I hate to see that evening sun go down
I hate to see that evening sun go down
‘Cause my lovin’ baby done left this town

If I feel tomorrow like I feel today
If I feel tomorrow like I feel today
I’m gonna pack my trunk and make my getaway

Oh, that St. Louis woman with her diamond rings
She pulls my man around by her apron strings
And if it wasn’t for powder and her store-bought hair
Oh, that man of mine wouldn’t go nowhere

I got those St. Louis blues, just as blue as I can be
Oh, my man’s got a heart like a rock cast in the sea
Or else he wouldn’t have gone so far from me

I love my man like a schoolboy loves his pie
Like a Kentucky colonel loves his rocker and rye
I’ll love my man until the day I die, Lord, Lord

I got the St. Louis blues, just as blue as I can be, Lord, Lord
That man’s got a heart like a rock cast in the sea
Or else he wouldn’t have gone so far from me

I got those St. Louis blues
I got the blues, I got the blues, I got the blues
My man’s got a heart like a rock cast in the sea
Or else he wouldn’t have gone so far from me, Lord, Lord

–W.C. Handy

There’s no end in sight it seems. Cancel Culture’s ever-expanding effort to stamp out every vestige of history’s imperfect protagonists has reached the saints — Louis, to be exact.

As reported earlier today by KMOX (ironically known as “The Voice of St. Louis”):

ST. LOUIS (KMOX) – A petition has been made with hopes of changing the city’s name in St. Louis and taking down a statue of its namesake, Saint Louis IX in Forest Park. The creators say the city’s name is “outright disrespect” to Jewish and Muslim residents and they’re asking for support.

…

“For those unfamiliar with King Louis IX he was a rabid anti-semite who spearheaded many persecutions against the Jewish people. Centuries later Nazi Germany gained inspiration and ideas from Louis IX as they embarked on a campaign of murderous genocide against the Jewish people. Louis IX was also vehemently Islamophobic and led a murderous crusade against Muslims which ultimately cost him his life,” the petition states.

Alright. I’ll freely admit to not being well-acquainted with Louis-9’s history. Based on this petition, it sounds like he wasn’t a great guy. Though he was canonized in 1297, his actions as described aren’t exactly saintly.

This is the first I’ve heard of sentiment among the region’s Jewish denizens that they find our city/county’s namesake disrespectful or troubling — and I have Jewish family members and am fairly dialed into the Jewish community in St. Louis. You’d think if this was a thing, I’d have heard whispers of it somewhere along the line. You’d think.

Anyhoo, the advocates of this change have suggested alternative names for the Gateway City: “Confluence” or “Scott” (as in Dred Scott — because this was the site of his (in)famous trial.) So…would our teams become the “Scott Cardinals”? The “Confluence Blues”? Would East St. Louis (Illinois) go along for the ride and become “East Scott”?

Frankly, I’m not sure how much steam this movement is going to pick up. They did manage to get Columbus’ statue taken down from a local park earlier this week. And there’s been some talk of renaming streets that harken back to bad guys. But renaming an entire metropolitan area of 3 million people (and all the related businesses, governmental entities, schools, etc.) seems like a tall order.