National Archives at Kansas City

Local historian, Joelouis Mattox, to discuss Lucile Bluford v. the University of Missouri civil rights case

For More Information Contact:
Kimberlee Ried, 816-268-8072

Kansas City, (MO)…The National Archives at Kansas City will host local historian Joelouis Mattox on Thursday, January 27, at 6:30 p.m. for a discussion titled A Case of Discrimination: Lucile Bluford v. the University of Missouri. A 6:00 p.m. reception will precede the event. Attendees are encouraged to view the exhibition Documented Rights prior to the discussion

In 1939 Lucile Bluford sued the University of Missouri School of Journalism after being denied admission. Bluford appealed her case to the Missouri Supreme Court, and in 1941 the court ruled that “the state of Missouri was bound by law to provide equal educational opportunities to all its citizens within the borders of the state.” Instead of offering admittance to Bluford, the state of Missouri spent $65,000 for a school of journalism to be built at Lincoln University, in Jefferson City, MO. Eventually Bluford went on to become the managing editor of The Kansas City Call. Mattox will present and discuss the facts in the case based upon his research at the National Archives.

Joelouis Mattox is volunteer historian and independent scholar at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and State Museum in Kansas City. He majored in history and government at Lincoln University. Mattox has written a number of articles and presented to historical organizations on the subject of African Americans in slavery in Missouri and in the Civil War. In 2010 he wrote a series of articles in The Kansas City Call about the NAACP and the history of African American activism in Kansas City, 1923-1955.

For more information or to make a reservation for this free event, call 816-268-8010 or email kansascity.educate@nara.gov.

The National Archives at Kansas City is one of 13 facilities nationwide where the public has access to Federal archival records. It is home to more than 50,000 cubic feet of historical records dating from the 1820s to the 1990s created or received by nearly 100 Federal agencies. Serving the Central Plains Region, the archives holds records from the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The facility is located at 400 West Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO 64108. It is open to the public Tuesday - Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for research, with the exhibits open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 816-268-8000 or visit us online.

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NREKA 10-54

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