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kansas city
Missouri's Racist Gerrymander Is an Attack on Working Voters
As these attacks target communities of color, we’re witnessing the systematic disenfranchisement of people who’ve fought hardest for economic justice and workers’ rights.
Sep 13, 2025
As a Wendy’s worker, mother of two, and leader with Missouri Workers Center and Stand Up KC in Kansas City, I’ve dedicated my life to fighting for working families. I’ve worked in fast food for over 20 years, and I know what it means to struggle to barely make ends meet while corporations make record profits off our backs.
Today, I’m writing as someone who believes deeply in democracy, especially as a group of anti-worker Missouri lawmakers prepare to divide our community so that they can silence our voices, including my own.
States usually redraw electoral district boundaries every 10 years following the US Census to account for population shifts and demographic changes. But for political reasons, Texas lawmakers have gone ahead and redrawn their political map. And now several other states, including Missouri, are trying to do the same thing.
The NAACP is suing the State of Missouri to stop this action, calling it an “unconstitutional redistricting process” and a “blatant effort to silence Black voters and strip them of their fundamental rights.”
In Missouri’s 5th Congressional District, where I live, the clear aim of this gerrymandering is to dilute the voting power of Black and brown communities instead of letting us choose leaders who reflect our values. This isn’t just politics as usual. It’s a calculated assault on democracy and a power grab for an elite few.
As these attacks target communities of color, we’re witnessing the systematic disenfranchisement of people who’ve fought hardest for economic justice and workers’ rights. These same corporate-backed lawmakers recently repealed guaranteed sick days for more than 700,000 workers, including me and my coworkers.
My community deserves a voice in choosing our representation instead of having politicians strip it away—politicians who care more about protecting themselves instead of the people they were elected to represent.
A couple years ago, I got sick with what I thought was the flu. I didn’t have health insurance, so I couldn’t see a doctor. I stayed home from my shift at Taco Bell to protect my coworkers and customers from a potentially contagious illness. I was already falling behind on rent after management cut my hours prior to getting sick, and taking time to recover was the final straw. I missed $450—over half my rent. I came home from work to an eviction notice. My son Rashaad and I lost our home.
As a parent, few things are more heartbreaking than not being able to care for your children properly. Had I been able to take a few days off while still getting paid, we could have stayed housed. I couldn’t help getting sick, but the greedy corporation I worked for chose to abandon me as soon as I stopped making them rich.
If I had paid sick days, that wouldn’t happen. And ironically enough, I previously helped win paid sick days through a ballot initiative. Despite promises to respect the will of the people, Missouri politicians sided with big business over working families and overturned our right to paid leave. By gutting this policy, these corporate-backed politicians didn’t just force workers like me to go to work sick—they stole money from our pockets and food from our cupboards.
This redistricting scheme is clearly part of a two-pronged plan to suppress voter participation and double down on attacking the rights of working people. In fact, they’re using the same special session they’ve called to pass redistricting to also destroy a 115-year old ballot initiative process in our state constitution that won us—across party lines—paid leave, Medicaid expansion, and restored abortion rights.
But working people like me don’t back down when our lives are on the line. We stay committed to the fight for our rights, from the streets, to the strike line, to the statehouse. My community deserves a voice in choosing our representation instead of having politicians strip it away—politicians who care more about protecting themselves instead of the people they were elected to represent.
We were already living in modern-day economic slavery. Now they’re trying to put us in political slavery too. But we won’t let them. Across this country, working people will not be silenced or divided. Our political leaders need to stop trying to rig the rules and let the people decide who represents us.
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After Shooting, Cori Bush Blasts Missouri Republicans Who 'Obstruct Gun Safety Laws'
"Missouri has some of the weakest gun laws in the country," said the St. Louis Democrat. "So to the Missouri Republicans who are pointing their finger at the people of Kansas City... this blood is on your hands."
Feb 15, 2024
A day after a deadly shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory parade, Democratic Missouri Congresswoman Cori Bush on Thursday took aim at Republicans from her state who "continue to eviscerate and obstruct gun safety laws."
"St. Louis and I rise to send our love and condolences to Kansas City, Missouri in the wake of yesterday's mass shooting," Bush said on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. "This preventable and despicable epidemic of gun violence, it affects us all. It impacts my district in St. Louis; it impacts your districts; it impacts our entire country. And it does not need to be this way."
"Missouri has some of the weakest gun laws in the country," she noted. "So to the Missouri Republicans who are pointing their finger at the people of Kansas City, Missouri and calling them 'thugs'... this blood is on your hands. You don't get to scapegoat the victims of this shooting when you are actively blocking gun violence prevention legislation."
Republicans lawmakers' allegiance to the National Rifle Association (NRA), a powerful gun lobby group, over the needs of the people is "absolutely shameful," the "Squad" member declared. "Missouri needs you to act. Join us in passing meaningful commonsense gun safety legislation, so that we can put an end to this crisis and save lives."
The Wednesday shooting left at least one person dead—Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a disc jockey and mother of two—and 22 others injured, according to The Kansas City Star. No charges have been filed but two unidentified teenage suspects are in police custody.
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'No Place Is Safe': Multiple People Shot at Kansas City Super Bowl Parade
"Today we continue the cycle of fear and grieving in Kansas City during a parade," said one gun control group.
Feb 14, 2024
This is a developing story… Please check back for possible updates...
Officials in Kansas City, Missouri on Wednesday said at least one person was killed and another 21 people were injured in a shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory parade, with multiple in critical condition.
The police said three people had been taken into custody.
The shooting took place near Union Station, where a rally was held following the parade to celebrate the football team's victory on Sunday.
A spokesperson for University Health told The New York Times that four people had been taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds and eight people were there being treated for other injuries. Chaos erupted at the rally when the shooting began, causing thousands of fans to flee.
The shooting took place on the sixth anniversary of the Parkland, Florida shooting at a high school, which launched a nationwide student-led effort to push for tighter gun control regulations.
"As we wait for more details, we know this: We are horrified by the American nightmare that is gun violence," said March for Our Lives, the group founded by Parkland survivors. "NO PLACE IS SAFE."
The parents of Joaquin Oliver, one of the young students killed on February 14, 2018 in Parkland, were scheduled to appear on CNN as the news broke about the Kansas City shooting.
Manuel Oliver and Patricia Padauy-Oliver were there to discuss "The Shotline," a new program that uses artificial intelligence technology to recreate the voices of gun violence victims and demand action from lawmakers.
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