Jammin’ Beignetz’ farmers market opens at 9 a.m. ... The Mississippi Improv Alliance fills Fenian’s with on-the-fly music at 2 p.m. Free; 601-497-7454. ... Play ping-pong for charity at Sportsman’s Lodge; call 601.366-5441.
I was sitting in a meeting wondering what I could write for my first blog entry of the Youth Media Project, and I suddenly thought of something I consider a pretty good idea. See, I made two blogs at different times a few years ago which happen to touch on some subjects we are seriously discussing throughout this summer. Convenient, right? I wanted to post my initial thoughts from two years and one year ago to see how much my views and writing style have changed. I am not posting the two blog entries in their entirety because of their lengths, but I am taking all the juicy parts out for you to enjoy. I am a 15-year-old sophomore in these two entries, whereas today I am nearly 17 and a rising senior.What makes me most happy is that once I was just getting my thoughts out about things that are important to me, but now I am actually DOING something about them. I thank my support from the Media Literacy Project and JFP for this.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
"I Just Have to Type My Thoughts Out"
...Yeah, so I guess I've been giving a lot of thought lately to our species and what's up with us, and, honestly, I'm very confused. I guess it started with the Jena 6. If you don't know who they are, look them up because I don't feel like explaining right now. I really don't know what to say about that. It makes me so incredibly sad to know racism is still so heavy anywhere in the world, but here in the South it just makes me feel like people everywhere else still only see the illiterate Klansmen marrying their cousins or something. Not only that, the lack of justice is sickening. Why isn't the national news going crazy? It takes the energy out of me, it makes me so tired of what people do to each other. We keep coming up with these 'new' ways to hurt each other that are really just old practices with new subjects and situations.
Our symbol for Justice in America is a blindfolded woman holding a scale. I agree that Justice is blind, but there are two kinds of blind justice: one is the truthful Justice, who does not try to convict or acquit, but merely listens to the information handed to her and attempts to make the wisest and most correct decision; the other kind of blind Justice is not a liar, but has merely mingled with the flaws of humans, forgetting she is an abstraction above us all and that she is making all the mistakes we created her not to make. Justice can be a puppet too.
Humans are constantly evolving. In this process there is no room for flaws that cannot be adapted. Racism is one of those flaws. Our fingernails may not be good for squat except being painted, but we worked around that with the creation of tools, however crude they were at first. Think about racism. Think about how it limits us as a species. Can we adapt this 'idea'? My answer is a definite 'no'. No one will sway me on this subject. I suppose that means hate itself, really, is a flaw of humans that must be eradicated if we ever want to reach the full potential of our evolutionary process. It's sort of like reaching nirvana, I guess...
Friday, January 18, 2008
"Let's Try this Again"
Something I knew had happened a few years ago but didn't want to remember stared me in the face. No more tire swings. Ripped off. Gone. It made me really sad. So sad. I remember being in the third, fourth, and fifth grades and intentionally spinning so fast in them I got dizzy to the point of nausea pretty often. And getting pushed by people. That was always fun.
Down the hill from the lonely rusty hinges was what was left of new exercise equipment we got in third grade. Most of them were really adult things that had instructions on the 'proper' ways to make use of them, but we being imaginative kids created new uses. Screw your tests to determine upper body strength—these bars are for swinging upside down! They changed everyday unless one idea stuck for awhile, so I can't really describe that stuff to people who haven't seen the playground. There was this inner tube thing, though, and I mention it because some horrible people have destroyed it. It had been covered in graffiti prior to being obliterated, adding insult to injury. Man, my neighborhood friends and I used to slide over it all the time. It was so much fun. I tuned into the music and kept going...
...I almost forgot the upper level blacktop for the big kids. You know, a blacktop. The most awesome, yet at the same time the most unnecessary potential danger ever created by Man!
There used to be decent basketball hoops that never had nets on them on the blacktop. That's was okay to us, what did we care? But now a lot of the goals and hoops are just...broken. Dying, but not dead. Which is almost as bad, if not worse. It's a taunt, that's for sure. But at least I can still faintly see the four square letters that were still barely noticeable seven years ago. Seven. Holy damn, I feel old saying that.
So there you have it. Not all of it, but most of it. Why did I even bother to go back to Lee or write this? Well, the music made me do it. And I don't regret it one bit. Sure, it made me sad, but it helped me let go a little bit and that's worth more than a lot of things.
Many parents ask, “What will you do this summer, Bobby?” or “What are you going to do when school’s out, Jane?” I believe it is said best on the theme song of the popular cartoon, "Phineas and Ferb": “There's 104 days in summer vaction, and school comes along just to end it. So the annual problem for our generation, is finding a good way to spend it!”
Indeed, these are good questions to ask a school-aged individual. In their free time, what has a child to do? What could they do to help enrich their minds and bodies? And what kind of things would they enjoy doing? These are the pivotal questions we must as ourselves when we look at a place like Jackson, Miss.
From what I’ve observed, all the things the children of Jackson could do are limited. We could go to the movies, attend a party, go swimming, or get a job. That’s pretty much it! And lack of a car for many Mississippi minors can make the possibilities of these activities little to none. The common city activities get old after a while, especially for pre-teens and teens, during a hot, nauseating summer. Do you feel like your kids just want to watch TV and eat junk food all day during the summer? If you did, you’re dead wrong! These thoughts boosted me to ask my peers in Facebook what they would be up to for the summer. I got some interesting feedback.
“You know, I’m gonna just go to football practice, ball out and hit a few parties.”
“Oh, nothing, just go to drill team practice and hang with my boyfriend Tim.”
“I ain’t got nothin’ to do. I’mma be bored all this summer. LOL Yea, just goin’ be here washin’ dishes and clothes.”
All of them sound just like that. A good combination of boredom and responsibility. You see, what I mean. Jackson is a great city filled with great kids who don’t have anywhere to expend their talents and energy. So, we usually find other, not so good, areas to expend them. Like parties where fights and shoot-outs end the event, at get-togethers with alcoholic beverages readily available and just riding up and down the street making jokes and wasting up loads of that expensive gas. Jackson youth are so bored that a man was able to buy an empty parking lot and begin to make people paying to get in the empty lot and just talking to each other, in an empty lot. This is the things we go through just to have a fun summer break.
So what can we do about this problem because no one else seem to be doing anything about it. Do they even care? We have to "beat the boredom" without exposing ourselves to harmful or unruly situations or criminal activity. I’ve been talking to a few business owners, including my grandmother Clem Cooper, who are interested in creating a Youth Enrichment Center. The program will take some time to get off the ground but she plans to start up a blog soon, headed by me to ask children what they would be interested in doing from day to day. They would like the help of the CRCL and the JFP. They just need help to get turn this dream into a reality. I hope you guys are interested in this idea because it will help your generations, as wells as future generations, of Jackson Youth have better summers. Do your part.
Gov. Sarah Palin announced suddenly today that she will step down as governor of Alaska on July 26, only 30 months into her first term. The Washington Post:
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) announced this afternoon she will resign from office on July 26 and return to private life, a stunning decision by last year's Republican vice presidential candidate to leave office before the end of her first term.
Palin, who has been plagued by scandal since hitting the national stage as a vice presidential candidate last fall, did not say why she is stepping down, or detail what she will do next, leaving the rumor mill on fire. The Huffington Post takes a guess: "Rumors of an "iceberg scandal" have been circulating."
The Jackson Free Press is thrilled to host the second summer of a joint youth media effort that, last year, resulted in a special issue of the JFP and a "media literacy" report on how Jackson print media covered youth. This summer, some of the same teens are back, along with lots of new ones from public and private high schools throughout Jackson (most involved in the Civil Rights Civil Liberties Club that started at Jim Hill), to create the Youth Media Project. This time, they are not examining the media; they are being the media! This is a really exciting process to watch, as we try to get the project off the ground.
The groups helping the teens has exanded this year; last year it was the JFP and the William Institute for Racial Reconciliation. This year the Mississippi Youth Justice Project has joined the effort, providing us a camera and a talented intern (and Murrah grad), Treshika Melvin. And teachers and journalists who are helping start the Jackson Area High School Press Association (JAHSPA) are helping mentor the teens. And one more group is starting to prove invaluable: the summer 2009 summer intern class at the JFP. These interns, mostly college age, are working with the teens to help produce video and written pieces about young people in neighborhoods throughout Jackson. It's truly a group effort.
We also have other volunteers, such as fillmmaker Jef Judin, who is helping the teens learn how to produce, shoot and edit video. And special thanks goes to the landlord of our building for loaning us some space for the project teens to work in. And we got two computers donated from a plea we Twittered! (Thanks, Knol and Mark!)
I really can't wait to see where this project goes. And we have every intention of keeping it going beyond the summer. So if you would like to join the effort in some way, either as a student or mentor, or donate supplies, equipment (especially sound equipment!) or even snacks to help our teen reporters, please let us know.
You won't have to look far for activities this Independence Day weekend. Today, start your holiday by celebrating the inauguration of Mayor Harvey Johnson Junior. The activities began early with a prayer service, but the whole town is invited to the inauguration, a reception following and the party tonight, all held at the Jackson Convention Complex, downtown.
Family activities are happening all around this weekend, beginning with the second annual Red, White and Jackson festival, with activities today at the Old Capitol Museum. Don't forget the four-day annual Mississippi Championship Hot Air Balloon Fest in Canton (including the annual Balloon Glow at Northpark Mall tonight). Also, the National Appaloosa Horse Show ends its two-week long extravaganza on the 4th. Find info for all these activities and more on the JFP Events Calendar.
Saturday is always a great day to get up early in the summer. Head out to the Mississippi Farmer's Market or the Greater Belhaven Market while it's still relatively cool to stock up on some of the state's best fresh produce and homemade foods for the week ahead. Then head up to Ridgeland at 11 a.m. for the Mississippi Crafts Center for a picnic, craft demonstrations and live music. The city of Clinton puts on music and fireworks beginning at 5:30 p.m. at Traceway Park. See more recommendations on the JFP's Best Bets.
Sunday marks the end of two awesome exhibits at the Mississippi Museum of Art. Don't kick yourself later for missing "Raoul Dufy: A Celebration of Beauty" or "Eudora Welty in New York." If you haven't seen them yet, this is your last chance.
If live music is more your style, take a look at Jackson's best music listings for your favorite club, band or DJ. Eddie Cotton kicks off the weekend tonight at the Auditorium in Fondren, or head to Martin's for the Quills and the False Alarm. But there are dozens more to choose from, so don't take our word for it. Click the link!
Among the budget bills that failed to get to the governor's desk earlier this week were appropriations to fund the Public Service Commission and the Public Utilities agency. Without funding, the two state organizations are sending most of their employees home. The PSC is keeping on a skeleton crew of about 12 people, while Public Utilities shut its doors.
"We're now down to protecting rate payers with spit balls," PSC commissioner Brandon Presley told the Associated Press.
The PSC is tasked with regulating utilities—electricity, natural gas, water and sewer services—and telecommunications, requested additional staff for 2010. Mississippi House members approved the request; Senators did not.
The attorney general's office released an opinion yesterday saying the agency could not operate without a budget beyond its core functions. But Gov. Haley Barbour has indicated that he will call another special session once negotiators agree on a compromise, the story states.
"Having a special session is going to cost almost as much as we were asking for," Presley told the Clarion-Ledger.
Costs for a second special legislative session could be $60,000 or more, added to the $141,000 spent on the first special session that began last Sunday and ended Tuesday, hours before the 2010 fiscal year began.
The Mississippi Farmers Market opens at 8 a.m. Free; call 601-354-6573. ... The Greater Belhaven Market begins at 9 a.m. in the parking lot of the Belhaven McDade’s. Free; call 601-506-2848. ... Check out the Raoul Dufy exhibit at the Mississippi Museum of Art before it closes. $12, various discounts available; call 601-960-1515. ... The Congress Street Market begins at10 a.m. at The Commons Gallery. Free call 601-352-3399. ... The Mississippi Crafts Center hosts an old-fashioned picnic. Free food, music, demonstrations by craftsmen, games and more. Free; call 601-856-7546. ... The Canton Gospel Fest Homecoming begins at 4 p.m. with a free gospel concert in the town square of Canton. Free; call 601-859-1307. ... The Mississippi Brilla Futbol Club, the state’s soccer team, faces off against New Orleans at 5:30 p.m. at Arrow Field in Clinton. $5; visit msbrillafc.org. ... The city of Clinton hosts a family fireworks extravaganza at 5:30 p.m. at Traceway Park. $5 parking fee; call 601-925-6103. ... Gospoetry at Koinonia, 8 p.m. ... Electric Company is at Fenian’s, 9 p.m.
Should the state of Rhode Island change its official name?
The official name is Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, which gives the smallest state in the U.S. the longest name in the U.S. However, the state legislature may remove the Providence Plantations part because it could be a reminder of slavery. One of the legislators claims that the name had nothing to do with slavery, so changing the name isn't necessary:
Last week, the state's Legislature voted overwhelmingly to hold a referendum to drop the words "Providence Plantations" from the state's name. The reason: Critics say it conjures up images of slavery.
That may be so, but the state's name does not refer to the slave trade, says state Rep. Michael Rice, a Democrat who opposes changing the name.
Rice tells Robert Siegel that the official name goes back to the earliest days of the Rhode Island Colonies established in the 1630s and 1640s. Each of these small agricultural colonies reported directly to England; there was no connection between them. This type of governance was called a plantation colony.
Rice, however, acknowledges that Rhode Island didn't have clean hands in the slave trade. Slaves helped build Brown University, and much of the school's original endowment came from slave-trading funds.
"This is a sad part of Rhode Island history, but it, pretty much, antedates, actually, the word 'plantations' within the name of the state," he says.
Rep. Rice is still going to back the referendum, but what do you think? Is changing the state's official name a good idea?
"American Express Traveler's Checks. Don't leave home without them." The character actor known for this catchphrase as well as his role in movies such as "Pollyanna" and "A Streetcar Name Desire" passed away at the age of 97:
Malden appeared alongside Marlon Brando in two of director Elia Kazan's classic films of the 1950s -- "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "On the Waterfront." He won the best supporting actor Oscar for "Streetcar," which was released in 1951, in 1952 and was nominated for his role as a priest crusading against crooked union bosses in "On the Waterfront."
Ross said he did not know the cause of death.
"It could be a combination of things," Ross said. "He was 97 years old."
Born Mladen George Sekulovich in Gary, Indiana, the bulb-nosed actor made his New York stage debut in 1938 and first appeared in films in the 1940 melodrama "They Knew What They Wanted." After serving in the Army Air Corps in World War II, he made his mark in the New York production of "Streetcar," by Tennessee Williams.
Malden also did extensive work in television, starring with Michael Douglas in the police drama "The Streets of San Francisco" from 1972-77. He was nominated four times for Emmys for the show, and won a supporting-actor Emmy for his part in the miniseries adaptation of the true-crime bestseller "Fatal Vision" in 1985.
His other well-known screen roles include his performances in "Patton," in which he played World War II Gen. Omar Bradley alongside George C. Scott's title character; the steamy "Baby Doll," another Elia Kazan-Tennessee Williams collaboration; and "Gypsy."
Gov. Haley Barbour has vetoed a number of appropriation bills and parts of bills, leaving some doubt as to what the next steps will be—or even whether there are next steps—for completing the state's $6 billion budget for the 2010 fiscal year, which began yesterday.
Among the appropriations Barbour nixed are provisions dealing with overtime pay for state troopers and the shifting of $500,000 from the sale of vanity license plates to pay for special legislative sessions, reports the Sun Herald. The funds from the vanity plates usually fund repairs for the Capitol building, the Governor's Mansion and the War Memorial building.
Barbour also vetoed a bill that would take $7 million from the state's $95 million rainy-day fund and make it available to community mental health centers, saying those funds went beyond the agreed-upon amount to be spent from the fund.
The current special session of the state legislature ended Tuesday when lawmakers sent the final budget bill to the governor. Without another session, lawmakers can't even consider overriding Barbour's vetoes. But, as the story points out, in the governor's six years in office, the Mississippi legislature has failed to override any of his vetoes, which takes the votes of two-thirds of both the House and the Senate.
Tomorrow, July 3, marks the official inauguration for acting Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr., with public events starting as early as 8 a.m. and continuing throughout the day until midnight. All of the events are free and open to the public; however, the inauguration celebration is limited to those 18 and over.
At 8 a.m., join the prayer service at New Hope Baptist Church, 5202 Watkins Drive. All other events take place at the Capital City Convention Center.
11:30 a.m., Inauguration Ceremony;
12:30 until 2 p.m., Reception;
8 p.m. until midnight, Inauguration Celebration (must be 18 or over).
At 44.4 percent of children and 32.5 percent of adults, Mississippi leads the nation in obesity. According to the 2009 edition of "F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies are Failing in America," "The obesity epidemic is harming the health of millions of Americans, contributing significantly to skyrocketing health care costs and threatening the country’s productivity."
This is the sixth year that the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has published the report, and the fifth year that Mississippi has come in at the top. Three other states have obesity rates over 30 percent: Alabama, West Virginia and Tennessee. Eight of the 10 fattest states are in the South.
By comparison, in 1991, no state had an obesity rate greater than 20 percent.
A few years ago, I nearly got into a war with one of my housemates.
My housemate, whom I’ll call Evan, frequently spent nights away from the house. And, even though he would be gone for days, he would leave his bedroom window wide open. It was on the ground floor and didn’t have a screen on it.
I would come home to our big, empty house late at night and find his bedroom window open. I anxiously flipped on all the lights and looked under the beds to make sure no intruders had slipped into the house. The mosquitoes that flew in during the balmy summer nights would frequently bite me.
I began walking into Evan’s room and closing his window, feeling a bit guilty for intruding on his space but justified in protecting my well-being.
One day, I ran into Evan in the kitchen, and he asked, “Have you been closing my window?”
Apologetically, I said yes and explained why. “Can we figure out a solution that works for both of us?” I asked.
“No, just don’t close the window,” he said.
My jaw dropped, and I didn’t know how to respond. Finally, I said through clenched teeth, “Well, thank God we’re moving out in three weeks.”
Evan proceeded to go out of town for five days and leave his window open again. Ignoring his demand not to, I went into his room and closed the window.
A few days later, I came home to find a sign in huge red scrawl taped to Evan’s door. It said: “Stay out of my f*&@#% room!”
I wanted to take revenge on Evan so badly. I wanted to boil my Chinese medicinal herbs outside his open window so the stench filled his room. But I was honestly afraid that he’d slash my car’s tires if I did. I prayed that no thieves or murderers would be in the neighborhood for the next couple of weeks, and I left Evan’s window alone.
Why we get angry, and how it hurts us
We tend to get angry when we feel that we’re victims of injustice, or when we perceive an obstacle to our goals. We also may get angry when someone criticizes or insults us, especially when they’re upset themselves, or even threatening.
Feeling anger in these situations is natural. It’s our body’s way of protecting us from threats. Anger triggers the brain’s “fight or flight” response, readying us to confront a threat or run the other way.
When we frequently let ourselves get angry or act on it thoughtlessly, anger can damage our health and relationships. Chronic anger can:
o Raise blood pressure and cholesterol levels
o Increase the risk of heart disease and heart attack
o Disrupt metabolism and encourage belly fat deposits
o Lower the immune system
o Interfere with personal and professional relationships
o Contribute to destruction of property and physical violence
Separating fact from story
It’s never the events themselves that make us angry. Rather, it’s the one-sided story we tell ourselves about what these events mean. It’s natural to create these stories, because it’s how we make sense of the world. However, it’s important to remember that these are just our one-sided interpretations. It’s when we confuse our stories with reality that we become unhappy.
For example, when Evan wouldn’t consider closing his window and left the note on his door, I decided that he was a sociopath. I labeled him sexist, unreasonable and probably violent.
In reality, all of this was a story that I made up about Evan, not “the truth.” The facts were that he had told me not to close his window and had left a note on his door telling me to stay out of his room. I had inferred that the note was meant to threaten me, and that he was a selfish jerk, but those were my own biased conclusions. I got upset because I couldn’t, or wouldn’t, separate the actual facts from my interpretation of those facts. I got angry because I was “right,” and he had wronged me.
Compassion
Spiritual leaders from many traditions teach compassion as the key to diffusing anger. Having compassion means assuming that people do the best they can with what they have at the moment (Whether that is information, genetics, culture, etc.) It means that because you’re not perfect, you can’t expect others to be, either.
Treating Evan with compassion is difficult for me even today, but I try to imagine why he acted the way he did. Maybe he had been mistreated as a child and was therefore conditioned to mistreat others. Perhaps he was going through a difficult time and was taking out his frustration on me. If I really think about it, I feel sad that Evan felt compelled to behave the way he did. If he continued to treat people that way, he would have had a lonely life.
I’m glad that I resisted my urge to retaliate against Evan, as unjust as I thought his actions were. Starting a housemate war would have made the situation worse for us both. So I let go. There was nothing else I could do to improve the situation.
Feeling chronically angry without channeling your feelings into constructive action will end up hurting you and the people around you. Pay attention to that familiar “fight or flight” response as your anger rises. As your breath and heartbeat quicken, choose your next actions carefully. If you act with compassion, or just let go and walk away, you’ll thank yourself later.
Anger Do’s and Don’ts
It’s natural to feel angry now and then, but what matters is what you do with that anger.
1) DON’T begin a discussion in anger. Interactions that start harshly nearly always end harshly. DO practice broaching a subject in a calm, non-accusatory way.
2) DON’T lash out and say hurtful things that you can’t take back. DO seek first to understand, then to be understood.
3) DON’T let an argument escalate into a yelling match. DO leave the space to cool down if you need to, communicating a time you’ll resume the conversation.
4) DON’T insist on being right at the risk of damaging your relationships. DO consider that you may not have all the information or the answers.
5) DON’T blame others for making you angry. DO accept responsibility for all your feelings and actions.
Healthy Ways to Release Your Anger
• Wail on something inanimate. Use your fists or a paper bat (try duct-taping a rolled newspaper) and smack a pillow until you calm down.
• Take up an aggressive sport. Get out your negative energy through martial arts, kickboxing, wrestling, football or rugby.
• Scream at the top of your lungs. In your car or empty house, yell at the person you’re angry with, as long as they’re out of earshot. Know that you’ll have the pleasure of the final word.
• Write a ranting letter to whomever you’re angry with (even yourself, or God/the universe), knowing that you can express yourself freely because you’ll never send it. Curse. Use capitals. Then carefully burn the page in the fireplace or on the stove.
Thursday, July 2
College football, Ole Miss at Florida replay (6 p.m., CSS): Rebel fans can relive one of the great moments in UM football history during this replay of the 2008 game.
Friday, July 3
Southern League baseball, Mississippi at West Tenn (7:05 p.m., Jackson, Tenn., 103.9 FM): The M-Braves end their stay in the lesser Jackson.
Saturday, July 4
Cycling, Tour de France Stage 1 (6:30 a.m., Versus): Lance Armstrong returns to ride for an eighth title in the annual Tour de Dope. … Southern League baseball, Jacksonville at Mississippi (7:05 p.m., Pearl, 103.9 FM): What better way to celebrate the USA’s birthday than watching the M-Braves and Suns play America’s pastime? … PDL soccer, New Orleans at Mississippi (7 p.m., Clinton High School): What better way … anyway, Brilla is making a playoff push.
Sunday, July 5
Tennis, Wimbledon men’s singles final (8 a.m., Ch. 3): Will Roger Federer make history at the All-England Club? … Southern League baseball, Jacksonville at Mississippi (1:05 p.m., Pearl, 103.9 FM): You will have to watch this one sans beer.
Monday, July 6
Movie, “Angels in the Outfield” (9:15 a.m., TCM): The Pittsburgh Pirates need heavenly help if they’re going to win the pennant. One sign this movie was made in 1951: A major-league manager hangs out with a sportswriter.
Tuesday, July 7
Southern League baseball, Jacksonville at Mississippi (7:05 p.m., Pearl, 103.9 FM): The M-Braves conclude their homestand on Kraft Singles Night. So there’s no need to cut the cheese at Trustmark Park.
Wednesday, July 8
Major League Baseball, Atlanta at Chicago Cubs (6 p.m., SportSouth, 620 AM): The big Braves pay a visit to the unfriendly confines of Wrigley Field.
The Slate is compiled by Doctor S, who’s staving off malaria with regular, large doses of gin and tonic.
Whether you have to volunteer for school or you just want to do it just for fun, Jackson has numerous places to donate your time, money and knowledge. Take a few moments and read to find out what types of volunteering opportunities best suit your interests and needs.
Mississippi Museum of Art
380 South Lamar St.
Services needed: complete volunteer enrichment sessions, giving tours, greeting visitors, distributing materials
Contact: Ivy Alley, Curator of Education at 601-960-1515 or e-mail
Jackson Zoo
2918 Capitol St. http://www.jacksonzoo.org
Services needed: event volunteers, activities facilitators, assist with animal care in the discovery zoo, assist camp instructors in all ZooCamp activities. Ages 12-17 for Jr. Docents/CIT
Contact: Jackson Zoo EdZOOcation Department at 601-352-2586 or e-mail
Community Animal Rescue and Adoption (CARA)
960 N. Flag Chapel Road http://www.carams.org
Services needed: Picking up and delivering pet food, transporting dogs for grooming, special event volunteers, office volunteers, animal care volunteers (cleaning kennels, washing food bowls, mopping floors, etc.)
Contact: Janet Madden at 601-922-7575 or e-mail
Habitat for Humanity http://www.habitatjackson.org
Services needed: construction on Saturdays for groups or individuals include tasks like putting walls, nailing boards and painting
Contact: Lauren Dove, volunteer coordinator at 601-353-6060 ext. 202 or
The Nature Conservancy
964 W. Jefferson St.
Services needed: leading field trips, manning booths at environmental festivals and celebrations, helping to conserve Mississippi’s natural resources
Contact: Kathy Costello (ext.107) or Susan Hollinsworth (ext. 102) at 601-713-3355
The Youth United Way
Volunteer Resource Center
843 North President St.
Services needed: Students ages 13 to 24 spend at least 40 hours over a six-week period at local non-profit organizations (volunteer opportunities made by appointment only)
Student Opportunities: Youth Advisory Council, Student Volunteer Program, Youth United Way Campaign Cabinet
Contact: Miisha Lowe at 601-948-4725 or e-mail
Boys and Girls Club of Central Mississippi
multiple locations http://www.bgccm.net
Services needed: homework tutoring, arts and crafts workers, sports activities, guest speakers and more
Contact: Randal Gray at 601-969-7088, ext.23 or e-mail
If your summer volunteering agenda doesn’t fit any of our recommendations, there are many others available in the city. Visit http://www.jackpedia.com for more ideas and to add your suggestions.
In these tough financial times, cash doesn’t necessarily flow like it used to. Many of us are cutting back on our “entertainment” funds to pay bills. But don’t fret; the Jackson metro offers a GOOD solution: Gather up your unwanted books, CDs and DVDs, video games, musical instruments, sports gear, comic books, baseball cards—even those old Pokemon cards your girlfriend doesn’t know about—and visit some of these local businesses. If your items are in good condition, these stores might make you an offer you can’t refuse.
Comics
Action Island (579 Highway 51, Suite D, Ridgeland, 601-856-1789)
• What You Get: In-store credit or cash
• What You Give: Comic books, graphic novels
• Bonus: Collectibles and other odds ‘n’ ends for sale
Other Resources: Van’s Comics and Cards (558 Highway 51, Ridgeland, 601-898-9950)
Music (Instruments)
Fondren Guitars by Patrick Harkins (607 Fondren Place, 601-362-0313)
• What You Get: In-store credit or cash
• What You Give: Guitars, keyboards and sound gear
• Bonus: Consignment service and weekly 30-minute guitar lessons available.
Other Resources: Allegrezza Piano Co. (608 Highway 51, Ridgeland, 601-856-2524); Brother Jay’s Guitar Shoppe (206 W. Jackson St., Ridgeland, 601-605-9488); Church Organ Center (1220 Thigpen Road, Raymond, 601-857-8361); Guitar Center (1189 E. County Line Road, Suite 4, 601-956-8053); Lakeland Music (5200 Lakeland Drive, Flowood, 601-992-0089); Lipking’s Music (280 W. Government St., Brandon, 601-591-1441); Mississippi Music Inc. (1001 Sara Lane, Flowood, 601-922-1200); Morrison Brothers Music (127 Dyess Road, Ridgeland, 601-956-0135)
Music (CDs and tapes)
Be-Bop Record Shop (3887 Metro Drive, 601-969-3181 and 1220 E. Northside Drive, 601-981-5000)
• What You Get: In-store credit or cash
• What You Give: CDs
Other Resources: The Little Big Store (201 E. Main St., Raymond, 601-857-8579)
Sports/Fitness Equipment
Play it Again Sports (6380D Ridgewood Court, 601-956-5500)
• What You Get: In-store credit or cash
• What You Give: Sports and fitness equipment
• Bonus: Trade kids’ sports equipment for bigger sizes (mainly helmets, gloves, bats and other durable gear). Consignment service available.
Books
The Book Rack (1491 Canton Mart Road, Suite 7, 601-956-5086)
• What You Get: In-store credit
• What You Give: Used books
Other Resources: Book Rack Brandon (118 Service Drive, Brandon, 601-824-1223); Book Rack Clinton (584C Springridge Road, Clinton, 601-924-9020); The Bookshelf (637 Highway 51 S., Suite 8A, Ridgeland, 601-853-9225); Tattered Pages (719 N. Congress St., 601-352-3399)
Video Games
Game Stop (multiple locations)
• What You Get: In-store credit or cash
• What You Video games and consoles (no regular Xbox games, Playstation 1 games or anything comparably old)
DVDS
Super Video Center (1372 W. McDowell Road, 601-372-6001)
• What You Get: In-store credit
• What You Give: Used DVDs
Knowing where food and clothing comes from is important to many consumers. Stores that stock their inventories with local goods have a lighter carbon footprint, and customers can rest assured that the most money possible re-enters their local economy when they purchase items. We chose different goods from three local stores and three national chain stores in Jackson, and showed how far they travel before arriving to your shopping cart.
Produce, Strawberry
Kroger (Chain), Multiple locations • Where do they come from? Driscoll’s, Watsonville, Calif.
• Driscoll’s has produced strawberries since 1944, and uses only natural growing methods. • Mileage: 2,058 • Fuel consumption: 334 gallons of gas for an 18-wheeler • Where do they go? When strawberries go bad, they have to be thrown out. Kroger donates many other items, such as bread, to local food pantry Gleaners (359 N. Mart Plaza, 601-981-4240).
Produce, Blueberry
Rainbow Whole Foods Co-Op Grocery, 2807 Old Canton Rd. 601-366-1602 • Where do they come from? Teresa Gilmore
• Teresa Gilmore grows blueberries in Madison, Miss., and transports them herself to Rainbow Grocery. • Mileage: 13 miles • Fuel consumption: .65 gallons in average car • Where do they go? Rainbow manages to use most of their leftover blueberries in their own High Noon Café. They dehydrate the fruit, and sell them in that form. If all else fails, they will donate to Gleaners (359 N. Market Plaza, 601-981-4240) or give away as compost.
Clothing, Dress
JCPenney, Multiple locations • Where does it come from? China
• The dress is fashioned in China and put on a barge to be shipped to America. • Mileage: 7,190 miles • Fuel consumption: Estimated 715 tons • Where does it go? JCPenney says its stores do not overstock items because every time an item is scanned for purchase, the message is sent to the corporate office so they will know what the store needs.
Clothing, Dress
Libby Story & Company, Multiple locations • Where does it come from? Magnolia Flea Market, Florence, Miss.
• Libby McRight, owner of Libby Story, picks up vintage dresses, art and accessories from the flea market herself and takes the items to the store. • Mileage: 26.8 • Fuel consumption: 1.3 gallons in average car • Where does it go? If the store does not sell a dress or is overstocked, the Libby Story will sew it into a new design or contract an outside local seamstress to do the same.
Food, Potatoes for French fries
Chili’s, Multiple locations • Where do they come from? Adams Brothers Produce, Idaho
• Adam’s Brothers Produce is a distribution company for the southeastern region of the United States. The company gets its potatoes primarily from Idaho. • Mileage: 1,988 • Fuel consumption: 332 gallons in an 18-wheeler • Where do they go? Chili’s produces by order, so they rarely have any food left over.
Food, Potatoes for French fries
Cool Al’s , 4654 McWillie Drive, 601-713-302 • Where do they come from? Herman Cockrell Farm, Mize, Miss.
• Herman Cockrell grows potatoes himself to be sold at Herman and Brenda’s Farmers’ Market. Al Stamp of Cool Al’s buys potatoes here to produce his fries. • Mileage: 55 • Fuel consumption: 3 gallons of gas on an average 18-mpg pickup truck • Where do they go? The folks at Cool Al’s know how to produce just enough. Stamp says that they usually run out by the end of the day.
Community gardens have sprung up across the city in recent months, offering Jacksonians the opportunity to learn about what they put into their bodies and how to grow it. Some can even reap the benefits of their labor. Here’s a rundown of Jackson’s plots.
Rainbow-Tougaloo Garden
Tougaloo College campus
Contact: Michael Gentry, 601-573-7529
A security guard at the Tougaloo campus gate will tell you where to find the organic garden, which is maintained by Rainbow Whole Foods Co-Op Grocery and Tougaloo College. Several community members keep up the garden and welcome volunteers.
• Large garden
• Vegetables, herbs and fruit
• Organic
• Times: Typically Wednesdays and Saturdays, 7-11 a.m., but subject to change. Call for details.
• Volunteers can take away produce.
Medical Mall Garden
Corner of Livingston Road and Melvin Bender Drive
Contact: Tre Roberts, 601-924-3539
The garden serves as a means for young people in the community to reap the benefits of their hard work, and those ages 12-18 can receive a small stipend for the work they put into the garden. Some produce will be sold to the community at discount prices to keep the garden afloat, and future plans include donating some produce to homeless shelters.
• Large garden
• Vegetables
• Times: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5-7 p.m.; Saturdays, 7-11 a.m.
• Volunteers can take away produce.
Casey Elementary Garden
2101 Lake Circle
Contact: Leslie Coleman, 601-987-3510
Children and their families tend the garden in the summer, but everyone is welcome to come help. The garden serves as a learning resource and artistic stimulus for kids at Casey, and the school gives produce to teachers for Teachers Appreciation week.
• Medium garden
• Vegetables
• Times: Wednesdays, 9-10:30 a.m.
• Volunteers do not take away produce.
John M. Perkins Foundation Community Garden
1831 Robinson Road
Contact: Main office, 601-354-1563
Young people of varying ages maintain the garden, but volunteers from the community also help. The garden is separated into two plots for smaller and larger vegetables.
• Large garden
• Vegetables, herbs
• Times: Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
• Volunteers can take away produce.
Voice of Calvary Garden
531 W. Capitol St.
Contact: Will Brewer, 601-969-3088
The Voice of Calvary Ministries Garden is located behind the Koinonia Coffee House, and is separated into two octagonal plots maintained by adults and youths. Voice of Calvary Ministries is considering expanding the garden either in the fall or next year.
• Large garden
• Vegetables
• Times: not specified
• Volunteers can take away produce.
Freedom isn’t free. Throughout the course of our nation’s history, men and women have given the ultimate sacrifice to represent the United States in times of war. The services they have provided are invaluable, and we are forever indebted to their efforts. One way to give back is to donate household items that we typically take for granted, such as deodorant and nail clippers. Here are a few of the hundreds of charities that support our troops overseas.
http://www.soldiersangels.org
If you are an expert seamstress or just a casual hobbyist, you can help the sewing team by knitting or crocheting blankets, scarves and helmet liners for the troops to comfort them at night. Soldiers Angels also sends drawings, handmade walking canes and even gourmet birthday cakes among other services.
http://www.booksforsoldiers.com
Instead of giving away your used books, send them to troops overseas. During their downtime, soldiers have very limited means of entertaining themselves. Shipping books to these men and women is a great way to show your support.
Also visit: http://www.subsforsoldiers.com
http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com
Two teenagers, Robbie and Brittany Berquist, started this program with $21 of their own money. Since then, Cell Phones for Soldiers has raised almost $2 million and given more than 500,000 prepaid calling cards to soldiers serving overseas. The service also allows users to give calling cards to specific troops or units. Old phones are sent to ReCellular, an electronics sustainability firm, which pays for each donated phone. AT&T has pitched by opening all 1,800 of their company-owned wireless stores across the country as drop-off sites to recycle the used cell phones.
http://www.anysoldier.com
Anysoldier.com sends care packages to troops all over the world. The Web site also allows users to search for specific members of the armed forces. Know of a local soldier who you would like to support? Search for them on the site and then send whatever you’d like. The program started in 2003 when Marty and Sue Horn decided to assist their son, Sergeant Brian Horn, who was fighting in Iraq. Originally, the Web site was designed to support members of Horn’s brigade. Since then, the site boasts of helping over 1.3 million troops serving overseas.
http://www.cigarsforsoldiers.com
Yep, even cigars. Cigars for Soldiers also accepts monetary donations and other necessities, but their main focus is cigars. The group’s Web site features a photo gallery of several U.S. troops posing with their new gifts. The site also holds online auctions where bidders can win cigar humidors autographed by notable cigar smokers such as Ted Nugent and Rush Limbaugh, and the proceeds go to the troops. After a long day of defending our freedom, help the soldiers kick back and relax with a stogie and a smile.
http://www.heromiles.org
The program allows family members of injured troops to fly overseas to visit them for free. Soldiers can also return home for special emergencies, all thanks to generous donations. Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger of Maryland started the program after hearing complaints about how expensive it was for soldiers to see their families. Participating airlines include Delta Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines. Donators can assist by giving their frequent-flyer miles to the program.
Also visit: http://www.miledonor.com
For more GOOD stories (yes, the pun is implied :-p ), please check-out the JFP's GOOD Blog.
In an unexpected move, the U.S. Supreme Court this week strayed from precedence to rule against a race-based hiring practice. Overturning an affirmative-action decision by an appellate panel, the Court ruled in favor of a group of white firefighters who were passed over for a promotion because of their race.
In 2003, the fire department in New Haven, Conn., administered qualifying exams to 118 firefighters for promotion to the ranks of captain and lieutenant. When no black firefighters passed the exam to qualify for a promotion, the city opted to discard the test results and not give any promotions at all. It reasoned that if they awarded promotions to the white firefighters who scored high enough to qualify, the city would open itself up to litigation from black participants. They cited the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits the “discriminatory use of test scores.” The slighted group of white firefighters later filed a lawsuit against the New Haven mayor, John DeStefano, and other city officials for discrimination on the basis of race.
While mainstream media is harping on how the Supreme Court’s reversal affects nominee Sonia Sotomayor—who was on the appellate panel that upheld the city’s decision to discard the exams—many Americans are asking, “Is it time to do away with affirmative action?”
To adequately answer this question, Americans need to understand the definition and origin of the practice. The practice first entered American labor practices in the 1940s during World War II and applied to the awarding of federal contracts.
However, it wasn’t until 1961 that the term “affirmative action” was introduced in an executive order by President John Kennedy, in which he urged contractors to “take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color or national origin." Later in 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, which affirmed Kennedy’s call, and prohibited discrimination on the basis of race.
Using Kennedy’s order, it would seem that affirmative action was nothing more than a call for employers—both public and private—to rigorously pursue and uphold practices of inclusion. This meant practices that prohibit organizations and businesses from discriminating against merited employees or potential employees on the basis of their sex, gender, race or ethnicity. However, the affirmative action we have come to know didn't come from Kennedy.
Many people blame the courts and the concept of “white guilt” on the shift in affirmative action from non-discriminatory practices to those based on quotas. Instead of instituting a policy that says, “We won’t discriminate against people based on race,” some people argue for a policy that establishes a requirement—even if it goes against other qualified applicants—that we fill x number of positions with blacks, y number of positions with women and z number of positions with Latinos. I’ve got to hire a new accountant, and I’ve interviewed two candidates. The more qualified one is white, but I have an all-white staff. I’ll hire the less-qualified minority.
Affirmative action is not usually attempted with such stark quotas, but, sadly, this is how many people view the practice. We’ve got to move away from the notion that this is how it always is or how it always has to be. The U.S. government put affirmative action in place to protect people from discrimination, not pit races against each other.
Perhaps the most unlikely of advocates for moving away from affirmative action practices are members of Project 21, a nonpartisan conservative black organization sponsored by the National Center for Public Policy Research. "True equality allows people to rise and fall on their merits. That's what this decision protects. How can one oppose such fairness?" asked Project 21 chairman Mychal Massie in a release Monday.
This is a legitimate argument, but America is not ready to be race, gender and sex neutral. Offices need to see color; schools need to see color; people need to see color. Celebrating diversity, especially in a professional setting, is important. At the Jackson Free Press, we strive to promote diversity in our office, in our publication and out in Jackson. Encouraging other businesses and institutions to take “affirmative action” to prioritize inclusively, just as Kennedy did, is not “reverse discrimination.” It’s the key to success in an ever-evolving social climate.
I don’t think we’re ready to get rid of affirmative action. But when I go into an interview, I don’t want to rest on my race and gender to get the job. I want to make damn sure that when I achieve success, that it’s because of my merits, and not my ancestry. This doesn’t sit well with many people, especially those who have lived in a different time when it was much more difficult to get a fair shake in life because of bigoted people in power. But the face of affirmative action needs a facelift. It’s gotten out of hand when a mayor tells the fire department that it can’t promote hard-working men and women because some people of another race didn’t qualify.
In a Wall Street Journal article on the decision, the writer quoted Justice Roberts’ majority opinion in a 2007 case disputing the use of race in zoning children for schools. In that opinion, he wrote, “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race."
But is it really that simple? You decide for yourself.
As she walks into the empty school library, 17-year-old Ruth Oguhebe smiles and reaches out for a hug before sitting down at a table and taking off her shoes. Wearing a bright orange floral dress, she lights up the room as she expresses her relief to be out of the scorching 90-degree weather outside. Before meeting Oguhebe, I was already impressed with her colorful résumé; now I see her personality matches it.
Oguhebe’s parents relocated to Jackson from Lagos, Nigeria, several years before she was born. Growing up in a large household (she has three sisters and two brothers), Oguhebe recalls fond childhood memories of when she first developed an interest in music.
“As a child, our whole family sang. ... I loved melodies and harmonizing,” Oguhebe says. Along with her involvement in classes and extracurricular activities at Murrah High School, Oguhebe is a vocal student at Power Academic and Performing Arts Complex. With training, she has learned to sing in six languages: Italian, German, French, Spanish, English, and her native language, Igbo.
Oguhebe puts her talent to use as she competes in pageants, which she began doing after serving as the “little sister” of a close friend during one of her pageants.
“I loved being at the back and helping out,” Oguhebe says.
Since then, she has competed in the Hinds County Junior Miss, New Outstanding Teen, Miss Mississippi Outstanding Teen and Riverbend’s Outstanding Teen, which she won. Ironically, Oguhebe reveals that her favorite thing about pageants are the competitors, debunking all stereo types of drama-queen rivalries.
“I love the girls. ... They all want to see you do well,” Oguhebe says, laughing at my surprise. “You can be around the girls and not fight.”
But pageants aren’t enough for Oguhebe. Her long list of extra-curricular activities include advanced choir, performing in the award-winning Murrah Madrigals, track, cross country, band, the French club and serving as class secretary.
After she graduates, Oguhebe plans to attend Indiana State University or Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. “I definitely want to get into the medical field,” she says. “I want to be a neuroscientist.”
Despite her many accomplishments, Oguhebe remains humble and reserved. As we finish our meeting, Oguhebe spots a Bible and responds with a smile.
“There are so many things that have happened in my life,” she says. “I have to thank the Lord for all that.”
State legislators were poised to pass a Medicaid agreement Tuesday evening, ending a months-long impasse over funding and removing the last major obstacle to a state budget, one day before a new fiscal year began.
Around 11 a.m. Tuesday, the day this issue went to press, Gov. Haley Barbour formally expanded the special legislative session to include Medicaid, allowing legislators to vote on the agreement, which would tax hospitals $60 million to make up a recurring Medicaid deficit.
Under the agreement, the $60 million hospital tax would gradually increase to $90 million, as the state’s share of Medicaid funding increases. Currently the state pays around 16 percent of its Medicaid costs, thanks to stimulus money that supplements the roughly 3-to-1 match normally provided by the federal government. When those stimulus funds run out, the state will be responsible for roughly 24 percent of its Medicaid costs.
The agreement also gives the governor the authority to balance any future Medicaid deficits with budget cuts, a provision that was missing from an earlier Medicaid compromise that House and Senate negotiators reached last week. Barbour argued that an agreement without that provision was essentially a “blank check” for hospitals, while advocates for the hospitals saw it as a necessary protection. Tuesday’s agreement allows for some minor protections: Hospitals can make up a Medicaid deficit by paying a higher assessment, and legislators can draw some money from the state’s Health Care Trust Fund.
True to the contentious negotiations that preceded it, the agreement came with its fair share of rancor. Barbour insisted that he would only expand the special session to include Medicaid if the Mississippi Hospital Association endorsed the deal. MHA has loudly opposed most of Barbour’s Medicaid proposals and successfully fought back his 2008 attempt to impose a hospital tax.
MHA President Sam Cameron obliged, but with an endorsement that sounded more like an attack.
“I want to warn everyone that there are hospitals who cannot afford to pay the tax provisions in this bill,” Cameron said at a press conference in the Capitol rotunda Tuesday. “I want to warn everyone that service and staff reductions in local hospitals may occur as a result of this bill.”
Cameron asked legislators to pass the Medicaid bill but emphasized that it was needed “to prevent Governor Barbour from trying to run the Division of Medicaid by executive order.”
Barbour had warned MHA that “hospitals would face far more drastic measures” if legislators did not pass a Medicaid bill before July 1, Cameron said.
Speaking to reporters immediately after Cameron’s statement, Barbour rejected his account of the negotiations.
“I have said from the beginning that no bill is better than a bad bill,” Barbour said. “If they take it as a threat that I was not going to sign a bad bill for the taxpayers, then that’s (Cameron’s) interpretation.”
The initial agreement picked up some key alterations in the House Medicaid Committee Tuesday afternoon, though. One would have required legislators to renew the deal every year, which would make Medicaid a contentious election issue, Rep. Robert Johnson, D-Natchez, pointed out.
“I’m asking you to not vote for the amendments because we worked on this bill for a very long time,” Johnson told legislators on the House floor. “It’s a good bill. It’s not the best bill, but it’s one that will take care of the 600,000-plus Medicaid recipients we have in this state.”
Johnson got his wish, as legislators voted down the amendment.
Working around the Medicaid impasse, legislators passed separate appropriations bills for most state agencies on Sunday and Monday. Lawmakers passed a bill funding K-12 education that included supplemental pay for National Board-certified teachers, a line item that had been cut from some previous budget proposals.
The House and Senate also approved a 25-cents-per-pack tax increase on cigarettes from small manufacturers, the state’s second cigarette tax hike this year. Legislators approved the first tax increase in May, adding 50 cents to every pack sold in the state. It was the first such increase since 1985. Now, this second tax levies an additional 25 cents per pack on cigarettes manufactured by companies that were not part of Mississippi’s 1997 lawsuit against Big Tobacco.
Barbour, a former tobacco lobbyist, indicated that he would sign the new tax. Lawmakers expect the new cigarette tax to generate $8.8 million per year, no mean sum in a tight budget year.
At a June 25 meeting at Koinonia Coffee House, Mayor-elect Harvey Johnson Jr. told Ward 5 residents that the theme for the city during his third term as mayor will be “responsibility.” This not only applies to elected city officials, he said, but is also a call to Jackson residents to take part in their community to better it for themselves and for those around them.
“I look forward to working with each and every one of you, and I look forward moving this city forward because we need to do it together,” Johnson told the crowd Friday.
At the event, Johnson focused on safety, crime, poverty, economic development and the role citizens play in bettering the situations that the city is facing. Among his chief priorities was public safety, Johnson said, adding a call to institute a crime-victims unit to ensure that victims of crime have protection during their particular cases.
Ex-offender re-entry is another major issue for the incoming administration, Johnson said. “There are too many young people coming back into our system that do not have the skills, and do not have the education to be an active participant in our job market,” he said. Johnson encouraged employers to participate in re-entry programs.
The mayor-elect then spoke about poverty in Jackson—one out of four people in Jackson lives in poverty—and ways the city can address it. “We can no longer sweep it under the rug,” Johnson said. He wants to combat poverty by putting people to work instead of relying on the welfare system.
Other issues Johnson addressed with the audience included school-board appointments and the need for a movie theater in Jackson.
Johnson called for Jackson residents to avoid going to movie theaters in outer lying suburbs for a month to show that Jackson is serious about bringing a theater to the capital city.
Inauguration Day Events
Friday, July 3
• 8 a.m. Prayer service at New Hope Baptist Church (5202 Watkins Drive)
• 11:30 a.m. Inaugural ceremony at Jackson Convention Complex (105 E. Pascagoula St.). Harvey Johnson Jr. will be sworn in as mayor of Jackson.
• 12:30 p.m. Reception at Jackson Convention Complex.
• 8 p.m. Inaugural Celebration at Jackson Convention Complex. Celebrate Johnson’s inauguration with food, live entertainment and a cash bar.
The first day I started work at Jackson Free Press last summer as an editorial intern, I didn’t know a lot about our state and local government, especially how it worked with the public. But, day after day, I learned more about each office and soon found out that if there is one there’s one thing to be aware of, it’s that getting information is not cheap. More than that, it’s not user friendly.
The first time I walked down the marble steps to the basement floor that houses the Hinds County Circuit Clerk’s office, I was shocked (mostly because I was very naïve about how my experience there would go). Workers and secretaries, busy with their own problems, were not about to lend a hand to a 20 year-old girl, especially if she looks like she’s going to be digging up dirt. I still chuckle thinking about sitting down in front of one of the two computers that offer public search engines of the files, realizing the MS-DOS command-style program was probably just as old as I am.
Once I finally snagged someone in the office who quickly told me how to use the system (of which I still have problems with), actually finding the files proved to be just as difficult. What colors went with which file type? Where were files from another decade? It was hard to find answers.
These problems are not new to any citizen in Jackson or Mississippi, for that matter. For years there has been a seal on information, even with laws such as the Freedom of Information Act. Government departments and agencies are less than helpful to guide people in the right direction, charge high fees for “research” by employees to get the information in your hands, and impose long waiting periods when they probably should not.
This is not surprising, considering the Better Government Association and the National Freedom of Information Coalition gave Mississippi an “F” for its sunshine laws in 2007. However, things can change, but it starts with being prepared and knowledgeable about what’s ahead. That’s where the Public Eye Blog comes in.
Jackson Free Press has created the blog to help readers walk through the process of finding information at various departments or agencies. Legal lingo and rules are already confusing enough, so why not break it down for everyone to understand?
Public information in itself implies a sense of openness, but can prove to be difficult to access. With how-tos, personal examples, and forums, the Public Eye Blog will come to serve as a guide to help cut through the red tape. Eventually there may even be stories posted on the site using the methods explained.
By creating an environment that promotes self awareness, asking the right questions and getting the information from the source in the correct manner just got a little easier.
How To: Navigate the Hinds County Circuit Clerk’s Office
Standing in front of the county courthouse on Pascagoula Street, getting to the Hind County Circuit Clerk Barbara Dunn’s office can seem daunting.
Walk in the front doors and get scanned by security. If you have a purse, give it to the assistant. Once you’ve been scanned, go to the stairs on your left. The circuit clerk’s office is in the basement so walk downstairs and it is right there.
Pass the front desk- you’ll see the computers are located on the right side of the office next to the walls with the windows.
[Searching for files]
[If you do not know the case number]
There are different types of cases: civil, criminal, county, etc. Criminal cases deal with murder, robbery, and other acts. Civil cases deal with people suing each other for money, damages, etc. Each type of case has its own code. There should be a sheet of paper taped to the desk that explains the code for each one (ex. CCV- civil).
Type in the code, press enter and a menu should pop up. Generally, you only have a name and you are looking for a case number. You will want to do a name search, which is command 4. Enter in 4 for the command and type in the name in the search. Names will pop up and you can search through them. There you will see the case/indictment number (ex. 08-031) and what the charges are. Some people you are looking for might have more than one charge against them so be careful that you find the correct case/indictment number.
The case numbers include the year so you can have a better idea of what you are looking for. If a case number is 097-0527, the year of the case is 1997.
You can print the page (for free) for when you go look for the file folder.
[If you know the case number or when you find the case number]
You will need to know what kind of case you searched for earlier. Different types of cases (civil, criminal) are different color folders in different places. Criminal are green folders on the left side of the office. Civil are tan folders in the middle of the room, behind the desk, down a couple of stairs. There you will find the folders. Get your number and find the corresponding folder.
[Once you have the folder]
The copy room is next to the main section of desks and near the criminal folders. Copying is free. Copy all of the pages you need, putting them in the same order they were originally in the folder (chronologically). Return the folder to its correct place.
[If you have trouble]
There are people there to help you. Near the green folders on the left side of the office, there should be an assistant at a desk to help you.
[Note: Codes, locations of computers, and files are subject to change. Check with an assistant (and comment on this post) if there is any change.]
The U.S. Department of Justice has intervened in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Jackson, buttressing accusations of the inaccessibility of Jackson’s public bus system.
Eleven Jackson residents with disabilities and two non-profit organizations filed the lawsuit late last year. They allege the city is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The Justice Department, like the plaintiffs, say Jackson has failed to maintain wheelchair lifts on buses, and has not adequately trained personnel to properly assist passengers with disabilities. The city, according to the DOJ, failed “to provide paratransit services to individuals with disabilities” and failed to “schedule and provide paratransit service” to eligible people and failed “to plan to meet paratransit demands” in violation of federal law.
Mary Troupe, director of the Mississippi Coalition for Citizens, said the city had neglected to provide the federally required level of service to passengers for years: “We get calls all the time on where to catch a bus and where handicap-accessible buses go. We don’t have any accessible taxi-cabs. If someone doesn’t know someone with an accessible van, they’re mostly out of luck.”
The city offers curbside Handilift service, although Troupe said residents must prove both residency and impairment with a doctor’s letter, severely restricting the use.
“If you’re flying in from another city for a conference, you’re in trouble unless you know somebody,” Troupe said. “People have to call us to find out how to get into Jackson to see the city’s exhibits. A major national group had to call us once to find transportation for their group. The city couldn’t help them. It’s deplorable that our capital city, with everything going on in it and the convention center, that we do not have a reliable, safe transportation system.”
City attorneys did not return calls.
The council voted earlier this month to approve a $1.2 budget transfer to the city’s bus service, saving JATRAN from financially running dry in July. The council plans to fund the transfer with insurance savings and closed city employee positions.
Ward 1 Councilman Jeff Weill said he worried how the city was going to finance the bus upgrades should the city lose the court battle. “I’m concerned with how we’re not only going to pay for it, but even keep JATRAN afloat. We already borrowed $800,000 from the city’s health insurance budget. If we have that kind of spare change laying around I can think of other places that it needs to go,” Weill said.
Plaintiff Scott Crawford argues that federal funding is available to the city for municipal bus systems, although Weill said federal grant money, so far, has only been available to purchase huge buses that are not cost-effective for the city.
“The federal grant money doesn’t pay salaries and gas. That’s the city that has to pay for that.”
How To: Navigate the Mississippi Department of Archives and History
Finding articles and information on people is no easy task. Especially when your search goes back decades, ways to find and view various forms of media becomes even more complicated.
When looking for newspaper articles, one of the cheapest, sure-fire ways to find them is at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History in downtown Jackson. This newly constructed concrete building overlooks the fair grounds next to the Old Capitol Building just off Amite and State Street. Even though it’s located downtown, don’t worry about paying for parking – there’s free parking for visitors next to the building.
Enter through the glass doors where you will be greeted at the front desk on the left. If it’s your first time, you’ll need to register for a library card (free to anyone), so have your driver’s license of other form of identification ready.
Once you receive your card, walk to your left where you will see a pair doors guarding the next entrance. For security reasons, you will swipe your library card and the doors will open. This may seem very CIA, but don’t be worried, if you ever get confused, there are people to help you out. You will now see the doors to the library. If you have a purse, backpack, or anything of the sort, you must put the items in a locker in the room to your right. If you don’t do so, the librarian just past the doors will ask you to do so. Shut your locker door and remove they key. You must keep up with the key and remember your locker number.
You can now go into the library. There will be a librarian at the desk to greet you. Sign in and write the time. You’ll need to sign out when you leave.
Now it comes down to research. Are you looking for a certain newspaper on a certain date? Are you looking for information on a person?
The best place to start is with the computers. From here you can search the online library to point you in the right direction.
If you:
[Know the newspaper and date of publication] – search the microfilm. MDAH has pretty extensive newspaper files on microfilm. To find the reel you will need, open the online catalog. Click “Newspapers by Title.” Enter the title and dates to search. Your query will come back with reels of the newspapers with the dates on each reel. If I am looking for the newspaper that served Liberty, Miss. in 1962- The Southern Herald will show up as roll 22001. This is especially important with large papers such as the Clarion Ledger because each roll is a 15-day period. If you get your days mixed up, you might have the wrong roll.
[Know the county/town to find a range of newspapers and date] – search the microfilm. Almost exactly like above, click “Newspapers by Town or County.” Choose either a town or county and a range of dates in which to search. Again, find the newspaper that interests you and write down the roll number.
[Are searching information on a person covered numerous times over the years in the news] - run a subject search. Even though they may not be famous, there is the possibility of a subject file. More on that later.
Before you leave the computers, if you intend to print anything, it’s a good idea to go ahead and load your library card with money. Next to the photocopiers on the wall, there is a black machine that will add money on your card. Copies at MDAH are mostly 20 cents a copy, so keep that in mind when adding to your balance. Take your card and continue on your way.
[Microfilm]
Once you have found roll numbers, walk to the back right corner of the library to the microfilm room. There are pull out drawers lining the walls with the various roll numbers labeled on them. Open the drawer that corresponds with your number and locate your roll.
Go to one of the microfilm readers and turn it on (power button is near the bottom front). When looking at film on a reader, the film must go over handed and fed through. These machines are hand cranked. Hand crank and flip through the pages of the paper until you find what you are looking for. Sometimes the paper is upside down or too light. That can be adjusted with a few changes. If this is your first time to use microfilm, there is an attendant at a desk in the room to help you. They will instruct you how to load the film correctly (it’s easy to have the film upside down or backwards, but also easy problems to fix). After you have rolled through the film and found the slide with the information needed, make a note of it in case you need to print.
Microfilm printers are also located in the microfilm room. These machines look similar to the readers but the screen is computerized. Feed the film in under handed (opposite from the reader) and press the button. It should feed itself onto the spool. This machine is not hand cranked but operated with a knob on the right side. There are a few different tricks to the printers, so ask an assistant for help loaded the film for the first time. You will probably find the printers are easier to use and film can be sped through even faster. When you find the slide to print, line it up on the screen how you want it to print. You can also adjust brightness and size. Insert the card you preloaded money with into the card reader next to the machine. Press the print button and 20 cents will be deducted from your card.
To get the film off of the printer, reverse the motion of the knob you used to advance the film. It will rewind itself.
[Subject Files]
If you are searching someone who is “big” enough, there may be a case file on him/her. Elected officials, major cases, and events can possibly have a subject files. Here, newspaper articles and other documents about the subject are copied so that you do not have to go running around finding articles. However, do not let this be your only source because there is no guarantee that all of the articles on this person will be in the file.
To obtain a subject file, go to one of the computers near the front desk. Swipe your card to access the database. Click on the subject file link to search for a subject file. Search the name and see if anything comes up. This could save you lots of time and money if there is a file on them. If there is a subject file, you can request it.
To get your subject file go to the desk in the middle of the room. It takes a couple of minutes for the subject file to be brought up because people have to go down into the basement and retrieve the file for you. You will also be required to sign a waiver saying you took the file.
You may scan and print any document in the subject file at the copiers at the front of the library. The cost is the same as the microfilm printers. Once you are done with the file, return it to the desk.
Once you finish searching and copying, you will need to check out at the desk at the front of the library. The librarian will check your documents to make you don’t take any of the files. Walk out to your locker, unlock it, and take you thinks. Swipe through the doors on the right. You are now free to leave the building.
[The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is located at 200 North Street, Jackson. For more information visit mdah.state.ms.us or call 601-576-6850.]
The Jackson City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to move Jackson Police Department’s Precinct 4 office from its current location on North State Street to the plaza across from Mikhail’s about a mile away on the same street.
Precinct 4 Commander Kenneth Goodrum said that while the new office is slightly smaller, he is positive it will be much better for community safety in the long run.
“We’re in a more centralized location,” Goodrum said.
The council’s new lease with DKHA Properties LLC also means that Precinct 4 won’t have to pay for water or gas. Barring any unforeseen financial complications, the city will renovate the office space to accommodate the officers after an elevator is installed in about six to eight weeks by the office’s owners.
Currently there are 46 patrol officers in Precinct 4 and 6 office personnel, which include Goodrum and his lieutenant. Goodrum said that he has been anticipating the move to newer, better facilities since November 2007.
The former mayor of Tupelo is heading a new energy advocacy group that critics say is pushing for a prohibitively expensive lignite coal plant and expansions of the Grand Gulf nuclear facility.
Advance Mississippi is a new coalition of state energy, business, community and academic leaders that announced its existence earlier this month. Heading the group is Chairman Glenn McCullough, former Tupelo mayor and chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority from 2001-05.
The group’s stated purpose, according to its Web site, is to “advocate for sensible energy policy ... and educate policy makers, business and community leaders, and the general public about superior energy policies that will foster economic growth.”
The organization also released its first brief this month: “Keeping Mississippi Powered: A Snapshot of Mississippi’s Growing Demand for Electricity.” The report claims the state’s electrical needs will grow considerably in the near future, with the rise of suburbanization and industrialization.
McCullough wrote in a Clarion-Ledger column that Mississippi’s annual average increase in electricity consumption from 1980-2005 was 2.6 percent, and that the commercial and industrial sectors consume 61 percent of the electricity produced.
“Our electricity grid strains under this demand. Mississippi will without question need new sources of power to keep up with this growth in the years ahead,” McCullough wrote.
But the information runs counter to predictions from energy professionals who reported in a 2008 Wall Street Journal article that the nation is trending toward a drop in energy use.
Jim Rogers, chief executive of Duke Energy, said fuel consumption was falling even in areas where fuel prices were altogether flat and unaffected by the dipping economy, and that “something fundamental is going on” with how people use electricity.
Advance Mississippi’s push for more power production also contradicts critics’ claims that the state already contains more power companies than it can reasonably use.
Power plants in the state are capable of producing about 14,000 megawatts on any given day if power companies open the spigot on their existing plants. Mississippi Power and Entergy power plants produce about 6,000 megawatts each, but power plants owned by independent power companies like K-GEN (which currently owns a spanking new—but largely unused—natural gas plant in Jackson near Highway 220) can produce a total of 7,993 megawatts. Mississippi Power explains in its company profile that it sells considerable energy produced in the state to neighboring states like Florida.
Mississippi Sierra Club Director Louie Miller said the electricity already available to the state is three times what the largely rural state needs, even on peak demand days, and calls Advance Mississippi a front created to sell the need for new power plants like the embattled lignite plant in Kemper County.
“They want the public to buy into their purchase,” Miller said. “This proposed coal plant is dirty and expensive. In a lot of circles they’re even saying this type of plant is more expensive than a nuclear plant. So they create a front group for Entergy and Mississippi Power, so they can build lavish, expensive power plants, and tick them into customers’ rate base.”
Contrary to Miller’s statement, however, founding members of the group include Entergy Mississippi among others, but not Mississippi Power. Mississippi Power spokeswoman Cindy Webb did tell industry periodical Electric Power Daily in June that Mississippi Power representatives met recently with Advance Mississippi representatives and is “currently evaluating” its involvement with the group.
If the organization does exist to promote the construction of a lignite coal plant in Kemper County and expansions to Grand Gulf, it will have a steep hill to climb.
Mississippi Power filed a failed motion in January for the state’s Public Service Commission to fast-forward deliberations on development of the $2.2 billion integrated gasification combined-cycle (IGCC) power plant. The PSC stepped away from fast-tracking the program because of perceived rate increases to energy ratepayers.
Opposition to the 582-megawatt Kemper County plant, including the Sierra Club and AARP, claims the plant could raise ratepayers’ utility bills by up to 15 percent, and that ratepayers would still be responsible for financing a portion of the plant even if the project is scrapped.
The cost effectiveness of nuclear energy is in hot dispute this year, with nuclear-plant proposals getting erased from the drawing board due to projected high costs, which can approach $7 billion or more. Entergy subsidiary Entergy Nuclear suspended reviews of its own nuclear-license applications to add another reactor to the Grand Gulf power plant this January.
Instead, it is considering expanding the current reactor, providing an extra 18 megawatts of power at a cost of about $470 million. System Energy Resources, another subsidiary of Entergy, submitted the petition in May to the Public Service Commission for permission to work with South Mississippi Electric Power Association to upgrade the reactor.
Michael Morris, chief executive of American Electric Power Co., one of the country’s largest power producers, warned in The Wall Street Journal that utility industries should be slow to break ground on expensive new projects. “The message is: Be cautious about what you build because you may not have the demand” to justify the expense, Morris told The Wall Street Journal.
McCullough did not immediately return phone calls.
When hungry alligators surround you, so the joke goes, you might forget that your objective is to drain the swamp.
When you’re worried about paying the light bill, the rent and whether you can put food on the table, it’s easy to get sucked into a vortex of fear. It’s natural to protect yourself from further harm, and it’s natural to find others to blame. But living in fear has consequences, and one of the inevitable casualties of economic crisis is hope.
As difficult as it might be, when you’re in the depths of your own hopelessness, it’s exactly the time to try and remember who you are. It’s the perfect time to count your blessings and reach out to those less fortunate. A simple act of kindness can begin to put things back into perspective, alleviating the fear that is so deadly to our city’s and the planet’s well being.
Harvey Johnson Jr. recognized the dynamic when he spoke to Ward 5 residents last week. Poverty and crime are inextricably connected, he said. With a quarter of Jacksonians living in poverty, the city can’t simply focus on crime and ignore the poverty lying just under the rug of economic prosperity and growth. The city, Johnson indicated, has to do its part to put people to work.
We think Johnson is on the right track. Hopelessness, borne of poverty and ignorance, is a problem in Jackson, as it is wherever the two conditions exist. It’s an issue we asked Johnson about prior to the Democratic primaries, and his response was one of the reasons we endorsed him.
So what can one ordinary citizen do? Take your pick. With the amounts of misery in the world, you don’t need to do a lot of searching to find a way to make a difference. People just need to open their eyes to see where a bit of understanding and compassion can help.
The wonderful thing about kindness is that you can direct it at anyone or anything. If your heart breaks for kittens and puppies, go spend an afternoon helping out at a shelter. If it breaks for the environment, go weed a community garden, pick up litter or help in the office of a non-profit like the Nature Conservancy.
If listening to a child trying to mumble his or her way through a complete sentence sends you over the edge, find a way to be a tutor.
Doing good—whether through random acts of kindness or through major commitment to a cause—is never a waste of time. It might take a little more effort in troubled times, but the rewards—fending off those alligators even a little bit—far outweigh the costs.
Another way to do good awaits at Jackpedia.com. You can find organizations there that need your help—or add your own!
Congressman Smokey “Robinson” McBride: “Despite reports of a world economic downturn, political unrest in Iran, pop celebrities ridiculing and beating up each other, and the divorce of John and Kate plus Eight, the citizens of the Ghetto Science community continue to progress in these unusual times. I’m very proud of the development that has happened since the Ghetto Science Department of Transportation received its stimulus funding.
“The Ghetto Rapid Transit System, managed by Rev. Cletus, has hired Inspector ‘Beat Down’ Lipscomb and the Sista Church Hat Praise Patrol as security contractors for the GRTS. This security team will patrol every bus stop in the ghetto. With this security measure in place, seniors, the disabled and the entire community will be safe and secure from any harm while riding the efficient fleet of Double Dutch Church Buses.
“Furthermore, we’re gathered at the Clubb Chicken Wing Multi-Purpose Complex for the grand opening of Ghetto Community Rapid Transit Station 2009. This station will serve as the transportation hub of the Ghetto Science community. Several Double Dutch Church buses will provide round-the-clock transportation service to various parts of the city and inside the ghetto.
“The ‘Ride to Work’ Shuttle Buses will take you to your job, day or night. The Funky Ghetto Mall Shuttle Bus provides a round-trip ride to your favorite shopping spot. Get on board the Weekend Clubb Chicken Wing and Sunday Worship Shuttle buses. And remember to pay the bus fare!”
I uttered those words at the mere age of 13 when I felt that global warming was a conspiracy that scientists made up to scare people. Little did I know that my ideas about the issue would evolve and change drastically.
The actual moment my views changed was during a viewing of the film “An Inconvenient Truth” in my 10th-grade biology class. While everyone else in my class fell asleep due to boredom, I couldn’t keep my eyes off the television screen.
In Al Gore’s PowerPoint presentation, the former vice president presented information about the effects of global warming in the next 25 years and the ones that are already occurring today. But the impact of his message wasn’t in the description of what could happen as a result of global warming but instead that we all can prevent these horrific events by the little things in life that we do every day.
Watching the movie brought back moments in my past when I was taught lessons of caring for the planet. In the first grade, my teacher urged our class to recycle paper during a project where we used old paper to mesh into new paper that we could use to write letters. Later in middle school, I visited an environmentally safe house that fully ran on solar energy. In high school, we made compost by using old fruit peelings as fertilizer for rich soil.
The truth is that when we are little, we learn to hold certain values that should stick with us throughout life. When we grow up, however, those values don’t necessarily stay with us. One of those values is taking care of our home, planet Earth.
While legislators from all over the country are battling on Capitol Hill over how to solve the problem of global warming, the issue is getting worse each and every day. As citizens of the United States and residents of the planet Earth, we can do our part to help lessen the effects of global warming. You can start by recycling your old newspapers, beverage bottles and cans. By recycling these products, you will save them a lifetime in a waste-field that sometimes can outlast the lifespan of a human.
Instead of just throwing away your clothes, recycle them or return them to a consignment or thrift shop. In the long run, this will cut down on factories wasting fossil fuel to create clothing.
Have a cell phone you don’t use anymore? You can recycle it by returning it to your cellphone provider, or sell it on eBay. By recycling your cell phone the parts can be reused for new cell phones in the future.
How about starting a garden and growing your own organic produce so that your family can consume fresh fruit and vegetables? Instead of driving try walking sometimes. This can reduce the emission of fossil fuels in the environment and also give you a workout.
Little things will help the Earth in the long run, and it can help you save money, too.
These efforts can also help your social life. By participating in group activities aimed at making the planet a better place, you show that you care for the planet and the people who live in it with you.
By realizing that being good to the Earth is important, I have realized that this helps me be a better person to myself and my community. This isn’t just my Earth, it is our Earth. It’s sad to say it, but we are only given one, unless NASA comes up with a way of colonizing the Moon or Mars, which is nearly impossible. We should do all we can to take care of our planet.
Al Gore made a statement in his film that will remain with me for the rest of my life: “Future generations may well have occasion to ask themselves, ‘What were our parents thinking? Why didn’t they wake up when they had a chance?’ We have to hear that question from them, now.”
Hopefully, we will wake up as a human race and never have to ask that question.
Editorial intern Gerard Manogin graduated from Murrah High School this year and will study journalism at Ole Miss this fall.
Although the idea of donating your body tends to have an edgy ring to it, it’s easy to change your mind once you think of the good it can bring into the lives of others. The human body has a plethora of resources that we can give without consequence. From donating your hair to those suffering from Alopecia or chemotherapy treatments, to giving eggs to a couple hoping to start a family, the list goes on in ways to give back to your fellow humans by literally giving of yourself.
Minimum hair of 8 inches long, freshly washed and dried with no styling products applied. Hair cannot be bleached, permanently colored or chemically treated. Ask your local salon if they are a donation bank or mail to 511 Wisconsin Drive, New Richmond, Wis., 54017-2613.
Provides hair pieces to financially disadvantaged children in the U.S. and Canada who are under age 18 and suffering from long-term medical hair loss.
Breast Milk
Mississippi Breastfeeding Clinic
111 Depot Drive, Madison, 601-898-7979
While the clinic currently specializes in While the clinic currently specializes in helping mothers who experience abnormal levels of lactation, it is in the process of developing a breast-milk donation bank to help ill-equipped mothers whose children medically need human breast milk. The clinic projects opening the bank in about two years at which time it will accept milk donations.
Mississippi Blood Services offers several options for giving blood, including plasma and platelet donations. Donors must weigh at least 100 pounds and be 17 years old (16-year olds can be donors, but must have parental consent). In addition to general needs, African Americans are especially needed due to a high rate of sickle cell anemia (1 in every 400) among blacks, and a higher chance of matching blood to sickle cell patients from African American donors.
Eggs
Mississippi Fertility Institute at Women’s Specialty Center
501 Marshall St., Suite 600, 601-948-6540
Donate eggs to women who couldn’t normally have a child. Taken by scheduled appointments only. Fill out a personal profile sheet, and someone will contact you when a woman requests your profile.
The networking site helps those in need of kidney, pancreas, liver, lung, intestine and bone marrow transplants match with donors. Also has the world’s largest database of available donors and can possibly help donors and patients with transplant-related expenses not covered by insurance. If you’re interested in donating your organs, be sure to request the small, red heart symbol on your state license.
I have had this idea for a while about opening a pie shop in town similar to one I visited once upon a time in Seattle. This shop would serve various types of pies, but not the ones you think. Sure, pecans and cherries and strawberries make fine fillings, but what about all those other items you pass in the produce and sections on grocery trips? It’s time to think about how they would make your mouth and stomach very, very happy.
I used to shudder at the term “meat pie.” I envisioned some awful mingling of ground beef and strawberries and garlic and who knows what else. My brain went to odd places until I took it to the kitchen. Now I like to experiment with mixtures that could be potentially disturbing to one’s taste buds, but why not have an adventure? We know chicken goes well with carrots, beans and corn to make chicken pot pie. Natchitoches, La., has even made meat pies an official state food of Louisiana with its signature small fried pies filled with beef, pork, onions, peppers and garlic.
I have thought a lot about what I cook well, and meat pie isn’t one of those. Well, it isn’t, yet. Thankfully, my good friend Russel had already done the hard part for me.
My friends and I used to have a monthly supper club that carried a different theme every time. The month we tried to make good Indian food, we insisted that someone either purchase or make samosas. The problem here is that samosas are best when fresh and crunchy and fried (much like the Natchitoches meat pies), but no one had a kitchen equipped to make the real thing. So Russel did the next best thing: Instead of making individual samosas, he turned the whole dish into a pot pie. To this day, his samosa pot pie is the reason I adore him. (Don’t tell him that it beats out his charming wit and curious intellect).
The pie contains the same ingredients as a samosa: potatoes, peas, onions and the delicious tingle of garam masala. It becomes slightly healthier by skipping the deep-frying, instead baking it in two pie shells. The pie is a meal in itself, although I will often try to add something green like salad to the plate.
I made this pie often for my housemates in Portland. One day, my great pal Colette came to dinner with homemade coconut ice cream in hand. We added the ice cream to the pie plate with just a drizzle of key lime chutney, and holy moly. It’s definitely a decadent meal, but reader: Worth. Every. Bite.
This is the first in a line of accidental successes in the kitchen, but it has made me think long and hard about the ways we serve food, and how meals happen. Why can’t we have a savory pie along with a sweet ice cream? Must we always default to strawberry pies with plain old vanilla ice cream? Not at all.
Add some rhubarb to your pie next time, and make your ice cream at home with some black pepper thrown in for a palate tease. Perhaps a curried chicken and vegetable pie with lime sorbet? I could go on, but maybe I’ll save my ideas for some future menu.
Get creative with your pies. Make a few at a time, invite your friends over and serve with something light and refreshing to drink (pomegranate lemonade comes to mind) for a summertime delight.
Samosa Pot Pie
Two frozen pie shells
1 cup diced sweet onion
1 hearty tablespoon minced garlic
8 ounce bag of frozen peas
1 pound of potatoes (golden or russet)
4 cups water
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon Garam Masala
Salt to taste
Chili pepper to taste (for more desired heat)
Black pepper
Begin by putting pie shells out to thaw and heat oven to 350 degrees. Chop potatoes into small pieces and boil for 5 to 6 minutes. Drain well. While potatoes are boiling, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet on medium heat; add garlic and onions. Sauté until they begin to turn clear. Add second tablespoon of oil, drained potato pieces and frozen peas. Stir all together and sprinkle garam masala, salt and pepper while continuing to stir. Once mixture is thoroughly coated, pour into bottom pie shell. Add pie shell to top and vent middle by cutting two slices. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden.
Coconut Ice Cream
3 cups unsweetened coconut milk
5 to 6 tablespoons Agave (or 1 cup sugar)
1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla powder or 1 vanilla bean
Whisk all ingredients together and make according to your machine’s settings. This is similar to the Coconut Bliss brand of ice cream and will be close to soft serve in texture. Add a scoop to your samosa pot pie for explosive results.
John Pritchard is a Mississippi native whose newly released novel, “The Yazoo Blues,” chronicles the adventures of a Delta man named Junior Ray Loveblood. The novel is a sequel of sorts to Pritchard’s first book, “Junior Ray,” although the two tales do not intertwine. In both stories, the frank ex-deputy recalls various misadventures and personal undertakings with a foul but telling tongue. The experiences of Junior Ray and his acquaintances often resemble Pritchard’s own, and Junior Ray’s profane way of opining on the world borders on blindly existential, remaining raunchy but notably comical throughout.
In “The Yazoo Blues,” Junior Ray becomes a kind of historian about Ulysses S. Grant’s failed Yazoo Pass expedition. What is he trying to discover?
Junior Ray, in his old age there, decides that, by God, he’s a historian. ... He’s not interested in any other part of history in the world. Junior Ray likes to think he’s very smart, very capable even though he knows he doesn’t have an education, which he sort of scorns anyway ... so he tells that story. A lot of it is absolutely factual and, of course, a lot of it is fabrication.
Where do you find inspiration for that fabrication? Obviously, you have a lot of real-life history you can refer to.
Actually it goes back to my childhood, I think. There’s a lot that’s real mysterious about that part of the country. ... As a boy growing up, that whole area was filled with all kinds of wonderful adventures and possibilities, and that feeling has never left me. Plus, you know, the history of that area ... it’s part myth and part fact. ... You can’t tell a lot of times where myth and fact separate. ... It’s very anecdotal.
In the book, Junior recalls his friend Mad Owens, who has affection for a stripper out of Memphis named Money Scatters. How does this play into “The Yazoo Blues?”
These stories are high satire, and they are sort of semi-allegorical in that the people have place names. Money’s name is from Money, Miss., where Emmett Till was killed and a place called the Tallahatchie Scatters where people go duck hunting. ... Mad Owens is James Madison Owens … one of my maternal great-grandfathers’ names, so “Mad” Owens because he is very eccentric. The thing about Mad is that Mad doesn’t, like most people, want to find love and to be loved; Mad wants to love. He wants to be able to love. ... That’s his passion in a way. He wants to love Money Scatters, but he finds it impossible after a while because of Money’s job.
How do the two tales of the Union soldier and Mad Owens’ affinity for Ms. Scatters correlate?
The Yazoo “blues” were the blue-coated Union soldiers, and then there is ... the emotional Yazoo blues, the broken love affair between Money Scatters ... and Mad Owens. Junior Ray says, “No matter who you are ... you can look up one day, and everybody’s gonna have the Yazoo blues.” So it’s the three things there, the idea of the song, the place (the Yazoo Delta) and of course ... the blue-coated Union soldier, who had a terrible time, and a great many of them died of disease just hanging around in those transports.
What are some of the more serious themes that Junior Ray touches on?
Junior Ray says a lot of things and doesn’t realize it. Junior Ray gets into the whole problem of evil that all theology schools ... have to deal with, and that is, if God is good, how can there be anything that’s not good? So, you know, Junior Ray says, in fact, God invented cussing, so then how can it be bad? He doesn’t really understand that’s what theologians do, but he’s doing it.
John Pritchard will be on Mississippi Public Broadcasting’s “The Mississippi Arts Hour” Sunday, July 5, at 3 p.m. Signed copies of “The Yazoo Blues” are available at Lemuria. Call 601-366-7619.
Pritchard wasn’t always an acclaimed author and professor. Here are a few of his previous jobs.
• Copy boy at New York Times in 1960
• News clerk at New York Times from 1963 to 1965
• Metropolitan deputy sheriff of Nashville and Davidson County from 1975 to 1981
• Co-wrote Captain and Tennille’s “Can’t Stop Dancing” in 1977 with Ray Stevens
Casual readers may view “How to Win a Cosmic War” (Random House, 2009, $26), the second book by acclaimed religious scholar Reza Aslan, as a defense of Islam. In part, this is an accurate assessment.
As an American Muslim, surely Aslan is concerned about our country’s perception of Islam, which was guided—particularly in the Bible Belt—by our former president’s oft-referenced and vaguely justified War on Terror. In his quest to convince readers that not all Islam is Jihadism, Aslan is both blatant and occasionally humorous. His glossary definition of the media-circulated term “Islamofascism,” simply states: “This word has no meaning.”
Aslan argues that militant Jihadism is unfaithful to Qur’anic doctrines, and while Jihadists have lately focused on “the Far Enemy,” they kill hometown Muslims in far greater numbers. Non-Jihadist Muslims, Christians and Jews are viewed as apostates, as illustrated by the chilling account of a suicide-bomber at an Iraqi Ramadan celebration. Dressed as a clown, he lures children with toys, waiting until a crowd gathers before blowing himself up.
A cosmic war is “a battle for the sake of God” occurring in a spiritual realm, its earthly carnage notwithstanding. Aslan writes: “A cosmic war remains an absolute, eternal, unending, and ultimately unwinnable conflict.” His thesis—that the only way to win a cosmic war is not to fight—became old news the moment Obama took office. By making steps to close Guantanamo Bay, casting a positive light on the Qur’an in a recent speech at Cairo University and establishing a timetable of U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, Obama has already demonstrated an unwillingness to play Bush’s cowboy game.
Still, there is value in “How to Win a Cosmic War” beyond policy suggestions. The book’s efficient historical summary of Jihadism and its psychological insight into the prototype of a young, cosmopolitan suicide bomber mark it as both an Islamic primer and sociological tool, useful to anyone attempting to understand the contemporary Muslim experience.
Jihad was originally considered a “personal struggle against passions, instincts and temptations,” which eventually expanded to include “the physical struggle against oppression, chaos and civil strife.” But for Jihadists, Jihad is the singular doctrine of salvation, surpassing even the five pillars of the faith: prayer, alms, fasting, pilgrimage and confession. More than a religious struggle, modern Jihadism is a reactionary social movement, which Aslan compares—a bit too casually—to civil rights and feminism. Surely Jihadists view Jihadism as liberation, and certainly there were volatile feminist and civil-rights sects, but neither of these movements are premised on anti-intellectualism and blood-thirst, as Jihadism seems to be.
But even as Aslan disassociates Islam from Jihadism (which he considers religious only in that it employs religious symbolism), it seems there is no sidestepping the fact that Islam is a sort of “gateway drug.” Aslan indicates such in a reductive discussion of globalization and how the identity vacuum left by dissolving nation-states is filled with religion.
Muslims have replaced Jews as Europe’s “negative pole,” Aslan writes, sketching an established population that is nonetheless isolated in ghettos and unable to fully assimilate, even as the European Union grants other Europeans the privilege of continental citizenship. But in America, the one nation in the world where Muslims enjoy complete religious freedom, they also live in demographically diverse neighborhoods and earn above-average incomes. Unlike being German or Iranian—which come only with birthדAmerican is something you can become,” Tehran native Aslan says, betraying a fierce pride for his adopted home.
Aslan’s rationale is that a nationalistic identity crisis coupled with an adolescent predilection for rebellion propels unassuming middle-class European youth—often from only moderately religious families—to take up Jihadism, citing the plight of Palestine as their rallying cry. But even though Jihadists use Palestine to establish a “pan-Islamic identity,” there are ultimately no earthy concessions that Israel and the West can make to satisfy the blood-thirst of a cosmic war.
If Aslan is at all positing how to “win” a cosmic war as the title claims, it is through addressing the identity issues of those who turn to Jihadism. This doesn’t mean we should ignore the humanitarian grievances of the Islamic world, but the two are separate issues—the latter is an earthly matter with no bearing on a cosmic conflict.
In 1964, Tracy Sugarman began participating in and covering the Freedom Summer with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. His reporting and illustrations are captured in “We Had Sneakers, They Had Guns” (Syracuse University Press, 2009, $34.95). The book focuses on SNCC’s campaign to educate and help the black community register to vote. More than 1,000 SNCC freedom riders traveled from Ohio to the Mississippi Delta to participate in the project. During his journey, Sugarman interviewed civil-rights leaders, SNCC members and locals about the events unfolding in their region.
“We Had Sneakers” gives readers insight into the emotion and hardship young freedom riders faced to promote justice and equality in Mississippi. Sugarman tells about the Nightriders shooting up homes, burning churches and lynching some of the black leaders in the area. Many of the students from the North had never witnessed the brutal violence toward the black community in the South, which made the struggle to fight for their cause greater. Sugarman shows the treatment of the students by the opposition as harsh and unjustified. He informs how the students were constantly harassed, arrested, beaten by police and how three of the students were killed.
The author separates the book into four parts, beginning with “The Long, Hot Summer, 1964,” which tells about the actual clash between civil-rights leaders and the opposition. During this time, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, but the struggle against Sen. James Eastland for voters’ rights was still an issue. Throughout the book, Sugarman dedicates chapters to individuals who significantly affected the movement in a significant way, including Charles McLaurin and Len Edwards.
The book concludes with “Mississippi, October 2001,” where Sugarman takes readers along as he revisits Mississippi and his reconnection with the summer he will always remember. He will return, yet again, July 7 for a book-signing event at the Jackson State University Liberal Arts Gallery at 4:15 p.m. Free; call 601-979-1562.
Olympic Records act, the Da Vincis, make exactly the music teenage boys should make. Their loose, jazzy pop songs possess a purity free from the baggage that comes with age and experience and strategic commercialism. Their debut album, “See you Tonight,” is breezy, diverse and catchy.
The album’s best songs combine focused craft and the band’s innate pop sensibility. “John Wayne” is full of rapidly shuffling keyboards, circling vocal dubs and the exuberance of summer. Its carefree refrain, “I don’t know if the summer will last, but I swear, it’s going to be good. / I don’t know if the clock will stop, but I think it should,” is my new mantra for the season. “50s film” is a wonderfully crafted and sweet, catchy blend of light keys and xylophone. The song has multiple layers and bridges, but every transition is fluid, and each new piece makes sense within the song. Lead singer Andrew Burke’s vocals imbue the song with an appropriately nostalgic quality for the song’s rich melody and old-fashioned pop approach.
Other songs have promise, but would benefit from greater focus. The loose, meandering “Friend Requestԗabout the desperation inherent in requesting a Facebook friendship—is clever, but can drag with Burke’s lazy, nasal vocal style. Similarly, “Nickels and Dimes” has a sweet lilt to its jazz-pop guitar, but its elements don’t combine fluidly. The songs already have a great foundation; they just need a touch of refinement.
More than anything, the Da Vincis’ “See You Tonight” debuts a band with great potential and talent. With a few years of maturity and hard work, the Da Vincis could make some great records.
Beast of Brooding
In an era where alternative rock has degenerated into a paint-by-numbers game largely comprised of angry, overly aggressive songs or affected emo music, a band with a little more restraint that pays more attention to crafting good songs is a welcome diversion. Jackson-based band Signals… and their debut EP, “Static,” present such a diversion.
“Static,” released on Olympic Records, presents a subdued brand of brooding rock with focused, well-honed songs and just enough intensity to scare off your pop-loving friends. Although they owe a debt to industrial rock, Signals… diverges from the genre with their fuzzy guitar sound and controlled use of feedback, and they keep things contemporary by integrating prominent digital background noises. Lead singer Knowlton Bourne pulls you into the album’s moodiness by adding just a touch of anguish and controlled emotion to his strong, sinister voice.
The EP begins strong with two of its best tracks. “Night” opens the album with the crackling sound of a record needle and builds from two simple guitar parts to a slithering guitar verse. The song is well structured to generate a magnetic tension: alternating layers, intensity and density with a push/pull momentum. The second track, “All the Power Was Out,” opens with a series of slow, whining feedback bends, fluidly moving into its verses arced with guitar riffs. The track begins slower than its predecessor, but by its end grows into an emotionally charged clash of instruments. Momentum drops in the middle with the lukewarm “Merry Me,” but picks up fiercely in the middle of the next track, “Silence of the Sea,” and doesn’t let go until the slightly dreary closer “Wooden Knight.”
The greatest flaw in “Static” is not with the songs themselves, but with the lack of variety in the album as a whole. The songs all have the same basic structure, and things can get boring after a while. Sometimes the songs overcome this hurdle through sheer vitality, but greater diversity would make the album stronger.
Despite this criticism, however, “Static” is still a solid record filled with smart, sincere and interesting music.
New-age punk rock, for better or for worse, can be tied to 1994. It was during this year that the genre re-emerged from music’s doldrums and experienced a renaissance. Green Day and The Offspring spearheaded this re-emergence in the mainstream with their respective multi-platinum albums “Dookie” and “Smash.”
Unfortunately, many punk traditionalists condemn the 1994 punk revival for removing the heart and passion from the genre that was known primarily for those qualities. It became about self-awareness, whininess and, worst of all, apathy. The Clash would never waste a lyric asking the audience if they had time to listen to them whine, as Green Day famously did. They were going to tell you either way.
The third band to emerge from the punk rebirth of ’94 was Rancid with its platinum-selling album Ӆ And Out Come the Wolves.” While major labels seduced Green Day and The Offspring away from their independent record companies, Rancid resisted the overtures and remained loyal to its punk-centric label.
Rancid comes at you with a similar approach as The Clash, and in a perfect world, they would carry the lasting legacy of 1994. The band members never shy away from edgy, relevant topics and never bite their tongues. The band is an unfailing supporter of the working class and social justice but are also not afraid of a good time.
“Let the Dominoes Fall,” their first album in six years, demonstrates all these characteristics. They rant about the decline of industrial America (“This Place”) and the Wall Street bailout (“Locomotive”), while still saving time for some chest thumping (“Last One to Die”) and self-reflection (“The Highway”). The songs are catchy, urgent and musically complex.
One of the things that have long separated Rancid from other punk bands is their willingness to experiment, both within and outside their genre. They often have bass-driven, as opposed to guitar-driven, songs—a rarity in punk. They also employ a twin vocal attack, with Tim Armstrong’s slurry smokiness perfectly complimenting Lars Frederickson’s angry righteousness. Similarly, they introduce elements of ska and dub on nearly all their albums, including “Let the Dominoes Fall.” As a result, the band avoids the monotony that plagues most punk LPs.
The biggest weakness on “Let the Dominoes Fall,” however, is its timing. George Bush’s presidency supplied a near bottomless well of material for Rancid and other likeminded bands. Now his presidency has ended, and our new president is trying to undo many of his predecessor’s policies. Rancid, however, is still singing about police states, government censorship and other anti-Bush buzzwords. It leaves the listener with a feeling of discomfort and bitterness where there needn’t be any, like if your new bride asked about your ex-wife on your honeymoon.
Rancid has been the best and most consistent punk band for the past 15 years. “Let the Dominoes Fall” proves to be a worthy addition to their ambitious catalog, emphasizing their strengths while also breaking new ground stylistically. My only regret is that while this Bush-bashing album is good in 2009, it could have been great in 2006.
On a Tuesday night, I picked up a bottle of malbec at Kats Wine Cellar and drove to the clubhouse on the reservoir where artist Karen Blake teaches art classes to people of varying age and skill. Dressed in a flowered wrap skirt and big earrings, she welcomed me with a smile. Colorful canvases were on display around the clubhouse, and Blake had set up painting stations, three per table, with 16-inch-by-20-inch blank canvases set on easels.
“I’m trying to create art here that different people might enjoy,” she said, showing me a variety of scenes: the streets of New Orleans, for example, and natural subjects like flowers.
A Jackson native, Blake has painted since she took an art class at Jim Hill High School. She moved to the New Orleans area in the 1970s, where she learned from the renowned painter John Akers, her friend and mentor, and held art shows to sell her work. On the eve of Hurricane Katrina, she returned to Jackson and made her home here once again. She opened Vino Van Gogh in May, inspired by visits to similar venues in Alabama and Louisiana.
Students sign up for a class on the Web site (http://www.vinovangogh.com) based on the painting they want to recreate. They bring their favorite beverages (vino is optional), and Blake provides the materials and instruction. The idea is to have fun, learn a bit of artistic technique and create an original work of art to keep.
Blake says that she believes that participating in Vino Van Gogh “instills confidence and a sense of accomplishment.” She thinks that her students have “a certain amount of pride to be able to go home with a painting to hang on the wall, or to wrap and give as a gift.”
As the other students began to arrive, three female friends introduced themselves as Leigh Anne, Jennifer and Nichole. Blake chatted with them easily, as if she’d known them for years instead of minutes. A young woman and her mother, Angelique and Brenda, were next to arrive. It looked as if it would be a ladies’ night.
“Pour yourselves some wine,” Blake said, handing us plastic cups and corkscrews. She didn’t have to tell us twice. Once we’d filled our cups, we gathered around the painting of the night: red poppies with thin green stems on a white background.
Blake began the class, as she always does, with an introduction to orient her students and put them at ease.
“There’s no pressure, there’s no right, there’s no wrong,” she said, gesturing energetically and smiling. “Whatever comes out on your canvas, it’s still going to be art, and it’s going to be your art.”
Blake explained that we could paint a background in the color and pattern of our choice. We stood at our stations, where Blake gave us each a couple of Styrofoam plates: one with dabs of acrylic paint, and an empty one for mixing. She placed a cup of water for our brushes at each station.
“If you dip your brush in your wine, it’s not going to ruin your painting,” Blake said. “It will just make it that much more interesting when you describe it to your friends.”
Brushes on Canvas
At Blake’s instruction, the other students and I each chose a medium-sized brush from our cups that we wet thoroughly and swiped across the blank canvas. I mixed a bright orange for my background.
I could see the sun setting on the reservoir as I picked up my brush, loaded it with orange paint, and tentatively touched it to the canvas. Each brushstroke seemed dauntingly permanent. I took a big sip of wine—liquid courage—and began swiping more confidently. Almost immediately, I didn’t worry anymore about how the painting would come out, because I was having too much fun. I dabbed on yellow and swirled it in with a dry brush until the background looked like a brightly sponge-painted wall. The other women and I talked to each other as we worked, exchanging personal stories and peering over to offer encouragement.
Next, Blake showed us the basic techniques she used to create the stems, loading up a brush with green, yellow, and white and making a single brushstroke upward. She suggested that we paint the buds like upside down teardrops, in two strokes.
Although the green stems I painted stood out nicely against the brilliant orange background, they were several times thicker than everyone else’s. I figured that I’d make my poppies bigger, too, to compensate.
“My buds look like they’re fighting each other,” said Nichole, standing back from her canvas and laughing. “That one looks like Audrey from ‘Little Shop of Horrors.Ҕ
The poppies were next, painted in three fat downward strokes of bright red. To create the dark middle of the flower, Blake showed us how to use a dab of black and feather it upward with a dry brush. I painted big petals to make my stems look slimmer, but they still looked wide. Artistic license, I decided.
The other women made comments and laughed good-naturedly about their own work as they went along. I took a lap around the room and saw that we’d all captured the same subject differently. We had painted our backgrounds in different colors and patterns, and each canvas showcased a distinctive personal style.
The Evidence
After we’d run a blow dryer over our paintings to dry them, Blake asked us to gather for a group photo. We obliged, smiling and holding up our work for the camera as proud as a bunch of kindergarteners. She thanked us for coming and gave us each a wooden corkscrew on our way out the door. Several of the women said that they would be back soon to do another painting.
As I walked out into the humid night, holding my painting and a near-full bottle of wine (thank you, screw-top), I felt pleased with myself. I’d been able to silence the little voice inside my head that said I wasn’t a real artist. After all, I was holding a painted canvas in my hand, which was evidence to the contrary.
For more information about Vino Van Gogh, contact Karen Blake at 601-316-9005 or visit http://www.vinovangogh.com. Two-hour sessions are $35 per person, and three-hour sessions are $45.
U.S. District Court Judge Tom S. Lee handed down a ruling yesterday that will allow a lawsuit against Franklin County to move forward. The 2008 suit, filed by the families of Henry Dee and Charles Moore, claims that local law enforcement was complicit in the two young men's killings.
According to a 2007 court testimony, Klansman James Ford Seale, now 73, abducted Dee and Moore in 1964. The two young black men were both 19 at the time. Seale, who is currently serving three life sentences on federal kidnapping and conspiracy charges, colluded with fellow Klansmen to beat and then drown them, probably while they were still alive, eyewitness testimony revealed, in an offshoot of the Mississippi River. A couple fishing in the area were the first to find evidence of the bodies, which were initially thought to be those of three missing civil rights workers later discovered in a Neshoba County dam. Dee and Moore's badly beaten and decomposing bodies were found weighted down with Jeep engine parts and railroad track.
Until the Seale trial in 2007, no one was held responsible for the boys' deaths, however evidence suggests that Franklin County officials were aware of Seale's involvement at the time. The suit contends that no charges were brought because then-Franklin County Sheriff, Wayne Hutto, now deceased, was in collusion with the Klan. County officials worked “in a collusive and unlawful relationship” with the Ku Klux Klan and that “in 1964 defendant Franklin County had an unlawful, racially motivated policy and practice of protecting the Ku Klux Klan,” the suit states.
Franklin County wanted the suit dismissed, saying that the statute of limitations had run out on the families' ability to sue, but Lee ruled that the clock didn't start until 2007.
"It's a huge ruling for the family," Dennis Sweet, a Jackson attorney representing the victims' relatives, told the Associated Press. "It gives us the chance to prove our case. There needs to be some recognition of the wrong done by Franklin County."
Seale's court-appointed defense team is currently appealing his conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court based on a statute of limitations argument.
