Wichita City Council members have voted to create a naming committee to look at options for naming or renaming a public facility in honor of the late Billy McCray, who served in the Kansas Legislature and later as a Sedgwick County commissioner.
The request was made by community advocate James Barfield, who had asked to rename the Maya Angelou Branch Library in honor of McCray. Other speakers voiced objections to taking off the name of Angelou, and City Council member Brandon Johnson said there has been disappointment and division in the community over the idea. Mayor Brandon Whipple voiced reservations about reversing a decision made by an earlier city council and the library board.
Barfield called McCray, who died in 2012, a true hero who dedicated 27 years to public service and advocated for fair housing, civil rights, and small businesses and he founded the neighborhood newspaper The Community Voice. Barfield said his intention was not to discredit or dishonor Maya Angelou, but he was following city policy for a process to name public buildings.
After about an hour of discussion, the council agreed to create a new committee to look at options for naming a city, county or state facility after McCray. City Council members will each appoint one member and the committee will also include Barfield and a member of the McCray family, creating a nine-member group that will make recommendations to the city council for a later decision.
