Parents As Teachers’ program pairs doulas with expectant moms
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Serving, empowering and advocating for equity in St. Louis since 1928
Vol. 94 No. 11
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St. Louis American See page A12
The
CAC Audited JUNE 9 – 15, 2022
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Reed resigns in disgrace following indictment Collins-Muhammad, Boyd charged, resign
By Alvin A. Reid The St. Louis American
After first refusing to resign, former Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed surrendered his office on Tuesday in the wake of his indictment on fraud charges. He exited the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse on Thursday, June 2, 2022 in downtown St. Louis proclaiming his innocence.
One of the most tumultuous weeks in St. Louis political history has closed following the resignations of Lewis Reed, former Board of Aldermen president, and former Aldermen John CollinsMuhammad and Jeffrey Boyd. The three were indicted on May 25, 2022 on federal bribery charges, and the indictments were unsealed last Thursday. Collins-Muhammad resigned abruptly last month, and Boyd followed on Friday, June 3. In addition to the bribery charges, Boyd has been charged with two-counts of wire fraud related to an automobile insurance scheme. Reed was a member of the powerful three-person Board of Estimate and Apportionment with
See REED, A6
Photo by Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace talks to children while visiting a McDonald’s owned by Jimmy Williams Jr. in East St. Louis, Illinois on Friday, June 3, 2022. Wallace finished 26th in the Enjoy Illinois 300 NASCAR Cup Race on Sunday, June 5, 2022.
Anthony Weaver indicted in kickback scheme Former St. Louis County employee
By Kavahn Mansouri and Rachel Lippmann St. Louis Public Radio A St. Louis County jail administrator and previous administrative assistant to a former St. Louis County Council member is facing federal wire fraud charges in what an indictment describes as a pandemic relief kickback scheme. Anthony “Tony” Weaver was indicted Tuesday, and pleaded not guilty and declined to comment as he left the federal courthouse in downtown St. Louis. St. Louis County Executive Sam Page hired Weaver as a change management coordinator for the county›s Department of Justice Services in December 2019. Weaver had previously worked for former Councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray. Page fired Weaver on Tuesday. A Page spokesman said the fact that the businesses Anthony in question never received the Weaver requested funds proved that controls put in place for the program “prevented any theft of taxpayer funds, and the indictments are not related to work he was doing for the County Executive in Justice Services.” Weaver was paid more than $82,000 a year in the change management coordinator role, according to a local salary database. Former members of the Justice Services Advisory Board, which helps oversee the county jail, told St. Louis Public Radio they did not believe Weaver had the necessary experience.
See WEAVER, A6
Photo by Bill Greenblatt / St. Louis American
Enjoy Illinois 300 a thunderous success Diversity helped drive the day
By Alvin A. Reid The St. Louis American As St. Louis singer Kennedy Holmes’ inspiring rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner reached its final stanza, she and members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra were overwhelmed by the thunder of two B-1 Bombers from the 345th Bomb Squadron. The standing-room only crowd of 60,000 people let loose a roar that was as deafening. Minutes later, David Steward gave the
BUSINESS
Reducing digital divide in communities of color
Addressing the lack of access to broadband internet service among communities of color, low-income households, and rural communities.
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COMPLIMENTARY
command that race fans, and fans of the St. Louis region, have been waiting to hear since World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois was awarded the race in September. “Drivers start your engines,” Steward said as 36 NASCAR drivers fired up their cars. The race was on. Steward, founder and CEO of World Wide Technology, savored the moment. It has been his dream to bring a NASCAR Cup race to the St. Louis area and assist a sport that could
benefit from more minority participation. “There are a lot of Black people in front of this,” Steward said with a smile on Friday before the race. “We want to bring more diversity to NASCAR.” In fact, several pit crews and race team members were Black, and Black fans were threaded among the sell out crowd on the hot Sunday afternoon. Steward’s firm, the largest Black owned
See ILLINOIS 300, A7 SPORTS
The stories they will tell
2022 high school graduates share how COVID impacted personal, academic lives By Sylvester Brown Jr. The St. Louis American Twenty years from now, adults who graduated high school in 2022 will have an interesting story to share with young people. It will be the tale of a great global pandemic, the first of its kind since 1918. Their stories will be peppered with unreal experiences such as suddenly not returning to school or adjusting to learning from computer screens. They will speak of the interruptions the coronavirus brought into their academic lives and how they coped as athletic competitions, proms and other events were canceled to beat back the spread of the coronavirus. Brejaē Chapman, 18, who graduated from Belleville West High School, started 2020 convinced she had contracted the virus. In March, the
See COVID, A7
LIVING IT
Area prep track teams excel at state meet
Educating Black girls on jobs in music business
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Both boys and girls St. Louis teams lit up the track at the Missouri State High Track and Field Championships May 28, in Jefferson City.
Brandra Ringo, EVP of A&R, Quality Control Music, provides opportunities in St. Louis for Black girls and women to work with mentors in the music business.