KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Robert J. Mohart Multipurpose Center at Linwood Boulevard and Flora Avenue is open to a wide variety of community functions, but at one time this structure was home to a crusading rabbi who had the courage to take on organized crime and a corrupt Kansas City government run by "Boss" Tom Pendergast.
That Rabbi was Samuel Mayerberg, who led Temple B'Nai Jehudah from 1928-1960.
During the height of the Pendergast machine's stranglehold on Kansas City in the 1930s, Mayerberg said "enough is enough."
Dr. Bill Worley, local historian, author and retired history professor said Mayerberg was old-school and his opposition was based solely on spiritual principles.
"The idea being that the purpose of people on Earth is to do justice, show mercy and walk humbly with God, and that was his motto," Worley said.
The rabbi's push-back came at a price. Pendergast enforcer Johnny Lazia had Mayerberg in his sights. They met face-to-face in a heated verbal confrontation at the Jackson County Courthouse.
The rabbi secured a bodyguard and he narrowly escaped an attempted hit, when four men in a passing vehicle opened fire at his car.
Worley said Mayerberg also received backlash from his own congregation, because some had profitable under-the-table business dealings with Pendergast.
"They would in turn be helped by the Pendergast organization when the time came, but there was no money paid from Pendergast," Worley said. "It is entirely based on 'I owe you one.'"
Mayerberg became popular for his courageous stand and was even encouraged to run for mayor in 1934. He became a Kansas City police commissioner.
Rabbi Mayerberg passed away in 1964. Shortly before his death, he told the B'Nai Jehudah congregation that he didn't want to be remembered a fighter for civic justice, but merely as a man of unequivocal faith in God and the Ten Commandments.
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Uniquely Kansas City is a partnership between KSHB 41 News and retired Kansas City journalist Bill Grady, highlighting the historical stories that makes the Kansas City area truly unique through audio and digital storytelling. Is there a piece of Kansas City history you'd like us to share? Send us an email at desk@kshb.com.