Midwest

As pro-choice advocates push for more reproductive rights, Republicans in Missouri and Ohio are undertaking attempts to thwart those efforts.

Local police raided the offices of the Marion County Record and the home of its publisher, in an unprecedented and potentially illegal move that is being called a violation of First Amendment rights.

As the nation learns more about the raid of the Marion County Record, staffers at the publication keep working while advocates for press freedom offer support and demand answers from the local police.

Seven hundred seventy million of the National Archives' 13.5 billion pages of records are currently stored around the Kansas City metro. Dr. Colleen Shogan, recently named Archivist of the United States, wants to make them more accessible, both online and in-person.

A slowdown in the agricultural industry is "going to put a strain on farmers." But analysts say the rural economy in the Midwest and Great Plains is still doing well.

On Friday, the Supreme Court handed down a decision that dismayed millions of people who were hoping for debt relief through President’s Biden program. Many of those borrowers live in the Midwest states that brought the case to the high court.

Legislatures in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska, passed new laws decried by LGBTQ+ communities and their allies. Still, the month of June brought exuberant Pride celebrations around the region.

In post-Roe America, Kansas has become one of the most traveled to states for abortion care. Despite nearly 60% of Kansans voting to protect the constitutional right to abortion last August, Republican lawmakers have passed several anti-abortion laws this year.

For two years, federal funds have been available for states to extend postpartum health care from two months to a full year for moms on Medicaid. The policy is popular across the Midwest, with Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska all adopting an extension. Iowa remains hesitant.

In April 2023 alone, floods hit numerous regions of the United States, including land-locked states like Kansas, Tennessee and Colorado. With warmer temperatures and human activity causing the oceans to rise and the ground to sink, flooding is now a question of “when,” not “if.” NOAA oceanographer WIlliam Sweet explains why those disasters are getting worse and how we can prepare for a “floodier future.”

In April 2023 alone, floods hit numerous regions of the United States, including land-locked states like Kansas, Tennessee and Colorado. With warmer temperatures and human activity causing the oceans to rise and the ground to sink, flooding is now a question of when, not if. But there are still things we can do to prepare for this "floodier future."

Mid-America Arts Alliance has a relatively low-key presence in Kansas City, but it has a big impact across the Midwest — enriching cultural and creative life through exhibition programming, grant making and professional development for artists.