Presented by:
Kay Barnes
Publish Date:
April 29, 2015
Presentation Length:
33 minutes 01 seconds (33:01)
Description:
On March 26, 2015, Missouri Secretary of State hosted a program in recognition of Women’s History Month highlighting the role Kansas City women played in bringing down the Pendergast political machine. Former Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes spoke about Civic Housekeepers and More: Kansas City Women v. Pendergast. In the 1920s and ‘30s, "Boss Tom" Pendergast's political machine controlled Kansas City, giving the Paris of the Plains an infamous reputation for supporting illegal liquor, gambling and vice. Barnes shared stories of women who worked to stop the corruption, eventually ending years of machine rule in the city. Women were an essential part of the campaign to recall the Pendergast-backed mayor and city council, even after the boss went to prison in 1939. Using the campaign slogan "ballots and brooms versus bosses and bullets," women’s groups wore a pin shaped like a broom to show their support for non-Pendergast candidates. Under the leadership of Ms. Claude Gorton, these groups became increasingly organized prior to the 1940 election, when their get-out-to-vote effort resulted in a defeat of the machine.
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