Jackson Free Press

Beyond Detention: Exploring Smarter, Cheaper Alternatives to Locking Kids Up

"He's out on the street. He comes home sometimes. He has that little anklet, he doesn't care. It makes no difference to him. He's afraid of nothing." The mother of …

Council: No to Payroll ... and Bodyguard Raises

The Jackson City Council failed to approve the city payroll by a 3-to-3 vote at a special meeting this afternoon. Council President Leslie McLemore, Ward 7 Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon and …

Sweet Alleges Bias Against Hinds Judges

Jackson attorney Dennis Sweet claims Hinds County Senior Judge Swan Yerger violated the U.S. Constitution when he barred the county's black circuit court judges from hearing more serious cases.

Brunini, Watkins Ludlam to Anchor ‘Two Jackson Place'

Just in from David Watkins:

The Brunini law firm yesterday signed on with Parkway to be one of the anchor tenants in the new "Two Jackson Place" office tower to be built in downtown Jackson. …

Johnson Gives State of the City Address

verbatim statement

Thank you Reverend Stanley Smith for offering the invocation today. To President Bluntson and members of the Jackson City Council, other elected officials, City Employees, citizens of Jackson and friends, …

Jail Generation: Lost Time, Lost Voice

"I've been working 14 years to keep my sanity, now I'm on vacation," mused J.J. Tennison, speaking in a slow, metered voice. In 1990, Tennison, then 18, and Antoine "Soda …

Hills And Gullies On State Street

I've got two different things I need to say this week, and they're almost impossible to segue between, so let me just get the first one out of the way.

The Water Also Rises

In the ecological balance between droughts and floods, Where do Mississippi farmers—and consumer prices—stand?

GOP: Watch the Racist Talking Points

Just hours after the Dow closed Monday down 777 points, a JFP reader posted the "reason" for the financial crisis on our Web site: "The subprime mortgage gateway was led …

Jubilee JAM! 2009 Lineup Announced

The JAM folks have announced their national/regional line-up for this year's festival -- local performers are still to come. The following is verbatim from their materials:

Councilmen to Battle Mayor on Business

Ward 2 Councilman Chokwe Lumumba and Ward 4 Councilman Frank Bluntson have both put their name in the running to become the mayor of Jackson after next year's election. At …

Dr. Thomas Dobbs: COVID-19 Improvement, But Schools Pose Grave Danger

State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs sees improvement in the fight against COVID-19 following the governor’s two-week mask mandate across Mississippi. But a return to in-person schooling presents grave danger.

Intertwined Paths

Two of Mississippi's most famous political figures, Sen. Jim Eastland and civil-rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, were neighbors in Sunflower County, one a U.S. Senator and one of them a …

A Jump to the Left? Mississippi: The 2012 Elections and Beyond

Among the many names folks have called Mississippi—from the Hospitality State to the Cradle of the Confederacy—“political trendsetter” probably doesn’t rank high on many lists.

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A New Dynamic: Shanda Yates’ Surprise Victory

Shanda Yates had never thought about running for office and had a litany of reasons not to pursue the House District 64 seat when she first discussed the idea with …

The Push to Expand Vouchers in 2018

EdChoice defines the vague phrase "school choice" as " allow(ing) public education funds to follow students to the schools or services that best fit their needs—whether that's to a public …

Mississippi: The Battleground for Roe v. Wade’s Future?

Red states, emboldened by the Trump regime, are passing hardline anti-abortion laws aimed at triggering a reconsideration of Roe at the nation's highest court—laws like the fetal heartbeat bills the …

The Choices Chicks Make

I spoke to a roomful of young chicks recently. We were all packed into the charming old depot in Forest, Miss., some 40 miles from where I grew up in …

UPDATED: Barbour Helps Domestic Killers

At least three of six criminals getting relief from Gov. Haley Barbour killed their former or current wife or girlfriend.

Howard Dean Sells Out

On last night's episode of The 700 Club, the bold and courageous leader of America's progressive movement sat down with Pat Robertson to assure him that the Democratic Party opposes …