Lawrence Brooks IV
Race & Culture ReporterAs KCUR’s race and culture reporter, I work to help readers and listeners build meaningful and longstanding relationships with the many diverse cultures that make up the Kansas City metro. I deliver nuanced stories about the underrepresented communities that call our metro home, and the people whose historically-overlooked contributions span politics, civil rights, business, the arts, sports and every other realm of our daily lives.
Contact me at lbrooksiv@kcur.org.
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The first ever Juneteenth Film Festival in Kansas City is this year's launching pad for African American festivities. It's part of the largest and longest running celebration of the emancipation of enslaved people in the region.
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A Kansas City woman's escape from an Excelsior Springs home where she was being held captive in October sparked outrage, and confirmed fears within the Black community that police weren’t taking reports of missing Black women seriously. More than a month after Kansas City’s chief of police reinstated the department’s Missing Persons Section, community organizations are still wary.
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The Mayor's Commission on Reparations met for the first time on Tuesday, May 23 at City Hall. The group’s task is to study how slavery and racial segregation policies over the last century harmed Kansas City’s Black citizens in areas such as education and housing.
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KCK’s chief of police and the county district attorney are Black men. After years of police corruption, residents are hopeful — but worried — about how they'll handle a fatal police shooting.
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What started as a point of pride for many people in one of the city’s historic Mexican American neighborhoods, now includes car shops all over the metro, and builders and riders from every background.
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Visit KCK relaunched the food rewards program this week to give newcomers and frequent visitors a chance to explore Wyandotte County via its eclectic Hispanic food culture. It has added new prizes for potential “Taco Champions.”
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As the 16-year-old recovers at home and the alleged shooter, Andrew D. Lester, awaits trial after pleading not guilty to two felony charges, a diverse group of residents showed up this week to protests. The case has reignited anger about race, guns and policing.
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National civil rights leaders, local activists and community leaders held a press conference and led protestors Tuesday afternoon outside the Federal Courthouse in downtown Kansas City. They showed up to decry last week’s shooting of a Black teenager after he rang the wrong doorbell in a Northland neighborhood.
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Cindy Hohl has been with the Kansas City Public Library since 2017, and currently serves as its director of policy analysis and operational support.
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Pfc. Willy F. James Jr. was among seven African American troops unjustly denied the country’s highest military award for valor during World War II. Veterans and service members at James' memorial shared their thoughts on his legacy.