Jackson Free Press

This past week I wrote a Publisher's Note called "AFA Bearing False Witness Against Businesses?" about the American Family Association's "action alert" wherein they called the "We Don't Discriminate" campaign discriminatory, despite the very basic tautological problems with their argument. (It seemed to me they were going to have to define "don't" as "do" in order to make their argument make any sense.)

So I was intrigued this week to see the AFA has now edited that exact same alert from its original headline of "A List of Businesses Displaying Hatred Toward Religious Freedom" to the new headline "Businesses Suckered By Homosexual Reaction to MS Religious Freedom Restoration Act."

The alert is otherwise dated the same (suggesting, falsely, that they wrote the current text on May 9, 2014, when it actually sometime between May 16th and 19th), it has the same URL and it still has the title "A List of Businesses Displaying Hatred Toward Religious Freedom" at the top of the window.

Here's a screenshot of the original:

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2014/may/20/17455/

Here's the new one:

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2014/may/20/17456/

Aside from the fact that replacing their earlier statements and pretending they wrote them 10 days ago once again calls into question this self-proclaimed Christian organization's relationship with the Ninth Commandment, it's also instructive to note where they now pretend their argument has been the whole time -- gays are apparently suckering businesses into putting the sticker in their window.

Again, a reminder: The campaign is a reaction to a law signed recently in Mississippi that may allow businesses to discriminate against other based on their religious beliefs. The sticker proclaims a given business' desire to work with all customers despite that law.

Given that the law -- which AFA, partner organizations and Governor Bryant wanted -- is now in existence, the sticker can help people at risk of being discriminated against know that a business won't discriminate against them.

The sticker doesn't say a darned thing about other people or businesses who don't have the sticker.

That said, this is, at least, a slightly better tactic on the part of the AFA for its own sake, since the original plan (still evident) was to simply castigate the businesses for proclaiming their anti-discriminatory stance.

Blaming the businesses, in hindsight, was pretty stupid, as the businesses have a clear right (a.) not to discriminate against their customers and (b.) to tell people about it.

(Pretending that The Gays are using their convince-o-tron on hapless business owners is, at least, a slightly less stupid tactic. Progress!)

Now, the new text calls on those who read the alert to further the AFA's agenda by asking the business owner if they aware the sticker is "part of a plan to bully, intimidate and demean Christians."

Since it's not, then that's false witness, but the AFA seems to operate with a special exemption from the 9th.

Maybe re-reading Proverbs 6:16-19 would help?

Republican Mike Pence, governor of Indiana, has a long history of railing against "Obamacare." But according to the Washington Post, he may become the next governor to expand Medicaid in his state.

Republican Gov. Mike Pence, after months of discussions with the Obama administration, is offering a new plan Thursday morning to expand coverage to low-income uninsured Hoosiers. As expected, he's doing it through an existing state insurance program for adults that's been championed by some conservatives.

The Indiana program offers health spending accounts to folks that are slightly above Medicaid eligibility; Pence is looking to expand that access, much the same way that the ACA was designed to expand Medicaid access for the working poor and those slightly above the poverty line, up to 138 percent.

Pence is getting credit (and criticism) for finding a clever way to accept Medicaid expansion while still saving a little face as an Obamacare denier; any chance Governor Bryant could do the same and help the 300,000 Mississippians in the insurance gap?

After all, his logic that the state would be stuck once Obamacare was struck down seems less and less likely at this point.

Maybe it's time to go ahead and help working Mississippians get access to decent healthcare?

August Alsina, a 21-year rap sensation from New Orleans, was supposed to perform in Jackson tonight. He won't make it after all, which has apparently infuriated his fans in Jacktown.

Promoters of the concert, planned for Saturday at the Mississippi Coliseum want to set the record straight.

In a statement to Jackson media outlets, promoter Yolanda Singleton explained the situation from their point of view:

"We, as promoters, did everything we were legally obligated to do via contract as well as met all financial obligations. After the initial May 10, 2014 date was rescheduled, we were still committed to bringing the artist to the city for those who had purchased tickets and others. We were more than accommodating to the artist with a new date.

Singleton continued: "Although the venue was scaled down to accommodate an audience of 3500 seats for August Alsina's performance, promoters were contacted by management two days prior to the schedule event date stating the 2000 tickets already sold was not a big enough crowd for August Alsina to perform because he did not want to see empty seats while performing. We were told, 'it would not be a good look for him.'"

It was not immediately clear if promoters could issue refunds to people who bought tickets or pursue legal action against Alsina.

In a "public-service announcement" posted on Instagram late Friday Alsina said only that "there was a mixup with the date and venue" as the reason he wouldn't be doing the show, but that he looks forward to coming to Jackson during his summer tour.

Three Mississippi businesses that are participating in the If You're Buying, We're Selling sticker campaign are currently demanding that the American Family Association retract statements that accused them of discriminating against Christians. The three businesses include The Golden Growler, The Keg and Barrel, and La Finestra.

The AFA issued a news release on its website Monday that stated:

"Ironically, this sticker represents the very promotion of discrimination…against freedom of religious convictions. Businesses that display this sticker believe Christians should be forced, by law, to embrace homosexuality and deny their faith in personal business practices."

The entire news release can be read on the AFA's website: http://action.afa.net/item.aspx?id=2147545307.

Attorney Alexander Ignatiev of Hattiesburg, who represents the three businesses, issued the following statements in a cease and desist letter to AFA President Timony Wildmon on Wednesday:

"These statements are defamatory and actionable per se under the laws of the State of Mississippi, because they accuse my clients of unlawfully discriminating against persons in violating of the 14th Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1965, a felony . . . subjecting my clients to a penalty of up to ten years in prison. They are also materially false, and provably so, in connection with my clients, The Golden Growler, The Keg and Barrel, and La Finestra. These statements have been published with actual malice, which means that they have been published with reckless disregard for truthfulness, or with actual knowledge of their falsity, which removes any First Amendment protection from those statements."

Ignatiev is demanding that AFA remove the "materially false, reckless, unprotected statements" from the release within 7 days.

On May 14, 1970, two Jackson State University students were killed by Jackson police officers—10 days after the much more publicized Kent State shootings of four students in Ohio.

The victims of the JSU shootings were Phillip L. Gibbs, a junior at the school and father and James Earl Green, a high school senior.

Why didn't the JSU shooting get as much national attention? Well, the most obvious answer is the race of the victims. All four Kent State victims were white; the young men killed at Jackson State were African American.

NPR retells the circumstances of what it calls a "widely forgotten" tragedy at JSU:

On the evening of May 14, African-American youths were reportedly pelting rocks at white motorists driving down the main road through campus — frequently the site of confrontations between white and black Jackson residents.

Tensions rose higher when a rumor spread around campus that Charles Evers — a local politician, civil rights leader and the brother of slain activist Medgar Evers — and his wife had been killed, according to Lynch Street: The May 1970 Slayings at Jackson State College. The situation escalated when a non-Jackson State student set a dump truck on fire.

Police responded to the call. A group of students and non-students threw rocks and bricks at the officers. Police advanced to Alexander Hall, a large dorm for women.

Even if the rest of the nation has forgotten (or never knew), the shootings remain integrated into the curriculum and culture at JSU, where all students learn about the shootings during a mandatory orientation.

In C. Liegh McInnis' freshman composition class, students have to observe in the women's dorm and write a paper on it.

He told NPR: "The tragedy showed the resolve of the students.

This week's new releases in music...

Precious Martin, a prominent Jackson-area attorney, died yesterday in an accident. His 10-year-old son remains hospitalized, according to media reports.

WAPT reported that Martin was riding a four-wheeler Sunday evening near his home in the Bridgewater subdivision when the vehicle flipped several times.

Martin's son, Daniel, was taken to University of Mississippi Medical Center, where his condition was unknown as of this morning.

Martin handled part of a $1.2 billion class-action lawsuit against the federal government for denying USDA benefits to African American farmers between January 1983 to January 1997 and other civil-rights cases.

An Edwards native, Martin was part of a high-profile legal family that includes his younger brothers Kenya, Deshun and Warren Jr., who are triplets.

Martin's wife, Crystal, is a staff attorney at his Jackson law firm and was formerly the attorney for the Hinds County Board of Supervisors.

Martin was also an ally of U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, who is from the neighboring town of Bolton, and was a donor to Democratic political causes and candidates.

Two special concerts and new releases...

The Human Rights Campaign has just issued the following verbatim new release detailing HRC President Chad Griffin's tour schedule for Project One America next week:

Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin will Launch ‘Project One America’ at Events in Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas, Beginning an Unprecedented Push for LGBT Rights in the South Griffin is also available for satellite television interviews from Little Rock, AR on Monday, May 12 from 1:00 – 4:00 PM (CT)

Washington, D.C. — Next week, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin will travel to Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas to officially launch Project One America, an unprecedented effort to dramatically expand LGBT equality in the South. This substantial and lasting initiative—with a three year budget of $8.5 million, dedicated staff of 20, and new offices in each state—is the largest coordinated campaign for LGBT equality in the history of the South.

On Monday, May 12th, Griffin will kick-off a three-day tour of press conferences and community gatherings in Little Rock, Jackson, Hattiesburg, Montgomery, and Birmingham. He will be joined by local officials, business leaders, clergy members, and members of the LGBT community at each stop along the way.

Griffin will also be available for television interviews via satellite on Monday, May 12, from 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (CT). Please email Nick Morrow at [email protected] and Emily Black at [email protected] to book an interview and receive satellite coordinates.

Download Project One America’s launch video package here, and click here for a high-res Project One America graphic.

Project One America will focus on making progress on three fronts—changing hearts and minds, advancing enduring legal protections, and building more inclusive institutions for LGBT people from the church pew to the workplace. HRC Mississippi, HRC Alabama, and HRC Arkansas will be anchored by full-time local staff and dedicated in-state office space to guarantee a round-the-clock effort. These states have been under-resourced for too long and HRC is making a long-term investment to advance LGBT equality. The program will continue until there is One America.

The first initiative of its kind in the south, Project One America will work to advance equality in areas that do not have existing non-discrimination protections for LGBT people at the state or local level in employment, housing or public accommodations, and where the state’s constitution expressly prohibits marriage equality.

For further information on Project One America, see HRC’s press release and fact sheet.

The full schedule for the Project One America Tour is below. Please RSVP to [email protected] and [email protected] so that we may ensure the necessary space and logistical arrangements are made.

*PROJECT ONE AMERICA KICK-OFF TOUR SCHEDULE *

MONDAY, MAY 12: LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS

11:00AM – 12:00PM (CT)

WHAT: Press Conference to Kick Off Project One America in Arkansas

WHERE: State Capitol, Old Supreme Court Chamber

 500 Woodlane Drive, Little Rock, AR 72201 

WHO: HRC President Chad Griffin; Betty and Butch Hightower, mother and stepfather

of Chad Griffin; Sen. Joyce Elliott; Rev. Leroy James, Christian Ministerial Alliance; Rita Sklar, …

Tyrone Hendrix's campaign issued the following verbatim news release this morning:

JACKSON, MS — South Jackson native Tyrone Hendrix has formally announced his candidacy for the vacated Ward Six City Council seat.

A grassroots organizer for nonprofits and political campaigns, Hendrix has been dedicated to organizing around social and economic issues, and supporting candidates who are committed to improving the communities in which we live. Hendrix's political involvement includes working with former candidate for Mayor of Jackson, Jonathan Lee; former gubernatorial candidate and Hattiesburg Mayor Johnny DuPree; and President Barack Obama. Hendrix also served as state director for Organizing for America (OFA), the grassroots effort that grew out of the 2008 Obama campaign.

“I’ve known from a very young age that I wanted to feel like I was making a positive impact on society, and I found my calling as an organizer. My organizing career began working in low to moderate income communities, helping them to harness their collective power to affect change,” said Hendrix.

“I grew up in South Jackson, went to school here, and spent almost every evening of my teenage years playing basketball at the Southwest YMCA on Flowers Drive. My wife and I have chosen to raise our children here, and we experience the same challenges that everyone in this community faces. I am running for city council because we believe in the people and potential of our community,” he continued.

Tyrone Hendrix is managing partner of Hendrix & Dometz Organizational Solutions, LLC. He is a graduate of Forest Hill High School and earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from Jackson State University. Tyrone and his wife Ercilla Dometz-Hendrix have two children, Farah and Tyrone II.

The Special Election for the Ward Six city council seat is June 17, 2014. In the event a candidate does not receive 50 percent of the vote, there will be a runoff election July 1, 2014.

The winners of the 64th Annual (SPJ) Green Eyeshade Awards were announced this afternoon.

The Jackson Free Press placed in four categories, including garnering first-place honors for commentary (Donna Ladd) and courts & law reporting (R.L. Nave).

The JFP also won a third place award in the public-service category for our team coverage of the 2013 Jackson mayoral election and third place for feature writing.

Here are all the categories where JFP placed:

Public Service in Non-Daily Journalism

1) Birmingham News – Staff, Birmingham Civil Rights Legacy 1963-2013

2) Miami New Times – Tim Elfrink, Biogenesis series

3) Jackson Free Press – R.L. Nave, Donna Ladd, Ronni Mott, Jacob Fuller, Coverage of the 2013 Jackson, Miss., City Election

Serious Commentary- Non-Dailies

1) Jackson Free Press – Donna Ladd, Editor's Notes on Bigotry and Injustice in Mississippi

2) Independent Weekly – Lisa Sorg, "Tit for Tat," "Find your inner peace," "DENR Secretary John Skvarla: snake oil salesman?" "To act or react?"

3) Memphis Flyer – Bruce VanWyngarden, "Letter from the Editor" (five examples from 2013)

Feature Writing- Non-Dailies

1) Orlando Business Journal – Abraham Aboraya, Abe Aboraya feature

2) New Times Broward/Palm Beach – Allie Conti, Lonely Lolita

3) Jackson Free Press – R.L. Nave, Feature Stories by R.L. Nave

Courts & The Law Reporting- Non-Dailies

1) Jackson Free Press – R.L. Nave, Coverage of Politics and Criminal Justice in Jackson, Miss.

2) Independent Weekly – John H. Tucker, Can police prevent domestic violence simply by telling offenders to stop?

3) Press-Register (Alabama Media Group) Mobile, AL – Brendan Kirby, The prosecution (or persecution) of Stephen Nodine: How a suicide became murder

This Wednesday's show from M Ward and Ardenland will help out the American Red Cross.

Jackson City Council met today to announce that an election for the Ward 6 City Council seat, which was made available by Tony Yarber's election to mayor, will be held June 17, 2014. The qualifying deadline for the election is May 28.

Both Tyrone Hendrix, a longtime Democratic operative, and Robert Amos, who competed in the 2013 Democratic primary for Jackson mayor, have both confirmed that they are considering running for the Ward 6 position: http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2014/may/01/hendrix-amos-among-ward-6-possibles/.

Hendrix helped manage Jonathan Lee's campaign for mayor in 2013 and worked with Regina Quinn during the recent special election for mayor. Amos ran for mayor of Jackson in 2009 and for a seat on the Hinds County Board of Supervisors in 2011.

A runoff election, should it be in order, is set for July 1.

WLBT is reporting that that a Jackson State University bus carrying the school's baseball team caught fire near Birmingham, Alabama.

The fired occurred at I-20/59 Northbound at Allison-Bonnett Memorial Drive, about 15 minutes west of Birmingham; JSU is scheduled to play Savannah State Tuesday, the news station reports.

WLBT said School officials say that everyone got off the bus okay, and no one was injured.

Pictures on news site's homepage show a completely charred charter bus.

Duling Hall and new releases...

This falls in the can't-make-it-up column.

Most of you know that Mitchell Moore of Campbell's Bakery, who is straight, and Eddie Outlaw of William Wallace Salon, who is gay, and others started the amazing "If You're Buying, We're Selling" campaign. They want Mississippi business owners to put stickers in their windows to indicate that they don't discriminate, in response to SB 2681, Mississippi's version of the "Religious Freedom Restoration Act." (See lots of business owners with the icon in their ads in this week's JFP, too.)

So, the religious right is apparently not happy with the international media coverage the campaign is getting -- and from Mississippi, which is supposed to be their wheelhouse, you know. They really didn't like it when Emily Pettus of the AP (the JFP's next-door neighbors) did a story about this that was picked up by many outlets.

In response, they went on a PR tear to take back the messaging. Greg Scott, who tweets at @adfmedia, led the way, tweeting this week in response to the AP story: "Sticker folks protest imaginary law .@AP bows false narrative, RFRA not "vaguely written," no threat to "=treatment" http://bit.ly/QEU2El

Curious, I did some research. Turns out, Scott is the VP for media communications for Alliance Defending Freedom (formerly Alliance Defense Fund), a nonprofit group founded in 1994 by extreme-right and vocally anti-gay leaders including James Dobson of Focus on the Family and Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association. (Interestingly, Mississippi's Judge Charles Pickering is also on the board.)

Not to be outdone, the American Family Association, an alliance co-founder, also blasted the sticker campaign on a Christian "news" site, which is part of the American Family News Network, which is part of the ... American Family Association. "It's not really a buying campaign, but it's a bully campaign," said Buddy Smith, executive vice president of Tupelo-based American Family Association, "and it's being carried out by radical homosexual activists who intend to trample the freedom of Christians to live according to the dictates of scripture."

The Southern Poverty Law Center includes the alliance (and AFA) on its list of a dozen groups that drive the "religious right's anti-gay crusade." On its website, it brags that its "attorneys have successfully defended marriage as the union between one man and one woman in over 40 cases nationwide."

SPLC indicates that the alliance was established in the early 1990s in response to gay-rights battles in the courts—which it clearly believes is the "principal" threat to religious freedom. ADF President Alan Sears and Vice President Craig Osten wrote " The Homosexual Agenda: Exposing the Principal Threat to Religious Freedom," which ties homosexuality to pedophilia and other "disordered sexual behavior."

SPLC states: "The ADF has also mounted legal challenges to gay military service, marriage, adoption and foster-parenting, as well as to domestic partner benefits around the nation. It trains other attorneys 'to battle the radical homosexual …

Bennie Thompson, the only African American and only Democrat representing Mississippi in Congress, is locking horns with Gov. Phil Bryant over the guv's staunch objection to Medicaid expansion.

Buzzfeed reported yesterday that Thompson called into a telecast of the New Nation of Islam to discuss a number of topics, and made several eyebrow-raising remarks.

Thompson never says Bryant's name on the tape, but points out that in turning down Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, "he also turned down $426 million in federal funds."

"It's not just that this man (Bryant) turned it down, he also turned resources down that could go to help his citizens who are already documented as having some of the worst health conditions known to man," Thompson said, adding "just because a black man created it."

In what Buzzfeed characterized as "shocking" comments, Thompson called U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas an "Uncle Tom" and Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell is a "racist."

The Jackson Free Press is compiling a list of organizations aiding relief efforts from the recent storms in Mississippi. If you have any information about tornado relief efforts, please write [email protected].

Y101 is at the Flowood Walmart and the Flowood Chamber of Commerce is accepting donations of several items (see image below) here:

115 LAUREL PARK COVE, SUITE 108 FLOWOOD, MS

RELIEF DONATIONS CAN ALSO BE DROPPED OFF AT CERAMI'S ITALIAN RESTAURANT, LAKELAND DR., FLOWOOD

Verbatim release from the Mississippi Braves:

PEARL, MS -- The Mississippi Braves have teamed up with several other businesses in the surrounding area to assist in tornado relief efforts in the aftermath of Monday's devastating storms. In conjunction with the Pearl Chamber, Pearl Walmart, Miss 103, 105.1 The River, 95.5 Hallelujah FM, Z 106.7 and WJTV News Channel 12, donations will be accepted at Walmart in Pearl with the Salvation Army starting at 6:00 AM Wednesday.

The Mississippi Braves will also have U-Haul trucks parked at Trustmark Park to accept donated items as well as cash donations during the upcoming homestand, May 1-4. Donations can be made all day each day or at the games. The M-Braves will give each person making a donation, including those at the Pearl Walmart, two (2) free tickets to game Monday, May 12 at Trustmark Park.

The Salvation Army is in need of the following items: Bottled water, sports drinks and soft drinks 55 gallon heavy duty trash bags Lysol wipes Large bottles of hand sanitizer Baby supplies, diapers and wipes Clean up supplies: Lysol sprays, Clorox, Pine-Sol, paper towels, etc. Nabs, peanut butter crackers, Little Debbie snacks, etc.

If people would like to bring linens or clothes, the Salvation Army is accepting those items as well. They ask that people please bring them in trash bags and not just loose. No toys, please. The Mississippi Braves is the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. Since making the move from Greenville, SC, in 2005, over 80 M-Braves have gone on to play in the big leagues. The M-Braves have made postseason play three times and went on to win the Southern League Championship in 2008. Tickets are on sale now. Stop by Trustmark Park or call 888-BRAVES4 Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. For the latest news and updates, visit mississippibraves.com, facebook.com/mbraves and twitter.com/mbraves.

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2014/apr/29/17207/

This week's regional pick and new releases...

Live Tweeting the #jxnmayor Run-off. Who will be mayor in this special election for Jackson's next mayor?