More people seeking help from food pantries during pandemic
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Adams recommends closing Sumner High
Ten other public schools could shut down as well By Dana Rieck Of The St. Louis American
COMPLIMENTARY
Movement on COVID vaccine not fast enough By Sandra Jordan Of The St. Louis American
Approximately 11 St. Louis Public schools should be closed for good, according to a recommendation from Superintendent Kelvin Adams that was presented to the school board Tuesday evening. On that list is Charles H. Sumner High School in the Ville neighborhood of north St. Louis. It was the first high school for Black students west of the Mississippi River when it opened in 1875. Including Sumner, seven of the recommended closings are north of Delmar Boulevard. “So the district has a strong past — we’re not here necessarily to focus on the past but really to use the past as a benchmark for thinking about See SUMNER, A6
Charles H. Sumner High School in the Ville neighborhood of north St. Louis is on a list of approximately 11 St. Louis Public schools that could be closed for good.
Photo by Wiley Price
Black state senators hope to create change
By Dana Rieck Of The St. Louis American
As the Missouri Senate convened Tuesday, four Black Democratic senators are set to represent the St. Louis area — two of whom are making history as the state’s youngest Black male senator and the first Black man to serve in a Senate leadership role in two decades. Including a senator from the Kansas City area, Black representation now sits at five Senate seats, compared to n “I really four during believe that the previous individuals legislative should stay session. engaged to They hold a of understand majority the Senate’s what’s hap- minoripening and ty party, which holds how that is eight seats impacting against the them.” Republicans’ 23 seats. — Sen. Karla Sen. Brian May Williams represents District 14 and was elected to the Senate in 2018 when he ran unopposed; his current term ends Jan. 4, 2023. He was the only Black man serving as senator in the last session and will become the first Black man in two decades to hold a leadership role in the state Senate when he takes over as assistant minority floor leader. District 14 includes University City up through Ferguson and west through Hazelwood. For Williams, going into the next legislative session with diverse representation is critical. He said in an interview he
Vol. 92 No. 36
See SENATORS, A7
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has prioritized which groups will first receive COVID-19 vaccines. During a emergency meeting Tuesday, Dec. 1, of the Centers’ Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the group voted to recommend: “When a COVID-19 vaccine is authorized by FDA and recommended by n Five ACIP, vaccination in restaurants the initial phase of the in St. Louis … program (Phase 1a) should be offered to County both 1) health care perwere forced sonnel and 2) residents Tuesday to of long-term care facilshut their ities.” doors after Bloomberg News defying public reports that CVS and pharmacies health orders Walgreens will administer coronathat do not virus vaccines to people allow indoor in nursing homes and assisted living facilities dining. across the country. Three pharmaceutical manufacturers, Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZeneca have developed COVID-19 vaccines. The Moderna and Pfizer versions are said to have 95% effectiveness and the companies have applied for FDA Emergency Use Authorization to distribute its vaccines. On Dec. 10, the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will meet in open session to discuss Emergency Use Authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use in individuals 16 years of age and older. The following week, on Dec. 17, the See VACCINE, A6
Community Women Against Hardship
Live, learn, and pass it on
Photo by Lawrence Bryant
From left: Brian Williams, Karla May, Angela Mosley and Steve Roberts, all from the St. Louis area, are ready to take their seats in the Missouri Senate.
Those are the words of Ms. T., 28, who wants to change the trajectory of her life and the lives of her three sons. She was homeless during the end of 2019, staying in a shelter with her children. “I don’t want this for my life,” was the lesson she said she learned. Ms. T. enrolled in college and began pursuing a career in public safety with hopes of going into law enforcement. Staying focused is her biggest obstacle. She works minimal, temporary jobs to stay afloat. Her boys are everything to her and she wants programs that will challenge them. She met with Gloria Taylor, founder and CEO of Community Women, and said she was amazed and inspired by their conversaSee CWAH, A7