Kansas City Today

Reports of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity at Kansas City immigration courts are causing some people to miss routine hearings out of fear, leading to orders for their deportation. Attorneys and advocates are trying to help. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced b...

Kansas City's PrideFest kicks off this weekend. But as the festival celebrates its 50th anniversary, organizers say that anti-LGBTQ rhetoric has cost the group $200,000 in sponsorships. On KCUR's Up To Date, Steve Kraske spoke with James Herran, PrideFest organizer and director of education & public relations at Our Spot KC, about the hostile political climate that surrounds Pride celebrations...

Bayer’s herbicide Roundup has been subject to tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging it causes cancer. A Missouri bill to shield Bayer from some of those lawsuits didn't pass during the spring legislative session — but it could be reintroduced in the future. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin....

Kansas City officials say they have filled potholes and cracks on 25% of the city’s streets as part of an ambitious road repair project...but experts and residents have concerns. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Lisa Rodriguez, Em...

Patricia Prewitt spent decades imprisoned in Missouri for a murder she says she didn’t commit. She was granted clemency in December, and compiled a book of letters detailing her experience. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Lisa Ro...

The Missouri General Assembly is beginning a special session today, with the primary mission of passing an incentive package for the two Kansas City teams. But after years of drama over new stadiums, and a looming deadline on the Kansas side, the stakes are high. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiye...

The Ivanhoe Neighborhood Council has faced several challenges in recent years, but the community it serves is coming together to find trust and hope for the future in each other. Learn how Ivanhoe is inspiring the next generation. Plus: how dairy workers and owners are navigating the second Trump presidency. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on  Instagram  and  Facebook  for the lates...

The Missouri Supreme Court ordered a Jackson County judge to lift her rulings that allowed abortions to resume in the state. Why did the court decide to put the ban back into effect for now? Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Lisa R...

President Donald Trump has said his mass deportation campaign prioritizes immigrants who have committed violent crimes. But the family of a crime victim in Kansas City, Kansas, said authorities detained him, even though he was about to receive immigration protections. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin...

Missouri House Speaker Jon Patterson, a Republican representing Lee's Summit, says that next year's vote on whether to ban abortion again might not be the end of efforts around how the state regulates the procedure. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Stud...

In the 1970s, a Kansas City woman helped create Naiad Press, the largest lesbian publishing company in the world. Her goal was to tell more positive stories about queer love. Plus: Hundreds of people attend the weekly bingo night at the American Legion in Olathe, and they come to win. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is...

Buying a new trumpet or trombone could get a lot more expensive, as Kansas City music store owners are getting hit hard by President Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs. Plus: A prominent Kansas abortion clinic has a new leader with plans to expand access. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. I...

Nearly 20,000 people are released from Missouri prisons each year. Going home is an adjustment — and a relief. Hear from one man who returned home after 37 years. Plus: Get caught up on news from around the metro. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studio...

Midwesterners typically head to the woods to find morels because the mushrooms have a lifecycle that’s hard to replicate at farms, but that could change. Plus: Why it’s so hard for the farming industry in Kansas to switch crops. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love...

The Kansas City Council has found its next city manager. Get to know Mario Vasquez, the first Latino to permanently hold one of most powerful positions in the city. Plus: Stay up to date with the latest political headlines from around the region. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produce...

Abortion is heading back to the ballot, after Missouri Republican lawmakers fell back on a little-used rule to shut down a Democratic filibuster and push through a ballot amendment to ban abortion again. They used the same maneuver to repeal a paid sick leave law — just months after Missouri voters approved both. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the late...

The concept of diversity, equity and inclusion has been thrust into the political spotlight as President Trump targets programs on college campuses that try to support historically underrepresented groups. But Kansas experts say that DEI is being misrepresented.   Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. You can support Kansas City Today by beco...

For the last few months, transgender service members have had to wrestle with the reality that they’ve been deemed unqualified to serve in the U.S. military. Hear more from an officer stationed at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, who is directly affected. Also, The Natural Resources Conservation Service turns 90 this year. But the agency, which sprung out of the Dust Bowl, has lost employees and could se...

Bruce R. Watkins Drive took three decades to build, and resulted in the destruction of 2,000 homes and the displacement of thousands of Black residents. Kansas City officials and longtime residents hope a new federal grant can reconnect the neighborhoods torn apart by Highway 71, but mending old wounds won’t be easy. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the...

Sen. Josh Hawley spent his first time in office building up his reputation as an arch-conservative — and in the Jan. 6 insurrection linked himself to President Trump and the MAGA movement. But in several ways, the Missouri senator is also positioning himself as a champion of the working class. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City...

A Roeland Park man legally protected under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals was not allowed to reenter the United States after visiting a family grave in Mexico. He's now suing the Trump Administration. Hear what Evenezer Cortez Martinez has to say about his experience. Cortez Martinez and his attorney Rekha Sharma-Crawford spoke with KCUR's Nomin Ujiyediin about the deportation and lawsuit....

As the ongoing teacher shortage persists, school districts like Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools are using virtual teachers to get by. Intended as a stopgap, the number of students learning from remote, on-screen instructors has more than doubled. Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR mem...

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development office in Kansas City is dealing with federal government cuts. How will vital community resources be impacted? Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member:  kcur.org/donate . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Corporation For Public Broadcasting to cease direct and indirect funding for NPR and its member stations. Sarah Morris, General Manager for KCUR 89.3 and 91.9 Classical KC, spoke with Steve Kraske on Up To Date about the legality of Trump's order and what it could mean for public media stations around the country. Contact th...

Missouri lawmakers are still wrestling with abortion rights, paid sick leave, tax cuts and the state budget. What's ahead for the General Assembly in the last two weeks of this legislative session? Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news. Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by...