Fire and racist graffiti damage predominately black church in Kansas City

Members of the Concord Fortress of Hope Church found racist graffiti spray-painted on the doors and windows of the predominately black church in south Kansas City on Sunday morning. The church also had been damaged by a small fire.

Kansas City Councilman Quinton Lucas tweeted out two photos of the graffiti, one of which contained an ethnic slur directed at black people. The other photo showed the letters “KKK” and what appeared to be swastika sprayed on the doors to the church.

“Fools think they’re gonna keep us from worshiping this morning,” Quinton Lucas said in the tweet.

Lucas also tweeted out a photo of the services saying, “Racist Vandals and arsonists not slowing down 8 a.m. service @concordhope church.”

Kansas City police were called to the church shortly before 7 a.m., according to Sgt. Kari Thompson, a Police Department spokeswoman. No surveillance video showing the vandalism was available, she said.

Authorities also found evidence of a small fire inside the church, according to John Ham, a spokesman for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The ATF was investigating the fire Sunday.

The agency is required by law to respond to fires at churches. The fire was out Sunday morning, and it appeared to have caused only minor damage, Ham said.

In a phone interview later, Lucas said he saw the graffiti as he arrived to attend services Sunday.

“It’s heartbreaking,” Lucas said. “It’s a little disappointing to see something liked that in 2017. Folks should be able to come and worship without that sort of concern.”

Lucas said Pastor Ronald Lindsay said it well during the service when he told church members that they were not letting something negative define them.

“It ended up being an absolutely beautiful service,” Lucas said. “It reminded us how God exists in chaos and how we will basically continue on with the mission of the church.”

There have been many such incidents at black churches around America lately, Lucas said.

“I’m disappointed to see something like this in Kansas City,” he said. “I think everyone in these days have to be mindful of security, but we are also people of faith and understand that these things happen. We’ll keep praying and stay hopeful that this is the last time we have to see something like this with this church and that nobody else has to deal with it.”

Concord Fortress of Hope Church is at 11050 W. Longview Parkway.

The church was founded in February 1987 when the Palestine Missionary Baptist Church of Jesus Christ voted for Concord Missionary Baptist Church of Jesus Christ to become an official organized church. The Rev. Ronald R. Lindsay was installed as the pastor, according to the church’s website.

The church began at the YMCA at 63rd Street and Wornall Road but stayed there only a year before heading south to 107th Street in the Ruskin/Hickman Mills area. In 2006, the growing congregation moved to its current location in that area.

This story was originally published October 29, 2017 at 12:52 PM with the headline "Fire and racist graffiti damage predominately black church in Kansas City."