St. Louis Observer: October 29, 2021
Multiple area police departments sued over excessive force, brutality; Missouri prisons still have high rates of COVID; Wash U researchers to team up with Northside churches for air pollution study
Editor’s Note
We live in dark times in Missouri: a governor who is actively trying to remove all public health and safety measures to slow the spread of a deadly virus; an attorney general who has allocated more resources in his office to keep wrongfully convicted men and women behind bars; and a senator who supported and likely participated in an insurrection to overthrow the government earlier this year.
Just as frightening: seeing local elected officials continue to allow the taking of St. Louis’s Black history and co-opting it for white profits.
Millionaire white developer-slash-ghoul Paul McKee undoubtedly haunts North St. Louis. Earlier this week, City Hall opened its doors for community leaders and activists to gather for a town hall on McKee’s unilateral co-option of Homer G. Phillips’ name, which McKee intends to plaster onto a three-bed urgent care facility with the intent of “placat[ing] the African-American community.” St. Louis’ very own goblin was invited, again, to speak with residents to discuss his use and abuse of Homer G. Phillips’ legacy; instead, McKee refused to appear and, for months, he has refused to speak to residents or members of the press regarding yet another of his controversial development projects that lack community support.
McKee is no bogeyman: his very real, years-long reign of terror on North St. Louis has been empowered by St. Louis City politicians. For years, elected leaders like Board President Lewis Reed, aldermen, former mayors Lyda Krewson and Francis Slay, and even Attorney General Eric Schitt (who received $150,000 in campaign donations from McKee), have looked the other way as McKee’s NorthSide Regeneration project bought more than a thousand properties and allowed them to decay, driving down property values and causing further divestment. Instead of being the white savior - as McKee has envisioned himself in North City - he has become known for a monstrous lack of property maintenance and blockbusting. McKee has even been involved with the ongoing scandal of the Carpenters Union, which made a $1.56 million loan to NorthSide for the controversial medical facility.
North St. Louis is haunted by the ghosts of McKee’s failed projects and dollhoused properties, created by opaque shell corporations and all at the expense of Black families.
In the News
Police and prosecutorial accountability in the St. Louis region
Two Maryland Heights residents have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the municipality’s police department. The police are accused of illegally entering and searching Tranell Stewart’s and Lisa Jones’ home for failing to use a turn signal, then brutally beating Stewart, threatening Jones with violence and arrest, and threatening to place their children into the notorious state foster care system. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Robert Patrick]
The City of Brentwood has also been sued related to police brutality by its municipal police department. Trey Cockrell was shot by Brentwood Police 42 times, while unarmed, during a 2018 traffic stop and while Cockrell was a passenger, including 22 shots by an AR-15 rifle discharged by current Richmond Heights police officer Jeffrey Dulaney. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Robert Patrick]
A database managed by Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s Office has been found to contain criminal cases that have been sealed by the court or dismissed. Although the records are closed according to state Sunshine Laws, Gardner’s office continues to list those cases, potentially impacting employment and background searches for countless innocent persons. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Tony Messenger]
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has launched a “citywide” effort to crack down on municipal traffic violations such as speeding and running red lights, in a move that indicates police energy will not be placed into stopping or solving violent crimes in the City. Instead, traffic patrol will be moving officers into overtime roles to monitor around 18 intersections in the City, most of which are located in South City and the Central Corridor. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Erin Heffernan & Katie Kull]
Racism and divesting prevalent in St. Louis area public schools
A St. Charles middle school closed earlier this week after racist emails filled with hate speech and physical threats of violence to staff and students. While the administration did not disclose details of the threat, principal Dr. Diggs stated that the school was working with district officials and law enforcement to investigate and hold accountable the student(s) who made the threats. [KMOV/Nicole Sanders]
The St. Louis City Board of Alderman passed a resolution, calling for a moratorium on opening any new schools, including private and/or charter schools, in the City as St. Louis Public Schools. The nonbinding resolution reflects the ongoing education crisis in the City, which has seen half of its 30 charter schools closed since 2000, and the growing desire of SLPS to “pause” opening new schools as a comprehensive plan is developed and assessed. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Mark Schlinkmann]
Environmental justice comes into focus in North City
North City churches are teaming up with Washington University researchers to begin testing air quality by setting up monitors and samplers at churches. The data will be shared in real-time and will monitor pollution, which has caused elevated rates of asthma and other respiratory illnesses in the Black community. [KSDK/Tracy Hinson]
An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant has enabled the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to begin sampling small public drinking water systems to test for “forever chemicals,” known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or “PFAS.” These chemicals typically are found in food wrappers, stain-resistant fabrics, cleaning products, and cosmetics, and have been linked to reduced kidney function, thyroid disorders, and pregnancy complications. [Missouri Independent/Allison Kite]
Further reading
State funds are now available to nonprofit organizations in Riverview, Pagedale, St. Louis City, Hillsdale, Vinita Park, and Moline Acres, who work to deter crime in those areas. The Economic Distress Zone Fund grant program seeks to support nonprofits focused on addressing the root causes of crime, such as quality public education and jobs with sustainable living wages. The funds are administered and distributed through the Missouri Department of Public Safety. [Missouri Independent/Rebecca Rivas]
Missouri counties that include large state prisons are experiencing higher COVID rates, primarily due to the high transmission rates inside Missouri Department of Corrections facilities. A report released by Missouri Appleseed found that conditions in Missouri jails and prisons contributed to the spread of disease, as well as failing to screen staff members, new inmates, and visitors to facilities. [Missouri Independent/Rudi Keller]
State records show that at the end of September, Missouri had distributed only 18% of the $323.7 million of federal COVID relief funds designated for housing and utility assistance. Because of the deficiency in delivering funds to those who need it most, Missouri now risks losing millions and now is required to submit an improvement plan to the U.S. Department of the Treasury by November 15. [Missouri Independent/Rebecca Rivas]
As a state that has increased abortion rights and access, the state of Illinois has been serving as a haven for Texas (and Missouri) patients seeking abortions. Illinois clinics are preparing for an anticipated 14,000 more patients from Midwestern and Southern states as more states challenge Roe v. Wade and chip away at bodily autonomy. [Belleville News-Democrat/Kelsey Landis]
Filmmaker Ken Burns’ “Honor Your Hometown” project will feature the civil rights history of St. Louis, highlighting the lawsuits filed by enslaved persons to obtain their freedom before the Civil War and before the Dred Scott case. Mayor Tishaura O. Jones submitted a video to the project, asserting St. Louis’ place in the pantheon of cities with deep histories in the Civil Rights movement. [The Riverfront Times/Madyson Dixon]
Quote of the Week
“If you know me, you know I have been fighting for charter schools ever since I’ve been an elected official. I’ve been fighting for quality education ever since I’ve been an elected official. So to assume that I am [appearing at an Education and Youth Matters Committee meeting] on behalf of an organization, or somebody that I work closely with, is a slap in my face.”
Former State Senator Jamilah Nasheed in response to Alderman Bill Stephens’ questioning her relationship and advocacy for the Opportunity Trust.
Legislative & Legal Update
City of St. Louis
BB 112, introduced by Ald. Christine Ingrassia (Ward 6), would award Deli Star Corporation a 10-year tax abatement in exchange for an average wage of more than $65,000 for its 325 employees and an MOU with St. Louis Public Schools to provide employment opportunities for students & recent graduates as a condition of the tax incentives. The bill has been passed by the full Board and has been sent to the Mayor’s office.
BB 101, introduced by Ald. Vollmer (Ward 10) and President Reed, would allow the Board of Aldermen to redraw their own ward boundary lines in consideration of voter-approved ward reduction and recent census numbers. The bill remains in the Legislative Committee with no additional movement.
State of Missouri
The Missouri State Legislature is on recess until January 2022.