Jackson Free Press

Deepest Midnight: Cedric Willis and The Failure of Mississippi Justice

Cedric Willis, then 19, stirred in his bed and looked up at his grandmother Sally. She had the smooth, dark skin of a woman 20 years younger, and her black …

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Creating The Music for Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a day for partners to share their love for one another. Some people prepare romantic evenings at home by candlelight or plan a night on the town …

Mississippi Legislature Faces a Dire Task

Mississippi legislators skulked back into the state capitol Jan. 5, keeping their body movements at a minimum and their heads low in case somebody noticed them and asked them questions …

State Of The Coast

Betty Maerker often visits Ocean Springs' shoreline right before a storm, where she watches the waves rise and fall, and gathers her thoughts. But for the past five years, her …

Guarding White Christians

The first Seale on record was a bodyguard—at 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds, Solomon Seale guarded King Alfred the Great, who ruled as the "King of the Anglo-Saxons" from 871-899. According …

Protecting Yourself (Without A Gun)

Jason Griffin, 32, knows more than your average person about self-defense. As a student of Tae Kwon Do, which literally means a method of defending yourself with hands and feet, …

Chicks We Love

Chicks like these are rare. They are intelligent, strong, influential women who are making the face of Jackson look a little brighter. And we love them.

The Klansman Bound: The Crime

The last time Mazie Moore ever saw her boy, 19-year-old son Charles, he was standing in front of Dillon's gas station on Main Street in Meadville, trying to thumb a …

Eating In the Stables

The "new" Mississippi Capitol building was built in 1903 using back taxes paid by the Illinois Central Railroad, on the site of the old state penitentiary. Originally built for $1.9 …

A Guy's Guide to V-Day

Well guys, it's that time of year that we all dread. (No, not your mother's birthday. Don't worry; you didn't forget it. I hope). It's Valentine's Day. DUN DUN DUN.

Cultivating a Voice Through Art

Filtered sunlight streams through the windows of Claire Myers' studio on Thursday morning in Jackson as she waits to begin painting.

After the Flood

It only took Millie Williams a few minutes to decide that the animals needed her. Watching footage of Hurricane Katrina on television at her home in Pennsylvania, Williams saw evacuees …

Picture Perfect

Thousands of picture postcards lie in a crate at the end of my bed. From California to New York, Texas to the Black Hills of South Dakota, I have thousands …

Radical Faith: The Revolution of John Perkins

Dust shimmers on the gray pickups and egg-crate-grille Chevrolets as tinsel and Christmas lights pierce the dark night.

The Next Flood

Hurricane Katrina devastated everything it touched, from Alabama to Mississippi to Louisiana, but it was New Orleans, which survived the storm only to flood over the following days, that jolted …

Ready or Not For Baby

When Kathryn Kight realized she was in labor, her first thought was of Frank Melton. As a reporter for 16 WAPT News, she knew Feb. 19 was going to be …

Kids Having Kids

Ollie Jackson's baby, Lauryn, sleepily rubs her eyes as she sits on her 19-year-old father's lap during a football game at Newell Field in Jackson.

*Best of: People and Community

<b>Best Local Scandal, Best Public Figure,

As much as I attempt to cover issues apart from city politics, I always end up getting dragged right back to the council chambers and good ol' Frank Melton, a …

A Work In Progress

When Ira Murray moved to Jackson from Nashville four years ago, he knew the city was poised for metamorphosis.

A New Sheriff? JFP Interview with Lester Williams

In 1990 I transferred over to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. There I was primarily assigned to the DEA and the FBI on their task force, working in major investigations. …