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St. Louis American See page B1
The
CAC Audited AUG. 31 – SEPT. 6, 2023
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Embroidery shop owner stitches new life together
By Sylvester Brown Jr. St. Louis American
Demond Harris, 31, had grown weary…of himself. “I got tired of sitting in prison with people telling me when I can eat or when I can take a shower,” Harris said emphatically. “I got tired of having to call mom or dad and other relatives asking them to send me money so I can eat. I got tired of coming home then starting it all over again. It took me a minute to get a hold of it all, but I finally did.” Harris and his “best friend” and business partner, Maurice Thomas, will soon celebrate the first anniversary of their business, “No Cap Embroidery,” in North County. The duo prides themselves on stitching about any image on different fabrics including T-shirts, ball caps, bath towels, jackets, purses and more. If there’s a portable network graphic (PNG) or a joint photographic expert’s group (jpeg) file to feed into the embroidery
See SHOP, A6
Vol. 95 No. 22 COMPLIMENTARY
St. Louis homicide rate down through August ‘One life lost is too many’
By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American
Photo by Wiley Price / St. Louis American
No Cap Embroidery owner Demond Harris works at an embroidery machine with the help of co-worker Maurice Thomas in his north county shop Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023.
When the sun rose on Wednesday, August 30, the 242nd day of the year, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department reported 106 homicides in 2023. There were 136 at the same time last year, meaning as September neared there had been a 22.6% drop in the city’s homicide rate. “One life lost to gun violence is one too many, and while we acknowledge and accept this progress, we still have a long way to go,” Mayor Tishaura Jones said during a press conference last week when asked about the homicide decline. “This progress is due to an all-handson deck strategy I have been talking about for years. It is our community violence intervention program. It’s our Cops and Clinicians program [working] with social workers and communities. “It’s funding intervention programs in 11 of our most
See HOMICIDE, A7
Photo courtesy of AFP
Martin Luther King III, center left, and the Rev. Al Sharpton, center right, helped the 60th commemoration of the March on Washington on Saturday, Aug. 26.
Moving and grooving
A pair of dancers moved to the tunes of Cameroonian singer, rapper, and songwriter Naomi Achu during the Festival of Nations in Tower Grove Park on Sunday, August 27, 2023.
Jacksonville still reeling after racist shootings Rage, sorrow, frustration and a yearning for emotional healing and support. Those are the sentiments of the Black Jacksonville, Florida, community “New Town” as it continues mourning a racist mass shooting within its boundaries on Saturday, August 26, 2023. “The tone is very somber. It’s som-
ber and full of rage,” said Florida State rep. Angie Nixon, who represents the Jacksonville district where the shooting occurred. 21-year-old Ryan Christopher Palmeter entered a Dollar General store in the predominantly Black neighborhood and shot and killed 52-year-old Angela Michelle Carr, 19-year-old Anolt Joseph “AJ” Laguerre, Jr., and 29-year-old Jerrald De’Shaun Gallion. Palmeter also chased a woman
HEALTH
Missouri among most aggressive in Medicaid cuts The state of Missouri is one of the most aggressive in purging people from Medicaid rolls, with the majority of those removed being children.
Page A14
March on Washington addresses familiar woes By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American
through the store before firing at her and missing. Carr was an Uber driver dropping off a passenger at the Dollar General store parking lot when Palmeter shot and killed her. Laguerre was an employee at the discount retail store and Gallion was a devoted father. After shooting them, Palmeter reportedly turned the gun on himself,
Yolanda King, the 15-year-old granddaughter of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., stood where her grandfather did when he delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech, and she certainly made him proud with her remarks during the 60th commemoration of the March on Washington on August 26, 2023. “If I could speak to my grandfather today, I would say ‘I’m sorry we still have to be here to rededicate ourselves to finishing your work and ultimately realizing your dream,’” she said. “Today, racism is still with us. Poverty is still with us. And now, gun violence has come for places of worship, our schools, and our shopping centers.”
See JACKSONVILLE, A6
See MARCH, A7
‘Our governor is a racist’
By Tacuma Roeback Chicago Defender
‘Now is the time’
Photo by Taylor Marrie / St. Louis American
SPORTS
Opening week sets torrid pace for area prep football The opening weekend of area high school football included steamy temperatures Friday and a bevy of exciting games and excellent individual performances.
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