General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsKansas City to vote on removing King's name from street
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Emotions that simmered for nearly a year over the renaming of a historic major thoroughfare in Kansas City, Missouri, for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led to a tense scene at a black church as get-out-the vote efforts wound down ahead of residents going to the polls.
About 100 supporters of keeping the King name for the 10-mile (16.1-kilometer) boulevard were at a rally to court voters Sunday when opponents walked into the Paseo Baptist Church and stood along its two aisles. Those against the King name stood silently and did not respond to calls for them to sit down. Several speakers and people in the crowd told them they were being disrespectful.
On Tuesday, the debate will end, as voters decide if Kansas City's reputation as one of the largest cities in the U.S. without a street named for the iconic civil rights leader will cease. The boulevard had been named The Paseo, and a group named Save the Paseo collected 2,857 signatures in April far more than the 1,700 needed to have the name change put to a public vote. Many of the opponents who stepped inside the small church along the boulevard Sunday were wearing Save the Paseo T-shirts at the voter rally.
Many supporters of the Martin Luther King name have suggested the opponents are racist, saying Save the Paseo is a mostly white group and that many of its members don't live on the street, which runs north to south through a largely black area of the city. They say removing the name would send a negative image of Kansas City to the rest of the world, and could hurt business and tourism.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/kansas-city-to-vote-on-removing-kings-name-from-street/ar-AAJSjor?li=BBnb7Kz
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)RKP5637
(67,108 posts)Dennis Donovan
(18,770 posts)Hard to see any other legitimate reason for their opposition.
Such dark souls...
maxsolomon
(33,345 posts)Or, "Paseo de Martin Luther King Jr."?
Maybe a compromise that makes no one happy could be found - those are the best.
Coleman
(853 posts)The Paseo is an iconic boulevard that runs through the city. It used to have fountains, reflecting pools, yachting pools, sunken gardens, parks, and statues. Even much of the architecture of the homes was iconic. But age and years of neglect has turned it into anything but the showcase in the city of boulevards. If the Save the Paseo group seeks to bring The Paseo back to its glory, then I'd be for keeping the name. But if they are just fighting for the name or some nefarious reason (the area is mostly African-American), then I for naming it MLK Boulevard.
Mopar151
(9,983 posts)BannonsLiver
(16,387 posts)Sort of like how no trump supporter ever gave a shit about columbus day until he became president.