Devon Alexander, trainer prep for fight with heavy hearts amid Ferguson turmoil

LAS VEGAS – The last thing that Kevin Cunningham wants to do is make things more difficult for Devon Alexander.

The southpaw from St. Louis already has a tough assignment, as he faces Amir Khan on Saturday in the main event of a Golden Boy Promotions card at the MGM Grand on Showtime.

But there is more meaning in this fight than there has been in most for Alexander, a former world champion, and Cunningham, his highly respected trainer.

Cunningham, who grew up in Ferguson, Mo., and attended Ferguson Junior High and McClure High School, spent nine years on the St. Louis police force. He recently opened a business, Knockouts Bar & Grill, in Florissant, Mo., which is located on the border between Florissant and Ferguson.

It has been a traumatic four months for people like Cunningham and Alexander, who live in and around Ferguson. Ever since Aug. 9, when unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown Jr. was fatally shot by then-Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson, the city and its residents have been embroiled in controversy.

Through it all, Cunningham and Alexander needed to prepare for one of the biggest fights of Alexander's life.

"We're definitely carrying this region on our shoulders into this fight," said Cunningham, who said Brown's father, Michael Brown Sr., will attend Saturday's bout. "We know what it would mean to this city and this region to bring back a huge victory to this city and this region. It's hard.

"There is this extra added pressure, but that's the situation we're in right now. We're living in a region that's highly depressed where there is a lot of unrest and a lot of injustice going on. A win would be our way of bringing a sigh of relief and injecting some positivity into this region..."

Cunningham has struggled to remain positive himself. On Nov. 22, his new restaurant opened, but what should have been a celebratory night ended in tragedy.

Knockouts was crowded, and a man tried to force his way in through the exit door. He was prevented from entering by bouncer Herb Burnett.

The man returned a short while later with a gun and shot Burnett to death. The video surveillance system Cunningham had installed captured the murder. Jamal T. Martin of St. Louis was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

"I got a high-tech surveillance system and we got everything on camera," Cunningham said. "He was arrested the next morning. They got the murder weapon. They got the clothes he was wearing. It should be an open-and-shut case and he should never see the daylight of the streets again."

On Nov. 24, the day the Ferguson grand jury declined to indict Wilson for Brown's shooting, Knockouts was closed. Cunningham kept the business closed out of respect for Burnett until after he was buried.

But when the grand jury decision came down and there was no indictment, Cunningham was smart enough to know that there could be trouble.

Cunningham decided to bring several members of his security staff with him to the business to sit in the restaurant, even though it was not open.

He narrowly avoided another tragedy.

"We were there to protect our business," Cunningham said. "We figured the looters were coming, and they started burning everything down. About 10 minutes before midnight, you had 50 carloads of young guys pull up in front of the place.

"We walked out with guns in hand and they stopped and one of them said, 'Oh, OK. We see you guys are ready.' They drove off and then went down, two doors down, and shot all over that place, a shoe store. They kicked the windows in, but they couldn't get in so they drove off. I have 50 high-def TVs and a great sound system and I guess they were coming to loot us and take all the TVs."

Cunningham has been a community leader for years and his boxing program has been credited repeatedly with saving lives, including Alexander's.

Cunningham, who is black, said he believes part of the problem in Ferguson is racial makeup of the city's leaders.

"I think 75 percent of the community is black and the leadership doesn't reflect the community it is serving," he said. "We have a 90-percent white police department. That becomes a recipe for problems.

"As a police officer, I attended many of these culture, diversity training sessions. They offer a lot of these courses for the police departments, but until you have a department that reflects the community it serves, we're not truly going to prevent these problems we're having."

Cunningham, who said he experiences racism at least on a weekly basis, blasted the looters and said they shouldn't be confused with protesters who are trying to rectify the problems.

He said financial strain has also increased the pressure on poor communities. Cuts that force the elimination of social programs that make a difference in communities are also part of the problem.

"For there to be real progress, it's not just the police departments that have to change," he said. "At the local, state and federal levels, all of them, they're killing off these after-school programs and things that help kids and disadvantaged people and communities. The funding isn't there. Those things helped and made a difference and the money isn't there any more.

"We also need leaders to step up and there has to be a focus on parenting, and instilling values in your children. We all have a role to play to solve this. But it's a hard time out there for a lot of people and there isn't much for a lot of people to look forward to."

A win for Alexander over Khan would boost the area's morale, Cunningham said.

Alexander is highly popular in his hometown and regularly attracts big crowds when he fights in St. Louis.

Cunningham knows it could all prove to be overwhelming, but he expects an inspiring performance from Alexander.

"There is no reason to heap pressure on Devon, but he knows what's up," Cunningham said. "This is a huge fight for him and a great opportunity, and with a win, this would be a fight people in that entire region would remember for a long, long time."