Jackson Free Press

Mayor Brings Back Crime Unit, UMMC Grant

Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. reversed two of the last mayor's more controversial decisions Wednesday, announcing that he is bringing back the Crime Prevention Unit that Mayor Frank Melton eliminated four …

Bellsouth Looting Competitors?

Hurricane Katrina took down power lines across the Southeast and left hundreds of customers without phone service for weeks. Some customers also say that the telephone company Bellsouth has taken …

Teens Expect JSU Hazing

A Former Forest Hill High School band director and a local Jackson attorney say that high-school students know what they're getting into when they try out for the Jackson State …

Girlfriends

Dorothy Triplett and Shirley Tucker became friends as they began navigating through small, intertwining circles in Jackson. Finding they had similar passions for several things—the city of Jackson, empowerment of …

A Federal Grant to Save Education?

In a year when Mississippi's K-12 educational system faces potentially crippling budget cuts, a federal grant program promising up to $175 million has offered a bit of hope to state …

Barbour Advocates Cutting U.S. Budget Despite Aid

Despite the federal government's role in helping Mississippi shore up the state budget, Gov. Haley Barbour touted the GOP's promise to cut $100 billion out of the federal budget on …

Panel Withholding Data, Education Advocates Say

A governor-appointed panel on school district mergers is withholding the data it used to identify 18 Mississippi school districts for potential consolidation, frustrating a group of education advocates.

Facing ‘Generation Debt'

About two and a half years ago--a few months before I graduated college--my grandmother said something I'll never forget: "Just wait; after college, that's when your standard of living really …

The Rest of Us

A recent article in The New York Times Magazine portrayed a group of women who have decided to step away from careers to raise their young children. The title of …

Tell Me the Truth, JoAnne

Q. I'm fairly recently divorced, and have even more recently returned to the North Jackson area after a few years away. Do your sources have any idea where interesting single/divorced …

Shop Local and Support Jackson's Best

I find myself, every year, getting in a certain mood around the holiday season. Yes, there are fattening goodies in the JFP break room—every single day—which will hopefully also put …

City Denies JPS Budget Increase

The Jackson City Council voted Friday to deny Jackson Public Schools the extra $2.7 million it requested for the upcoming fiscal year.

‘It's You, Sweetie'

An excerpt from "The Sweet Potato Queens' Wedding Planner/Divorce Guide," Random House, 2005

Politics of the Blues

Otis Taylor is one of the few blues artists today who has explicitly addressed lynching; his song "Saint Martha Blues" tells in painful detail the story of his great-grandfather's lynching …

Of Dogs and Tutus

It's not everyday that you can munch on grilled ribs next to European-inspired statues surrounded by dogs in tutus to the strains of a bagpipe. But you can in Starkville …

JFP Staffers Finalists for Four ‘Green Eyeshade' Awards

We learned today that the JFP editorial staff will be receiving awards in four different categories this summer in the 60th Annual Green Eyeshade Awards. This was our first year …

two interesting stories

The NYTimes has two really interesting stories today.

In one, Diamonds are for Never , Ophrah/that new movie "Blood Diamonds" are convincing many women into giving up diamonds:

Men of Character

The JFP's Chick Ball's Men of Character live auction gives bidders a chance to compete for Jackson's finest men while supporting a good cause. The men are donating the talents …

Senate Dems, GOP Clash Over Need for New Gun Curbs

The toll of gun violence and the widespread disgust it has generated makes it time for new federal gun curbs that balance public safety with gun rights, Democrats said Tuesday …

Playing Odds of Last Frost Planting

Just about every day, I hear of someone who just couldn't wait until planting time to start digging in the ground and planting a crop for summer.