Leading the fight against COVID-19 – in the lab
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St. LouiS AmericAn The
CAC Audited MAY 28 – JUNE 3, 2020
92 years serving, empowering and advocating equity in St. Louis
Vol. 92 No. 10 COMPLIMENTARY
stlamerican.com
Medicaid expansion will be on August 4 ballot Parson chooses low-turnout primary, not general election where he will face Galloway By Sandra Jordan Of The St. Louis American Governor Mike Parson, who will have a Democratic opponent in November, placed the Medicaid expansion initiative on the August 4 primary ballot. If approved, it would expand Medicaid eligibility to those who work, but don’t make enough to afford health insurance coverage. Expansion of Medicaid in Missouri would provide health insurance coverage to another 230,000 resin “Nearly dents. 350,000 Parson Missourians claimed putasked ting the voter initiative in a for this lower-turnout vote, and primary elecHealthcare tion was fiscalfor Missouri ly responsible. “At a time welcomes when our state this opporis undergoing tunity to a major health, accelerate economic and budget crisis, our state’s we need to sorely know exactly needed where we stand recovery.” when it comes to a massive – Dr. Kamile spending iniJohnson tiative,” Parson claimed at a May 26 press briefing. Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway, who will oppose Parson for governor on the November 3 ballot, said Parson is trying to help himself. “He knows that Medicaid Expansion is more popular than he is in a general election, so he hopes that a smaller electorate will give him a better chance of misleading the voters and defeating it,” Galloway said in a statement. Parson cited research from Pew Charitable Trusts, saying Missouri is a top-five state for general revenue spending on Medicaid. The See MEDICAID, A7
Preparing to reopen churches – safely Clergy Coalition distributes masks and public health guidance
Bishop Elijah Hankerson, president of the St. Louis Metropolitan Clergy Coalition, spoke with Myron Gray of God In Action and Reverend Darryl Gray, a member of the Clergy Coalition, at Lively Stone Church of God, 4015 St. Louis Ave. in the city’s Ville neighborhood, on Tuesday, May 26. The coalition is distributing over 125,000 protective masks to churches.
By Chris King Of The St. Louis American Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III knows that some local pastors are preparing to open the doors of their churches now that public health orders to control the COVID-19 pandemic have been lifted in St. Louis city and county. (He also knows that some local pastors defied the law and medical advice and kept their doors open for worship throughout the stay-at-home orders.) But he is keeping the doors shut at Life Center International COGIC, the church he leads in Baden, for See CHURCHES, A7
Photo by Wiley Price
From Jennings to Harvard Malik Sediqzad will study architecture at Ivy League school By Ashley Jones For The St. Louis American
Photo by Wiley Price
Memory day Crystal Brown visited with her parents on Memorial Day in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, along with her great-granddaughters Raniyah Riley, 9, a student at Combs Elementary School and Rayleigh Riley, 4.
Nurse Nellie Smith held the hand of Kayden Tree, 8, before inserting a swab into his nose for a COVID19 test specimen at CareSTL Health in North St. Louis on Monday, May 11.
Malik Sediqzad is the first Harvard-bound graduate from Jennings School District in 20 years. He will study architecture, which he said combines his love of math with his passion to draw. “I feel like architecture is an art form, but it’s functional,” Sediqzad said. “It’s not just something that you can look at, it’s something you can use too.” Sediqzad received a perfect score on the math portion of his ACT and an overall composite score of 35. He mentioned his math teacher and Malik Sediqzad National Honor Society advisor Maria Gazi as an inspirational figure from the district. “From my 15 years of experience in Jennings, he is the most intelligent student I’ve had,” Gazi said. “He is honest. He is a leader, by example. He is a wonderful person, very curious.” Sediqzad grew up in Jennings and was nurtured by the district from an early age. “The teachers and students that I’ve seen since I was five, they inspire me to do better,” Sediqzad See MALIK, A6
What about the children? COVID-19 hitting area black children, youth harder than whites By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American
Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI
The number of COVID-19 cases among black children compared to white children in the City of St. Louis is concerning and begs a deeper look, said Dr. Will Ross, chair of the City of St. Louis’ Joint Board of Health and Hospitals during a May 22 meeting. As of May 27, 27 African-American children between the ages 10-19 had tested positive for COVID-19 in the city, compared to eight white children in that age group. For those 9 and under, 8 black children and fewer than 5 white children have tested positive, according to the city’s
website. “This is the area that we will have to focus on as a board going forward,” said Ross, who leads the 13-member board that advises the city’s public health director. “These are school-age kids, and we talk about returning to schools. We’ve all been getting lots of questions about ‘when is it safe? Is this population safe?’” St. Louis Public Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams told The St. Louis American that the information Ross presented was “brand new” to him. “Safety is a big concern for us,” Adams said. “We want See CHILDREN, A6