1968 Kansas City, Missouri, riot

Thursday, April 4 Following King's assassination, Kansas City was engulfed in "more an atmosphere of stunned shock than a real threat of violence". A prominent Black minister held a meeting that evening to plan for a memorial march. Friday, April 5 On the morning of April 5, leaders of the Kansas City Black community met with representatives of the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department (KCPD) to approve a memorial march tentatively planned for Sunday, April 7. In Kansas City, Kansas, a meeting of students, police, and community leaders was held and then an impromptu march was spearheaded by high school students on Friday, April 5. Between 1,500 and 2,000 are estimated to have participated in this peaceful march, which ended with addresses from Kansas City, Kansas Mayor Joseph H. McDowell and other officials at Kansas City, Kansas, City Hall. That evening, Kansas City, Missouri, Police Chief Clarence M. Kelley returned to Kansas City and implemented a riot control alert. Sunday, April 7 Before the march, McDowell and Kansas City Missouri Mayor Ilus W. Davis took part in a televised forum with local civil rights leaders. The march proceeded as planned at 1:30pm, with between 5,000 and 15,000 in attendance. Police responded to a minor incident at the Isis Theater located at 31st Street and Troost Avenue. Kansas City Public Schools (KCPS) Superintendent James Hazlett concluded that a newly built junior high school on the East Side would be named for King; a one-minute meditation was planned for Tuesday, April 9, the day of King's funeral; the flags would be at half staff; and the schools would remain open. Monday, April 8 Under pressure from civil rights organizations, KCPS opted to hold school-wide memorial assemblies in place of one-minute meditations. Similarly pressured, Kansas City, Kansas, school administrators met with representatives of the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department, and publicly announced their intent to close schools the following day out of respect. KCPS administrators were unable to contact Hazlett or the President of the KCPS Board that evening to discuss these changes, so schools remained open. KCPS coordinator Alvin Brooks had witnessed Superintendent Hazlett's decision and later recounted that it "wasn't good enough for [the community], but it was good enough for [KCPS] and so that's why the schools were open. As a result of that, we had a riot." ==Riots==

Tuesday, April 9 Protests began in earnest on Tuesday, April 9, as a staged walkout of students from several KCPS schools, boycotting the KCPS's decision to remain open. Student leaders were split between marching from school to school before holding a memorial service and proceeding Downtown to protest. As several non-students joined the march, the decision was made to dismiss school to avoid property damage. The night ended with 45 more counts of arson, 5 additional civilian deaths, 11 civilian injuries in addition to 4 injuries sustained by officers. ==Aftermath==

"Activity diminished considerably" on April 11, so Mayor Davis and Chief Kelley met with representatives of the young protesters on April 12. Though the meeting was inconclusive, it quickly ushered about an end to the violence. Fires destroyed many homes and local businesses on the East Side, particularly along Prospect Avenue between 27th and 39th Streets and on 31st and 35th Streets east of Prospect Avenue. In May 1968, Mayor Davis charged a commission with studying what was referred to as a "severe civil disturbance". The report, published in August 1968, proposed 17 recommendations to the KCPD, 12 recommendations to the KCPS, 9 recommendations to other municipal authorities, and 5 recommendations with no particular target audience. ==See also==