Small gathering of protesters in KC say it’s time to ease stay-at-home orders
Lilly Stafford took a short break from her St. Teresa’s Academy schoolwork Monday to join protesters who want state and local government leaders to end the COVID-19 shutdown orders.
“I just want my city to open. I feel like our city is in a situation where we aren’t needing the necessary requirements that have been taken and to the extend that have been taken,” said Stafford, 17, of Kansas City. “We’re not a city like New York. I understand there is the potential for cities to get like that but there are different precautions that we can take.”
For the past week, protests have occurred across the country proclaiming shutdowns are unnecessary and have stifled the economy and hurt small businesses. Similar protests are planned to take place this week in Topeka and Jefferson City.
Stafford was among a handful of protesters at Kansas City’s City Hall on Monday. A larger gathering took place of about six miles away and drew about 80 protesters in front of the J.C. Nichols Memorial Fountain on the Country Club Plaza.
Several protesters greeted each other with hugs and handshakes. Many protesters waved American flags and wore baseball caps, T-shirts and buttons showing their support for President Donald Trump.
At that location, protesters hoisted handmade signs that read: “End the Fear” “Land of the Free” and “Small biz lives matter.” Several motorists honked their horns in support as they drove past demonstrators.
Kristi Nichols of Kansas City, who leads Open Mo. 2020, used social media to organize the Kansas City protest. Nichols described the protesters as grassroots patriots who want to end the shutdown in Missouri and across the United States.
“We have to end this tyranny,” Nichols said. “Our constitutional rights have been violated and we need Missouri to open up....
“We are a resilient people. We have constitutional rights. People are losing their livelihoods, their homes and their way of life and the American dream because of false information.”
A few yards away, several individuals who identified themselves as health care workers joined McKinley Callin, 20, and Alec Overmann, 21, both of Lawrence, holding signs protesting the protesters.
“I think it is just ridiculous to start re-opening states,” Overmann said. “I understand that the numbers are going down but there is still an extremely high death rate and numbers. If we start reopening, it is going to explode again.”
Mayor Quinton Lucas said those individuals have a right to voice their opinions.
“I know protests are happening around the country,” Lucas said Monday. ”I just shake my head at the fact that what we’re trying to do is make sure we maintain space. Not for me, not for government so that people can stay safe. Unfortunately, I see some protests not doing that. I hope in Kansas City we do.”
The Star’s Blair Kerkhoff contributed reporting
This story was originally published April 20, 2020 at 3:20 PM.
