The mission of the black archives of mid-america in kansas city, inc. Is to collect, preserve and make available to the public materials documenting the social, economic, political and cultural histories of persons of african american descent in the central united states, with particular emphasis in the kansas city, missouri region. Black archives of mid-america is an educational resource and provides access to its collections for research, exhibition and publication to honor the community heritage and to catalyze public awareness.

In 2016 the black archives of mid-america served 1,500 program participants through the organization's active program series which included the horace m. Peterson iii lecture series, the mbembe milton smith poetry series and the community stories series. The organization hosted tours for 450 visitors and offered research services to 115 scholars, students and researchers. The black archives of mid-america (bama) collects, preserves and displays documents and artifacts of historical significance for the benefit of students, researchers and the public. Bama also provides lectures presented by persons with significant historical knowledge about african american history both on a local and national scale. Bama provides programs concerning african american history for elementary and secondary students in partnership with universities, libraries and research organizations such as national genealogy centers. Bama presents exhibits of national and international significance for public viewing such as the alvin ailey exhibit and "emancipation and beyond".