Activism

Increased immigration enforcement in Olathe is worrying some. Students across Johnson County have staged protests against ICE, and a recent school walkout led to an altercation with pro-Trump students and several arrests.

CUNY constitutional law professor Gloria J. Browne-Marshall, a Kansas City native, will return to her hometown next month for a Rainy Day Books event about her new book “A Protest History of the United States.”

To prepare for increased immigration enforcement activity, Boots on the Ground Midwest has organized neighborhood groups, facilitated mutual aid and trained thousands to legally observe and record officers. Interest in their trainings spiked after the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis.

Kansas Citians are taking to the streets to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. After the killing of Renee Good, a former Kansas City resident, a demonstration marched through the Country Club Plaza. Meanwhile, local groups are warning each other about potential ICE activity.

A champion of women and children’s rights, Kitchen is remembered by those who knew her as someone who never gave up on a cause. Throughout her career, she has won many awards for her activism and gained recognition from the White House for her work.

A federal judge ruled Friday that University of Missouri System President Mun Choi violated students' freedom of speech when he barred the group Mizzou Students for Justice in Palestine from taking part in the Homecoming parade. The judge ruled Choi excluded the group because of its views on Israel and Palestine.

Scott Poore, founder of On A Mission KC, helps overlooked pets find a home and provides resources for rural animal shelters. It recently earned him the Spirit of Service award from the Kansas City Animal Health Corridor, which came with a check for $20,000 to continue his work.

In 1977, Judy Heumann led a 26-day occupation of a federal building that pressured the government to enforce a key civil rights law known as Section 504. Decades later, as the Missouri and Kansas attorneys general try to weaken those protections, activists are putting up another fight.

Signed 35 years ago this month, the ADA was the world’s first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities — guaranteeing equal opportunity in public accommodations, employment, and more. But it likely wouldn't have passed without the relentless pressure of grassroots activists and Kansas Republican Bob Dole.

President Trump's mass deportation efforts have led to the arrests of tens of thousands of immigrants, some of whom end up at the Phelps County Jail in Rolla, Missouri. Now some local activists are trying to provide comfort and assistance to detainees stuck in an unfamiliar place.

The Lawrence Gay Liberation Front has, under various names, challenged misconceptions about LGBTQ+ students at the University of Kansas for 45 years. Now, a book tells those students' stories. Plus: A Kansas museum dedicated to "The Wizard of Oz" is showcasing a movie prop that's never been seen by the public.

A new art project commemorating the Conley sisters will be unveiled in Kansas City, Kansas, this summer. The exhibit will help tell how the siblings and Wyandot Nation activists banded together to protect a burial ground in the early 1900s.