TJ Crowley Included in ‘Redline 101 Exhibit’ at Shocker Neighborhood’s Open Streets ICT
WICHITA, Kan. -- The new Redline 101 exhibit will debut at Sunday’s Open Streets ICT Shocker Neighborhood event, spotlighting the historic practice of redlining—a systemic barrier that restricted housing access for African Americans and other communities in northeast Wichita and across the country.
The community-building event, sponsored by Wichita Park and Recreation, will give the public access to biking, running, walking and visiting vendors and food trucks on a closed two-mile stretch of 17th Street between Oliver and Volutsia.
This is one of panels of the Redline 101 Exhibit that bring awareness to the barrier of discrimination that limited access to housing for African Americans in northeast Wichita. This exhibit is a local version of the nationally acclaimed "Undesign the Redline" exhibit, will include “The Real Education of TJ Crowley” a historical novel by Grant Overstake which is set on the Redline in 1968, one of the most volatile periods in American history.
The new Redline 101 exhibit—Wichita’s local adaptation of the nationally acclaimed Undesign the Redline interactive series—will debut at Sunday’s Open Streets ICT Shocker Neighborhood event. This powerful installation sheds light on the historical impact of redlining, a discriminatory housing practice that shaped life for both teens and adults during one of the most racially segregated periods in American history.
A highlight of the exhibit is the inclusion of The Real Education of TJ Crowley, a historical young adult novel by Wichita author Grant Overstake. Set in northeast Wichita in 1968, the story provides a timely and accessible lens on the lasting effects of redlining and its continued influence on communities of color today.
Set near the campus of Wichita State University, TJ Crowley is inspired by real people and events that unfolded in one of the most divided eras of the city’s past. The narrative unfolds in the aftermath of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and the passage of the federal Fair Housing Act—when Black families began moving into previously segregated neighborhoods, often facing resistance and real danger along the way.
Dr. Jay Price, Chair of the Department of History at Wichita State University, recommended the novel for the exhibit. Coordinated by WSU’s Director of Engagement Naquela Pack, the exhibit reflects a growing commitment to preserving and sharing local civil rights history. TJ Crowley is already part of Wichita State’s History of Wichita and Racial Profiling courses and is featured in the Wichita Public Library’s Candid Conversations on Race Book Club. Plans are underway for Redline 101 to become a permanent exhibit at The Kansas African American Museum.
Visitors will have the opportunity to listen to select scenes from the novel’s full-cast audio drama adaptation, produced with support from the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. Attendees can also contribute their own reflections through interactive digital storytelling tools.
Redline 101 is a key feature of Open Streets ICT, a citywide event that promotes active transportation, community engagement, and healthy living. The two-mile route along 17th Street from Oliver to Grove will be closed to traffic and open to walking, biking, and family-friendly activities. Food trucks, music, local vendors, and additional programming will be available along the route, including special activities at Fairmount Park (via Yale) and the Atwater Neighborhood Resource Center (via Volutsia).
All are encouraged to attend Redline 101 and the Shocker Neighborhood edition of Open Streets ICT to learn, reflect, and celebrate the resilience of communities past and present.
