Letters: Readers discuss KC’s forgotten women, John Wayne and why the US is great
Lost to time
Kansas Citians will soon determine an acceptable way to memorialize Martin Luther King Jr., just as they have other famous men. Famous women, however — of whom there are many — have not received the same measure of respect.
There are few features such as airports, bridges, parks, sculptures or streets in Kansas City named to honor famous women with ties to the city: Nell Donnelly Reed, Amelia Earhart, Hazelle Hedges Rollins, Nelle E. Peters or Clara Stover, for example.
Reed, for instance, revolutionized the garment industry, and the Nelly Don trademark is still known worldwide. The Donnelly Garment Company’s factory was at one time the largest employer in the Kansas City area. By contrast, her husband, James A. Reed, is memorialized with a major street, a major park and a wildlife area named in his honor. Nelly is but a footnote to local history.
- Kenneth Lee, Raytown
View from afar
I find Kansas City’s ongoing saga over naming a street in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. puzzling. I just read The Star’s editorial discussing Councilwoman Heather Hall’s desire to see a street named after the recently departed city manager, Troy Schulte, and the ill timing involved in that proposal. (Jan. 12, 14A, “A ‘Troy Schulte Way’ in Kansas City? No way after MLK drama”)
King’s birthday is nigh upon us, and I suppose it would be a rather chafing gift for Kansas City to follow through with a Schulte Way in a timely manner.
I suppose I cannot grasp the politics involved here, as I am following this from 50 miles away in St. Joseph. But there is Southwest Trafficway that could become Martin Luther King Trafficway. How about changing Ward Parkway’s moniker? North Oak Trafficway would be a solid candidate perhaps.
I suppose the most baffling element to this civic saga is the deliberation. Is it politics of history that occlude a proper honor for King by requiring it to be a thoroughfare? Does it have to be a street?
Dr. Martin Luther King Plaza as opposed to the Country Club Plaza is an interesting idea.
- Joshua Clark, St. Joseph
Come back, Graham
Dearest Sen. Lindsey Graham,
If I were your wife, you would be sleeping on the sofa until you regain your good senses. Where is the thoughtful, Constitution-loving man of Jan. 16, 1999? Please review the explanation you gave then about the impeachment of a president.
Surely you can again be the senator for whom I had great admiration.
- Juanita Ryan, Prairie Village
A Hollywood fix
The Houston Astros fired their manager and general manager over stealing signs at a baseball game. Yet we have Senate Republicans who see nothing wrong with a president extorting a foreign nation to help him win our nation’s most vital election or with his numerous attempts to escape scrutiny and obstruct justice.
If this were a movie, I believe Hollywood would get it right. What would a Clint Eastwood, John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart or Lionel Barrymore say to this cowardly cabal and their make-believe impeachment “trial”? Better yet, imagine what all four would say if somehow they appeared together and confronted the Senate. After all, if you’re delving into make-believe, you are in Hollywood territory.
One can learn a lot by watching baseball, and sometimes a lot about characters in the movies.
- Tom Modrcin, Liberty
Two bad crowds
The most dangerous gangs in America are the Democrats and Republicans in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
- Shirley Miller, Overland Park
Why we’re great
As a nation, we are divided. We owe a lot of that to President Donald Trump. But here’s a question: Where else would you want to live? That’s not a hard question to answer. We live in the greatest country on Earth. There is nowhere else you would want to live.
What’s great about America isn’t our military. What’s great is our culture and our values. Our No. 1 export is those values, as they appear in entertainment. Our books, movies and music tell people who we are, and they make people around the world want to come here.
I think the most distressing thing Trump has done is pursue his anti-immigration policies. They are the antithesis of who we are.
I dislike Trump for lots of reasons, but the top of my list is that he doesn’t represent who we are.
We are so admired that another country built a statue for us, and we display it in the harbor of one of our greatest cities.
I hope people will think about this when they vote in November.
- John Chapman, Kansas City
This story was originally published January 16, 2020 at 5:00 AM.