Lawrence, US – 84 F
Expand search form
Menu
Arts & Events

Community members advocate for Douglas County name change with poetry, music, zines

by Wulfe Wulfemeyer
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times
A.D. Boynton II speaks to a crowd at the Raven Book Store for a zine launch Friday, July 3. The zine, "Add the S," advocates for renaming Douglas County after Frederick Douglass.
Share this post or save for later

Community members packed into a Lawrence bookstore Friday evening to join the conversation about renaming Douglas County for Frederick Douglass.

A.D. Boynton II and Mercedes Lucero, members of B.L.A.C.K. (Black Literature & Arts of Kansas) Lawrence, launched their new zine, “Add the S,” at the Raven Book Store to an audience of more than 40 people.

The publication builds on local filmmaker Kevin Willmott’s idea to add an “s” to “Douglas County.” Currently, the county is named for Stephen A. Douglas. 

“Instead of abolishing slavery, Stephen A. Douglas believed it should be left up to the white citizens of each state to decide,” per the zine.

Learn more about that history in this article.

Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Zines are laid out next to a photo of Frederick Douglass at a Babbling Bookery table during the launch.

“My question for Lawrence and Douglas County is this… / will we live up to our name?” asks Boynton in the poem, “An Urgency,” which opens the zine.

On Friday, Boynton encouraged those opposed to the name change to ask themselves why.

Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times A.D. Boynton II

“If you are in, or know someone who’s in, the kind of party, like, ‘Oh my god, we can’t do that,’ try that again,” Boynton said to the crowd. “Rethink that. Just maybe, it may be worth having a discussion about what it might mean for us to reclaim this place.”

Organizers marked the occasion with a community open mic night. Ten participants and two featured performers read poetry, made music and shared personal essays and reflections in support of the name-change proposal.

“What does a single letter matter?” Lucero asked before reading a contrapuntal. “It’s the record. It’s the matter of your people, your place, your family, your everything. And so I think we’ll be the ones who decide how a place is going to be remembered.”

Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Mercedes Lucero reads a contrapuntal, which is a type of poem. They also suggested that folks capitalize on the attention Lawrence is getting during the World Cup to move the needle on the name-change initiative.

Kansas City, Missouri’s Babbling Bookery helped produce on “Add the S.”

Members of the group said they ran out of zines at the event. Once they print more, they’ll be available for $5 at the Raven, 809 Massachusetts St., and Wonder Fair, 841 Massachusetts St.

Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Courtney Farr (left) and Evan Barton speak to members of Babbling Bookery.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times CJ Johnson, a Raven bookseller, thanks the crowd for being there. They read a poem from “Bluff” by Danez Smith.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Cynthia C. reads a poem. “Being Black in America is living inside contradiction,” Cynthia said. “We are told to love a flag that never fully loves us back, to trust laws that once outlawed our very breath.”
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Shirley Braunlich
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Evan Barton reads from his short story about a recent grad working at an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities).
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Courtney Farr speaks about the importance of understanding the people and stories behind the facts and figures in history textbooks. “All history is living history,” they said.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Kayla Reese reads about the small town in Missouri that they’re from.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Dominique Sexton pets store cat Sammy.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Mark Kaplan speaks to the crowd during the open mic. Kaplan suggested involving the chamber of commerce in the push to change the county’s name. He said folks around town have spitballed adding an “s” to “Douglas” for about 35 years.
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Tai Amri Spann-Ryan read a response to Douglass’ speech, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Seyi Ojeleye reads a poem called “Aspirations.”
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times Rae Atakpa, a featured speaker for the evening
Nathan Kramer / Lawrence Times “Add the S” zines

If local news matters to you, please help us keep doing this work.

Support The Lawrence Times
Don’t miss a beat — get the latest news from the Times delivered to your inbox:


Click here to learn more about our newsletters first

Wulfe Wulfemeyer (they/them), reporter and news editor, has worked with The Lawrence Times since May 2025. They can be reached at [email protected].

Read their complete bio here. Read their work for the Times here.

Nathan Kramer (he/him), a multimedia student journalist for The Lawrence Times since August 2024, is a recent graduate of Free State High School. He also served as a news photo editor for Free State’s student publication, where he worked as a videographer, photographer and motion designer. See more of his work for the Times here.

Latest Lawrence news:

MORE …

Previous Article

Douglas County Commission to hold budget hearings; most residents will see property tax increases under proposal

 Next Article

City of Lawrence proposed budget includes property tax rate hike, sales tax question

Today in Lawrence

See more

Get our newsletters

Never miss a story. Sign up for our emails.


Close Menu