Jackson Free Press

The Jackson City Council really got the ball rolling on its new term Monday afternoon by kicking the can on two important issues - the confirmation of Lumumba's selection of fire and police chief - not one week, but two weeks down the road.

Council President Charles Tillman, Ward 4, set a public hearing for Thursday, July 18, at 6:30 p.m. for citizens to come out and let their voices be heard on the appointment of Lindsey Horton and Willie Owens as police and fire chief, respectively. Mayor Chokwe Lumumba held a press conference to introduce the duo minutes before the council meeting began.

When asked by Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon, Ward 7, why the delay of a vote was necessary, Tillman said he was going to "be accommodating" to the council members who were not present who said they wanted to be a part of the process.

The two absent members were Quentin Whitwell, Ward 1, who was attending a Mississippi Bar Association Convention and LaRita Cooper-Stokes, Ward 3, who does not attend special meetings of the council on principle.

Tillman ended the meeting by saying he should have his committee appointments done by next week, at the latest, and said he's excited about how efficient this council is going to be.

The good news: Tillman approved Cooper-Stokes' seating arrangement proposal, and the council now sits in the correct order - from 1 to 7 – except seats 4 and 5 are flipped so the president can sit in the middle. (So the order is now 1-2-3-5-4-6-7.) Perhaps next, the council can get its priorities in order.

Conde-Nast Traveler's annual Readers' Choice Survey puts Jackson at No. 7 on its list of the 10 friendliest cities in the U.S.

"Visitors to Mississippi's capital—and most populous town—note that 'friendly people and great food' make it a worthy stop. Its streets are 'steeped in history' and dotted with 'green and pretty' public spaces," the survey site states. "Take an afternoon to sample 'wonderful barbeque' and chat with 'lovely' residents."

Mississippi's capital city tied Natchez on the Traveler list: "Known for well-preserved relics of pre-Civil War architecture, including 'very beautiful antebellum houses,' Natchez also boasts a sweetly Southern resident community. The hospitable population and slower pace of life make Natchez 'an amazing town to visit and relax.' In fact, this 'great undiscovered location' made one reader 'feel like a real Southern Belle.'”

When it comes to friendly, "southern hospitality shines on that front—in the Top 10, all but three of the cities are in the South," the site states.

Rounding out the list are: No. 10, Branson, Mo.; No. 9, Sonoma, Calif.; No. 8, Telluride, Colo.; No. 5, Austin, Texas; No. 4, Asheville, N.C.; No. 3, Savannah, Ga.; No. 2, Galena, Ill.; No. 1, Charleston, S.C.

Some musical birthday wishes and new release info...

In 1970, the University of Southern Mississippi defeated Ole Miss 30-14 in what, to this day, stands as one of the biggest upsets in Mississippi history.

Southern Miss was thrashed the week before by San Diego State, and got torn to pieces the next week by Mississippi State, but managed to beat Archie Manning and the No. 4-ranked Rebels because of a secret weapon.

That weapon was "Wee" Willie Heidelberg, who died Tuesday in Jackson. The then-20-year-old junior was the only black player on either team. He touched the ball three times, and scored twice.

As Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum Director Rick Cleveland wrote:

Wee Willie was like a black dot on an ivory domino, the only black player on the field for either team that day. His performance foreshadowed sweeping changes in Deep South football. On this, the last day of Black History Month, it seems appropriate to ask the question: Was Heidelburg aware of the ramifications back then as a 20-year-old junior?

“Oh no,” Heidelburg says. “I knew that was a special victory. I knew we had done something big. But, as for me, I was just playing ball. I certainly wasn’t thinking about making history.”

Read more here.

Heidelberg eventually moved to Jackson and took a job coaching at Belhaven College. Many Jacksonians will remember him as the official scorekeeper for the high school basketball championships at "the big house."

This week's new releases...

So the old-school Republican strategist Haley Barbour has stuck his foot in his mouth again, perhaps purposefully. He went on CNN to defend New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's administration, which is under fire for various corruption allegations, including a serious accusation by Hoboken, N.J., Mayor Dawn Zimmer. When Barbour appeared on camera to downplay the allegations, he just looked and sounded like a garden-variety sexist grandpa when he called Zimmer a "lady mayor." As in, what the hell does her gender have to do with anything?!? And why would a man supposedly as smart as Barbour make such an error?

It could have been purposeful, of course, considering that the base of Barbour's party hasn't realized that we have moved into the 21st century and that blatant sexism ain't cool or attractive, and it sure won't attract the kinds of younger voters the GOP will desperately need to survive.

So how exactly does this help Christie get into the White House? The national GOP might think seriously before letting such an old-school political strategist speak for their candidates. Don't forget, after all, that he was the one who tried to pretend that the Citizens Council had good intentions in his hometown.

Most frustrating, this ignorance on a national stage once again makes Mississippi look bad.

Blech.

Last week, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood was in Geneva, Switzerland representing the U.S. before the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

Hood, the only Democrat holding statewide office in Mississippi, serves as president-elect of the National Association of Attorneys General, and "responded to the committee’s questions concerning the death penalty, domestic violence, human trafficking, corporal punishment, zero tolerance in schools, life without parole for juvenile offenders, and reinstatement of voting rights for felons."

It would be interesting to know exactly what those questions, and Hood's responses, were. Especially considering that just a few weeks ago, Hood requested execution dates for two condemned Mississippi prisoners.

At Hood's request, Charles Ray Crawford and Michelle Byrom are scheduled to be put to death on March 26 and March 27, respectively.

Crawford was convicted of the 1993 killing of a college student named Kristy Ray in Tippah County.

Byrom was convicted of murder-for-hire in 1999 in connection with the death of her husband, Edward Byrom Sr. Even though big questions hang over Byrom's case, whose son wrote several letters confessing to the crime and that his mother did not participate in it, Hood moved ahead with planning her execution anyway.

Through a news statement, Hood said of his trip to human-rights mission to Geneva:

“It was indeed an honor to be one of the attorneys to defend America’s human rights record. ...It was rewarding to clarify many international misconceptions about Mississippi’s civil rights record and that of other states and our federal government.”

Duling Hall and new releases...

Verbatim release from the office of Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves:

LT. GOV. REEVES NAMES SMALL BUSINESS OWNER TO JACKSON SALES TAX COMMISSION

JACKSON – Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves today named small business owner and local architect Michael Boerner to the 1-percent sales tax commission charged with overseeing expenditures from a recent sales tax increase in the city of Jackson.

The 10-member commission will develop a plan for infrastructure repairs and address how tax revenues will support the plan. In January, voters in Jackson approved raising the city’s sales tax by 1 percent to fund infrastructure repairs.

“Michael has a passion for the city of Jackson and wants our capital city to be successful,” Lt. Gov. Reeves said. “His experience managing a business and expertise as an architect will be useful as the commission prepares a plan to address Jackson’s infrastructure challenges.”

Boerner, AIA, LEED AP, is the principal of Wier+Boerner Architecture in Jackson. He has a bachelor of architecture degree from Mississippi State University and a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Millsaps College. Boerner has architectural experience working for firms in Dallas, Birmingham, New Orleans and Jackson.

“Jackson needs a strong, reliable infrastructure to thrive,” Boerner said. “I look forward to serving on the commission and helping to shape the city’s future.”

The Jackson resident has worked on numerous projects around Mississippi, including Babalu restaurant in the Fondren neighborhood of Jackson, renovations to the Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Coliseum and the Iron Horse Grill restaurant in downtown Jackson. He also serves on the State Board of Architecture.

Boerner and his wife, Katherine, have one daughter and attend Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson.

Well-known in progressive political circles, Cristen Hemmins and Joce Prtichett today announced that they would run for elected office.

In 2012, Jackson Free Press readers opined that Hemmins should seek public office. Hemmins, chairwoman of the Lafayette County Democratic Party, will challenge state Sen. Gray Tollison, R-Oxford, for the Senate seat he has held since 1996. Tollison, a one-time Democrat who switched over to the GOP in 2012, had been eyeing late U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee's House seat but announced this week that he wouldn't run for Congress.

Joce Pritchett, an engineer who lives in Jackson with her wife, Carla Webb, and their children will make an announcement Friday at the Capitol that she will run for state auditor. So far, two Republicans have announced intentions to run, incumbent Stacey Pickering and Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler. Charles E. Graham has also said he would run as a Democrat; Pritchett did not indicate which party primary she would run in.

Pritchett and Webb are plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit challenging Mississippi's same-sex marriage ban. That case is pending in a federal appeals court.