KC neighbors found racist flyers on their street. Here’s how they responded

In Kansas City’s Northland, some residents woke up on Wednesday to racist and antisemitic flyers in their neighborhood off Shoal Creek.

They discovered the flyers on light poles throughout the neighborhood. Neighbors said they were able to quickly take them down that afternoon.

Days later, the signs still have some shocked and surprised.

Parents in North Brook and surrounding neighborhoods have responded by posting their own anti-hate flyers and have drawn hearts on sidewalks to let others know hate is not welcome in the area, but people from all backgrounds are.

“I’ve just been so impressed with our neighborhood,” said Beth Anderson, 43, who saw the news on Facebook and lives just down the hill from where the posters were found. “It was like an immediate response. Everyone was like, We’re drawing hearts.”

In her driveway and along the sidewalks on her street, there are hearts drawn in chalk that say, “All are welcome” and “Love everyone.”

The Andersons have lived in their home since 2007 and have two children.

She took this opportunity to teach her daughter about love by walking through the neighborhood and reading the signs.

Hate messages in the Northland

While neighbors may have been shocked by the hate speech, some Black leaders are not surprised the Northland is having some trouble with racial tensions once again.

The messages come two years after the shooting of Black teenager Ralph Yarl pointed a harsh spotlight on an area with a longtime reputation as a white enclave separated by the Missouri River from the more diverse city core.

Nicole Price, a diversity, equity, inclusion and leadership consultant who lives in the Park Hill School District, said she’s rarely surprised and almost always disappointed. The incident in North Brook is no different.

”For a few years here, we’ve been in denial about what exists. And the first step to any change is acknowledging what is,” she said.

She described the racism in the Northland as being like weeds: There’s a pattern in the Northland, she said, where an incident “shocks” people and then a few weeks later the community goes back to business as usual, allowing the weeds of racial tension to continue to grow.

Investigation of racist flyers in North Brook

Officer Alayna Gonzalez, a Kansas City Police Department spokesperson, said detectives are investigating the hate messages in North Brook.

There is currently no video footage of the incident but they believe this is happening nationwide and does not appear to be isolated to Kansas City or any specific neighborhood. In March, similar signs were found in Ohio, according to 21 WFMJ, a local TV station in the area.

Nimrod Chapel Jr., president of the Missouri State NAACP Conference, said the Northland has a pattern of racial tensions, regardless of a national trend.

He pointed to an incident last year at Park Hill High School, where a teen was suspended for defending himself and others against the N-word, and to the Yarl shooting in 2023.

“I think a lot of folks would anticipate that the Northland would be better in some ways, especially with some of the recent tragedies in the area and the response to those,” Chapel said.

Chapel said he wondered what the school districts are doing to address the tension in the surrounding communities.

Dallas Ackerman, the director of communications for Liberty Public Schools, said the district will remain in communication with law enforcement.

This story was originally published May 2, 2025 at 4:57 PM.