Identity Dustup at the KC Corral
Sparxafire! Kansas City does not have anything so trite as an identity crisis. But it does have more than one identity, and that can be confusing.
Cowtown
Kansas City BBQ
Kansas City Jazz
City of Fountains
Heart of America
As I’m sure is the case in other metropolisses (metropoli), we have a heritage that becomes entangled with someone’s public relations campaign, that clashes with images in popular culture, and before you know it, the city is some kind of freak!
So, here we are with an awkward brand for Kansas City. Generally speaking, locals do not care much for the “Cowtown” image, in spite of the fact that all of us do ride cows to work every day. Outsiders may assume our recent vote for “light rail” indicates some kind of motorized transportation, when it is shorthand for “lighter rails around the corrals we keep our cows in.” It’s true! Really.
And, we have a 90 ft. tall monument to cows. Perched high atop a monolithic base near downtown is a plastic or maybe fiberglas replica of a hereford, proudly gazing northward and giving the southland the benefit of his butt cuts. (I am very grateful to live in the north part of Kansas City.)
Is there shame in cows? That is to say, should we be ashamed of our livestocky origins? My grandfather was a cattle man, but he died before I was born. I get the impression that a cattle man had a bit of a swagger over the crop farmer, but nobody is sure why. Maybe the cattle mean had to do more haggling to buy, fatten and sell his wares? Are “cowboys” embarrassing in some way?
(I’d make a strong case that men of the 21st century, who do not work directly with cows, yet who insist on dressing up in a cowboy costume are, in fact embarrassing and just plain whack. But, that’s just me, Mr. President.)
As a KC lifer, I’m sure I’m too close to the issue. But if pressed for my opinion, I’d answer matter-of-factly, “Sure we’re a cowtown! And your point?” Sparxafire, indeed.
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