By Anna Kaminski | reporter
Good morning!
Here’s how a Kansas town celebrates a North African team playing its first match of an international soccer tournament: By draping green and white scarves in store window displays and adorning team jerseys and stuffing Algerian flags in the crevices of car windows so they flap in the wind; by shutting down a city block and serving fried delicacies and painting kids’ faces; by opening the doors of the old independent movie theater and letting the masses watch the team play Argentina on the big screen for free and leaving standing room only; by throwing a party and showing a pride typically reserved for the home team and cheering each time Algeria possessed the ball; by sending the theater aroar when the team scored in the first eight minutes and groaning in disappointment when the point was nixed because the scorer was offsides and quieting when Argentina scored the match’s first valid goal; by continuing, still, to root for the home team and carrying on after two more Argentine goals and being afraid to stop (or begin a new sentence) for fear that dimming our pride means leaving Algeria and our brief, bright unity in our memory as nothing more than a dream.
On to the news.
Shauneen Miranda/States Newsroom
‘Sham process’: Kansas school districts face loss of federal funding over gender-inclusive policies
MERRIAM — The U.S. Department of Education is escalating its threat to pull federal funding from four Kansas school districts for their gender-inclusive policies.
At least two of the districts are geared up for a legal battle.
In April, the department found four public school districts — Olathe, Shawnee Mission, Topeka and Kansas City, Kansas — were in violation of federal Title IX civil rights protections. Grievances included allowing students to change their name or pronouns used at school without clear communication to parents and allowing transgender students to use the restroom, locker room and changing room that aligns with their gender identity.
Ashley Murray/States Newsroom
OPINION
As D.C. gawked at MMA fights on White House lawn, I investigated my family's American roots
By Dave Kendall
Cage fights on the White House lawn. Who would have ever suspected we would witness such a spectacle?
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, two distinctly different organizations are engaged in efforts to mark the occasion. A report from NBC News noted confusion over the difference between the two groups.
Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector
Poverty levels improve for Kansas kids, but advocates warn of declining health
TOPEKA — Measures of family, community and economic well-being improved for Kansas kids between 2019 and 2024, indicating a drop in child poverty, but education and health markers declined, leaving advocates concerned.
Kansas ranked fifth in the country for economic well-being in 2024, as assessed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s annual 50-state evaluation of the most recently available statistics on education, health, economic and social outcomes for children.
Local election officials reel over ‘logistical nightmare’ of Trump’s vote-by-mail order
As election officials across the country steel themselves for the midterm elections in less than five months, President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting voting by mail threatens to upend their preparations.
The executive order instructs the U.S. Postal Service to refuse to deliver ballots in states that don’t provide lists of voters or meet other requirements. It has created a sense of deep uncertainty and concern among election officials as they consider how to comply, according to a review of court documents and interviews with election officials and experts on election administration.
Surging stock market, Trump policies boost wealth for top 1%
When SpaceX, Elon Musk’s rocket and artificial intelligence company, began trading on the stock market last week, he became the world’s first trillionaire.
The SpaceX IPO made the world’s richest man even richer, grabbing headlines worldwide. But it is merely the most vivid illustration of a U.S. trend that has been accelerating since 2022.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Kansas Reflector staff will participate in the following free public forums.
6 p.m. June 24, Groover Labs in Wichita. Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will lead a discussion on the proposed constitutional amendment to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices. Host: Kansas Appleseed. Register here.
6 p.m. June 25, Clint Bowyer Community Building in Emporia. Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will lead a discussion on the proposed constitutional amendment to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices. Host: Kansas Appleseed. Register here.
7 p.m. June 27, Park City Senior Center. Host: Park City Community Pride.
1 p.m. July 11, South Branch Library in Kansas City, Kansas. Opinion editor Clay Wirestone joins a panel discussion: "Elected vs Appointed: Inform Your Choice." Hosts: Voter Rights Network of Wyandotte County, Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation, the League of Women Voters of Johnson County, and El Centro.
2 p.m. Sept. 27, Red Rocks Visitor Center in Emporia. Host: Red Rocks.
If you're interested in having us talk in your town, email Sherman Smith at [email protected].
Thanks for reading Read & Reflect. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.