Previous Special Events

This 2003 documentary looks at Bayard Rustin, one of the unheralded pioneers of the Civil Rights movement, who over six decades fought for freedom and equality and debated radical black leaders like Malcolm X and Stokley Carmichael.

Admission is free.

LEARN Science & Math Club is coming to the Library to build with us! Kids ages 6 – 12 will have a blast designing and constructing people-sized teepees. And, while they’re at it, the kids will learn a little structural engineering and team-building, too! Join us for two hours of wacky creations and fun!

LEARN Science & Math Club provides rich science and math experiences through the use of robotics and engineering projects, fostering kids’ collaboration and communication skills.

Think of it as a husband-and-wife tag-team poetry slam.

Kansas City poets Stanley E. Banks and Janet M. Banks read from their new books (respectively) Blue Issues and On the Edge of Urban in a demonstration of how poetry can capture the power of inner-city voices.

Stanley’s poetry offers city grit with a blues and jazz undertone. Janet’s poetry has city grit as well, but with an urban woman’s perspective. This African-American couple is known for firing up audiences wherever they give a reading.

Traveling has undergone some big changes in recent years. Now travel journalist Rudy Maxa provides tips to save money, maximize pleasure, and minimize hassles. He offers suggestions about where you should go right now, how to save money on hotels, why you should stop hoarding those frequent flyer miles, and why you should never ride a camel named Katherine in Khiva, Uzbekistan.

For her book The Tea Party and the Remaking of Republican Conservatism, Theda Skocpol conducted grassroots interviews and visited local Tea Party gatherings throughout America. She discusses the past and future of the Tea Party movement and examines its dominant belief that benefits like Social Security and Medicare should be reserved for “real Americans” who have paid their dues by working and paying taxes.

Skocpol is Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University.

Presented as this year’s Park University Hauptman Lecture.

Running a big-city police force requires the instincts of a beat cop, the administrative talent of a CEO, and the public relations skills of a seasoned politician.

Four former chiefs of the Kansas City Police Department – Joseph D. McNamara, James D. Corwin, Floyd Bartch, and Richard D. Easley – and current chief Darryl Forte talk about the force, its history, and the very demanding job they all shared.

This Missouri Valley Special Collections program complements the original exhibit Kansas City’s Finest, currently on display at the Central Library.

Twenty Films Essential to Cinema Literacy

Think you’re film literate? Not until you’ve experienced the masterpieces of world cinema presented as part of this new series. Former Kansas City Star film critic Robert W. Butler (now a member of the Library’s Public Affairs staff) provides opening and closing remarks.

This heady mashup of mad scientist horror story, sexual fantasy, revenge yarn, and existential escape caper from director Pedro Almodovar is simultaneously creepy and beautiful.

Vera (Elena Anaya) is a prisoner in the clinic of an obsessive plastic surgeon (Antonio Banderas) who inch by inch, surgery by surgery is turning her into the most beautiful woman in the world.

Who is Vera? Where did she come from? And just what does she mean to the outwardly rational but emotionally tormented doctor? Is it love…or something else?

International Jugglers Association team champion Brian Wendling tosses his juggling skills and audience antics into high-energy fun! Give Brian three or more objects, and he’ll juggle them. Add three or more spectators, and you’ll wonder if he’s juggling the objects or the people!

Participate in a lively family show suitable for all ages.

Julia Hill spent nearly 60 years at the forefront of the battle for civil rights and equality. Now she participates in a public conversation with educator Mary Ann Wynkoop, discussing her own story as a Kansas City woman who made a difference.

Hill recently retired from the board of the local NAACP, which she once led. Her history as an activist includes protesting against segregated lunch counters in downtown department stores and presiding over the Kansas City School Board.