The Cardinals have already had a minority manager
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Mayor Jones unfazed by gunshots
Gunfire occurred while speaking to press about gun violence
Photo by Bill Greenblatt / St. Louis American
St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones addressed gun violence with Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas in St. Louis on Friday, Oct. 29. During the briefing, five gunshots rang out from a nearby house prompting many at the press conference to take cover inside a building. Neither mayor flinched nor left following the gun shots.
Dr. Matifadza Hlatshwayo-Davis began work last month
By Dana Rieck The St. Louis American
See PHYSICIAN, A7
A lost young life changed counselor Yolanda Curry’s forever
Yolanda Curry didn’t always plan to work with youth. After getting her degree in journalism from Mizzou, she worked in the field and did communications work for the City of St. Louis. One day, while sitting in church, Curry’s career path changed. “I just remember being in a church service on Sunday and hearing about a young person in our community that I didn’t even know, but that young person had committed suicide,” she said. “It just really touched my heart. I just kind of said to myself that I wanted to do something to help other young Yolanda people not go down that path, Curry even if it was just one individual.” So, Curry began her quest to find work that allowed her to shape the lives of young people. She started a service club at the local school where one of her children attended, teaching students to value
Physician to lead with equity as city’s health director Dr. Matifadza Hlatshwayo-Davis began her new role as the city’s health director Oct. 20 and has taken time to listen to people who have been working in the department for years, and in some cases, decades. The infectious disease expert said she committed to a listening tour before starting the job because she didn’t want to start from scratch. So, she’s held meetings with members of her department, leaders of all her bureaus and community leaders across the city. She told The St. Louis American it’s been illuminating, particularly because it’s easy to come into something with preconceived ideas about where to start with a new job. “From the staff, just understanding …. these are people who are not paid as much as they should be,” Hlatshwayo-Davis said. “These are people who are burnt out and
Salute to Excellence In Education
By Sophie Hurwitz The St. Louis American
By Dana Rieck The St. Louis American
See JONES, A6
COMPLIMENTARY
‘I wanted to help other young people’
KC mayor visits St. Louis for two-day tour
Someone fired at least four gunshots Friday just blocks away as St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones and Kansas City n “My son and Mayor Quinton I fall asleep to Lucas spoke the lullaby of about gun viogunshots in the lence prevention outside the Cure distance every night because I’m Violence center in Dutchtown. the first mayor in As the shots over 20 years to rang out, Jones briefly stopped be born, raised what she was sayand still live in ing, smirked and North St. Louis.” said, “Oh, well, isn’t that wonder—St. Louis Mayor ful.” Tishaura Jones “Well, I hear gunshots in my neighborhood every night,” she added. “My son and I fall asleep to the lullaby of gunshots in the distance every night because I’m the first mayor in over 20 years
Vol. 93 No. 32
See SALUTE, A7
City legislators release first redistricting map draft BOA tasked with cutting wards in half By Dana Rieck The St. Louis American
Photo by Wiley Price / St. Louis American
Dr. Mati Hlatshwayo Davis is the new Director of the Department of Health.An infectious disease expert, Dr. Hlatshwayo Davis will be the first Black woman Health Director in St. Louis history.
City legislators released the first draft of a proposed district map Monday, cutting the 28 wards down to 14. The new map is evenly split between majority white voters and majority Black voters, roughly mirroring the city’s current population, according to the 2020 census. The St. Louis Board of Aldermen Legislation Committee is in charge of the process and by law, must have a final map drawn and passed by the full board by Dec. 31. Aldermanic President Lewis Reed told The St. Louis American the aim is to make a balanced map, where half of the 14 wards would be populated by a majority of Black people and other minorities. He said one of the other main concerns they’ve heard from the public thus far is people don’t want city neighborhoods to be broken up into different
See REDISTRICTING, A6