July 1 is now one step closer to becoming an occasion to celebrate Lucile Bluford, one of Missouri's most prominent African-American journalists.
State representatives on Thursday unanimously approved House Concurrent Resolution 18 to name the day after Bluford, who worked as a reporter, editor and publisher of the Kansas City Call, an important black newspaper in Kansas City, for about 70 years. The resolution now goes to the Senate for possible action.
Rep. Gail McCann Beatty, D-Kansas City, filed the legislation. The representative is also gathering signatures to include Bluford, who died in 2003, in the Hall of Famous Missourians.
"A dozen years after her passing, Lucile Bluford remains a legendary figure in Kansas City," Beatty said in a news release. "She achieved greatness both as a journalist and champion for civil rights and earned an honored place in state history for her substantial efforts to eliminate segregation at the University of Missouri."
Bluford, who was born July 1, 1911, actively fought Missouri's segregation policies. For six consecutive semesters, starting in the spring of 1939, Bluford applied to MU's graduate journalism program.
She was admitted based on transcripts sent by mail, but was denied enrollment when the university found out she was African American. Bluford waged a legal battle against the university and lost. She never attended the university.
Decades later, MU recognized her role in attempting to break down the state's Jim Crow laws by granting her an honorary doctorate degree in 1989. In 1984, the Missouri School of Journalism awarded her with an Honor Medal, its highest award for service in journalism.
During her tenure at the Kansas City Call, which started in 1932, Bluford advocated for a myriad of issues affecting the black community. Her editorials supported boycotts of local department stores that refused black patrons, according to McCann Beatty's office.
Bluford covered the March on Washington in 1963 and supported the election of African-American politicians such as Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. She earned the title of "the consciousness of the community."
"You could watch her work and tell she was a force to be reckoned with," McCann Beatty has said.
Despite her prominence, Bluford was not a fan of recognition. Although many journalists tried to write her story, she refused multiple times.
"She never saw herself as the story," said Brian Burnes, who has worked as reporter for the Kansas City Star since 1978. For her, "the story that was worth paying attention to was the civil rights story."