St. Louis on the Air

After decades of disinvestment and a lack of engagement by city leadership, many Black St. Louisans report feelings of hopelessness, unsure of what to do or who to turn to. When problems like crumbling infrastructure and food deserts remain unresolved, people become less interested in local government, and in turn, the work of elected officials goes unchecked. Kelly McGowan believes that civics education is the answer to solving many problems the city faces, and that’s what she aims to provide via her nonprofit Transform 314.

Michael Vines’ grandfather, Harry Beckerman, arrived in St. Louis in 1919. The Jewish immigrant from Poland was escaping violence and oppression and, in north St. Louis, he set up a shoe repair shop. That true story serves as the inspiration for, “Harry Gets Wise,” a new novel deeply rooted in St. Louis history and culture.

Seven out of 10 Missouri students are not reading at fourth grade proficiency, and only one in 10 Black students reads at proficiency expected by that grade. With the “Right to Read” campaign, St. Louis and St. Louis County NAACP chapters aim to boost literacy in the region and raise Black student performance to meet state academic standards. St. Louis NAACP education chair Ian Buchanan and former teacher and literacy advocate Kareem Weaver discuss the importance of implementing educational techniques rooted in the science of reading and promoting collaboration between communities, parents and teachers.

During Black History Month, St. Louis Public Radio is participating in the “Lift Every Voice” initiative, which highlights the lives and accomplishments of more than 50 Black Americans throughout history. The project was created by a familiar voice in St. Louis: Geri Mitchell, who hosted Morning Edition on STLPR from 2013 to 2017. Now the midday host at WAMU in Washington D.C., Mitchell joined St. Louis on the Air to discuss the project, and its goal to call attention to “the countless contributions of African Americans, many of whom were and are still obscured in history.”

Film and TV award season means increased attention to diversity of talent in front of and behind the lens. Critiques about lack of diversity in media production apply to St. Louis, where Black people are the largest non-white population – yet less than 2% of staff in local commercial video production houses. Kyle Montgomery and Quinsonta Boyd of Continuity, a nonprofit that helps more St. Louis creatives from marginalized communities prepare for and start careers in media, share ways they make getting a foot in the door possible.

A majority of the top ten recipients of federal COVID-19 relief funds via Missouri’s State Assistance For Housing Relief program are privately owned property managers or landlords located in St. Louis. Despite receiving up to six and seven figures in aid, many of these companies failed to provide basic maintenance or upkeep of their apartment complexes. Journalist Mike Fitzgerald discusses his latest report on the SAFHR program and the problems that stemmed from the funds being awarded with little accountability.

While elected leaders are celebrating a decline in crime in the region, community members — especially those who've lost loved ones to violent crime — think the celebration is premature and unwarranted. STLPR reporter Lacretia Wimbley discusses her reporting on the topic, including a conversation with Precious Jones, a mother whose son was killed in the summer of 2022.

Celebrating Lunar New Year is a longstanding tradition for Vietnamese St. Louisans. Kris Le and Tila Nguyen speak to the history of the nonprofit St. Louis Vietnamese Community, its place among other AANHPI organizations in the region, and what’s planned for two Vietnamese Lunar New Year events happening this February.

U.S. Rep. Jason Smith, a Republican from Salem, withstood bipartisan scorn of legislation that boosts the Child Tax Credit and provides business tax incentives. STLPR political correspondent Jason Rosenbaum talked with Smith about the legislation and the road ahead it now faces in the U.S. Senate.

Each year, an estimated 60,000 acres of wetlands are lost in the United States. They are the most threatened ecosystem in the country. Shaw Nature Reserve's restoration and land stewardship manager Mike Saxton talks about current threats to wetlands and makes the case for why we should preserve and build upon the few, but critically important, wetlands that remain.

St. Louis’ best theater performances and productions of the year are being honored once again. On Friday, the St. Louis Theater Circle announced its award nominations, covering approximately 100 shows from 2023. Theater critics Michelle Kenyon and James Lindhorst join the show.

A special SLMPD police unit, created to investigate police shootings, was the subject of a damning audit in 2018. Six years later, only portions of that audit have found their way to the public eye. St. Louis Post-Dispatch metro columnist Tony Messenger obtained portions of the audit, which found problems in all 50 of the unit’s investigations between 2014 and 2018. Messenger shares his findings and insights into the ongoing efforts to obtain the full audit.

Caroline Eiseman has donned the big hair of teen dance phenom Tracy Turnblat in more than 100 performances of “Hairspray.” The St. Louis native shares her insights into the role, what it took to land the part and what it will mean when she performs in her hometown later this month.

Was it legal for Starbucks to fire two baristas who fought back against a robbery? This month’s Legal Roundtable convenes to discuss the legal merits behind a wrongful termination suit by a St. Louis Starbucks employee. Attorneys Sarah Swatosh, Eric Banks and Bevis Schock also discuss what’s next for Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s lawsuit against the People’s Republic of China and a purported class action lawsuit over the city's aborted curbside recycling program.

According to Dr. Alex Garza, the best way to prepare for a future pandemic is to improve social resources, such as food access, education and transportation. Garza, who serves as Chief Community Health Officer at SSM Health, shares major takeaways from the acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, how pandemics and wars have a “tremendous amount in common,” and the extent to which institutions — and the general public — are ready for future disease outbreaks.

Southwest Airlines will now carry naloxone on flights — that’s in part due to the efforts of Ballwin resident John Gaal who has lobbied the airline to include the opioid overdose-reversal drug in its emergency kits. Gaal witnessed the medication’s ability to save lives first-hand when he stepped in to administer naloxone to a fellow passenger on a Southwest Airlines flight in October 2022. He reflects on that moment, the importance of greater access to the drug and what needs to happen next for flight crews to better respond to overdoses while in the air.

Wayne Pratt joined St. Louis Public Radio in June 2014. For nearly a decade he anchored morning newscasts at the station and later, became host of the station's weekday morning podcast "The Gateway." After a national search, Wayne was selected and promoted to the position of Broadcast Operations Manager. He joins us to talk about his experiences of being on the air in St. Louis for about 10 years.

On January 24, Louisiana bounty hunter Wayne Lozier was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison. St. Louis on the Air featured his case in October, exploring the dramatic story of bounty hunters, bail, and body cameras. In this rebroadcast, Katie Kull, courts reporter for the St. Louis Post Dispatch, describes her experience covering Lozier’s trial from the courtroom. She discusses the bounty hunter industry, Lozier’s defense, and the trial’s dramatic verdict. We also provide an update on Lozier’s sentencing last week.

After months of crowdsourcing recipes that reflect the cultural and culinary diversity of St. Louis, the Global Foods Market Cookbook is published and available for purchase at the grocer’s storefront in Kirkwood. Shayn Prapaisilp, chief operating officer of Global Foods Market, Inc. shares a sample of the recipes featured in the Global Foods Market Cookbook, as well as personal stories from the chefs themselves.

Earlier this week, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson delivered his final State of the State speech. In this episode of the “Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air” from the Missouri State Capitol, Parson talks with STLPR reporters Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg about his priorities and legacy. We also hear analysis of his speech, and hear the Democratic reaction from Rep. Ashley Aune.

The city of St. Louis has brought a lawsuit against six Missouri residents who the city says are running a massive illegal rooming house operation in nearly every neighborhood in south city. Riverfront Times staff writer Ryan Krull shares how the operation may have been heavily subsidized by taxpayers through pandemic relief funding, why it took so long for the city to take action, and the effect the lawsuit may have on other problem landlords operating in St. Louis. Tower Grove East resident Joe Goodman, who lives near two of the defendant’s properties, also joins the conversation.

The untimely death of Antoinette “Bonnie” Candia-Bailey and allegations of mistreatment while serving as Lincoln University’s vice president of student affairs has sparked conversation about hostile work environments and bullying across industries — particularly with employees that are part of marginalized communities. Wash U sociology professor Adia Harvey-Wingfield discusses research on who’s most likely to face such situations and how to avoid further tragedy.

In his final State of the State Address, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson outlined his priorities for the year and reflected upon his legacy. In edition to the Governor's speech, this episode includes pre- and post-analysis from STLPR journalists Sarah Kellogg and Jason Rosenbaum.

The historic, four-story building at 3509 Page Boulevard is an example of abandonment. Built in 1927, the former ABC Auto Sales and Investment Company building’s roof is crumbling onto the sidewalk, and it’s been broken into, boarded up, and broken into again. St. Louis developer Paul McKee has been ordered to repair the building in a first-time ruling on one of hundreds of properties he owns under his NorthSide Regeneration project. Attorney Peter Hoffman discusses the ruling and what it may mean for other neighborhoods where McKee owns property.

There are few hairstyles more divisive than the mullet. The hairdo has historically been scoffed at by the mainstream yet has thrived in its fringes. The mullet — known by some as "the Missouri Compromise" — has been associated with professional or aspiring hockey stars, 80s pro wrestlers and hair metal rockers. Barber Sir Carrawell and hairstylist Onawa Brown share their thoughts on the retro hairdo and why they think it’s made it from the fringe back into pop culture.

Trans kids and their families are being targeted by dozens of proposed bills in the Missouri legislature. But deciding how, when, and why to transition is actually a conversation parents and kids have been having for years — without lawmakers. In this rebroadcast from March 2023, three sets of parents, as well as their children, each trans boys between the ages of 9 and 11, discuss what it’s like to grow up trans in Missouri, from how they chose their own names, to their thoughts on why so many adults in the state legislature don’t accept them the way they are.

The St. Louis Reparations Commission has been extended until September 9. In this encore broadcast, we listen back to a July conversation with commission members Gwen Moore and Kayla Reed.

While Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri is happy to accept volunteer mentors from all walks of life, they are seeking more Black men to “step up” to mentor the Black boys enrolled in their program. Ericka Sanders, Vice President of Volunteer Recruitment and mentor Andre Walker share their experiences along with data behind the importance of mentoring and representation.

This fall, St. Louis University will launch a program that will allow students to graduate with a B.S. and M.S. in speech-language pathology in five years, one year sooner than a traditional six-year track. The effort comes after projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics that the profession is expected to grow 19% by 2032. Dr. Travis Threats, professor and chair of St. Louis University’s Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, and graduate student Lucy Heller join the show.

Road rage is very commonplace, and it can also be very scary. St. Louis clinical psychologist Dr. Helen Friedman breaks down the reasons why road rage is so prevalent, how we can curb it, and ways to stay safe and avoid confrontation with others on the road.

Tiny Desk-inspired “Sessions of St. Louis” features local musicians performing one-take, no-audience concerts in intimate settings. St. Louis Gram creative director Natalia Parr describes the origin and goals of the series, and singer/songwriter Alexia Simone talks about her experience with “Sessions” as an artist.

Irish musician Eimear Arkins travels all over the world, but calls two places home: St. Louis, Missouri, and County Clare, Ireland. She shares how her new album “Here & There” celebrates her connections to both places, how to practice the Irish tradition of lilting, and the significance of singing in the Irish language.

Word In Black — a digital news collaborative that includes 10 Black newspapers across the U.S., including the St. Louis American — has moved from pilot to public benefit corporation. STLPR race, identity, and culture reporter Andrea Henderson speaks to what the change means for local Black publishers, and for Black journalists serving African American communities across the country.

The latest Sauce Magazine issue is a treat for fans of soups and sweets. Sauce writer Ileana Martinez runs down her favorite winter soups, including Doenjang Jjigae at Joo Joo Restaurant & Karaoke, and the Sopa de Pollo (chicken soup) at Merendero Las Catrachitas. Then, we meet chocolate maker Flynn Edgerton, featured on Sauce’s list of “Ones to Watch,” who has found a home for his passion at Sump Coffee.

St. Louis County Councilwoman Kelli Dunaway has announced that she will not seek another term in office. The Chesterfield Democrat represents the council’s 2nd District and says that political turmoil during the COVID-19 pandemic played a significant role in her decision not to run again. On the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, she also discusses rifts that developed between Democrats on the council.

U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer is opting to retire in 2024, bringing an end to a congressional career in which he became a major figure on financial services issues. The St. Elizabeth Republican’s decision will likely prompt a sizable GOP primary to represent the state’s 3rd District, which takes in portions of the St. Louis area. On this episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, Luetkemeyer reflects on his career and the future of the district.

U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt has more experience as a Missouri state senator than a U.S. senator, but after his first year in Washington he says he’s seen a big difference with how Congress handles funding for the federal government. In this wide-ranging interview on the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, Schmitt discusses the latest budget standoff, funding for Ukraine, support for Israel and more.

Are you the sort of Midwesterner who goes outside when tornado sirens go off to watch Mother Nature get crazy? Then you might be exactly who the National Weather Service - St. Louis wants to train to be a storm spotter. Meteorologist Matt Beitcher shares details on upcoming classes and how storm spotters can help save lives by collecting and sharing real-time weather data.

On December 29, 2013, Donnie Erwin drove off from his home in Camden County, Missouri. It was the last time the 59-year-old Army veteran was seen alive. His fate became a mystery that persisted for the next decade — and ended last month, when police announced they had recovered Erwin’s vehicle and remains from the bottom of a pond within miles of his home. James Hinkle, a freelance videographer and operator of the Echo Divers YouTube channel, located Erwin’s car. Hinkle takes us behind the scenes of his search; and Erwin’s sister, Yvonne Erwin-Bowen, shares her reflections about her brother’s life.

The show explores the groups and people working to meet the needs of the foreign-born people who building new lives here in St. Louis. We examine first the stories of two asylum seekers, Karla Mera and Juan Carlos Lopez, who fled their home country of Belize. Next, we get to know three local groups working with these populations, and who share their hopes/concerns about a plan to bring migrants from Chicago to St. Louis. The panel includes Carlos Ruiz Martinez, Director of Client Support Services at the MICA Project, Sarah Caldera Wimmer, Director of Emotional and Physical Wellness at LifeWise STL, and Kris Walentik, an immigration attorney with St. Francis Community Services, a ministry of Catholic Charities.

While the U.S. was on the brink of Civil War, a secret organization of Black men convened in St. Louis to plot an insurrection. We take a look at that clandestine plan and how an insubordinate war hero ticked off President Lincoln with his antics to free enslaved Missourians with Cicely Hunter of the Missouri Historical Society and Cathy Hart from the Friends of Father Dickson Cemetery.

Music therapy can reduce stress and anxiety, improve memory, elevate mood, and contribute to pain management and physical rehabilitation. For kids who live with life-altering medical conditions, and find themselves in and out of the hospital for procedures and treatments, music therapy might be one of the only places they can truly let loose to speak, or sing, their truth. The St. Louis nonprofit the Song Society facilitates songwriting sessions, as well as recording and performance opportunities, to offer outlet to such kids, teens and their families.

It seems that, nowadays, you can’t open a social media app without seeing zodiac content about specific sun signs or having folks worried about Mercury going into retrograde. But for millennia, the practice of astrology was more than pop culture fodder to consume. Astrologer Jade Moore tracks the cosmos personally and professionally at her store Sincerely, the Craft in Midtown. She joins the show to give a crash course on astrology’s history, culture and practice.

A newly unearthed ancient temple in Italy complicates the history of paganism and Christianity in the Roman Empire. Douglas Boin, a history professor at Saint Louis University, talks about his team’s discovery of an imperial cult temple that dates back to the fourth century.

Missouri lawmakers opened the 2024 session this week with GOP majority leaders of the House and Senate expressing optimism that they can accomplish major policy initiatives. That's despite election year pressures and a softening budgetary picture that may make it challenging to have a productive session. STLPR statehouse reporter Sarah Kellogg discusses what's ahead for this year's term in Jefferson City.

A recent vote by St. Louis Public Schools board members means fewer kids will have a St. Louis College Kids Savings account through the City of St. Louis’ College Kids program. Our guests dive into the origin of the program, and why it's drawn scrutiny from journalists and critics. They also explore how children’s savings accounts can help kids see higher education as an option, not just a possibility.

Since legal sales of medical marijuana started in Missouri in 2020 and adult recreational cannabis in 2023, business around all things marijuana has become a billion-dollar business. Missouri Independent journalist Rebecca Rivas talks about her recent coverage of Missouri’s cannabis industry, including a 60,000-product recall – and how lawsuits and politics could shape the industry in 2024.

In the fall of 2022, a Missouri law went into effect that opened school officials to possible criminal charges if they provide “explicit sexual content” to students. That has had a chilling effect on librarians, and it resulted in Missouri removing the third highest number of books from library shelves, following Florida and Texas. STLPR reporter Kate Grumke talks with Mernie Maestas, the lead librarian for the Wentzville School District in St. Charles County.

When Central Visual and Performing Arts High School student Ray Strickland performed his original song “Time for Change” at the St. Louis Teen Talent Competition in 2023, he sang in recognition of his cousin who he lost to gun violence, of George Floyd, who was murdered shortly after Strickland wrote the song, and in reflection of the mass shooting at his school months earlier. He shares what he is up to now and his belief in the power of the “universal language” of music.

D.B. Cooper’s 1971 airplane hijacking did more than just create an American crime legend: He inspired copycats, including in St. Louis in 1972. The St. Louis caper forms the core of University of Missouri history professor John Wigger's new book, “The Hijacking of American Flight 119: How D.B. Cooper Inspired a Skyjacking Craze and the FBI’s Battle to Stop It." Wigger interviewed McNally, who was released from federal prison in 2010, and more than a dozen retired FBI agents. Wigger spoke with St. Louis on the Air producer Danny Wicentowski.