Jackson Free Press

The Ledger gives one last smooch to Governor Barbour, "political genius."

This Associated Press story just illustrates how absurd it was for the Mississippi Legislature, and Gov. Phil Bryant, to push and pass a law that tries to circumvent the First Amendment, which wisely tells government to stay the hell out of (my words, not theirs) people's religious choices. As I wrote in a recent column, the wise men who wrote the Constitution knew from this nation's early experiences that any interference by government on any level into worshiping (or praying) creates the conditions to squelch someone's freedom of religion.

Of course, we all know that the legislators and Bryant did this because they believe the move will appeal to "faith voters," whom they assume do not think and read well enough to understand that there is an "establishment" clause in the First Amendment precisely to protect all of us from, well, folks like them who want to push one flavor of religion on everyone.

In other words, this is exactly the kind of political chicanery the First Amendment was created to prevent. Too bad that the government of the state of Mississippi, once again, makes us look bad and stupid to the rest of the world.

It leaves us asking: Are these so-called anti-government types, or so they claim, really bent on having government create the roadmaps for people's faith and prayer? That is downright terrifying, not to mention hypocritical.

The JFP brought home awards this month.

Over the weekend, Black Enterprise magazine reported that the spending power of the nation's 43 million African Americans is expected to top $1 trillion by 2015.

BE cites a report that will be presented at a June 2014 meeting of the National Association of Black Accountants Conference. The report found that the African American population "is an economic force to be reckoned with, with a projected buying power of $1.1 trillion by 2015."

That should be good news for Jackson and Mississippi, which have some of the the nation's highest percentages of of black residents. Jackson's population is 80 percent black; Mississippi has to a 40 percent black population.

What's more, black consumers' growth outpaces the rest of the population by 30 percent, the study shows:

Between 2000 and 2009, the number of African Americans attending some college or earning degrees has grown: 45 percent of men; 54 percent of women. Households earning $75,000 or more grew by more than 60 percent, faster than the rest of the population. African American’s average income nationwide is $47,290.

So what does this all mean in business terms? It means African Americans wield tremendous buying power. The Nielsen study showed numerous shopping trends, mostly for household, health and beauty, travel, smart phones and child related items.

Hopefully, Jackson residents and businesses are in a position to take full advantage.

Ahead of the Friday deadline to qualify for state and county offices, several Jacksonians have qualified as Democrats in several races. That includes some old faces from local politics trying their hands at new, higher seats.

Bruce Burton of Jackson has qualified to run for the Central District seat on the Public Service Commission; Democratic state Rep. Cecil Brown has been actively campaigning for the seat for months.

Robert Amos, who has run for Jackson City Council and mayor, will compete for the Mississippi Department of Transportation's Central District post.

Democratic Party records show that Stan Alexander, a former Hinds County prosecutor now with the attorney general's office, has qualified to seek the Hinds County district attorney's seat. DA Robert Smith as of this morning has not qualified for reelection, party information shows.

Plavise Patterson, a businesswoman and community activist who ran for Jackson city council's Ward 5 in 2013, has qualified to run in Mississippi House District 69 along with incumbent Alyce Clarke. Corinthian Sanders, another perennial name on local ballots, will run for House District 72 against incumbent Kimberly Campbell.

And Charles E. Graham of Jackson qualified to contend for state auditor in the Democratic primary as well. Republicans in that race include incumbent Stacey Pickering and Madison Mary Hawkins Butler.

The website BoomFantasy.com, which up until now has focused on sports, is launching a "live fantasy" game to coincide with the GOP debate planned for Saturday, February 6, 2016.

For sporting events, the website focuses on in-game predictions such as "What will be the result of Payton Manning's next throw?"

For the debate, questions will hinge more on typical talking points and drinking-game style observations, such as: "Who will Donald Trump go after next? Which will be mentioned first: Ted Cruz's Canadian citizenship or his questionable Iowa tactics?"

Saturday's Republican debate, which begins at 8 pm ET, will be the first ever non-sports event for the Stanford startup, according to a press release.

"Watching Trump and Cruz combat each other seems like more of a sporting event than the Nets-76ers game on Saturday evening," said Stephen A. Murphy, co-founder and CEO of Boom Fantasy, in the release. "Our live fantasy format adds fun and excitement to all types of events, not just athletic contests."

After Saturday's foray into politics, Boom Fantasy returns to football on Sunday, when the Broncos face the Panthers in Super Bowl 50.

Boom Fantasy games can be played for real prize money in 12 U.S. states - California, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Residents of all states can participate in free-to-play tournaments, according to the company.

Boom Fantasy can be played at www.boomfantasy.com, and is available in the App Store and on Android.

The 11th annual Veterans of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement Conference is March 30-April 3.

It begins tonight at Tougaloo College's Woodworth Chapel with the Jimmie Travis Civil Rights Legacy Symposium Series' "Movement Women: Their Stories." Constance Slaughter Harvey will moderate tonight's event, and women such as Joan Trumpauer Mulholland and Brenda Travis will speak. The event begins at 6 p.m., and is free and open to the public.

The conference continues with "Post Obama Activism" on Thursday, March 31, starting at noon. Sinclair Skinner, an engineer, activist and civil-rights champion, will speak. At 7 p.m., attendees can watch Stanley Nelson's "The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution," a film about the rise of the Black Panther Party in the 1960s and its impact on civil rights and American culture.

On Friday, April 1, Congressman Bennie Thompson will speak at 10 a.m. at Woodworth Chapel.

The Veterans Legacy Awards Banquet is Saturday, April 2, beginning at 7 p.m. at The Masonic Temple (1072 J.R. Lynch St.). Tickets are $35 for adults, $15 for students and $375 for a table of 10 people. The deadline for purchase is March 30.

On Sunday, April 3, attendees can attend in a screening and panel discussion of "Standing on My Sisters' Shoulders," a documentary about Mississippi women who fought for equality during the Civil Rights Movement. The event is from 3 to 5 p.m. at Tougaloo College's Bennie G. Thompson Center, and is free and open to the public.

For more information and to see a complete schedule, visit mscivilrightsveterans.com.

New Orleans-based hip-hop artist Boyfriend released a new single Wednesday, Aug. 17, that features fellow New Orleanian Big Freedia, known to her fans as the "Queen of Bounce."

The track, titled "Marie Antoinette," is an ode to lavish lifestyles and over-the-top indulgence, all built on a bass-heavy, harpsichord-laden track from New Orleans deejay DXXXY. And of course, the song includes a few references to its famously extravagant - and very deceased - namesake, such as the oft-attributed quote, "Let them eat cake," and the lyric, "I go so hard I might just lose my head."

Besides their shared hometown, the two artists have another common distinction: Both have run into censorship troubles over Mississippi performances this year.

In February, the Dollar Box Showroom in Hattiesburg cancelled Big Freedia's performance due to pressure from the state Alcoholic Beverage Control's laws regarding "gyrating." In April, Oxford restaurant and music venue Proud Larry's cancelled Boyfriend's show, which would have featured burlesque elements, to avoid similar problems with the ABC.