The Brain Wednesday
November 6, 2019 T: 582-7800 | F: 582-7044 www.arubatoday.com
Page 13
Aruba’s ONLY English newspaper
Kansas City to vote on removing King's name from street By MARGARET STAFFORD Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City residents will decide whether the city will remove the name of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from one of its most historic boulevards, less than a year after the street was renamed for the civil rights icon. Voters on Tuesday considered a ballot question that would reverse a city council decision in January to name a 10-mile (16.1 kilometer) boulevard on the city's mostly black east side for King and restore the original name, The Paseo. The council's decision to rename the street for King came after years of advocacy from mostly black civic leaders and, at the time, meant Kansas City would shed its reputation as one of the largest U.S. cities without a street named for King. But a group of residents intent on keeping The Paseo name began collecting petitions to put the name change on the ballot and achieved that goal in April. The campaign has been
In this Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019, photo, people wearing "Save The Paseo" shirts stand among attendees at a rally to keep a street named in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Paseo Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo. Associated Press
divisive, with supporters of King's name accusing opponents of being racist, while supporters of The Paseo name say city leaders pushed the name change
through without following proper procedures and also ignored The Paseo's historic value. Emotions reached a peak Sunday, when members of
the "Save the Paseo" group staged a silent protest at a get-out-the-vote rally at a black church for people wanting to keep the King name.
They walked into the Paseo Baptist Church and stood along its two aisles. Continued on Page 2