Laura Ziegler

1 month ago | ourcommunitynow.com | Laura Ziegler

How is Kansas City being affected by Washington ?” The event focused on the rapid changes from the federal government, with the goal to make Kansas City’s Congressional representatives available for a live Q&A. How we invited Congress members to participate KCUR invited nine metro area Congressional representatives — the U.S. Senators from Kansas and Missouri as well as the five U.S. House representatives from the metro — to answer questions from their constituents in real time.

2 months ago | kcur.org | Laura Ziegler

In a statement released late Friday, Prosecutor Melesa Johnson said the decision not to file charges against the Independence officer who killed Maria Pike and her daughter Destinii was difficult. “The loss of a young mother and her infant are devastating and tragic,” she said in the statement.

Mar 8, 2025 | kansascity.com | C.J. Janovy |Laura Ziegler

Editor's Note: This story was originally published by KCUR 89.3, Kansas City's NPR member station that covers Kansas and Missouri. The Star is republishing occasional stories from KCUR with permission from the station. Kansas City musician Danny Cox, a revered figure who embodied the spirit of music and the Civil Rights Movement, has died. Nate Cox posted news of his father's death on on social media late Friday afternoon.

Nov 3, 2024 | kcur.org | Laura Ziegler

In the wake of repeated unproven allegations about voter fraud in the 2020 election, election officials in Kansas and Missouri have been outspoken about measures they are using to conduct free and fair elections. Election offices have invited the public in to watch them check voting machines. They’ve explained how the machines are not connected to the internet to avoid hacking, and how returns are stored on external, tightly secured flash drives.

Aug 23, 2024 | kcur.org | Laura Ziegler

Chester Owens, who spent his life studying and teaching the history of Wyandotte County and its Black community, died Thursday at his home in Kansas City, Kansas. Owens was 91. His sister Sandra Owens said the family was still in shock at the loss. “He was the oldest living sibling,” she said. “He was our big brother. We all looked up to him. Everybody did. Somebody had to be in charge and that was Chester.