Jackson Free Press

[Ladd] No More Wink-Wink Politics

Waaaa-powwww, right in the kisser! So, what was that loud explosion that hit the middle of last week? Certainly, it could have been me letting out 42 years of pent-up …

[Ladd] Gentlemen, Tone It Down

Every day of the past week I've heard someone, usually a white progressive, ridicule City Councilman Kenneth I. Stokes. "He's crazy." "He's a lunatic." "He's a racist." The outspoken Ward …

Mobilizing the Hip-Hop Generation

To anyone who watches MTV all day—where P. Diddy, Ja Rule and Nelly dominate the screen flashing fancy cars, gold chains and an entourage of scantily clad women—political empowerment and …

[Talk] The Way to Serendipity

You've been looking at that blank living room wall or that empty display shelf one too many times. Absolutely nothing you've seen has called your name and said, "Take me …

Amy Tuck Revives State Flag Issue

Whoa. How should we read this interesting turn of events? Does Ms. Tuck believe it will be politically expedient to have a rebel flag debate as part of her race …

Green Party of MS Says Stop Buying Public Offices

(Aug. 16, 2003, press release) The Green Party of Mississippi announces its support for a new project called "White House for Sale" which tracks the special-interest contributions to President Bush's …

Gary Anderson confident about run-off

Gary Anderson, who could become the first African-American elected to state office since Reconstruction, told the Mississippi Link that he is confident about the Aug. 26 run-off with Rob Smith, …

School Daze: Testing Madness

As I proctored a classroom full of seventh-graders taking the Grade Level Testing Program (GLTP) test last April in a suburban Jackson public school, I couldn't help but think that …

Electronic Voting Easily Hacked?

The Washington Post reports that many states are backing away from electronic voting machines: "Since being released two weeks ago, the [Johns] Hopkins report has sent shock waves across the …

[Stauffer] Where the Sidewalk Begins

I stepped out of Peaches Restaurant on Farish Street the other day after stopping in to hear Dorothy Moore sing and to celebrate her recent album release. When I got …

Blogging the Body Politic

Read about presidential hopeful Howard Dean's remarkable grass-roots blogging campaign. And add your voice at the end: Will this campaign change politics as we know it?

Will You Bother to Vote?

There's no argument that the right to vote has been hard won in Mississippi, but this election year only a fragment of the state's citizens, black or white, is likely …

[Talk] What's in the Water?

The City of Jackson was inconvenienced last week when officials released a precautionary boil-water alert because samples showed bacteria that can cause digestive problems. Everyone scrambled for alternatives. Residents lugged …

[Drive] Less Than Zero

Ms. D likes to point out that I'm less of a car reviewer and more of an obsessive car shopper. She's right on many levels—while I like to take sports …

Heroes of Hedonism, by Alphonso Mayfield

To attend a 2 Live Crew concert is to experience a mixture of hedonism and mass hysteria. Between the kick of 808 drum patterns and thongs moving to the rhythmic …

Take That, Joe Lieberman

After all the talk-show babble of the last couple days about Howard Dean being such a "far-left" candidate, it's a relief to see a New York Times story today that …

[Talk] eVoting Next for State

Hurry, you only have until Monday, July 28, to get in your two-cents about Mississippi's voting upgrades.

Help Save *Teach for America*

Tyner Lunges, Barbour Defends

The two personalities on the Republican primary ballot of the gubernatorial race couldn't seem any more different. Tyner, with his innocent gee-whiz demeanor and Boy Scout-ish philosophies, stepped quietly into …

Misery on the Bounty

The splendor of the season's bounty thrills thousands at the open-air farmers market. More than ever, people prefer purchasing their produce directly from the farmers who grow it. You can …