The UMKC Foundation, in partnership with the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and Museum and Prospect Business Association, has received a $2,020 grant from the Missouri Humanities Council in support of the opening event for the exhibit “Eight Days in April: The Story of the 1968 Kansas City Uprising.” The free, virtual opening is scheduled for 6 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 18. Reservations for the opening can be made online.

The opening event will feature a panel discussion about the eight days surrounding the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in April 1968 and how the impact of those days continues to shape Kansas City today.

The discussion will be moderated by Dia Wall, KSHB anchor and reporter; and features panelists Jason Cooley, community initiative officer for the Chief of Police, Kansas City Police Department; Delia Gillis, professor of History and Africana Studies program coordinator, University of Central Missouri; Don Maxwell, Revitalize Prospect; Glenn Rice, journalist, Kansas City Star; and Susan Wilson, recently retired vice chancellor for UMKC Division of Diversity and Inclusion.

The exhibit, “Eight Days in April: The Story of the 1968 Uprising in Kansas City,” draws upon historical materials from the UMKC LaBudde Special Collections and Marr Sound Archives. The exhibit is currently available as a digital exhibit through the UMKC Libraries’ website and will be available to view in person at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and Museum, 3700 Blue Parkway, when it is safe to open to the public. The digital exhibit includes an opportunity for community members to participate in a survey about renaming the 1968 Riot Collection.

The Missouri Humanities Council is the only statewide agency in Missouri devoted exclusively to humanities education for citizens of all ages. It has served as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities since 1971.