not a fan of blatant stupidity that seems to follow this league’s players, media and fans.

In case you had not heard of Jeremy Lin of the New York Knicks before last week, you were in the majority. Lin was on the verge of being cut by the Knicks when due to injury he got a shot to play – and play he did. He was part of a winning streak by contributing some key baskets against a variety of teams. It was a great story that most embraced.

Jason Whitlock tweeted “some lucky lady in NYC is going to feel a couple of inches of pain tonight.”

If you did not know, Lin is the first Asian American to play in the NBA, the league that prides itself on being the sport of the world. Lin’s rise to stardom and recognition was seismic, to say the least, as he was also a good interview.

Now enter the stupidity.

After Lin’s 38-point performance against the Lakers, columnist Jason Whitlock tweeted “some lucky lady in NYC is going to feel a couple

With Mike Claiborne

Spartacus Jason Whitlock

of inches of pain tonight.” Really? So is that how athletes are rewarded these days? We now offer up women as trophies, as if this is an episode of Spatacus?

Yeah,Floyd

Not to be one-upped, Floyd Mayweather decided to chime in and state that the Lin hype is all about the fact that he is Asian. “Brothers do what he does every night.” Yeah, Floyd, but considering where he came from and the fact he was not given a chance in other places may have something to do with it. Hey, Floyd, try tweeting this: “I have decided that I will no longer duck Manny Pacquiao and I am fighting him this summer as soon as I get out of jail for putting my hands on a woman.”

That is all anyone wants to hear from Floyd.

Let the NCAA campaign season begin

It’s that time. Time for the campaign season to begin, and while you may be thinking this is about who the Republican Party can run against the incumbent, President Barack Obama, to sit in the White House for the next four years, there is another campaign taking place. The NCAAbasketball tournament is just around the corner, and this is the time when teams and coaches campaign for a position in the tournament. There is a lot at stake

here, such as seedings and game location in the tournament, not to mention job survival.

In the next few weeks, pay attention to how many coaches who will publicly lobby that

INSIDE

their team is deserving of a spot in the NCAAtournament, in an attempt to help their conference get as many teams in as they can.

It’s all, at times, rather silly when you look at some of the

WRESTLE

Continued from A13 The New York Knicks Jeremy Lin has been the object of many racial comments recently.Lin is the first Asian American to play in the NBA.

to all of Whitney’s great songs in remembrance, the first one I called up was the video from that Super Bowl. Although it was performed more than 21 years ago, I got just as wound up as it did when I witnessed it for the first time at that Super Bowl party. RIP, Whitney Houston. We lost your wonderful voice way too soon.

Continued from A13 of qualifiers to the Columbia. The Stars qualified 11 wrestlers for state after winning their first district championship in 13 years.

The Stars will be led by district champions Curtis Peebles at 125, Josh Taylor at 152, Gordon Phillips at 189 and district runners-up Darrell Pampkin at 126 and Randall Young at 285.

Senior Donnell Walker of Parkway South will be one of the top Class 4 wrestlers to watch at 285 pounds. Walker enters the weekend with a 31-1 record after winning his second consecutive district championship last weekend. Walker was ranked No. 2 in the state by MissouriWrestling.com behind University of Missouri football recruit Evan Boehm of Lee’s Summit West.

Ritenour’s Lamar Welch enters the competition with a 44-4 record after winning a district title at 160 pounds. Darrell Vaughn of Hazelwood West (285) and Chris Carter of Parkway North (195) also enter the state meet as district champions.

Among the top individual

reasons they give. My favorite is the one when they talk about their strength of schedule. Really? In some cases they bring that up, failing to mention some of the blood donors that they played early in the

season – in some cases, schools we didn’t know even played basketball. Hey, here is an idea on the selection process. Play a legitimate schedule, play tough teams on the road, and play teams that were in the post-season in the prior year. If you want to add a blood donor, seek some of the teams within proximity of your school instead of someone from two time zones away. This year’s tournament will be wide open. Never have there been so many teams that have a chance to win, and I am not sure what that says. I do not believe that teams today are anywhere close to being as good as teams of just a few years ago. The good players are more spread out around the country, unlike the days when the Big East and the ACC would get the best players because of the cozy deal that featured those schools on ESPN (and we all know how much the kids like TV). Now every conference, for the most part, has a TVpackage where nearly all the games can be seen. Fundamentally, players are different, which is why experienced coaches seem to be having a challenge pushing the right button to get players to play. When players tune out a coach today, you can start the clock on the the coach’s survival; seldom do you see schools back him up, as they are too conscious of what

One of the top individual performers to watch this weekend will be Whitfield High junior Chris Wilkes,left, who is seeking the Class 1 state championship at 126 pounds.

contenders at the Class 3 state championships are McCluer’s Johnathan Cain, who is currently 34-2 after winning a district title last weekend. Tarique Jefferson of University City enters the weekend with a 43-3 record at 195 pounds. District champion Akintunde Oduntoye of Hazelwood East brings a record of 37-6 to Columbia at 182 pounds. Sophomore John Williams of McCluer South-Berkeley will take an 18-0 record to the state meet at 120 pounds. Williams was dominant in winning all three of his matches at the Class 2, District 2 meet.

Mike Claiborne

HOOPS

Competitive at Parkway South

at the

Continued from A13 title after

years. The seniorladen Tigers are the No. 1 seed at the Class 4, District 5 tournament at Jennings. Another Class 4 team to watch is Imagine Prep, who drew the No. 1 seed at the District 4 tournament at DuBourg. The Bears were one game away from Columbia last year and could very well make it this time around.

The Class 5, District 3 tournament at Parkway South will be a very competitive one with the host Patriots getting the No. 1 seed. However, Lafayette, Rockwood Summit, Marquette and Eureka all have a shot to win this district as well.

Slew of contenders at SLUH

Webster Groves is the top seed at the Class 5, District 2 tournament at SLUH. Ayoung, but talented CBC team is the

No. 2 seed with Ladue at No. 3. Chaminade and SLUH are also in this competitive district.

Class 4,District 6

Westminster Christian is the No. 1 seed at the Class 4, District 6 tournament at MICDS. The Wildcats are having a great season with 21 victories. Following Westminster are No. 2 University City and No. 3 MICDS. In the girls field, Westminster Christian is the No. 1 seed, followed by MICDS at No. 2.

On the girls side

On the girls side, Incarnate Word is the No. 1 seed at the Class 5, District 4 tournament at Parkway Central. Pattonville is the No. 2 seed. St. Joseph’s is the No. 1 seed at the District 2 tournament at SLUH. Fort Zumwalt West is the No. 1 seed at the District 6 tournament at Wentzville. Miller Career Academy is the No. 1 seed at the Class 4, District 4 tournament at DuBourg.

IHSA Girls Regionals begin

The Illinois girls Class 3A and 4Aregional tournaments also got underway this week. Southwestern Conference champion Edwardsville is the No. 1 seed in their own Class 4Aregional while Quincy is No. 2. The championship game will be played tonight at 7:30 p.m.

O’Fallon is the No. 1 seed at the Class 4ARegional at Belleville West, followed by Belleville East, Collinsville and Belleville West. The regional championship game is tonight at 7:30 p.m.

In Class 3A, Breese Mater

Dei is the No. 1 seed in the Highland regional while East St. Louis is the No. 1 seed at the Waterloo Regional. The Highland regional finals will be played tonight at 7:30 p.m. while the Waterloo Regional championship game will be played on Friday night at 7:30 p.m.

Louis bioscience companies.

Erskine congratulated the St. Louis bioscience collaborators on the additional award of $702,765 from EDA(also matched with an equal amount from BioSTL) which is the EDApart of the JIAC grant. BioGenerator will use this funding to engage several Entrepreneurs in Residence to work with the i6 and other start-up bioscience companies. One of the residents will manage the Center for Emerging Technologies’Bio Entrepreneur Development Program, which trains and mentors first-time bioscience

entrepreneurs. Pat Brown-Dixon, Regional Administrator, SBARegion VII, came here to recognize the St. Louis Minority Suppliers Development Council for their grant of $150,000, renewable for a second year, from the SBA. The grant will be used to reach out to minority-owned businesses and introduce them to industry needs and the process of providing goods and services to bioscience companies. Lance Potts, Federal Project Officer, ETADivision of Demonstration Grants –Special Initiatives & Demonstrations, was here to recognize the St. Louis Agency on Employment and Training for receiving a grant of $973,014 from ETA. The grant provides funding for

on-the-job training for individuals hired by start-up and growing bioscience companies and to hold job education events for displaced bioscience workers.

The JIAC grant was the result of a partnership of EDA, ETAand SBA. Asuccessful applicant had to have a winning proposal for all three agencies.

In a national cluster report conducted by Harvard’s Michael Porter for EDA, the St. Louis region’s bioscience cluster is ranked number seven in the nation. The St. Louis region has nationally-competitive research institutions and support organizations (including the BioGenerator and CET) for start-up companies.

Financial Focus

By Roger Macon, AAMS, financial advisor

The ire-breather, the gym, and the city remembering Homer G. Phillips Hospital

How boxer Joe Frazier deined Philadelphia, part 3

By Gerald Early Washington University

In its most recent edition, Belles Lettres, published by the Center for the Humanities at Washington University, published a long essay about boxing great Joe Frazier by center director Gerald Early. The American is reprinting that essay in the 2012 Black History Month section, in three parts,w ith permission.

3. The will as the sum of all fears

When Madison Square Garden promoter Teddy Brenner asked Joe Frazier to write the igure $2.5 million on a piece of paper, Frazier couldn’t do it. Neither could Muhammad Ali, who did not even bother to try to write down the igure. Their inability to do so cost them a considerable sum of money, as they could never understand that Brenner’s offer of a percentage of the gate for their March 1971 ight was a better deal than the lat fee of $2.5 million offered by Jack Kent Cooke. Both ighters were that dumb.

I don’t say that with arrogance or a sense of superiority but with a deep sense of identiication and understanding. I know what it is like to look that stupid in front of white people and what it can cost. I am not trying to make the incident racial in any way, because it wasn’t. But Frazier was acutely embarrassed that he couldn’t write 2.5 million numerically and had no idea how to calculate the percentage of anything. It is unclear whether Ali was embarrassed.

But both men put on a brazen front and insisted on their guarantee and pretended that it didn’t matter whether they could understand the other offer. When I heard that story I simply thought that, well, there’s a real incentive to, as a friend of mine put it, “smarten up.”

I mention this story only to put to rest the mistaken notion that Ali was smarter than Frazier. He wasn’t. Both men were equally uneducated, equally unlettered, equally uncurious about ideas or the world. Ali was simply glib and had the glib person’s bulwark of a dogma to defend and protect him in a strange world that wanted to exploit his looks and his athletic skills in much the way brothels exploit beautiful young whores. “The Honorable Elijah Muhammad teaches . . .” could fend off a great deal, and the hypocrisy and illogic of racialism did not require great intellect to parse, only a certain sort of minimal self-awareness on the part of a black person. In looking back at the rivalry between Frazier and Ali, we are apt to denounce Ali’s derogatory name-calling, referring to Frazier as an Uncle Tom, a gorilla, a nigger, and the like. Frazier is now seen, in some ways, as a more “authentic” black than Ali, less afraid of the larger white world (as he did not need the militant bromides and grim visages of the Nation of Islam to offer him solace), less ixated about color, less hysterical about racial politics, and more genuinely rooted in black southern culture. This interpretation, most vigorously promoted by Mark Kram, is a sort of corrective for all of the years of overweening, sometimes blatantly wrongheaded Ali hero-worship as the prince of boxers and the darling of black militancy and po-

SPONSORS

Vashon activists honored by exhibit

Missouri History Museum commemorates local youth activists

By Rebecca S. Rivas Of The St. Louis American

In the summer of 1960, a group of students, primarily from Vashon High School, were on a mission to challenge segregation in St. Louis. As members of the NAACP Youth Council, they conducted multiple sitins and other protests at area restaurants. John LaGrone, now a Spanishlanguage professor, remembers when he and six African-American students went to bowl at Crossroad Bowling Alley. They were denied service but told the owner they would wait all day. The place was packed of white young men, who immediately started glaring.

One man attempted to start a ight with LaGrone.

“I just turned toward him,” LaGrone said. “All I could do was face him. If I had done anything more, it would have escalated. The thing was you just hold your ground, look at him, and respect him.”

The group’s actions led to the passage of a city ordinance that ended decades of Jim Crow practices in St. Louis.

To honor these contributions to the St. Louis community, the Missouri History Museum is hosting a gallery installation, Vashon High Activists, which opened to the general

By

“If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, right then they shall hear from heaven, I will heal their land…” Homer G. Phillips, a black attorney in

Portrait

Ronald Herd II honors

Dean James E. McLeod and Dr. John B. Ervin

American staff

Ronald Herd II, whose artist name is Tha Artivist, has painted a dual portrait of two pioneering Washington University administrators, Dean James E. McLeod and Dr. John B. Ervin, titled The Legacy In 1968, Dr. Ervin came to Washington University as dean of the School of Continuing Education, becoming the irst African American to hold a dean’s position at the university; he passed in 1992. When McLeod passed last year, he was vice chancellor for students at Washington University and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. The Legacy represents the bond and mission shared by two men and the vision that they had for empowering their people through education.

“Although both of these men were known as conservative dressers, their dreams and visions to add ‘color’ and ‘lavor’ to Washington University’s campus was anything but,” Herd said. “This is

St. Louis, Mo., took on the ight to get a hospital for blacks in St. Louis to heal their bodies at a time when healthcare for blacks was dificult to access. Healthcare was given to blacks in the basements of City Hospital No. 1 and No. 2, and blacks were relegated to second class citizenship. Homer G. Phillips (1880-1931) became the champion for getting a hospital

for blacks in the

was dedicated in 1937, which included ive buildings – an administrative building, a building for nurse’s apartments, a service building, north and south wards buildings for patients, and quarters for interns and resident physicians.

that would take blacks out of their second-class status.

Attorney Phillips began this movement for a hospital for blacks in St. Louis by proposing a bond issue to pay for the funding of building a hospital in 1923. In 1922 City Hospital No. 2 had its irst

represented by their loud or brightly colored suits which also represents the school colors of red, white and green.”

Paving a trail for others that followed, their collected efforts ensured

that people of color will get proper and qualiied representation in both academia and other arenas. The arch in the painting, Herd said,

John LaGrone Constance Myles

“The Legacy,” by Ronald Herd II, whose artist name is Tha Artivist, is a dual portrait of two pioneering Washington University administrators, Dean James E. McLeod and Dr. John B. Ervin.

Pierre Blaine For The St. Louis American

Joe Frazier was demented with how much he detested Muhammad Ali. I respected that, even when others told him he was being foolish and foul in some of the things he was saying about Ali.

HOMER, B2

Homer G. Phillips Hospital, built

Ville,

To honor the contributions of the NAACP Youth Council, including John LaGrone and Constance Myles, the Missouri History Museum is hosting a gallery installation, Vashon High Activists, which opened Jan. 22. See VASHON, B3

‘Great Migration’ is Read St. Louis choice

Isabel Wilkerson

among authors

chosen by St. Louis libraries for 2012

American staff

Isabel Wilkerson’s classic of African-American history, The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration, has been chosen as one of the titles for Read St. Louis 2012.

Read St. Louis is a community-wide initiative originally developed by St. Louis County and St. Louis Public Libraries to encourage St. Louisans to read and discuss great books. At the core of the program is a belief that making reading fun, exciting and occasionally educational, will stimulate a passion for lifelong learning in all of us.

The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration is the NonFiction title chosen for this year. Reviewing the book in The St. Louis American last year, Kenya Vaughn described it as “an epic collection of experiences that manage to inspire and enrage through narratives from birth through final season in life.”

“The book is as captivating as it is unpredictable, offering stories filled with hope that demand an extension of gratitude to those who took steps towards the struggle for equal rights for themselves and on behalf of future generations,” Vaughn wrote.

Brilliantly woven into the individual histories are horrendous facts about the common injustices imposed on African Americans in the South.

“These were people who had been through the worst that your country can hurl at you and came out on the other side,” Wilkerson told The American “They were wounded but not beaten – and they didn’t let what they had been through get them down. They carried themselves with a sense of dignity and perseverance. And the message from their action is that people don’t have to wait for someone to tell them the right thing to do.”

The Read St. Louis 2012 events will kick-off on Saturday, March 24, 7 p.m. when Anne Lamott visits St. Louis County Library, Headquarters

(1640 S. Lindbergh) to discuss her new memoir Some Assembly Required. Lamott will be joined at the event by her son and co-author, Sam Lamott.

The St. Charles City-County Library District has joined the program and will be hosting an author event and promoting the Read St. Louis books at their locations throughout St. Charles County. With the addition of the St. Charles system, Read St. Louis now reaches close to 800,000 library card holders at 49 library branches across the St. Louis metropolitan area. For more information, visit www.readstlouis.org

A Diverse Workforce is Powerful Medicine for the Community

FRAZIER

Continued from B1

litical resistance because of his stance against the Vietnam War and the draft. Frazier always thought Ali’s politics was “a bunch of bullshit.” “[If] I had been single, like Ali, I’d have had no problem serving this country if that draft board had called me. In fact, I tried to join the military when I was fourteen, but wasn’t accepted. Ours is a great country, and worth defending. What Clay [Frazier insisted on not using the name Muhammad Ali but rather Cassius Clay] did was to make himself out as a man of conscience instead of the draft dodger he was.” That’s working-class cynicism for you!

Although, history still sides with Ali: the Vietnam War was a tragedy and a mistake, resisting the government’s will and policies is sometimes wise and sometimes morally necessary, and overly esteeming people in the military is a fairly dangerous thing to do. It is good that Frazier is getting a second and deeper look in recent years, but he still remains, even in death, something like a foil for Ali, where Frazier becomes the measure by which Ali is either an unqualified romantic hero or a qualified complex hero.

I thought Frazier would break Ali in half in their first fight in 1971, and he wanted to so badly that he nearly died as a result. Frazier won the fight – although Ali turned public sentiment against him so that even in victory Frazier did not enjoy the status or accolades a true champion should have – he hurt Ali badly in the 11th round, nearly breaking his jaw, and knocked him down with a pile-driving left hook in the fifteenth.

“But the fight had taken a

toll on me. My blood pressure was dangerously high,” Frazier writes. He goes on to say that it wasn’t Ali’s punches that was the cause of his problem, but Frazier took the worst beating of his career up to that point in his first fight with Ali, who battered him with stinging jabs and straight right hands. Frazier went into intensive care. There were rumors circulating in Philly that he had died. He was in the hospital for weeks. Ali made a point of this whenever he discussed the fight, indicating that Frazier had been more severely beaten in the fight even though Ali never knocked him down. Frazier would have absorbed Ali hitting him with a tree trunk to win that first fight. I wanted Ali to win that fight but I respected the sheer suicidal intensity of Frazier’s hatred of his rival.

“I’d rather die than lose,” some fighters have said, but Frazier came very close to doing just that, dying as a cost of winning.

By the time the two men fought again in Manila in 1975, the third and final match (Ali won the second, a ten-round decision, in New York in 1974, when neither man was champion), I wanted very much for Frazier to win back the title but felt that Ali would break him in half – and that was nearly the case. Ali took a severe beating from which he never fully recovered, but he broke Frazier apart round by round, muscle by muscle.

I was not surprised at Frazier, only that he fought as hard and long as he did as a washedup fighter, which he was then. But his will was unvanquished, and so he fought better than he knew. But for Frazier, breathing the fire of war, absorbed with the pure hatred of one’s enemy in every synapse and sinew, was not enough. The homeboy didn’t make it. And he lived on the fumes of his bitterness after

that. Joe Frazier was demented with how much he detested Muhammad Ali. I respected that, even when others told him he was being foolish and foul in some of the things he was saying about Ali. Why make up with Ali? Loves and kisses would only have made Frazier more completely a foil of Ali than he was. I thought there was a sort of romantic glow about his hatred, a shimmering clarity that gave Frazier’s life meaning and purpose, the grandeur of rude dissent. Great passion creates a kind of greatness, even as it corrupts itself with self-pity and bravado. The more alloyed the hatred, the sterner its imperfect glory. Frazier wasn’t really railing against Ali in his last years but rather against God for giving him more hatred than his body could do anything with. But Frazier was luckier than most men in that he found a profession where he could go to war against what he hated and not have find substitutes to deceive his mind and soul.

No greater representation of athletic valor hath working-class Philadelphia than Joe Frazier, no greater a symbol of the city’s compelling character. It is an ironical misfortune that perhaps only a workingclass Philadelphian can truly appreciate: that the only man in his sport whose will was greater than his own, was the man he so thoroughly hated.

Gerald Early is Merle Kling Professor of Modern Letters and director of the Center for the Humanities at Washington University in St. Louis.

Harris-Stowe to stage God’s Trombones

American staff

The Harris-Stowe State University Players, under the direction of Gregory Carr, will perform God’s Trombones February 23, 24 and 25, at 8 p.m., in the Emerson Performance Center’s Bank of America Theatre.

Published in 1927, God’s Trombones is by James Weldon Johnson, the pioneering African-American civil rights leader and author most famous for co-writing (with his brother J. Rosamond Johnson) “Life Every Voice and Sing.”

God’s Trombones consists of seven sermons by a black preacher presented in the mode of African-American religious oratory. The cast of Harris-Stowe students includes Anoa Jones, Christopher M. Pate, Ahrmantti Ambus, Adrian Kelly Jr., Trenton Pratt, Carissa McGraw and David Shaw.

General admission tickets are $10. Senior citizens and students are $5 with a valid student I.D. Tickets can be purchased by calling the HSSU theatre box office at (314) 340-5975.

HERD

Continued from B1

selves, then everyone in society benefits,” Herd said.

public on Jan. 22.

The exhibit tells the story of these students’ courage and determination through photos and media coverage from that time. Audio clips allow visitors to hear the stories of five of the Vashon activists in their own words, discovering the personal impact these events had on the activists, which carried through the rest of their lives.

The student-led demonstrations lead to almost immediate results. Within months of the initial protests, a municipal civil rights law was passed in 1961. In part, the actions of a small but determined group of young people helped to bring a legal end to segregation in public places in St. Louis.

LaGrone said that same bowling alley run took on a new significance in his life 14 years later, when he was part of the University City teachers bowling tournament.

“I won the championship and near that same lane where the fight almost broke out,” he said. “I remember when it could have been something other than a pleasant memory.” He said he appreciated the championship even more, and he reflected on being able to move through the city as a citizen rather than someone with limited citizenship, which was the term the group used.

LaGrone said the NAACP group started when one of his counselors encouraged him and other Vashon students to volunteer during elections. From that election activity, they became the NAACP Youth Council, which included

The Youth Council’s contributions have been largely overshadowed by the mass national movement centered in the southern states and the far more contentious Jefferson Bank Demonstrations of 1963. Nevertheless, they played a brief but commanding role in the local struggle against inequality.

mostly Vashon students but also some from Sumner and Beaumont.

After school at the public library, they conducted studies of St. Louis’ laws and the hiring practices of local companies, he said. Their first actions were picketing in front of targeted stores and restaurants. In general, they didn’t have too many violent encounters with people, he said. Some students got arrested after one store owner lied and told police they were making noise and trash, LaGrone said.

“I didn’t get an opportunity to get arrested,” he said. “I was working. My family was off work so I had to get a job.”

When the laws changed and the students went on to college, the group started dismantling. LaGrone entered Harris-Stowe College and eventually began studying foreign languages. As a sophomore in college, he remembers entering into a restaurant where he wasn’t allowed to sit down and eat at just two years before. At that same restaurant

as a child, his grandmother would grab him by the pants if he tried to sit down.

“That was why I participated in the movement because I remember those things as a young man,” he said. “That was a difference that I didn’t take for granted. You always felt you did something worth while.”

Admission to Vashon High Activists is free.It can be viewed in the Atrium of the Missouri History Museum from January 22 through June 17, 2012.

The Missouri History Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Monday; Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, the Missouri History Museum observes Summer Hours (Wednesday through Monday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Tuesday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.). The museum is closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. For general museum information, call (314) 7464599 or visit our interactive website at www.mohistory.org.

“represents the gateway to opportunity that a real education provides with both Dean McLeod and Dr. John B. Ervin serving as the pillars or gateway keepers.”

The bird represents “both the freedom of expression and the freedom to pursue both your happiness and purpose.”

The students, both the graduating scholar and the student scholar studying, represent “the living legacies of our heroes.”

“Each one teach one is the key to our educational philosophy and survival, and we all should lend a helping hand to help our fellow travelers get to the ‘Promised Land,’” Herd said.

Although the Ervin and McLeod Scholars programs are open to anyone who is qualified, regardless of race, the Ervin Scholars Program was first started as an initiative to attract more African-American scholars to Washington University.

“However, history has showed when African Americans are granted access and create opportunities for them-

Last fall, a framed print of this painting was presented to Sis. Clara McLeod, the widow of Dean McLeod and one of the early supporters of the art career of Tha Artivist, at the closing reception of Ronald Herd II: The Most Known UnKnown art exhibition at The Nu-Art Series’ Metropolitan Art Gallery.

“Both Dean McLeod and John B. Ervin died in the line of duty while selflessly serving others. They parlayed their successful positions into eternal praise and goodwill,” Herd said.

“To me this proves that what these great men did was more than just a job or a profession, it was a calling that one fully committed to and in some occasions willingly sacrifice one’s life for.”

Limited edition prints of this artwork are available for purchase. Part of the proceeds will benefit the John B. Ervin Scholars and the McLeod Scholars programs. For more information, email the artist at r2c2h2@gmail.com or write to Ronald Herd II, The W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Group, P.O. Box 752062, Memphis, TN 38175.

Ronald Herd II, whose artist name is Tha Artivist, donated a framed print of his painting The Legacy to Clara McLeod, the widow of Dean James E. McLeod, at the closing reception of his exhibition at The Nu-Art Series’ Metropolitan Art Gallery.

James Weldon Johnson, author of God’s Trombones

Em-

By Oliver Lake

Oliver Lake, the great composer, saxophonist and bandleader from St. Louis, has published a new book, “If I knew This,” featuring 42 poems and reproductions of four paintings and one photograph. “If I knew This” includes the poem “Dedicated To The Memory Of Lester Bowie,” a memoir of the great composer, bandleader and trumpet player from St.

close friend, who passed in 1999.

From “Dr. King’s Promoting Economic

From “Dr. King’s Promoting Economic

Ferguson-Florissant School District Superintendent Art McCoy with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Oratory Contest winners from the district.

Louis, Lake’s

Lester Bowie

Diverse service in Dr. King’s name

Pastor Kevin Vanden Brink of New City Fellowship South City, Pastor Tony Myles of New City Fellowship University City, Pastor Mike Higgins of Covenant Seminary, Craig Higgins, John Higgins and Pastor Phil Brownlee of Peace Tabernacle.

New City Fellowship stresses need for reconciliation and struggle

By Faith Gray Cross For The

St. Louis American New City Fellowship, South City hosted and joined hands with New City Fellowship, University City and Peace Tabernacle on Sunday, January 15 to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The “Struggle for Freedom” was the theme.

Pastor Kevin Vanden Brink has led the New City Fellowship since 2007. It is committed to being a church where the St. Louis community may gather to experience the reconciling love of God.

The choir sang several African-American hymns that rallied the spirits of those in attendance. The house was packed with people of diverse racial and cultural backgrounds. The diversity was not only racial and cultural but also spiritual with Pentecostals and Presbyterians coming together for a night to celebrate Dr. King’s legacy.

The program included the

showing of PBS’s documentary Citizen King which highlighted the life of Dr. King between 1963-1968. Following the video was a presentation by a Burmese minister of New City Fellowship, South City who addressed the Burmese members in the audience in their native tongue about how Dr. King’s struggle benefitted them in their own country’s struggle for human rights and equality.

The program continued with discourses by Pastor Tony Myles of New City Fellowship University City and Pastor Mike Higgins of Covenant Seminary.

“Dr. King was not fearless. He knew that he was going to be killed...he just didn’t know when,” said Pastor Myles. “No doubt at times his spirit was arrested by the spirit of fear, and understandably so, yet he remained steadfast in his spirit, displaying courage and conviction to stay the course.”

Pastor Higgins’ discourse

was resonant of his military background giving insightful illustrations of the 1944 Battle of the Bulge under General Patton. He said one should be on the offense attacking the problems of discrimination and bigotry we face daily.

He spoke about the social climate of Dr. King’s day. The Southern whites didn’t mind being close to blacks as long as they didn’t rise above them economically, and the Northern whites preferred to stay far away from blacks staying in their own neighborhoods yet didn’t care if blacks moved up the economic scale.

The night ended with a Q&A session. Pastor Myles spoke about reconciliation and how only Christ could fill the chasm that keeps us further divided and apart. He said, “We must recognize the issue of reconciliation is not just one of diversity, but we must see each other as brothers and sisters.”

Tuskegee history takes flight again

Hollywood gives an unexpected boost to black history

By Jamala Rogers Of The St. Louis American

I marvel at the thought of the Tuskegee Airmen for a number of reasons. What was inside a black, working-class kid in the heat of a segregated society that made him or her think that they could fly a plane?

There were dozens of these young people whose dreams of flying took them to Tuskegee, AL where an experiment to prove that black people lacked the courage to fight in combat, let alone fly, was being set up.

The determined, yet starryeyed kids included the likes of my stepdad who signed up for the U.S. Air Force right after high school. Lt. Col. Virgil Brashears died years before this country decided to officially honor the elite group of patriots; my mother accepted the Congressional Medal of Honor on his behalf in 2007.

Another one of those kids was George Carper from St. Louis. Mr. Carper is an avid of reader of my column and reached out to me some years ago when I wrote about the Tuskegee Airmen. He signed up after graduating from Sumner High School in 1941 but at only 17 years old, he was too young to fly so he was put in mechanics training until he was of age. This was a big disappointment, but his father’s pointed question put him back in the game.

“You wanna fly, don’t cha?“ he asked young George, meaning this was a necessary step to get inside the cockpit.

When the movie Red Tails came out, I thought about Mr. Carper. I wanted to see what he thought about it.

I called his home and his wife of 61 years, Imelda, gave me the sad news. Mr. Carper had a stroke in December and was recovering in a rehabilitative facility.

When I visited Carper, his paralysis was noticeable and his speech slow and sometimes laborious. But his eyes flickered with delight when he talked about that time in history.

“One of those white boys told me, ‘You people can’t drive a truck,’ implying that flying a plane was wa-a-ay out of their reach,” he said.

When Carper finished his pilot’s training, he went back to the guy and said, “I may not be able to drive a truck but I can fly a plane!”

There was a big push using social media to get people to see Red Tails that opening weekend. This was because of the difficulty in getting investors for the movie. George Lucas of Star Wars fame took on the project but not without his fair share of critics.

Courtland Milloy of the Washington Post said the movie was a disservice to the Airmen. He pointed out that the “disheveled, undisciplined, crude and uncouth” qualities of the men

The so-called Tuskegee Airmen included a few female pilots, like Mildred Hemmons Carter.

in the movie were the “exact opposite of the real mean who served in the all-black fighter group.”

I have been trying to get folks to refer to them as the Tuskegee Air People but that doesn’t quite roll off the tongue as nicely. The fact is that Tuskegee Airmen included a few female pilots, like Mildred Hemmons Carter. The Tuskegee Air family also included navigators, instructors, nurses, parachute packers, clerical personnel and others who made up the support system for the successful unit. Whatever one’s view of the movie, it has created new interest in the Tuskegee Air project. George Carper has seen The Tuskegee Airmen movie starring Laurence Fishburne several times. “It always gets me right here,” he said as he lightly thumps his heart with his fist. My mother also informed me that Double Victory is out, a documentary about the Tuskegee Air family in their own words. I think I might like this version better as it chronicles the battles fought on two fronts: the war against global fascism abroad and the struggle for racial justice and equality at home.

I think Mr. Carper would like this version too.

Helping Others Pursue Their Dreams Is What We Enjoy Most.

Life’s rewards often come from helping those around us live their dreams. Maybe it means lending a hand to a friend, supporting an organization devoted to the community or simply pitching in when a little extra help is needed.

As we celebrate Black History Month, let’s take a moment to thank those in our lives who have helped us along the way.

By Hope Whitehead

For The St. Louis American

On December 1, 1955 when Rosa Parks sat on the Cleveland Avenue bus and refused to relinquish her seat to a white passenger, this was the spark

Rights Movement. Although Mrs. Parks’ extraordinary act

begun long before. The issue of segregated seating on public buses had been a sore spot for African Americans for a long time.

Riding public transportation was a humiliating adventure for African-American passengers, particularly when you consider that they paid the same bus fare as the white passengers.

African-American passengers would have to board the bus in the front to pay their fare then get off the bus and board it again in the back where the row of seats for African Americans began.

The seats in the back of the bus were considered “unreserved seating” where African Americans could sit but must vacate if the bus was full and a white person wanted to sit. No African American was allowed to sit in the same row as a white person. So, if three African one white person wanted a seat, all three had to get up. The bus driver had full authority to strictly enforce the segregated seating laws. The drivers carried guns and used any tool at their disposal to carry out the segregation laws.

In one instance, an AfricanAmerican World War II veteran boarded a city bus and sat in the front. When the veteran refused to relinquish his seat, the bus driver pistol-whipped him and kicked him off the bus. The veteran lost an eye and was convicted of violating the segregated seating laws. Harassment was another tool often used by the bus drivers. Sometimes

the bus driver waited for the African-American passenger to pay their fare in the front then took off before the same passenger could board the bus in the back.

Jo Ann Robinson

In 1949, six years before Rosa Parks’ act of courage, an African-American female professor who taught at Alabama State College absentmindedly sat in the front of a nearly empty bus. The bus driver yelled and screamed obscenities at Jo Ann Robinson until she ran off the bus humiliated and in tears. Ms. Robinson was a member of the Women’s Political Council in Montgomery. After her traumatic experience, she tried to start a protest but was shocked when the WPC members brushed off the incident as a “fact of life in Montgomery.” It took Ms. Robinson six years

to convince them. When Mrs. Parks refused to move to the back of the bus, Ms. Robinson was President of the WPC.

On May 17, 1954, one and a half years before Mrs. Parks’ act of rebellion, the United States Supreme Court issued the decision in Brown v. Topeka Board of Education declaring the “separate but equal” doctrine unconstitutional.

The court stated that “separate but equal educational facilities are inherently unequal…and created a feeling of inferiority in black children that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone.”

Despite the Supreme Court decision, segregation in the South did not change. Governors and State legislators denounced the Brown decision and used the state police to block school entrances so that African-American children could not enter.

Claudette Colvin

A few months prior to Ms. Parks’ bold act of insubordination, a 15-year-old girl named Claudette Colvin sat on a Montgomery city bus and refused to comply with the bus driver’s demands for her seat. She was immediately arrested and charged with violating the segregation laws.

WPC President Jo Ann Robinson, along with the NAACP, wanted to use this arrest as a spark to start a boycott of the Montgomery bus transportation system. They wanted a bus driver to arrest a person whose innocence would anger the African-American community and propel them into action. What better person than a 15-year-old girl?

Unfortunately, Claudette Colvin was pregnant. The WPC and the NAACP could not get the community to rally around a young child who had already

The Montgomery bus boycott was the product of years of silence, humiliation, discrimination and harassment.

exhibited poor judgment.

Mrs. Rosa Parks has said that on December 1, 1955 she was not particularly tired from been widely reported. Nothing extraordinary had happened on her job as a seamstress that made her believe today was the day to defy the laws of the great state of Alabama. Quite the contrary, it was years of silence, humiliation, discrimination, harassment, and Claudette Colvin that made Mrs. Parks just say NO.

In 1943, Mrs. Parks boarded a bus and put her fare in the front and questioned the bus driver as to the necessity of exiting the bus only to reenter the bus in the rear. The bus driver insisted that she do as she was told and when she got off the bus, the driver pulled off before Mrs. Parks could reenter. Although Mrs. Parks never stated this, it is my belief that on December 1, 1955 Mrs. Parks

knew she would make history when she got on the bus and came face to face with the same bus driver who had belittled her 12 years earlier.

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Mrs. Parks’ arrest quickly sent shockwaves throughout the Montgomery, Alabama AfricanAmerican community. The WPC and the NAACP immediately put plans into effect for a one-day public transportation strike. They had four days to get the word out if they wanted the strike to occur on the same day Ms. Parks had to appear in court. They called a meeting of local community leaders. Fifty black ministers and one white Lutheran minister gathered in the basement of the Dexter Avenue Baptist church and formed simply, The Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA). In selecting a leader they wanted someone new and unwith any established faction. Possibly, someone who would make a good scapegoat if the mission should fail. They chose the new 26-year-old minister who had only been at Dexter Avenue Baptist church for a year, Rev. Martin Luther king, Jr.

Despite innumerable acts of violence, harassment, death threats, and house bombings against Dr. King and the protestors, the Montgomery Bus Boycott lasted 381 days. On Nov. 13, 1956 the Supreme Court declared that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional. On December 30, 1956 Dr. King and a group of ministers of various races andgrated bus in Montgomery, Alabama. What no one could possibly imagine at that critical just begun to roar.

WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY, INC.

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

We honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and pay tribute to the accomplishments of African-American leaders past and present.

World Wide Technology, Inc. understands that a critical component of our success is our ability to leverage diversity and our core values—that is the strength of our people and why we celebrate Black History Month year round.

Black & Single

Year of the dating dragon

A random act of romantic assertiveness challenge

By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American

Something utterly odd happened to me as I was out this past weekend. A woman I know comes up to me and says she’s been reading my column and wanted my advice on her love(less) life.

“If you’ve really been reading my column, why in the you-know-what would you want my advice?” I said.

“I’m serious, girl. I know you talk to all kinds of people about this kind of thing, and I need to know what I can do to ind someone – or even just meet somebody.”

This woman is utterly gorgeous and a power player in St. Louis. But as she nears 40 she is ready to check that last (but usually, to us, most important) box on the happy life list.

“Well, girl, you know it’s the Year of the Dragon,” I told her.

“What does that have to do with anything?” another lady who had been earhustling at the table where we were sitting couldn’t resist the urge to chime in.

Quite honestly, at the time I didn’t really know. But it seemed like the perfect way to encourage her to be bold and willing to approach a man she inds interesting or with whom she experiences some sign of mutual attraction.

“What I’m saying is if you want to be with someone, look for someone to be with – and don’t be afraid to put it out there irst.”

At this point I was talking to both ladies.

“I don’t think it’s a woman’s place,” the woman who I wasn’t talking to in the irst place said. “If a man wants to get to know you, he will let you know – no matter what his personality or hang ups are. When we step outside of our place by making the irst move, it upsets the natural order of things. That’s just not how it’s supposed to be. A man needs to like you more than you like him, or else you will have a problem.”

It was so funny that the earhustler

See SINGLE, C4

Christopher Cross, a seventh-grade student at Hazelwood Central Middle School, is developing his skills as an actor. He wants to be an “actor turned mogul” when he grows up.

All-star jazz brunch

Chicago pianist Willie Pickens joined by local who’s who Feb. 19 at Bistro

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

Gloria Taylor can pull together a band with the best of them. The band she assembled for the Institute for the Advancement of Jazz Study & Performance beneit for Sunday, February 19 at The Bistro could command any jazz stage in the world. She is bringing pianist and bandleader Willie Pickens down from Chicago to play with Freddie Washington on saxophone, Jerome Harris on drums, Jeffrey Anderson

on bass and Anita Jackson out front on vocals. Students from the jazz institute also will perform.

There will be a brunch at 1:30 p.m. followed by the music at 2:30 p.m.

The core of this band are St. Louis scene all stars, but Willie Pickens hasn’t played down here in some 20 years. He took the gig when Gloria Taylor called him cold.

“I talked to Gloria,” Pickens said. “She seems very passionate about this music

See

of Jazz Study & Performance.

Sex and ‘Race’ at the Rep

Taboos take center stage in production of Mamet play

By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American

“This case isn’t about sex, it’s about race,” the Susan character tells her boss Charles Strickland in David Mamet’s play Race. “What’s the difference?” he responds.

To say that Mamet attempts to lay everything on the table with his presentation of sex and race in Race would be an understatement. The same can be said for The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis for bringing the 2009 Broadway hit to the mainstage. John Ezell’s smart contemporary set and Brian Sidney Bembridge’s dramatic lighting choices are perfect, but the burden of gracefully presenting Race to St. Louis fell on the shoulders of director Timothy Near.

towards each other and themselves.

In Race, partners of a popular law irm have operated under the premise that they had moved beyond “the race issue.” They even use their “understandings” about race to their advantage. That is, until a high-proile case landed in their lap and blows open the door of the secret rooms where each of the employees has hidden away their true feelings, intentions and ulterior motives.

Their wealthy client proclaims his innocence in a case where he is accused of victimizing and underprivileged an African-American woman. But just as in sex and race, the details of the case are far from black and white.

While the idea of creating an open forum on such sensitive subject matter is refreshing, certain aspects of the production actually fuel confusion.

Doing so was no easy feat, with the play’s jagged language and unapologetic ideas regarding how blacks and whites think, believe, feel and act

The manic pace of Mamet’s dialogue in the irst act left the audience dizzy from the choppy exchanges, laced with excessive profanity. The

Hazelwood Central middle

Special to The American Christopher Cross, a seventh-grade student at Hazelwood Central Middle School, is poised, well-spoken and good-natured. He seems much older than his age would suggest, especially while talking about his role as Billy Ray Jr. in the Black Rep production of On Golden Pond

“He’s an unkempt kid. In the beginning, he doesn’t care what anyone

complexity of the conversation rivals that of the race issue itself. The confused audience is further led astray by a lack of authenticity and chemistry between the four-person cast, leaving them with the impression that being a rapist is more acceptable in society than being a racist.

The only compelling element was the insight offered with respect to warranted stereotypes of the worst kind of lawyers and how they manipulate the justice system via the court of public opinion. The second half of the short production offers more enlightenment with the idea of guilt and shame being the foundation of racial feeling. By this point the cast has established a momentum that offsets some of the glitches that come with an unblended cast.

Morocco Omari is the bright spot among the ensemble of characters as black attorney Henry

thinks, he says what’s on his mind and he curses a lot,” Cross said of his character.

As the play unfolds, Cross describes changes in Billy Ray Jr.

“He spends more time with an older adult. His posture changes and he stands up straight. He uses a softer voice and he’s more pleasant to be around,” he said.

See CROSS, C4

Carter G. Woodson started Negro History Week in 1926, but Dr. Herman Dreer made it a

St. Louis region

JAZZ, C4

Pianist Willie Pickens will lead a band of local all stars in a Jazz Brunch 1:30 p.m. Sunday, February 19 at The Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave. It闇s a beneit for the Institute for the Advancement

The Rep’s production of David Mamet’s Race continues through March 4 at the Loretto-Hilton Center for Performing Arts (on the campus of Webster University), 130 Edgar Rd.

How to place a calendar listing

1.Email your listing to calendar@stlamerican.com OR 2.Visit the calendar section on stlamerican.com and place your listing

Calendar listings are free of charge, are edited for space and run on a space-available basis.

concerts

Sun., Feb. 19, 7 p.m., Rick Ross, The Ambassador, 9800 Halls Ferry. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com

Sat., Feb., 25, 7 p.m., St. Louis-native Shirley Brown headlines the 7th Annual St. Louis Blues Festival, Mel Waiters, Sir Charles Jones, Millie Jackson, Bobby Rush and Theodis Ealey are also scheduled to perform. Chaifetz Arena. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com or call (314) 534-1111.

Sat., Mar. 3, 2012, 6:30 p.m., Granite City Illinois and Surrounding Area Business Owners prsents AWorld Famous Concert Starring the World Famous Platters Granite City Township Hall, 2060 Delmar Ave., Granite City, IL., 2040. For more information, call 618-6100935.

Mon., Mar. 5, 8 p.m., Cappodonna: Black Cloud Tour2012. 408 N. Euclid, 63108. For more information, visit www.clubvivastl.com.

local gigs

Fri., Feb. 17, Café Soul: The Re-Launch, Plush, 3224 Locus.

Sat., Feb. 18, 11 a.m., Coco Soul & Friends Mardi Gras Celebration, The Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com

Grown Folks 2 for1 Happy Hourwith Ms. Silky Sol, Saturdays from 5 p.m. – 8 p.m., The Avenue, 1901 St. Louis Ave.

Sundays, 7 p.m., StarCity recording artist FRED WALKER performs his SAXYJAZZ music show every Sunday at: “JAZZ ON

BROADWAY” 554 East Broadway, Alton, Il. 62002. Call 618-465-5299 for more information and directions.

special events

Thur., Feb. 16, 6:30 p.m., Hazelwood Kindergarten Information Night. Jamestown Elementary School, 13750 Old Halls Ferry Rd., 63136. For more indormation, call 314-953-4300.

Thur., Feb. 16, 7 p.m., Your Vote Counts Rally. University City Library Auditorium, 6701 Delmar Blvd., 63130. For more information, visit www.protectvoters.com.

Thur., Feb. 16, 7 p.m., The National Archives at St. Louis presents Emancipation Proclamation 150 Years: Pre and Post.

Fri., Feb. 17, Ivy League Entertainment and Leisure Studies (LOLA) present “Masq & Beads” Mardi Gras Bash. 500 S. 14th St., 63103. For more information, visit http://www.welovelola.com.

Fri., Feb. 17, 7:30 p.m., The Worship CenterChristian Church’s invites you to their First Annual Sweetheart Dinner. Mizpah Presbyterian Church, 11339 St. Charles Rock Rd., 63044. For more information, call (314) 2618700.

Sat., Feb. 18, 7:30 a.m., Black History Month Bus Trip Celebration. Visit the Negro League Baseball Museum and AM Jazz Museum in Kansas City, MO. Bus picks up 7:30am in front of Targets at LucasHunt & W. Florissant, bus returns 9:00pm. Target, Lucas & Hunt and W. Florissant, 63136. For more information, call (314) 629-8750.

CALENDAR

Sat., Feb. 18, 8 p.m., 13

Black Katz presents Mardi Gras Mask Madness II. Ginger Bistro, 6665 Delmar Blvd., 63130.

Sat, Feb. 18, 8 p.m., Ladies Night Out hosted by Morris Chestnut, The Ambassador, 9800 Halls Ferry. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Sun., Feb. 19, 4 p.m., 2nd Annual Black Love Dinner. Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar Blvd., 63112. Sun., Feb. 19, 9 p.m., 2nd Annual Black Love After Party. Gramophone, 4243 Manchester Ave., 63110. Feb. 17-19, St. Louis Symphony presents Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. 718 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, call (314) 5341700 or visit www.stlsymphony.org.

Thurs., Feb. 23, 5:30 p.m.,, The St. Louis American Foundation and Emerson present The 2nd Annual Salute to Young Leaders, Networking Awards Reception. Starlight Room, Chase Park Plaza, 212 N. Kingshighway Blvd., 63108.

For more information, call 314-533-8000 or email kdaniels@stlamerican.com.

Sat., Feb. 25, Scottrade Center presents This is War: Alexandervs. Maidana. 1401 Clark Avenue, 63103. For more information, call (800) 745-3000 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.

Sun., Feb. 26, 1 p.m., SumnerAlumni Association presents its 9th Annual Round-Up. For more information, call (314) 556-3944 or (314) 454-0029.

Tue., Feb. 28, 7 p.m., Missouri History Museum presents Community Forum—Homelessness Explore ways in which homelessness is being addressed in the St. Louis region, including the efforts of organizations like Gateway 180: Homelessness Reversed. For more information, call (314) 746-4599 or visit www.mohistory.org.

Wed., Feb. 29, 8:30 a.m., Conservation Lobby Day. Join us on Leap Day to help make environmental protection a priority for Missouri’s legislature in 2012! Missouri State Capitol Building, 201 W. Capitol Ave., Jefferson City,

Sat.,Feb.18, 11 a.m., Coco Soul & Friends Mardi Gras Celebration at The Sheldon Concert Hall. See LOCAL GIGS for more information.

Survivors of Torture and WarTrauma – an organization dedicated to facilitating the healing of torture and war trauma will be hosting their 10th Anniversary Gala and Auction with special guest acclaimed author Alice Walker, on the campus of Saint Louis University. To reserve tickets for the gala or for more information about the Center for Survivors of Torture and War Trauma, please contact 314-541-4610 or visit the organization’s website at www.stlcenterforsurvivors.or g.

Wed., Mar. 28 6:30 p.m., Hazelwood Kindergarten Information Night. McCurdy Elementary School, 975 Lindsey Ln., 63031. For more information, call 314-953-4650.

Sat., Mar. 10, 8 p.m., I’m Still Standing Tour starring Mike Epps, Chaifetz Arena.

MO. 65101. For more information, visit www.movotesconservation.org/our-legislativework/conservation-lobby-day/ or call (314) 725-9494

Through Mar. 3, Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Exhibit. Griot Museum of Black History, 2505 St. Louis Ave., 63106. For more information, call (314) 727-8307 or visit www.CCHSTL.org.

Sat., Mar. 10, 10 a.m., St. Louis Craft Mafia presents Third Annual Green With Indie Craft Show. Grant Gym, Webster University, 175 Edgar Rd., 63119. For more information, visit www.greenwithindiecraftshow.com.

Mon., Mar. 12, 7 p.m., Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis presents Ninety-Fourth Annual DinnerMeeting. Millennium Hotel St. Louis, 200 S. 4th St., 63102. For more information, call (314) 615-3688 or email specialevents@urbanleaguestl.org.

Sat., Mar. 17, 11 p.m., Baddgirls presents Ole School Skate Jam. Skate King, 6100 Natural Bridge Ave., 63120. Sat., Mar. 24, Centerfor

and other political writings (1989-2011)”. John Knox Presbyterian Church, 13200 New Halls Ferry Rd., 63033. For more information, call 314-921-5833. Sat., Feb. 25, 5 p.m., Sues News will host St. Louis author Daunte Henderson author of Things I Learned While Walking. St. Louis Galleria, 1117 St. Louis Galleria, 63117.

Sun., Feb. 26, 2 p.m., Christ Church Cathedral will host author Angela Davis, author of Are Prisons Obsolete and Abolition Democracy. 1210 Locust St., 63101. For more informatino, call (314) 539-0346.

theatre

Fri., Feb. 24, 6:30 p.m., Black History Production: The Journey Continues (The Past, The Present, The Future). Multipurpose Room, Building D, East St. Louis Higher Education Campus, 601 James R. Thompson Blvd., East St. Louis, IL. 62201. For more information, visit www.siue.edu/elsc/performingarts.

Through Mar.4, The Black Rep presents A Midsummer’s Night Dream, The Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square. For more information, call (314) 5343810 or visit www.theblackrep.org

Through Mar. 4, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents Race. When two high-profile attorneys find themselves defending a privileged white executive accused of raping a young black woman, facts quickly become secondary to underlying agendas. 130 Edgar Rd., 63119. For more information, call (314) 968-4925 or visit www.repstl.org.

Through April 14, Shakespeare Festival St. Louis Shake 38 Performer Registration. Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, 5715 Elizabeth Ave., 63110. For more information, call 314/531-9800, ext. 113.

arts

Through March 4, Saint Louis University Museum of Art will allow individuals to experience the AfricanAmerican journey through the brush strokes of two noted painters: FatherJames Hasse of the Society of Jesus and Judge Nathan B. Young with its exhibit Spirit and History For more information, please visit http://sluma.slu.edu or call 314.977.2666.

lectures

Thur., Feb. 16, 7 p.m., The World According to Dick Gregory: An Evening of Humorand Humanity. Busch Student Center, Saint Louis University, 20 N. Grand Blvd., 63103.

Sun., Feb. 19, 3:30 p.m., Moving Race Relations From Head to Heart. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Mon., Feb. 20, 7 p.m., Wrongful Convictions: Juan Melendez tell his story. Presentation by Melendez, an exoneree who spent nearly 18 years on Florida’s death row before being found innocent, followed by update on Reggie Clemons campaign and current legislation. Century Room, UMSLMillennium Student Center, 8001 Natural Bridge Rd., 63121. For more information, visit www.madpmo.org/stlouis.html.

Wed., Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m., Work & Life Readiness: Job Getting Tools and Skills. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Wed., Feb. 22, Wells Fargo Advisors present “Take the Stairs” Live Seminar with Rory Vaden. Rory has partnered with The Crown Council and their charity, “Smiles for Life”, to put on live events for the community to help raise money for St. Louis Public School Foundation. Learning Center Auditorium, 2801 Market St., 63103. For more information, visit www.southwesternconsulting.com/takethe stairsbook/events

Sat., Feb. 25, 8 a.m., Breaking Barriers 2: Plotting the Path Towards Academic Success for School-age Black Males. Room 157, DuBourg Hall, St. Louis University, One Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www.eec4justice.com.

Mon., Feb. 27, 7 p.m., The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents ASpecial Evening of Conversation on Racism with Carol Daniel of KMOX. 130 Edgar Rd., 63119. For more information, call (314) 968-4925 or visit www.repstl.org.

Wed., Feb. 29, 6:30 p.m., Lessons In Living: Making Love Work-Getting To Happily EverAfter! As the final installment in InPowers’ three-part February love series, this workshop shows what good love between healthy people looks like. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Wed., Mar. 7, 7 p.m., Mayor Cory Booker: How to Save the World With YourBare Hands. Touhill Performing Arts Center, One University Blvd., 63121.

Tue., Mar. 13, 7 p.m., Lisa Ling: Open Heart, Open

Mind. Touhill Performing Arts Center, One University Blvd., 63121.

Thur., Mar. 22, 6:30 p.m., St. Louis Community College invites you to FAFSAFrenzy. Get FREE help completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Wildwood Campus, 2645 Generations Dr., Wildwood, MO. 63040. For more information, call (636) 422-2000.

Tue., Apr. 3, 7 p.m., Common: It’ll All Make Sense One Day. Touhill Performing Arts Center, One University Blvd., 63121.

Dynamic Marriage Course: 8-week Marriage Enrichment Class, This 8 week, interactive, self educating course creates real and lasting change in your marital relationship. January 2012 Classes are forming. Contact (314) 265-5124 for more information.

Missouri History Museum presents The Civil Warin Missouri. Border state, slave state or Southern state, we may not agree on the label, but we can agree on the problem. It is too late to change the past, but it is the right time to learn from it and make a better future. For more information, visit www.mohistory.org0.

health

Feb. 17 and Mar. 23, The 9 Energizing Breaths. Want more energy or mental clarity? Come learn the 9 Energizing Breaths from the book, The

Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Fri., Feb. 24, 7 a.m., Annual African American Nursing History health disparities Conference. Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel, 9801 Natural Bridge Rd., 63134. For more information, call (314) 516-5994.

Sat., Feb. 25, 10 a.m., Total Rehabilitation Program presents Wound Care Assistance Program. The program provides education to patients on wound self-management to include nutrition, smoking cessation, stress reduction, and psycho-social issues.Omega Center, 3900 Goodfellow Blvd., 63120. For more information, call 314-400-4051 or 314-400-4052.

Tues., Feb. 28, 8:30 a.m., AARPDriverSafety Course. For more information, call (314) 747-9355.

Louis Diabetes Coalition presents My Eyes and Diabetes: Knowing How to Maintain Excellent Vision. Richmond Heights Community Center, 8001 Dale Ave., 63117. For more information, call (314) 338-3460.

Wed., Mar. 21, Free mammograms at SSM Breast Care at St. Mary’s Health Center. 1031 Bellevue Ave., 63117. For more information, call (314) 768-8697 or visit www.ssmhealth.com/stmarys.

Sun., Feb. 19, 3 p.m., Joys

Power of Prana: “Breathe Your Way To Health and Vitality.” InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Mon., Feb. 20, 6:30 p.m.,

Real Talk about Soul Food. Learn tips to making healthy soul food and learn tasty treats to make at home. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Tue., Feb. 21, 6 p.m., Alzheimer’s Association presents CaregiverSolutions forDementia Care. Christian Hospital Detrick Building Atrium. For more information, call (314) 747-9355.

Thur., Feb. 23, 6:30 p.m., Living From the Inside Out: Assessing YourLife’s Values. Comediscuss the ways in which our values drive our decision-making and the quality of our live experiences. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham

Couples Massage, Saturdays, March 3— April 14, 7:00 p.m. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Sat., Mar. 3, 10:30 a.m., Girls Holla Back! Spring Session Free Registration & Health Fair. In an effort to reduce new cases of HIV/AIDS and drug use among African American females in St. Louis, an 8-week FREE prevention program complemented with fun-filled communications and bonding activities will be hosted for girls ages 12—17 and one of their adult female family members. 5400 Arsenal St., 63139. For more information, call (314) 877-6487,

Hip Hop Cardio Class, Saturdays, March 3 to 31, 1:00 pm. Cardio fitness class that is guaranteed to help you burn at least 300 calories every class. InPower Institute, 5400 Nottingham Ave., 63109. For more information, visit www.inpowerinstitute.com.

Wed., Mar. 7, 6:30 p.m., St.

Brown. His authenticity is refreshing among the group of often contrived or perfunctory performances. Zoey Martinson attempts to reach with her portrayal of Susan, but falls short of grasping the character’s intensity, passion and rage.

Jeff Talbot and Mark Elliot Wilson are equally unconvincing. But their apparent reservations about fully embodying the characters they are charged with portraying

further supports Mamet’s notion that America has plenty of work to do when it comes to being honest about race. Their performances supported Race’s hypothesis about the guilt and shame factor, but the play itself expressed another impediment to healthy race relations that was left unmentioned. Pride also stands in the way of the characters moving beyond black and white and towards human. Because of pride in the advancements that have been made a publicly, a post-racial society is declared and applauded – but behind

closed doors, blacks and whites drift further apart in an abyss of misunderstanding.

The Rep’s presentation of Race continues through March 4 at the Loretto-Hilton Center for Performing Arts (on the campus of Webster University), 130 Edgar Rd. For more information visit www.repstl.org. A special talk entitled “Conversations…Racism” will take place on Monday, February 27 at 7 p.m. The talk will be moderated by Carol Daniel of KMOX.

SINGLE

Continued from C1

said what she did, because it has been my dating philosophy for the past 35 years. That being said, I haven’t been on a date in about that long.

“I feel that way too,” said the woman I was actually conversing with. “I just feel like the man should be the one to come up to me.”

“And how has that been working for you?” I said. “Now don’t be mad, but you wouldn’t be so stumped you’re coming to me if your policy was effective … right?”

that her professional station and her looks might be intimidating to men – and many may assume that she is already taken.

“Well, if he is intimidated, then that is insecurity – which will be a problem later on down the line,” earhustler said. “An insecure man is so unattractive – and I don’t have time to deal with anybody’s self-esteem issues.”

“That’s fine,” I reply. “But, she is coming to me saying that what she is doing now is NOT working. All I’m doing is suggesting that she try something else. Plus, not everybody who is shy has crippling self-esteem or sabotaging insecurities.”

Honestly, I have NEVER approached a man myself. But I figured, “What could it hurt?”

encounter. There was this boy I just utterly loved in Ms. O’s kindergarten class at Baden Elementary school. I saw him two years ago and he told me, “You look exactly the same. I always thought you were so cute.” He’s married now.

and helping kids. I’m looking forward to seeing just what the situation is and the scene down there and how I can be of help.” Part of “the situation” in question is what level the students are playing at and how much interaction is expected between the band and the students. Pickens can roll with anything. He was a high school band director for almost 25 years and now teaches jazz at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

“I’m interested to know what the kids’ level is, then I can prepare some music for that,” Pickens said.

He has not yet spoken with Freddie Washington or Scrooge about band repertoire, but in his own settings in Chicago Pickens has been playing mostly standard bop repertoire, with tunes by Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Charlie Parker.

Pickens is not best known

as a composer, though he had a couple of compositions on a 1961 Eddie Harris recording and recently recorded a tune he wrote, “The Feel Good Blues,” for a trio album on a Japanese label. The Southport Label in Chicago has released his two-CD set of spirituals and Christian hymns that he put in a jazz setting, some with saxophone, some with trumpet, some just as a trio, and some duets with his daughter Bethany Pickens on second piano.

Since the jazz institute benefit is on a Sunday, St. Louis should ask to hear some of these jazz gospel arrangements.

Pickens has not seen our city for 20 years, but he knows it and its players well. He played with St. Louis trumpet legend Clark Terry for years and they still have “a close connection,” Pickens said.

“I was with Clark in Pine Bluff, Arkansas recently,” he said. “I went down to see him. He has written book, and I was there for the book signing. Since that time, he has had a leg amputated. He has had diabetes.”

Pickens also played here with Art Farmer, who is deceased now.

“That was a hotbed for jazz,” Pickens said of St. Louis. “Of course, you’ve got Freddie Washington, you had John Hicks,” who is also deceased now. Pickens even remembered a local legend, also now dead, who scarcely ever left St. Louis but had a national reputation among the highest players and bandleaders in the world, including John Coltrane.

“You had a great drummer there – Joe Charles,” Pickens said. “Everyone came around to hear him play, even the greats.”

The Jazz Brunch takes place for 1:30 p.m. Sunday, February 19 at The Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave. It’s a benefit for the Institute for the Advancement of Jazz Study & Performance, a program of Community Women Against Hardship. Tickets are $60 reserved ($35 tax-deductible) and $40 general ($25 tax-deductible). Call 314-289-7523, visit www.cwah.org or stop by CWAH, 3963 West Belle Pl. St. Louis MO 63108.

The lightweight Desperately Seeking Susan still wasn’t convinced.

But I went on to remind her

CROSS

Continued from C1

On Golden Pond is a glimpse into the lives of Ethel and Norman Thayer, who are spending their 48th summer in Golden Pond, ME, the childhood summer home of Ethel. Described as a universal story of family, the play explores love, disfavor and reconciliation.

This is Cross’ first big stage play. He has been in school productions, and in fourth grade, he had a role in the opera La Boheme. He was also involved in a summer program hosted by the Black Rep. Cross said the theatre company invited him to audition for On Golden Pond

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime

Actually, my new way of thinking came by way of reflection on a random chance

opportunity. I didn’t want to pass it up,” said Cross. He auditioned with a monologue, a scene from Pursuit of Happyness with Will Smith and his son.

“I like to entertain people,” said Cross when asked what he likes about being on stage. “It just feels right. I like to make people laugh.”

His favorite sports are baseball and soccer, his favorite actors are Smith and Tom Cruise and his favorite entertainers are Nicki Minaj, Lady Gaga, Drake and Lil Wayne.

When asked what he likes about school, he said he likes being in SAIL – Students’ Activities in Investigative Learning. It is the gifted education program for middle school students.

When he grows up, he wants to “be an actor turned mogul.”

As the resident chubby girl in the class I didn’t think he would like me back so I never said anything. So with that said, the lady and I made a pact that we would approach at least one man we find interesting in 2012. I’m challenging other women readers to do the same and let me know how it works for you. Hit me up at: kvaughn@stlamerican.com. I’ll write about my experiences myself – once I actually work up the nerve to act on my own advice.

He cited interests in having a shoe company, a fashion line, real estate, and branching out into “other entertainment like singing and rapping.” Until then, he’ll continue his present role, while also auditioning for a commercial.

“My parents are really behind this. They really think this can happen,” Cross said of his aspiration to become an actor.

“My mom gives me tips, and she’s a good acting coach. She keeps me humble, too,” he said.

Cross’ stage presence has been met with good reviews.

“It makes me feel good to know people are recognizing my talent,” he said. He sometimes thinks that he didn’t do well after a performance, but the “advice and compliments are helping me become a better actor.”

Saturday School for Negro History Teachers group.Seated:Clementine Perkins, Ms.Smith,Dr.Herman Dreer,Odessa Farrell.Standing:Lou Swartz,Laura Collins (Tate).Photograph,ca.1935 (courtesy of the Missouri History Museum).

Dr. Dreer: St. Louis black history pioneer

Are we keeping this great educator’s dream alive?

The study of Negro History will eventually drive out the superiority complex of the white man and the inferiority complex of the Negro. It will make the masses of Negroes not ashamed, but proud of being black. (Herman Dreer, 1968)

Carter G. Woodson started Negro History Week in 1926, but Dr. Herman Dreer made it a success in the St. Louis region. Beginning his career as an English teacher at Sumner High School in 1914, Dr. Dreer spent the next thirty-one years bringing his passion for and knowledge of African American history to the community. Extending this passion beyond the classroom walls, he was instrumental in the planning and development of Negro History Week activities in the city.

Negro History Week was created as an avenue for schools to instill African American culture into their curriculums.It was never meant to be a week (or a month) of cramming everything related to African Americans into a specified period of time.

When it was first conceived, Negro History Week was to explore the history of African Americans that was being left out of the national narrative. African Americans realized that, even though they had been free for over fifty years, they were still in a psychological bondage that prevented them true access and freedom to the country they built. Through the teaching of the proud and positive history of African Americans, the supporters of Negro History Week believed it would instill a sense of pride in African Americans and also show white America that African Americans were an important part of American history.

As I mentioned in my previous article, Negro History Week was created as an avenue for schools to instill African American culture into their curriculums. It was never meant to be a week (or a month) of cramming everything related to African Americans into a specified period of time. Instead, students were supposed to learn about African Americans all year and then share this knowledge with the community. Even though he was teaching at an African American high school, Dr. Dreer was confined by the classical curriculum that guided Sumner’s academic teachings. Instead of being deterred by this small roadblock, Dr. Dreer took the opportunity to expand “black history” beyond the curriculum and beyond the walls of the school.

As with most classes, Sumner courses had a set curriculum to be followed. In his later writings, after his retirement, Dr. Dreer

explains how he incorporated African American authors into his English class curriculum even though none were listed. For example, when he taught the life of Robert Burns the national poet of Scotland, Dr. Dreer compared his life and his poetry with the life and poetry of African American poet Paul Lawrence Dunbar. He also utilized African American authors in the supplemental reading list and in teaching specific English skills such as writing an outline. Dr. Dreer believed that it was just as important to teach African American history to the community as it was the students. To this end, Dr. Dreer developed and ran a Saturday school at Annie Malone’s Poro College. This school was open to both youth and adults in the city who were interested in learning about African American history. This school also became the main sponsor of Negro History Week and developed lectures, musical events and plays performed at school, churches, and community centers around the city.

As the Missouri History Museum continues to celebrate Black History Month, I encourage everyone to take a moment and reflect on its originally intent at its creation almost ninety years ago. Are the programs for Black History Month providing African Americans not only with historical knowledge but a sense of pride? Are the programs focused on young people sharing the African American history they have learned throughout the year? Finally, will these February programs support the hopes of Dr. Herman Dreer who said: “This knowledge with white and colored alike will hasten the coming of an integrated life of white and colored in all the institutions of the United States and prove the brotherhood of man.”

The Great Northwest Documentary Thursday, February 23 at 7pm Lee Auditorium – Free

Join us for this inspiring documentary about the students at Northwest Academy of Law in the St. Louis Public Schools District fighting against the odds, and winning. Followed by Q&Awith director, Renee Thomas-Woods, assistant professor at St. Louis Community College-Florissant Valley.

Black History Month Activities

Thurs., Feb. 16, 10 a.m., Harris-Stowe State University Black History Month Health Fair, Harris Stowe State University, 3026 Laclede. For more information, call (314) 340-5042.

Thurs., Feb. 16, 4 p.m., Jump Around!, St. Louis Public Library – Carpenter Branch, 3309 S. Grand. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

Sat., Feb. 18, 9 a.m., Genealogy Conference, Clay Education Center, Harris-Stowe State University, 10 N. Compton. For more information, call (314) 773-3332.

Sat., Feb. 18, 10 a.m., Craft forKids: Unity Wreath, St. Louis County Library – Indian Trails Branch, 8400 Delport Drive. For more information, call (314) 994-3300.

Sat., Feb. 18, 1 p.m., African American History Trivia, St. Louis County Library – Mid-County Branch, 7821 Maryland Ave. For more information, call (314) 994-3300.

Sat., Feb. 18, 3 p.m., SylvesterBrown, Jr. at Afro World, Afro World, 7276 Natural Bridge Rd. For more information, call (314) 389-1717.

Sun., Feb. 19, 3 p.m., Joys of Glory Gospel Singers Salute African-American History Month. Solomon Temple M. B. Church, 4859 St. Louis Ave., 63115.

Tues., Feb. 21, 10 a.m., Gimme Wings: AOne Woman Show, St. Louis Public Library – Machacek Branch, 6424 Scanlan Ave. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

Tues., Feb. 21, 2 p.m., Sunshine 55+: “Remembering AfricanAmerican Lives, St. Louis County Library – Indian Trails Branch, 8400 Delport Drive. For more information, call (314) 994-3300.

Tues., Feb. 21, 4 p.m., Jump Around!, St. Louis Public Library –Buder Branch, 4401 Hampton Ave. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

Tues., Feb. 21, 6 p.m., Tuesday Film Series: “Journey to Little Rock: The Untold Story of Minnijean Brown Trickey,” St. Louis Public Library – Julia Davis Branch, 4415 Natural Bridge Rd. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

Wed., Feb. 22, 3:30 p.m., Seeking The Past, St. Louis Public Library – Baden Branch, 8448 Church Rd. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

St.Louis Public Library Welcomes legendary activist,author and educator Angela Davis for its annual Black History Month Address at Christ Church Cathedral on Sun., Feb.26 at 2 p.m.

Wed., Feb. 22, 4 p.m.,Jump Around!, St. Louis Public Library –Machacek Branch, 6424 Scanlan Ave. For more information, call (314) 367-4120.

Wed., Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m., African Dance, St. Louis County Library – Natural Bridge Branch, 7606 Natural Bridge Rd. For more information, call (314) 994-3300.

Wed., Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m., African Storytelling & Percussion presented by COCA, St. Louis County Library – Prairie Commons Branch, 915 Utz Ln. For more information, call (314) 994-3300.

Sun., Feb. 26, 2 p.m., St. Louis Public Library Black History Month Lecture with keynote speaker Angela Davis, Christ Church Cathedral , 1210 Locust St., 63101. For more information call (314) 367-4120.

Donn Johnson

By Diane Carol Francis

For The St.Louis American

And if it seem evil unto you to servethe LORD, choose you this day whom ye willserve; whetherthe gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but asforme andmyhouse,wewillserve the LORD. Joshua 24:15

The dictionary defines free will as a doctrine in which the conduct of human beings is expressed through personal choice and is not simply deter-

RELIGION

God gives us a choice

mined by physical or divine forces. This definition is certainly precise and to the point. However, the ground roots of free will are much deeper than this definition. Let me explain. Through God’s divine will and physical command He divided the light and darkness to create day and night. He created heaven. He created earth. He created the seas. He created the grass, seeds, and trees that yield fruit. He created the fish in the sea and the birds that fly above the earth. He created man and breathed His breath of life into his nos-

INSPIRATIONAL MESSAGE

trils. He created woman from the rib of man. Surely, if it is of His will, it will be done. In this I have no doubt.

Yet, God does not force any of us to follow Him. He gives us a choice of free will. What greater love is this? God knows that He is the right choice but He loves us so much that He wants us to find our way to

Diane Carol Francis

Him and not force His way to us. At one point we will all reach that fork in life’s road where we are conscious of the right side of eternal life and the left side of eternal damnation. It is our choice whether to turn to the left to walk on the wide crooked road where we can dwell in

Soul hoops

Former basketball pro Angela Lewis mixes sports with scripture

By Marjorie Moore

For The St.Louis American

Angela Lewis says she is a God-fearing woman, who acts upon the scripture St.Luke 12:48, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”

empower young women through the sport of basketball.

us or leave us alone. No love could be greater than this.

There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be

with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Joshua 1:5 Yes, we are given free will but so many of us are not choosing God. Personally, I cannot understand how one can choose the snares and pitfalls that a wayward life brings instead of choosing the truth, the way, and the life brought through Christ Jesus? How could anyone not love Him the creator of all things? As for me and my house we will serve the Lord for the rest of our days!

She holds a Bachelor’s of Communications and a Master’s of Communications from Saint Louis University. Her past experience also includes the Director of Basketball OperationsMarquette University, Class 2

St. Louis native Angela Lewis, a former professional basketball player of Turner Verin Bensberg- Germany, has established, Major Game LLC, an organization to assist young women in the game of basketball and personal and spiritual development. Lewis uses this platform as an opportunity to support young women to obtain focus on the game of basketball and its dynamics, to have awareness of self respect and spirituality as a whole. Lewis says she is a God-fearing woman, who acts upon the scripture St. Luke 12:48, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”

AState ChampionshipAssistant Coach Metro High School and another honorable mention, an Assistant Coach Webster University. She said, “I am here for the kids who I work with. It is an important piece in what I do; I am here for the young women. I’ve been blessed beyond measure.”

It’s her personal mission to

Lewis says, “I thought about everything I wished I had as I was an up and coming player of the game, this is the reason why I created the organization, to provide services and support.”

She was not taught how important nutrition was in conjunction into playing sports. Lewis says, “I wished I would have known more about nutrition and the right foods that would fuel my body. When I was a player my favorite meal was buffalo chicken sandwich and fries or my alternative meal everyday would be pizza.”

She also was inspired by watching a friend’s basketball journey end in a tragedy.

“I had a close friend who was an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois University. She passed away at the age of 29 years old from a heart defect,” Lewis said.

“I watched her life as it was time consuming. It consisted of being on the road all the time and much recruiting was involved. I wondered if the trade off of a consuming life was worth it.”

With this experience she did not want to see or touch a basketball. Then she decided to use her talents God had given her and she returned to basketball.

She honors her parents by naming the organization after them. Her mother is Leonia Lewis (Mae) and her father is Sylvester Lewis Jr. The name Major Game was originally spelled “MaeJr. Game,” but the spelling was changed for clarity.

At that time, Lewis collaborated with brothers Rodney and Ronald to host a number of basketball camps basketball program.

St.Louis native Angela Lewis,a former professional basketball player of Turner Verin Bensberg- Germany, has established,Major Game LLC,an organization to assist young women in the game of basketball and personal and spiritual development.

“I can not remember my mother saying one negative word in my life concerning my development,” she said. “I have seen how the power of words can impact a life, that’s both positive and negative. As a kid you don’t think about those things, but as I got older I started to reflect.”

Lewis said her mother gave her encouragement in times she would want to give up.

She said, “My mother would say you can do it. You are beautiful. You are wonderful and amazing. That was implanted in me.”

Lewis wants to pass along her skills and encourage others not to give up as her mother encouraged her.

These weekly sessions are workouts with self evaluation exercises and biblical scriptures to support the session, such as “On the Court Activity.” This is the workout component which includes shooting, defense, passing, one on one moves. For the self evaluation component of the session, topics include identity and goal-setting, overcoming obstacles, soul hoops, daily affirmation and leadership. Other programs Lewis offers include Motivational Speaking, College Basketball Readiness Presentation, Camps/Clinics, Team Workouts, Small Group Workouts and Private Instruction. For more information, call 314-598-7870 or visit www.majorgamebasketball.w ebs.com.

~ CELEBRATIONS ~ Couple to

Anniversary

Glenn and Theda Oliver will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary on February 22, 2012. They met at Scullin Elementary and graduated from Northwest High in 1975. Glenn is currently the President of ToGo Home Decor, LLC, and Theda, a 6-year breast cancer survivor, is the CEO and Founder of

Reunions

questions/info on these events our e-mail address is beaumontclassof67@sbcglobal.net

Beaumont of class of 1967 will host its 45th class reunion on Saturday, June 9, 2012 at The Sheraton Westport Hotel, 191 Westport Plaza, St. Louis, MO 63146. Cost is $100 per person. On Friday, June 8, there will be a meet and greet and on Sunday, June 10 worship service and a brunch— locations to be determined. For

Berkeley Class of 1982 is celebrating its 30 year class reunion August 17-19, 2012 and is seeking classmates to attend the reunion and reunion planning meetings. For more information about the reunion please call Anthony Wilder 314-479-0110, Portland (Matthews) Whitlock 314-7669108, or Tammy Davis 314302-1339.

Hadley Tech Classes of 19621963 are preparing for our 50th reunion in October of 2012. If you are interested in participating, your contact information is needed as soon as possible. Please call Virdell Stennis at 314-773-8177,

& hugs, Your son Jermell Rainer Jr., family and many friends

Hellon Jefferson at 314-3073681 (jeffersonhellon@yahoo.com), or Wilhelmina Baker at 314588-0779/314-630-9647.

O’Fallon Technical High School Class of 1963 is planning its 50th reunion for the fall of 2013. If you are interested in participating, your contact information is needed as soon as possible.Please contactJustine Crow at (314) 838-2010 or jcrowsnest@aol.com

McCluerNorth Class of 1992 is looking to celebrate its 20year reunion. We are in the process of planning a dinner/dance. Your contact information is needed ASAP. Go to the web-site at mccluernorth1992.com

Birthdays:

DeFaunte’Carter Frazier celebrates his 5th birthday on February 18, 2012. He sings on the worship team at Healing Waters, and dances for the Lord every chance he gets! Happy Birthday, Fonzie! Love, Granny Yolanders Carter

On February 20, our superstar, Nikki Johnson was born! Happy Birthday, Mommy! From, Ariauna, Aunti KKa and Granny Mary

SumnerAlumni Association presents its 9th Annual Round-Up Sun., Feb. 26, 2012, 1-4 p.m. at Sumner High School.Reception will be held in the gymnasium from 1-1:45 p.m. with displays, souvenir items, photographer, and more.New and renewal of alumnimemberships acceptedin the foyer.Program starts at2 p.m. in the auditorium. Round-Up focus is “Salute to the Military”(Sumner Alumni Active/Retired) and Entertainment.For more info, contactP. Mason at 314.556.3944, J. Vanderford at 314.454.0029 or email: sumnersince1875@yahoo.co m.Vendors are welcome ($50 in advance); contact B. Louis at 314.385.9843.

DeFaunte’ Carter Frazier

Johnson

SumnerHigh School class of 1962 is planning its 50-year reunion for June 2012 and is looking for the January and June graduates to participate in the planning. Please call Eldridge”Bogie”Bryant, Sr. at 314-489-0532, email address eldridgbrya@sbcglobal.net and Lillian Foster Curlett at 314269-6450.

Vashon High School Class of 1965 will be celebrating “The Class of 65 at 65” at The Hilton St. Louis Airport on April 21, 2012 beginning at 7p.m.- Midnight. The cost is $50.00 per person. For information contact Cleo at 3831934, Bernice at 534-8282, or Yvonne at 618-206-8101 or email Vashon65Alumni@yahoo.com

Reunion notices are free of charge and based on space availability. We prefer that notices be emailed to us! However, notices may also be sent by mail to: Kate Daniel, 4242 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63108. Deadline is 10 a.m. on Friday. If you’d like your class to be featured in a reunion profile, email or mail photos to us. Our email address is: reunions@ stlamerican.com

Nikki

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN

Scholarship opportunity foradult students

American staff

For the second year in a row, St. Louis Community Credit Union is pleased to announce the establishment of the Janice Mosby Scholarship fund through the St. Louis Community CU Foundation. The Foundation will award $2,500 scholarships to three eligible adult students in spring 2012.

To be considered for this scholarship opportunity, applicants must be first time or reentry students ages 23 or older with aspirations to attend college full or part-time and are trying to move forward with their lives. Proof of enrollment is required.

four-year university or technical school) in the Greater St. Louis Metropolitan area.

The St.Louis Community CU Foundation created the scholarship fund in 2011 to honor the legacy of the late Janice Mosby.

Applicants must be seeking an undergraduate degree and enrolled or planning to enroll at an accredited school (two or

Recognizing the important role education plays in the creation of fiscally responsible citizens, the St. Louis Community CU Foundation created the scholarship fund in 2011 to honor the legacy of the late Janice Mosby. Ms. Mosby was a teacher and principal in the St. Louis Public Schools for more than 30 years. With a kind heart and gentle spirit, she dedicated her life to helping students in the community develop to their fullest potential. Ms. Mosby served on the St. Louis Community Credit Union’s Board of Directors for 40 years and as a Board member of the Credit Union’s Foundation.

The deadline for all applica-

The St.Louis Community Credit Union Foundation will award $2,500 scholarships to three eligible adult students in spring 2012.

tions is Friday, March 9. For additional eligibility information and to access the application, visit http://www.slccu-

foundation.org.

The Foundation awarded $2,500 to two deserving students in 2011.

Nelly’s ex’Treme Institute webshow

The Vatterott College ex’Treme Institute by Nelly-St. Louis has added comedian Darius Bradford as a co-host on the Seviin @ 7 Show. Bradford and Murphy Lee will co-host with Seviin Li each month on a live web cast streamed from the ex’Treme Institute by Nelly.The February 23 show will feature Seviin Li and Grammy-nominated producer Adam “Wyshmaster” Cherrington on “How to Make a Beat,” which is one of the classes offered by ex’Treme Institute.

Cherrington is known as one of the originators of licensing music online. He has produced music for albums, television, movies, and games, and has worked with prominent names in the music industry such as T-Pain, Pitbull and Nelly.

Bradford is a St. Louis native known for his comedic appearances on “Comic View,” “P. Diddy Presents the Bad Boys of Comedy” and the “Ricky Smiley Morning Show.” Bradford will be sure to entertain viewers and bring a comedic angle to the show.

“Darius and Wyshmaster should provide viewers with an

entertaining, yet educational episode,” said Pam Bell, Chief Executive Officer and President of Vatterott Educational Centers Inc. “We are excited for the show’s lineup of special guests and are eager to see what experiences they can share with viewers.”

The live February 23 episode of Seviin @ 7 featuring Darius Bradford and Wyshmaster Cherrington, as well as previous episodes of the show can be viewed by tuning in at www.eibynelly.com.

ex’Treme Institute, a new music production school in St. Louis, allows students to gain real life experience working alongside artists, producers and engineers in the music industry. The 9,000-square foot facility houses a recording studio, a music engineering space, and a design studio in which students can work on creating album covers and other music related artwork. Students can create their own schedule, choosing from the available courses. The courses are designed for all types of music genres. For more information visit www.eibynelly.com or call 1.888.841.3602. ex’Treme Institute by Nelly is located at 800 N. 3rd Street.

R.I.P. Whitney Houston. After paying respects to STLsoul singer David Peaston last week, I assumed that I wouldn’t have to designate some space for a somber moment in Partyline for quite a while. Sadly, I must send another shout out beyond the sky to the incomparable Whitney Houston. I don’t think anyone believed that the news was true – let alone expected it – when the internet buzzed about her untimely death at the age of 48 just hours before she was set to take the stage at Clive Davis’ annual pre-Grammy party. Some of the reports surrounding her death have been downright disrespectful. And while I tend to specialize in mess from time to time, there will be none of that here. What I will do is to remind all of y’all that Whitney Houston changed the game for the soulto-pop crossover game and blew the roof off of the glass ceiling with respect to female artists in the industry – and not just with respect to the urban music takeover of the pop charts. It’s true; there would be no Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, Beyonce or JenniferHudson (who killed with her rendition of “I Will Always Love You,” btw) had Whitney not come before them. But the same could also be said for Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Lady Gaga and TaylorSwift. And we must also keep in mind that while Whitney and Madonna debuted in the industry around the same time, she didn’t reach her superstar status until WELLAFTER Whitney had paved the way for women artists to be taken seriously as a bankable brand. It’s no secret that Whitney didn’t leave us at the top of her game. But her talent had the capacity to make room for even more career triumphs – which makes her passing all the more difficult. Let us remember her for the bright star that was the source of so much pride, and leave the trash in the gutter where it belongs. As I reflect on her passing and Michael Jackson’s death before, it makes me want to time travel as a fly on the wall to see how the mainstream media reported on the death of Elvis Presley. It could have been the same for him too…but I’m just saying.

While we are all at a loss, I’ll wrap up my condolences with a prayer request for Bobbi Christina and Cissy Houston – and my hope that Whitney is now achieving the peace I’m sure she desperately sought when was still with us. Atribute to Whitney’s Soul. I was really hoping for this, and so I can’t tell you how glad I am that the universe responded in kind. The ladies of Café Soul have decided to dedicate their debut at the all new Plush venue (3224 Locust) to the talents of Whitney Houston. Theresa Payne, Teresa Jenee, Tish Haynes (sorry girl, I don’t remember your new married name), the ladies of Tiorah, Tiffany Elle, Tracy Smith, Tasha Ryan, LeAndra Haynes – I’m calling y’all out!

There are a host of other folks that I don’t have room for that I would love to see, but there’s also this new girl named Aunyae that I hope steps to the mic. The party starts at 8 p.m.

The E sharps of Eric Benet. I must admit that the first few songs of his 7 p.m. set, I sat inside the Lumiere Theatre stunned with the news of Whitney’s death. So I can’t even tell you how he kicked the show off. But once I forced myself out of that moment, that brother had me in awe with his stage presence, vocal skills and game killing falsetto. I was thinking “no wonder Maxwell is admittedly jealous of your range” while simultaneously lusting. His background singer with the tragic pull-and-grow Barbie weave wasn’t too shabby either. He served from beginning to end! And y’all really love him for it – so much sothat some of the girls made fools of themselves with their reaching, grabbing and catcalling antics. And to the woman towards the back, holler-singing every word of EVERYsong – you were being so selfish by punishing us with your flatness. If you heard how you really sounded – versus how you actually think you sounded – you’d probably enter witness protection. Love, laughterand tears. Eric Benet had barely said his goodnights during his “Georgie Porgie” encore before I booked over to the Chaifetz in an attempt to spread my love around in the midst of an action packed pre-Valentine’s Day weekend. And while I was eager to soak in the Love and Laughter show, continued confusion with respect to my credentials meant that I first had to be frustrated and frozen. By the time I got in the building – which was packed to the gills I might add – I had all but missed Babyface’s Holy Ghost party which was probably for the best. But I got there just in time for his touching tribute to Whitney. He almost broke down as he remembered her. But he couldn’t help but laugh as he talked about how she dusted the girls who she didn’t think could hang vocally and handpicked the voices for the “Waiting to Exhale” soundtrack before he went into singing “Exhale (Shoop Shoop).” Kem displayed a video tribute to her while singing his “Heaven” song. And while I was quietly disappointed that his silver suit wasn’t nearly the painted-on spectacle he usually serves us with, we all know he never disappoints on stage. Adelightful surprise for me was how much more personable Rickey Smiley has become with the folks. I was thrilled by how he chatted it up and even posed for a few photos. And when he pulled a brother from the audience in ALL.WHITE.LEATHER.EVERYTHING and called him “open casket sharp” and the man proceeded to cross his arms and closed his eyes, I was fit to be laid out myself.

Black Katz Mardi Gras. If you do nothing else in the name of Mardi Gras, please be sure to take in the festivities of the 13 Black Katz 2nd Annual Mask Madness at the Ginger Bistro (6665 Delmar Blvd) on Saturday (at 8 p.m.) When

I tell you the folks get festive and creative, please understand what I mean by showing up yourself. And the possibility to win $500 for your mask should be all the incentive you need.

And the mixmasteris…I took in Smirnoff’s Master of the Mix competition at Lola Thursday night and was on the edge of my stool when it got down to the finals between DJ Sinnamon and DJ Lonnie B. It was the old school scratch vs. the new school mix and I found myself rooting for both at some point. But Lonnie B was the man of the hour – and became $2500 richer. I was sad that Sinnamon had some type of technical issues at the last moments of the final round, but Lonnie did his thing. It would have been nice to see an all-star STL version of Master of the Mix featuring Needles,

Reminisce, Stan Da Man, Trife, Kut and Charlie Chan Soprano too, though.

Danielle,Kayla,Emily and Desarai were among the ladies who kept it live Saturday night @ Lola

Sisters Mia,Nia and Kia spend some family nightlife time together Saturday night @ Lola

Ebony J,Jason,Felicia,and Brittney @ The City for Grey Goose’s Exhale

Kim Moses celebrating her birthday with Vanessa Hughes @ McGee Gents Valentine’s Day

Freaky Moscato’s Murphy Lee and Kyjuan join DJ Jewel @ DJ Jewel presents ‘Murphy Lee:The Ladies Edition’Mix-tape listening party Thursday night @ The Inspot

R&B singer Kem backstage with JoJo of JoJo’s Shrimp Shack Saturday @ Chaifetz Arena

Majic 104.9’s Selena J with Rickey Smiley @ The Love and Laughter Tour Saturday night @ Chaifetz Arena

Mark and Krystal enjoy Trey Songz as an early Valentine’s Day date Sunday @ The

Trayse and Maya

DJ Smitty was amongst a host of family and friends who helped Mousie

The McGee Gents celebrated love with

special

Day Party @ Polish Heritage Center

No amount of secondhand smoke is safe forchildren

By Consuelo H.Wilkins,MD

I must admit that I occasionally have road rage. It’s actually better described as red-light rage because it occurs when I’m stopped at a red light and have more time to notice the cars surrounding me. The two most likely things to provoke me are seeing children who are riding in cars without proper safety restraints and children riding in cars while someone is smoking.

Recently while I was stopped at a traffic light, I decided to open my window slightly to enjoy some fresh air. It was a beautiful day and it was great to see so many people enjoying the unseasonably warm weather.

At first glance, I smiled at a cute little boy and dog who both had their faces close to the partially opened window in the backseat of their car. After a few seconds, I realized that both the driver and a front seat passenger were smoking ciga-

rettes. I could feel the anger rising because I was convinced that the little boy and the dog were not just trying to enjoy the fresh air but they were trying to escape all the second-hand smoke in the car!

I shook my head in disbelief, as I wondered why people are not more conscious about protecting children from second-hand smoke.

Just as the traffic light changed to green, I realized that the little boy was not wearing a safety belt when he stood up and waved to me.

My heart sank.

Sadly, this little boy is not alone. According to a study published in this month’s journal Pediatrics, nearly 1 in 4 kids ride in a car with

Consuelo H. Wilkins,M.D., Medical Accuracy Editor

someone who is smoking. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are more likely to have respiratory infections, ear infections, severe asthma and delayed growth rates. Secondhand smoke is also associated with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

Although there is no safe level of secondhand smoke, the amount of smoke in the enclosed area of a motor vehicle is similar to that in a smoky bar or casino. Authors of the study note that even with the windows down, smoking in a vehicle can create toxic levels of circulating smoke.

Additionally, environmental studies have found that smoking in a motor vehicle

can result in circulating pollution and nicotine well after active smoking has stopped.

Per the CDC, there are currently four states, California, Arkansas, Maine and Louisiana, with laws that ban smoking in cars with children.

Puerto Rico also has similar laws.

This recent study did find that the overall rates of smoking have decreased during the last decade. Of course, that doesn’t make me feel better when I think about the children who are riding in cars filled with smoke.

Consuelo H. Wilkins, M.D., is medical accuracy editor of The St. Louis American and associate professor of medicine and psychiatry, Division of Geriatrics and Nutritional Science, at Washington University – St. Louis

YourHealth Matters

Abi-monthly special supplement of the St. Louis American

February 16, 2012

YourHealth Matters provides up-to-date information, from an African-American perspective, about one of the most important subjects in evryone’s life – their personal health.

Donald M. Suggs, President and Publisher

Kevin Jones, Senior Vice President, COO

Dina M. Suggs, Senior Vice President

Chris King, Editorial Director

Consuelo Wilkins, MD, Medical Accuracy Editor

Sandra Jordan, Health Reporter

Debbie Chase, Director of Health Strategy & Outreach

Onye Ijei, Barb Sills, Pamela Simmons, Sales

Michael Terhaar, Art/Production Manager

Angelita Jackson, Cover Design

Wiley Price, Photojournalist

Keeping pace forheart health

By Sandra Jordan

Of the St.Louis American

Debora Grandison is committed to regular exercise and making and preparing healthier food choices for herself and her family in Ballwin, Missouri after receiving a pacemaker for cardiomyopathy.

“I’m in a heart program right now,” she said. “I do that three days a week.

There are numerous types of cardiomyopathy, but all types result in the heart being unable to pump blood efficiently.

I’m lifting weights and doing cardio.”

Cardiomyopathy is a disease that weakens the heart muscle tissue. There are numerous types of cardiomyopathy, but all types result in the heart being

unable to pump blood efficiently. In dilated cardiomyopathy, the heart is weak and large and doesn’t pump blood well enough. Ischemic cardiomyopathy is caused by too little oxygen getting to the

heart, which is often due to heart attacks or coronary artery disease. Restrictive cardiomyopathy causes the heart chambers to not fill properly with blood due to stiff heart muscle; hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is usually inherited and causes the heart muscle to become thick, making it harder for blood to leave the heart. Peripartum cardiomyopathy occurs

See HEART, page 5

Photo by Wiley Price

Debora Grandison of Ballwin,Missouri answered the casting call for the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women”campaign at the Macy’s in West County Mall on Sat.,February 4.

HEALTH BRIEFS

High blood pressure disorders leading cause of maternal mortality

Alarge study published in the February issue of Anesthesiology found that the devastating complication of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) occurs in approximately 1/15,000 pregnancies, that high-blood pressure disorders are the most common risk factor for pregnancy-related SAH, and that contrary to SAH in non-pregnant patients, ruptured aneurysms play a less important role in the pregnant patient.

SAH occurs when blood leaks between delicate membranes that surround the brain (but not in the brain itself). Its incidence is known to be elevated in pregnant women.

“Despite this, relatively little is known about the causes of SAH during pregnancy and how that differs from the causes of SAH outside of pregnancy,” said lead study author Brian T. Bateman, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital.

The study utilized data from nearly one-fifth of all U.S. hospital admissions.

Study Highlights:

Hypertensive diseases were found in 40 percent of SAH cases and increased the risk of SAH seven-fold. Dr. Bateman said this finding emphasizes the need for appropriate blood pressure control in vulnerable pregnant patients.

Pregnant Black women were 3.3 times and Hispanics 1.4 times more likely to experience SAH than Caucasians, though it was unclear what factors caused this disparity.

Incidence of SAH increased with age. For women 25 years or less, the incident rate was 3.6 per 100,000 deliveries. For women 35-44 years, it was 11.3 per 100,000 deliveries.

Tobacco, drug, and alcohol abuse were the leading potentially modifiable risk factors associated with SAH.

“Understanding the risk factors that predispose pregnant patients to SAH, the clinical presentation, and the distinction from more benign forms of headache may help clinicians identify these patients so that appropriate work-up and therapy can be performed,” said Dr. Bateman.

Youngerwomen need heart healthy lifestyles too

The risk for heart-related death is increasing in young adults ages 35 to 54, and the numbers are even more alarming for younger women. It is the number-one cause of death for both men and women in the United States, yet every year since 1984 more women have died of cardiovascular health problems than men, according to the American Heart Association.

“Although there has been a general decline in deaths caused by heart disease, the last decade has seen a steady increase among younger women ages 35 to 44. Women account for more than 50 percent of deaths due to heart disease and 60 percent of stroke deaths in this country,” says Dr. Holly Andersen, the director of education and outreach for the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute at NewYorkPresbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Andersen offers the following advice to women on how to stay healthy, know their risk factors, and get the best medical treatments to take better care of their hearts.

• Enjoy yourself. Eat right, be active, attempt to get a good night’s sleep, practice stress reduction, and enjoy fun times with friends. Women who regularly spend time with close friends have less heart disease.

• Know the warning signs of an attack. Women oftentimes do not experience the crushing chest pain that is so often associated with a heart attack. Women are more likely to experience atypical symptoms, which may include neck, shoulder or abdominal pain. Others may have nausea, vomiting, fatigue or shortness of breath, Most women experiencing a heart attack know that something is wrong.

• Test forthe silent attack. Some women, however, feel no pain at all and experience what is known as a silent heart attack. Silent heart attacks lead to longterm shortage of blood and oxygen flow to the heart. If you are a post-menopausal woman and have at least three risk factors for heart disease, you should discuss with your doctor the tests available to determine if you have coronary artery disease.

• Know yourrisk factors. Your risk of having a heart attack greatly increases if you are obese/overweight, a smoker, or have high cholesterol and/or diabetes.

There are also several risk factors that are of particular importance to women:

• Smoking greatly increases the risk of heart attack for women under the age of 45. The combination of smoking and birth control pills increases a woman’s risk by at least 20-fold.

• High C-Reactive Protein (CRP) levels are a marker of inflammation that has been shown to be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular risk. Ask your doctor to check your level with a simple blood test.

• Complications during pregnancy may be an indicator of future cardiovascular disease for mothers. Women who have had preeclampsia, gestational diabetes or hypertension or have delivered low-birth-weight babies should aggressively manage all risk factors for heart disease.

• According to the American Heart Association, low-levels of good cholesterol (HDL) are a stronger predictor of heart disease death in women than in men over 65.

Call 911. The most recent survey from the AHAshowed that only 53 percent of women who believe they were having a heart attack would call 911. Time is muscle and can mean the difference between life and death. If you think you are having a heart attack, do not wait — call 911. Emergency medical teams can begin to treat patients before they arrive at the hospital and save precious time that is often lost when patients try to drive themselves to the emergency room.

Ask foran EKG. Once a woman does arrive in the emergency room it is important to ask for an EKG test or an enzyme blood test to check for a heart attack, since medical professionals may attribute a woman’s symptoms to other health conditions such as indigestion.

Common causes of cardio myopathy

• high blood pressure,

• end stage kidney disease,

• viral infections,

• chemotherapy drugs,

Source:NIH

HEART

Continued from page 3

• lupus, • alcoholism, • cocaine use

• some nutritional deficiencies

as a complication of pregnancy or within the first few months following.

“When I was pregnant with my son, who is now 23, I developed a heart ailment and to be honest, there was a lot of uncertainty as to what was causing it,” Grandison said. “I was placed on various medications; I’ve worn a number of heart monitors over the years, and been told a variety of things.”

“I am monitored for the blood pressure; I am treated for high blood pressure – I do take medication for that,” Grandison said. “I’ve been blessed with good cholesterol so when I had the cardiac catherization, I was blessed to know there were no blockages.”

By 2009, Grandison said she was at the point of fatigue all the time. She even stopped substitute teaching and opted for a part time desk job.

“I went to the doctor and he spoke to me about the fact that I have developed cardiomyopathy,” she recalled. “The heart rate was slowed to a point where the heart beats were only 30 beats per minute where I believe it is supposed to be 60 – and that was continuous.”

Ahealthy heart beats 60 to 100 times per minute.

“So, he really didn’t see any other options for me at that time and it was absolutely devastating to think about it,” Grandison said about getting a pacemaker.

Apacemaker is a small device that is implanted in the body (usually the chest) to help the heart maintain a healthy rhythm. A pacemaker has wires (called electrodes) that go to the heart muscle and it uses electrical impulses to regulate the heart.

Grandison had the pacemaker implanted during an outpatient procedure at then St. John’s Mercy Hospital, now Mercy Hospital St. Louis.

“After going through the things they tell you to do, I tell you I am energized, I feel so much better,” Grandison said. “It was really the right thing to do, but when you are in it, you kind of panic and don’t know if you are making the right decision.”

“It’s been a long road as far as not knowing a particular name or diagnosis, but really knowing there was something going on since my pregnancy,” she said. “And it is believed the pregnancy could have actually brought some of that on, but having such a high family history, its kind of hard to say whether that was just something that was going to be inevitable.”

Regardless, Grandison shares her health story inside and outside her family circle and encourages families to do the same. Your health history is part of your family’s history too.

“I am diabetic. I didn’t know my father was diabetic for a long time until after me sharing with him what I was experiencing,” Grandison said. “And I know it’s a great need for me to instill in my kids they are predisposed to diabetes and its imperative that they recognize those signs and pay attention to their health and do whatever’s necessary for preventative measures.”

For more information on heart health, visit the American Heart Association at www.heart.org.

Elevated risk factors linked to major cardiovasculardisease events across a lifetime

In one of the largest-ever analyses of lifetime risks for cardiovascular disease (CVD), researchers have found that middle-aged adults who have one or more elevated risk factors for CVD, such as high blood pressure, have a substantially greater chance of having a major CVD event, such as heart attack or stroke, during their remaining lifetime. This National Institutes of Health (NIH) supported study used health data from 257,384 people and was the first to look simultaneously at multiple risk factors for CVD across age, sex, race, and birth generation.

“This paper adds to the substantial body of evidence that modifiable cardiovascular disease risk factors in healthy men and women heavily influence the likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease later in life, regardless of their backgrounds,” said Dr. Susan B. Shurin, acting director of the NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Men who were 55 years old with at least two major risk factors were six times as likely to die from CVD by age 80 as were men with none or one CVD

risk factor (29.6 percent vs. 4.7 percent). Women with at least two major risk factors were three times as likely to die from CVD as were women with no or one CVD risk factor (20.5 percent vs. 6.4 percent).

“Prevention of cardiovascular disease is a lifetime opportunity for and a responsibility of individuals, families, communities, and the health care system. This paper reinforces that cardiovascular disease can be prevented and controlled throughout the course of an adult’s lifetime,” she added.

“We need to get more serious about promoting healthy lifestyles in children and young adults, since even mild elevations in risk factors by middle age seem to have profound effects on the remaining lifetime risks for CVD.”

with those of the pooled group, and showed that traditional risk factors predicted a person’s long-term development of CVD more than age. All of the risk factors appeared to carry the same levels of risk as they did 20, 30, or 40 years ago.

– Donald M.Lloyd-Jones,M.D.

The paper was published in a January issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The results from each individual study were consistent with one another and

While black Americans had a higher prevalence of CVD risk factors than white Americans, their lifetime risks were similar when their risk factor profiles were similar.

“In general, previous studies have only looked at CVD risk factors across one specific age or gender in white populations,” said Donald M. Lloyd-Jones, M.D., principal investigator of the study and an associate professor and chair of the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg

School of Medicine in Chicago. “We analyzed an enormous pool of available data, which allowed for a more precise estimate of lifetime CVD risks across the age, sex, race, and risk factor spectrum.”

Lloyd-Jones added, “These data have important implications for prevention. We need to get more serious about promoting healthy lifestyles in children and young adults, since even mild elevations in risk factors by middle age seem to have profound effects on the remaining lifetime risks for CVD.”

“It is important for adults to know their blood pressure and cholesterol numbers and whether they are at risk for diabetes and also to understand the different approaches they can take to prevent or control their risks for CVD. As American Heart Month approaches in February, this paper underscores the importance of raising awareness of heart disease and coronary heart disease — the most common type of heart disease and the number one killer of both men and women in the United States,” said Lloyd-Jones and Shurin.

PROFILING PEOPLE IN HEALTH

Doctormade dream come true through prayer, study and discipline, the hard work

Charlene M.Blake,M.D.,Ph.D.

Position/Where: Anesthesiology Resident, Research Scholars Program, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis

CareerHighlights:

Taught physiology to undergraduate students in the Summer Medical and Dental Education Program at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C.

Presented research findings in Geneva, Switzerland and Cambridge, England

Received funding for research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the UNCF/Merck Science Initiative

Awards:

Barnes-Jewish Hospital Residents and Fellows Diversity Initiative Grant Recipient

Washington University Scholars Program (Department of Anesthesiology)

UNCF/Merck Graduate Science Research Dissertation Fellowship

Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award, Individual Fellowship

Phi Beta Kappa Honors Society Inductee

Homer P. Cooper Award

Beta Kappa Chi Scientific Honors Society Inductee

Kellogg Science Award

NASAScholar

LaTina Sullivan Leadership Award

Education:

St. Louis Connection: She grew up in Harrisburg, Pa. but later moved to Topeka, where she attended Topeka High School. After completing undergraduate, medical and graduate school, I moved to St. Louis to train in anesthesiology with the Washington University School of Medicine at Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

Charlene M.Blake,M.D.,Ph.D.

Doctor of Medicine - May 2010 from Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C.

Doctor of Philosophy in Genetics and Genomics, May 2009 from Duke

Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry, Summa Cum Laude, May 2002, from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee

Personal:

Her parents are Mac and Brenda Walker of Topeka, Kan. Her sister, Angela Diggs; lives in Petersburg, Va.

Blake is a member of Christ Our King Community Church, Durham, N.C. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Yourjourney to success:

Since I was 5 years old, the answer to the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” was always the same— “I want to be a doctor.” As the child of a single mother, resources were slim but by the grace of God, they were always enough. What was in abundance, however, was love and support. My mother began to prepare me mentally to become a physician while in middle school. “You know, your grades in high school count so you have to do your best to get straight A’s then” she would often tell me. So in high school, I vowed to do my absolute best. As a result of diligent study and relentless application to scholarships, I had acquired what amounted to a full ride to college.

I started at the University of Kansas (KU) as a biochemistry major, but after attending a summer pre-med program at Fisk, a small private black college in Nashville, Tennessee, I transferred in the middle of my sophomore year. Fisk promised – and delivered – more individualized mentoring and access to research programs – as well as a full scholarship. It was at Fisk University that I fell in love with research. My first summer research program was through NASA, where I investigated gold particles on an atomic level and how they change when superheated. I actually created new knowledge and thought that was too cool.

The next summer, I did biochemistry research at Meharry Medical College and started to ask novel questions – and design experiments to answer those very questions, again, creating new knowledge. I knew I wanted to help individuals as a physician, but it was then that I realized that I could help millions through medical research. As a result, pursuit of both an MD and a PhD began. I had not heard of MD/PhD programs until I asked an advisor if it was possible to do both. Lo and behold, not only was it possible, but if you were accepted to the program, all of medical school and graduate school were paid for – that was my kind of program! Again, through prayer, study and discipline, the hard work “paid off” – I was accepted and chose the MD/PhD program at Duke University.

No one would ever describe medical school as easy. Interesting, challenging and rewarding are much more accurate. Though there were days when sleep was more of a hopeful wish than a reality, I always knew I was in the right field – I was pursuing my dream and seeing it become a reality. After two years of medical school I started the PhD program in Genetics and Genomics where I made reversible drugs out of RNA. If medicines are reversible, they are by nature safer as they can be “turned off.” These same drugs may now lead to new treatments for breast cancer and stroke.

After completing graduate school and medical school, I moved to St. Louis to pursue training in anesthesiology in a combined clinical residency and research program. Currently, I am most interested in pharmacogenetics (how differences in peoples DNA determines how their body reacts to drugs) and plan to make personalized medicine in anesthesiology a reality.

Hopefully my life reflects the fact that it matters little from whence you came –what matters is where you are going and what you are doing to get there. As Henry Ford said, “whether you think you can, or think you can’t – you’re right.”

Tues. Feb. 21, 6-8 p.m. Caregiver Solutions forDementia Care presented by the Alzheimer’s Association –Christian Hospital Detrick Building Atrium, Call 314-747-WELL(9355) to register.

Fri. Feb. 24, 7 a.m. – 5 p.m., 5th

Annual African American Nursing History health disparities Conference at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel. Free mammograms by appointment (call 314-251-6500). Free health screenings for weight, blood pressure, HIV/AIDS, glucose, kidney, cholesterol, prostate and EKG. $50 registration fee includes a continental breakfast and lunch. The registration deadline is February 10. For more information visit the http://umslce.org or call (314) 5165994.

Sat. Feb. 25, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Wound Care Supply Bank by Total Rehabilitation (TRP) Wound Care Assistance Program at the Omega Center, 3900 Goodfellow Blvd. in St. Louis. Provide basic health information in order to receive no-cost supplies. For more information, call 314-400-4041 or 4052.

Mon. Feb. 27, 10 a.m. – 12 Noon, Look

CALENDAR

Good Feel Better– American Cancer Society program to help women with physical side effects of cancer at the Siteman Cancer Center in St. Louis at the Barnard Health & Cancer Info Center. Call 314-362-7844 to register.

Tues. Feb. 28, 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

AARPDriverSafety Course Four-hour training to help tune up driving skills, update knowledge of rules of the road and learn about age-related physical changes and ways to adjust to avoid traffic violations, crashes and chances for injuries.- Cost -$12 payable to AARPthe day of training for AARPmembers/$14 for non-members. Call 314-747-WELL (9355) to register.

Sat. March 10, 6 p.m. – 22nd Annual Orchid AAFAir at the Coronado Ballroom in St. Louis. Tickets are $250 per person. For more information, call 314-645-2422 or visit www.aafastl.org.

Thurs., March 15, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., American Red Cross Blood Drive, Christian Hospital Detrick Building Atrium. Walk-ins are welcome but priority given to those who register at www.redcrossblood.organd use the sponsor code: christianhospita; or contact Sandy Barnesat slm9123@bjc.org.

Thurs., March 15, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m., Taking Control of YourAsthma –Christian Hospital Asthma Management Program at Northwest Health Care, 1225 Graham Rd. Community Rooms 1&2. The presenter will also discuss ways to help you find free/reduced asthma medication and equipment, Register at 314-747-WELL (9355).

Wed. Mar. 21, Free mammograms at SSM Breast Care at St. Mary’s Health Center, 1031 Bellevue Ave., St. Louis, 63117. Free clinical breast exams, mammograms and breast care education for women age 40 and older with no insurance or insurance that does not pay for mammograms and haven’t had a mammogram in 13 months. The services are offered the third Wednesday of each month through a Susan G. Komen for the Cure grant. For appointments, call 314768-8697 or visit ssmhealth.com/stmarys.

Wed., Mar. 21, 9-10 a.m., Diet & Lifestyle changes to prevent Colon Cancer– with Dr. Rehan Rafiq, gastroenterologist. Jamestown Mall Food Court. Call 314-747-WELL(9355) to register.

Sat. Mar. 24, CHIPS “ANight at the Savoy III” at the Hilton Saint Louis Frontenac. $150 per person. For more information, call 314-652-9231 or visit www.chipsstl.org

Tues. Mar. 27, 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Diabetes Alert Day free screenings at Christian Hospital Diabetes Institute, 11155 Dunn Road, Suite 101N, Professional Building 1 (Hwy. 367/I-270 interchange). Call 314-747WELL(9355) to register.

Tues. Mar. 27, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Diabetes Alert Day free screenings at Northwest HealthCare, 1225 Graham Road, Florissant, Mo. Call 314-747WELL(9355) to register.

Sat. April 21, 6:30 p.m. – 11:00 p.m., Denim & Diamonds Christian Hospital Auxiliary 2012 Charity Ball. For more information, call 314653-5634.

Sat. April 28, 8:30 a.m., St. Louis Kidney Walk at Saint Louis University. Walk starts at 10 a.m. For more information, call 314-961-2828 or visit www.kidneyemo.org.

Breast Cancer

HEALTH RESOURCES

Gateway to Hope offers no-charge medical and reconstructive treatment for uninsured breast cancer patients in Missouri. Contact 314-569-1113.

Behavioral

Christian Hospital offers free and confidential psychiatric and chemical dependency evaluations at the Christian Hospital Center for Mental Health. The hospital has a geriatric psychiatric unit dedicated to serving the mental health needs of geriatric patients. For more information, call 314-839-3171.

Christian Hospital Key Program is for patients with chronic mental illness.The program offers support and education to prevent increased severity of symptoms and to reduce the need for inpatient re-hospitalization. Call confidentially to 314-839-3171 or 1-800-447-4301.

Crime Victim Advocacy Center provides no cost support for persons who have been affected by criminal acts. Emil peggy@supportvictims.org, visit or call the 24-hour hotline 314-OK-BE-MAD (652-3673) or visit www.supportvictims.org.

Diabetes

SSM St. Mary’s Health Center provides free, open-to-the-public Diabetes Support Group sessions the second Tuesday of every month from 6 – 7 p.m., overseen by certified diabetes educators to address health management issues. It’s located at Meeting Room 1 on the second floor, 6420 Clayton Rd. in St. Louis. To register, call toll free 866-SSM-DOCS (866-776-3627).

Dental

Free Dental Hygiene Clinic - No charge dental exams, x-rays, cleanings and other dental services for children and adults provided by dental students at Missouri College. Patients needing more extensive dental work (like fillings, crowns, etc.) will be referred to local dentists. For an appointment, call 314-768-7899.

Eye Health

Free glaucoma screenings at Myrtle Hilliard Davis Comprehensive Health Center located at 5471 Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. St. Louis, 63112 (second floor - Health Education Dept.).Monday thru Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:.30 p.m.Please call for availability of screening times. Results will be reviewed immediately following the screening. For more information, call (314) 367-5820 ext. 2259.

Fitness

Coed Jazzercise - $1 per session on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 5:30 p.m. –7:00 p.m. at Memorial Tabernacle Christian Life Center, 1350 S. Lafayette in Florissant, Mo. (behind Yacovelli’s). For more information, call 314-921-6825.

Health Partnerships:

The CenterforCommunity Health and Partnerships: Building Bridges forHealthy Communities – works to develop and support beneficial community-academic partnerships that effectively address the health needs of the St. Louis community. For more information, email publichealth@wustl.edu; phone 314-747-9212 or visit publichealth.wustl.edu.

Information

Missouri 2-1-1 offers referral and information on a wide range of social service and helpful resources. Call 2-1-1.

Medical

St. Louis ConnectCare offers walk-in services Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and most holidays. For more information, call 314-879-6300.

Salam Free Saturday Clinic, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Isom Community Center at Lane Tabernacle CME Church, 916 N. Newstead, St. Louis, Mo. for those who are uninsured. For more information, call 314-533-0534.

Nutrition

Food Outreach provides food, meals and nutritional education/ counseling to eligible persons living with HIV/AIDS or cancer in St. Louis. For more information, call 314652-3663 or visit www.foodoutreach.org.

Angel Food Ministries operates in hundreds of churches nationwide and offers heat and serve meals, canned and fresh food boxes at a reduced cost. Find the nearest locations by zip code at www.angelfoodministries.com.

ECIPE

Baked Chicken Breast served with Sweet Potato Apple Bake HEALTHY R

Baked Chicken Breast:

Serves 6

Ingredients:

· 6 oz Boneless Chicken Breasts

· Pinch of Paprika, salt, and ground black pepper

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 400 °F

• Line baking sheet with aluminum foil

• Season Chicken Breasts with Paprika, Salt and Pepper.

• Place seasoned Chicken Breasts on baking sheet and bake for approximately 15 minutes (internal temperature should reach 165°F)

Per serving: Calories 193; Protein 40 g; Total Fat 2 g; Cholesterol 99mg, Sodium 150 mg. (from salt)

Sweet Potato Apple Bake:

Serves 6

Ingredients:

•one half tsp ground cinnamon

•one-half cup apple juice

• one-and-one-half sweet potatoes (or yams) thinly sliced (approx. 5 cups)

•2 small apples thinly sliced (approx. 2 cups)

•one-fourth cup dark brown sugar (packed)

•2 tablespoons reduced-calorie pancake syrup

•one-fourth cup chopped walnuts (optional)

eparation: Preheat oven to 375°F

• In a large bowl, toss apple slices, sweet potato slices and brown sugar together.Spoon into a 9x9-inch baking dish

• In a separate bowl, blend syrup with cinnamon, stir in apple juice.Pour evenly over sweet potato mixture. Sprinkle walnuts on tops.

• Cover baking dish with lid or foil.Bake 30 minutes. Remove lid/foil.Continue baking 15 minutes (until sweet potatoes and apples are cooked throughout)

Per serving: Calories 128, Protein 2g., Carbohydrates 24g, Total Fat 3 g, Sodium 24 mg.

Food Outreach continues to be the only nonprofit organization in the greater St. Louis area that focuses on providing critical nutritional support to individuals with a life-threatening illness. Through a combination of prepared meals, groceries and nutrition counseling, the organization is able to enhance the quality of life of low income men, women and children living with cancer or HIV/AIDS.The on-staff chef and on-staff registered dietitian work together to develop menusthat are tailored to the specific nutrition needs of Food Outreach clients.Food Outreach is on pace to provide 410,000+ nutritious meals to 1,500 clients residing in 137 Missouri and Illinois zip codes in 2009.For more information, call 314-652-3663 or visit www.foodoutreach.org

Five reasons not to put off a colonoscopy

cedure, a discussion with your doctor can ease many of your concerns.”

If you’ve been avoiding, or even dreading, scheduling a colonoscopy, it’s time to give the important cancer screening tool another thought. Not only is the test a life-saving measure, a Saint Louis University doctor says, but your worries may be unwarranted.

“Acolonoscopy is an amazing tool that allows us to see how healthy our insides are,” said Dr. Christine Hachem, assistant professor of internal medicine and a gastroenterologist at SLU. “While you may feel anxious about the pro-

The most common use for colonoscopies is for colon and rectal cancer screening in someone without symptoms. They’re also used to evaluate patients who are experiencing symptoms, like a change in bowel habits, blood in your bowel movements or anemia.

Colonoscopy screenings are recommended for the general population beginning at age 50. However, African Americans should start screening colonoscopies at age 45 because of their increased risk of colon cancer. In addition, if you have a disease that puts you at increased risk of colon cancer, such as inflammatory bowel disease, family history of colon cancer or related cancer or symptoms or concerning signs, you should discuss the best time to get the procedure with your doctor.

Hachem offers five reasons why you should talk to your doctor about colonoscopies:

This single 20-minute test can save yourlife.It helps to identify those at risk of developing cancer. Waiting until you develop signs or symptoms may be too late.

Yourworriesmay be misplaced “Talk to your doctor about your concerns because there are a lot of ways of preparing for and doing the same procedure and we can tailor the procedure toeach patient’sneeds,” Hachem said.

You probably won’t rememberit. Patients usually are given sedative medication that makes them feel relaxed and sleepy. “Most people wake up afterwards asking when the proce-

dure will start,” Hachem said.

Having a colonoscopy at the recommended time helpskeep the odds in yourfavor. During the procedure, your doctor may discover and remove precancerous polyps, which can keep cancer from developing. If the test finds cancer, treatment can begin right away. The sooner a cancer is caught, the better chances you have at beating it.

Acolonoscopy doesn’t just affect you; itgives yourfamily valuable information as well, about their personal risk of cancer.

Talk with your doctor about when you should schedule a colonoscopy and any concerns you may have about the procedure.

Your Health Questions Matter

Yellow patches around eyelids predict risk of heart problems

What are those raised yellow fatty, patches underthe skin on the eyelids?

The yellow patches under the skin around the eyes are deposits of cholesterol. The medical term is xanthelasma (plural- xanthelasmata). The cholesterol patches themselves are not harmful; however, they are often linked to high cholesterol. Xanthelasma can also be hereditary and can occur with or without high cholesterol. Arecent report in the British Medical Journal found that for people with xanthelasmata the chance of heart disease over 10 years rose by 12 percentage points for men and 8 percentage points for women. After 33 years, almost 3,700 people developed a heart condition, over 3,000 had a stroke or heart attack and more than 8,500 died.

The answer comes from Consumer Reports Health and results recently reported in the British Medical Journal.

Do you have a health-related question? Let us hear from you. Email your question to yourhealthmatters@stlamerican.com. Rather than a personal reply, a health professional will provide an answer that we will share with all readers in a future issue of Your Health Matters.