St. Louis on the Air

Tacos La Jefa is in St. Louis' Dutchtown neighborhood. The family restaurant was the subject of a recent episode of St. Louis Public Radio's podcast, "We Live Here Auténtico!" The podcast focuses on Latino culture and identity in St. Louis and beyond. This story begins with the matriarch of the Amezcua family, Heriberta Amezcua, also known as La Jefa, “the boss."

St. Louis was once home to two Major League Baseball teams. The St. Louis Browns signed Hank Thompson and Willard Brown in July 1947 making them the third and fourth Black American baseball players to cross the color barrier. This also made the St. Louis Browns the first MLB team to field two Black athletes. Historian and author Ed Wheatley joins St. Louis on the Air to share what this moment means to baseball history and the efforts to keep the history alive.

Delmar Divine is the brainchild of Build-A-Bear Workshop founder and philanthropist Maxine Clark. Occupying the site of the old St. Luke’s Hospital just north of Delmar Blvd. in St. Louis’ West End neighborhood, the project is Clark’s way to bridge the “Delmar Divide.” Delmar Divine Executive Director Jorge Riopedre and CEO/Founder of SoulFisher Ministries Shawntelle Fisher discuss how the effort is meeting the needs of local nonprofits and neighboring communities.

Like pollinators attracted to a flower, St. Louisans swarmed the Missouri Botanical Garden this week to smell "Luna," a 31-pound, six-foot corpse flower with a rare, rancid bloom. STLPR reporter Kate Grumpke was on the scene of the smells, and she reports what she experienced there.

SSM Health St. Louis University Hospital nurses say their departments are regularly understaffed and that hospital management has not done enough to address their concerns. National Nurses United union steward and SSM Health RN Sarah DeWilde and her recently retired colleague, RN Rita Reed, share how management can better support their work.

A serial sexual harasser spent five years preying on coworkers in the St. Louis County Jail before his firing earlier this year. That’s just one component of an ongoing investigation by Riverfront Times staff writer Ryan Krull, who discusses the overlapping scandals at the embattled jail.

From the dead of night to the early morning, Reverend Kenneth McKoy leads teams of pastors through dark St. Louis’ streets, seeking out people struggling with addiction, mental illness and homelessness. A new documentary, “Night Life,” tells his story. McKoy and the film's director, Seth Ferranti, discuss his ministry and the film before its July 17 premiere at the St. Louis International Film Festival.

Even in 2022, many people in rural areas have little to no access to high speed broadband. Missouri S&T Assistant Professor Casey Canfield shares details from her research into the needs, risks and costs of connecting rural areas with internet speeds that city residents take for granted.

On Tuesday, Dr. Colleen McNicholas, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood in the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, faced the Senate Judiciary Committee for a hearing on the impact of"Post-Roe America." McNicholas discusses the hearing and shares her eyewitness view of the end of abortion rights in Missouri.

High levels of lead in the Midwest puts all residents, especially children, at risk. Missouri Independent reporter Allison Kite shares details from an ongoing investigation into the causes and risks of high lead levels in the Midwest.

Annual physical fitness tests have become a cornerstone of military life. Each service has its own take on the once-a-year assessment but the country’s newest military branch is ditching that model. STLPR reporter Eric Schmid talks about how the Space Force plans to use wearable fitness devices to track physical activity throughout the year.

Glendale City Administrator Benjamin DeClue says that the St. Louis region has “become a poster child for political corruption.” To solve that problem, he argues, St. Louis and St. Louis County should adopt a council-manager form of government.

In the wake of several recent fatalities caused by high speed vehicle pursuits in the St. Louis region, St. Louis City NAACP President Adolphus Pruitt calls for policy reform within the St. Louis and St. Louis County police departments.

Roughly two years after he came close to unseating U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, Jason Kander found himself checking into a Veterans Administration facility to get help for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. A day later, he would go public about leaving electoral politics to tend to his mental health — a journey Kander recounts in vivid and often startling detail in his new book, “Invisible Storm: A Soldier’s Memoir of Politics and PTSD.”

In the wake of several recent fatalities caused by high speed vehicle pursuits in the St. Louis region, St. Louis City NAACP President Adolphus Pruitt calls for policy reform within the St. Louis and St. Louis County police departments

When Lt. Col. Rochelle Jones retired from the St. Louis police department last month, she was the highest-ranking Black woman in the department’s history. STLPR's Rachel Lippmann talks with Jones about her 39-year-career: how she rose through the ranks and about some of the opportunities and challenges she faced along the way.

For the Culture STL began as the passion project of activist and protester Ohun Ashe. Four years later, the group is staging multiple summer events and boosting Black businesses in St. Louis. Ashe previews those events and reflects on her years-long efforts to support Black businesses in St. Louis.

Many schools across the St. Louis area have more open positions than normal for this time of year. STLPR education reporter Kate Grumke joins the show to talk about why schools are faced with a shortage of teachers and support staff.

Since the age of 11, Thalia Cervantes Landeiro has been winning national competitions in her home country Cuba and abroad. Now based in St. Louis, she shares how chess is part of her culture’s identity and the influence St. Louis has on the professional chess world.

Chris Randall believes that anyone who wants to own a gun should receive proper training. In 2020, Randall founded Raider Defense Group. He’s trained about 75 people — particularly Black St. Louisans — how to be a responsible gun owner. Randall, a former police officer and U.S. Marine, joined the show in addition to one of his clients, Erica Alexander.

St. Louis lost a pillar of the Cherokee Street community in late June, when Minerva Lopez Montaigne passed away at the age of 60. Gabriela Ramirez Arellano, the co-host of “We Live Here Auténtico!” and others help celebrate Lopez Montaigne’s legacy.

Olajuwon Davis had big dreams for the theater stage and movie screen, but his arrest during the Ferguson protests of 2014 led to headlines about the Black Panthers, the FBI and a foiled bomb plot. After six years in federal prison, Davis is a free man and back on stage in St. Louis with the Black Rep. Joined by Black Rep founder Ron Himes, Davis discusses his downfall, his time in prison, and his new roles in “Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea.”

An analysis of 911 calls in St. Louis County shows that few are about violent crime. That raises questions about who is really best-suited to respond. Karishma Furtado, senior director of data and research at Forward Through Ferguson, joins the show to talk about reimagining public safety.

Jeremy D. Goodwin and Sarah Kellogg discuss proposed income tax cut.

Larry Morris, MC of the St. Louis hip-hop band iLLPHONiCS, established a new music festival to elevate rising hip-hop bands while introducing local audiences to the wide range of live hip-hop subgenres.

Former U.S. Attorney John Wood has launched an independent bid for the U.S. Senate. Most recently, he served as the senior investigative counsel for the House Select Committee on the January 6th Attack. Steve Vockrodt, investigative editor for the Midwest Newsroom, breaks down what effects this could have on the race.

Rep. Cori Bush sees several avenues to expand abortion rights at the federal level. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Missouri’s subsequent ban on most abortions, Bush wants Congress to codify abortion rights, expand the U.S. Supreme Court and repeal the Hyde Amendment.

In the wake of last week’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and Missouri’s trigger law — which effectively bans most abortions in the state — OB-GYN Dr. Jeannie Kelly has concerns about how the new state law will affect gynecological and obstetrics care.

A new Missouri Botanical Garden exhibition examines the relationship between sound and plants. Nezka Pfeifer, the curator of “Botanical Resonance: Plants and Sounds in the Garden,” will discuss how the new Stephen and Peter Sachs Museum exhibition reveals important things about how we interact with our environment.

Asian carp has a new name — copi. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into a rebranding effort and landed on the name “copi,” to reflect the copious amount of the fish that live in Midwestern rivers and streams. Harvest Public Media reporter Dana Cronin joins us to talk about this fish story.

A series of hard-hitting investigative stories exposed a decades-long history of abuse at an evangelical summer sports camp that hosts thousands of children every year. Journalist Nancy French describes what she found as she connected with victims, former campers, staffers and parents — as well as her efforts to trace a counselor fired for abuse to a St. Louis ministry.

Hall Of Famer Ted Simmons is an avid art collector along with his wife Maryanne Ellison Simmons. A new exhibition at the St. Louis Art Museum, “Catching The Moment,” is curated from the Simmons collection.

Trump-backed candidates prevailed in two key Illinois primary contests. Rep. Mary Miller bested Rep. Rodney Davis in Illinois’ 15th Congressional District. That race pitted two incumbents against one another. GOP gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey also emerged victorious by a large margin. NPR Illinois’ Hannah Meisel breaks down the results.

Para athletes from across North, South and Central America convene in St. Louis next week for the World Para Powerlifting Parapan American Open Championships. Missouri natives David Horvath and Brett Forbes discuss their love of powerlifting, what it takes to compete on Team USA, and their Paralympic dreams.

UMSL political scientist Anita Manion discusses the political ramifications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

A pilot program putting teams of healthcare workers on Metro Transit is making a difference in Illinois. The program is also growing in St. Louis City and County. Chestnut Health’s Emily Schwaegel and Jim Wallis discuss new data and the challenge of reaching riders experiencing mental health crises or homelessness.

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, and the end of most abortions in Missouri, Jason Rosenbaum talks with STLPR health reporter Sarah Fentem, Republican Missouri Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman and Bonyen Lee-Gilmore of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri.

NexGen Silica hopes to locate a 249-acre mine next to residential homes and popular conservation areas, including Hawn State Park. Residents explain how they’re fighting to protect their health and water from the mine — and the precedent they hope to set for other places with silica deposits.

The St. Louis Board of Aldermen presented Steve's Hot Dogs with a resolution declaring its St. Louis hot dog as the “Official Hot Dog of St. Louis.” Owner Steve Ewing explains the impetus — and the inspiration.

In her first one-on-one interview since the indictment of three city officials, St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones discusses results from the city’s ARPA survey, which sought input on spending the remaining $249 million allotment in COVID-19 relief funds. Jones also shares thoughts on the opportunity for incentive reform.

The Legal Roundtable discusses a high-profile case that could see Geico paying millions after a Missouri woman had sex in a car, as well as a lawsuit filed by a graduate student alleging Southern Illinois University Edwardsville wrongly ordered her to stay away from her classmates, and more.

For nine years, the St. Louis Story Stitchers have told stories from their lives using rap, rhythm, spoken word, singing, and dance. Youth Programming Coordinator Branden Lewis and singer She'kinah Taylor preview of the arts collective’s Juneteenth performances.

Dr. Sophia Roberts is a resident training to become a cardiothoracic surgeon — a rarity for females in the U.S. As if that wasn’t unique enough, she’s following in her dad’s footsteps. Dr. Harold Roberts is himself a cardiothoracic surgeon for more than 30 years. In honor of Father’s Day, the duo discussed their relationship and what it’s like to work at Barnes-Jewish Hospital together.

Homegrown ice cream company Clementine’s Creamery fell prey to an elaborate scam last week — one that owner Tamara Keefe explained had actually been attempted in the past at a different location. She explains how the scam artists tricked her employee — and why other businesses should be on the lookout.

Andrew Hartzler discusses his politically prominent aunt, U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, and why he’s joined a class-action lawsuit filed by LGBTQ students seeking to end an exemption in civil rights that allows anti-gay discrimination in religious colleges.

Club Riviera rivaled the Cotton Club in Harlem and attracted the biggest jazz acts of the day, including Nat King Cole and Duke Ellington. A new play “Live at the Riviera” aims to retell its origin story before it’s lost in history. Director Thomasina Clarke and Playwright Freeman Cole share how they collected oral histories to piece together events.

After St. Louis news anchor Michelle Li mentioned eating dumplings on a New Year’s broadcast, a viewer chastised her for being “very Asian.” She’s now turned that viral moment into a movement with the Very Asian Foundation. She discusses the organization’s push for schools and libraries to build and maintain robust Asian American youth literature collections.

The debut novelist and resident of Troy, Illinois, explains how family stories and the long-suppressed truth about Stalin terrorizing Ukraine led to her book “The Memory Keeper of Kyiv” — and the long process of researching and writing it.

Three teens were shot in downtown St. Louis at the beginning of June. 5th Ward St. Louis Alderman James Page shares what city officials are doing to bring order to the neighborhood, which includes banning scooters.

Emil Frei and Associates teamed up with muralist Cbabi Bayoc for a stained glass collaboration that changes how Jesus and Mary Magdalene are portrayed in liturgical art. Bayoc and fifth-generation owner Aaron Frei discuss the art of stained glass and their unique commission.