Keep the pressure on KKFI 90.1 FM to reinstate volunteer Sharon Lockhart. She gave antiwar protesters, local theater productions, environmentalists and other activists a forum on her show, and we need her voice back on the air.
If you called or emailed last week, please do it again after 11 AM Monday when Every Woman airs.
Another volunteer programmer was banished from the airwaves by the management of KKFI, Kansas City’s Community Radio. Sharon Lockhart, host of Every Woman since 1995 was told she no longer had the show as of Thursday morning February 27 by the General Manager. Every Woman is a weekly news and public affairs program with guests addressing the social, political and economic issues of women and their families.
Lockhart was one of the 6 Active Members recently re-instated by a court order after being told they were not in “good standing” and unable to vote at Active Member meetings since September 2001. The reason and method by which she was “suspended” look suspiciously like retaliation for being a member of Friends of Community Radio which was organized to counteract the drift away from the original mission statement by the co-founders of KKFI and to prevent commercialization of KKFI by current management.
Station General Manager, Robert Barrientos said her volunteer hours were inadequate to continue to host the weekly show. Other volunteers have been given 90 days to make up the hours required. This option was not offered Lockhart. When he was questioned, Barrientos said, "it was her attitude, not her volunteer hours."
Lockhart admits to being an ‘uppity woman with an attitude’ which originally qualified her to fill the thirty minute slot allocated to women’s issues. We will miss her ability to find guests passionate about their topics and her conversational interview style. This is truly a loss for the women’s community in Kansas City.
KKFI’s first live transmission was February 28, 1988 after a group of dedicated activists worked for 11 years to bring their dream of alternative news and views and local and world music to Kansas City.
If having a community voice is important to you, call, write or email KKFI to express your concern. Call 816/931-5534 or 816/931-3122 Ask for Robert Barrientos or Brit in Operations. The station is located at 900 ½ Westport Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64111. e-mail inquiries may be directed to
robertkkfi (at) aol.com and
chuckkkfi (at) aol.com. Please send courtesy copies (CCs) to the Friends of Community Radio at
FreeRadioKC (at) aol.com.