Join us every third Thursday of every month at 9:00 AM for Coffee With the Curator at the Museum of World Treasures!

Event Details

• Date: Thursday, September 17, 2026
• Time: 9:00 AM (Doors Open at 8:45)
• Location: Museum of World Treasures [Get Directions]

Program Fee

• Museum Members: Free
• Non-Members: FREE and open to the public, thanks to Humanities Kansas

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Attending Information

• Open to all ages
• No need to register; simply walk in!
• Light refreshments provided.

The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In

Seeking racial equity and an end to segregation, Wichita’s Black students organized and staged a sit-in in 1958 at Wichita’s Dockum Drugstore. Long denied entry into the city’s movie theaters and restaurants, students exercised their right to peacefully protest over a three-week period at the popular lunch counter. What transpired, how it ended, and the lasting impact it had on race relations in the city is the focus of this talk. More broadly, the talk will explore how these types of protests transformed the struggle for racial equity in America.

“The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In” is part of Humanities Kansas's Speakers Bureau and “21st Century Civics,” a collection of resources that invite Kansans to participate in community discussions and learn more about the history of American democracy and the shared responsibilities of citizenship. “21st Century Civics” is made possible with support from “A More Perfect Union: America at 250,” an initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

SPEAKER BIO - Priscia Barnes

Prisca Barnes is the founder of Storytime Village, Inc., a nonprofit organization in Wichita that promotes reading among low-income children and families. She is a passionate advocate for equity in education and literacy.

“The Dockum Sit-in was one of the first student-led lunch counter protests of the Civil Rights era and it happened here in Kansas,” said Barnes. “It important to revisit its circumstances.”

special thanks

This program is brought to us by Humanities Kansas, an independent nonprofit leading a movement of ideas to empower the people of Kansas to strengthen their communities and our democracy.