Jackson Free Press

See the new Paul McCartney video filmed partly in Natchez...

Verbatim release from the office of Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves:

LT. GOV. REEVES NAMES SMALL BUSINESS OWNER TO JACKSON SALES TAX COMMISSION

JACKSON – Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves today named small business owner and local architect Michael Boerner to the 1-percent sales tax commission charged with overseeing expenditures from a recent sales tax increase in the city of Jackson.

The 10-member commission will develop a plan for infrastructure repairs and address how tax revenues will support the plan. In January, voters in Jackson approved raising the city’s sales tax by 1 percent to fund infrastructure repairs.

“Michael has a passion for the city of Jackson and wants our capital city to be successful,” Lt. Gov. Reeves said. “His experience managing a business and expertise as an architect will be useful as the commission prepares a plan to address Jackson’s infrastructure challenges.”

Boerner, AIA, LEED AP, is the principal of Wier+Boerner Architecture in Jackson. He has a bachelor of architecture degree from Mississippi State University and a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Millsaps College. Boerner has architectural experience working for firms in Dallas, Birmingham, New Orleans and Jackson.

“Jackson needs a strong, reliable infrastructure to thrive,” Boerner said. “I look forward to serving on the commission and helping to shape the city’s future.”

The Jackson resident has worked on numerous projects around Mississippi, including Babalu restaurant in the Fondren neighborhood of Jackson, renovations to the Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Coliseum and the Iron Horse Grill restaurant in downtown Jackson. He also serves on the State Board of Architecture.

Boerner and his wife, Katherine, have one daughter and attend Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson.

Verbatim release from the Mississippi Development Authority:

Exclusive Screening of Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment’s

Get on Up to Be Held Sunday, July 27, at Grandview Cinema in Madison, Miss.

Tickets on Sale Now, with proceeds to benefit Mission Mississippi

Jackson, Miss. (July 2, 2014) – On Sunday, July 27, Universal Pictures will hold an exclusive red carpet screening of the James Brown biopic Get on Up at Grandview Cinema in Madison. Mississippi native and Get on Up director Tate Taylor and Chadwick Boseman, the film’s star, will be in attendance.

In his follow-up to the four-time Academy Award®-nominated blockbuster The Help, Taylor directs 42’s Boseman as James Brown in Get on Up. Based on the incredible life story of the Godfather of Soul, the film will give a fearless look inside the music, moves and moods of Brown, taking audiences on the journey from his impoverished childhood to his evolution into one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. Boseman is joined in the drama by Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, Craig Robinson, Octavia Spencer, Lennie James, Tika Sumpter and Jill Scott.

Academy Award® winner Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind, 8 Mile) produces for Imagine Entertainment, with Mick Jagger and Victoria Pearman (Shine a Light) producing under their Jagged Films banner. Imagine’s Erica Huggins (Flightplan) also serves as a producer on Get on Up, while Taylor produces under his Wyolah Films label. Peter Afterman, Trish Hofmann, Jez Butterworth, John Butterworth, John Norris and Anna Culp serve as executive producers.

Get on Up was filmed over a 60-day period in various Mississippi locations—including Jackson and Natchez—with additional time allotted for pre- and post-production. Producers of the film worked with the state’s WIN Job Centers to hire Mississippians as extras and as qualified crew members.

The red carpet event begins at 2:00 p.m. with screenings starting at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and available for purchase in two packages:

The Director’s Package includes a reserved seat for a private screening of Get on Up with Taylor and Boseman, refreshments during the movie, a limited-edition commemorative poster and a post-screening reception hosted by Governor Phil Bryant and First Lady Deborah Bryant. Tickets for the Director’s Package are $200 per person.

The Individual Screening Package includes the screening of Get on Up, refreshments during the movie and a limited-edition commemorative poster. Tickets for the Individual Screening Package are $50 per person.

There are a limited number of tickets available, and proceeds from ticket sales will benefit Mission Mississippi (www.missionmississippi.net). To purchase tickets online, please visit www.getonupjackson.com. Tickets are also available for purchase by cash or credit card at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson. For more information, please call (601) 353-0603 or visit the Coliseum Box Office.

To see the official movie trailer for Get on Up, visit www.getonupmovie.com.

Hear a new version of "Born in the USA" and this week's new releases...

Voter ID would secure the integrity of elections, they said. Voter ID would prevent election fraud, they said.

Yet, in the first election where voter ID was used in Mississippi, complaints of voter fraud among Republicans have been rampant.

Incidentally, none of the the accusations spelled out in a lawsuit filed yesterday over the GOP primary runoff for U.S. Senate have anything to do with voter impersonation, which voter ID was designed to stop.

Also, interestingly, a lot of the top Republican officials hollerin about voter fraud have made nary a peep about the the allegations that have surfaced about vote buying in the race in the race between U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran and state Sen. Chris McDaniel, who also chairs the Senate Elections Committee.

Where's Delbert? Haley? Phil Bryant? (All three are Cochran supporters, by the way)

Brandon Jones of the Mississippi Democratic Trust posed a similar question in a statement sent to the press on Monday: "The citizens of this state were sold a package of voting laws by leaders who told us that their main concern was election integrity. These leaders, like Secretary of State Hosemann, now have an opportunity to show that all the talk about protecting the vote wasn't politics as usual."

I did a quick search and found these examples of GOP officials over the years talking about protecting the integrity of the elections:

"I believe that anyone who understands (like I do) that there is voter fraud occurring in our elections throughout the state and who does not support meaningful voter reforms to help clean up that system is part of the problem instead of part of the solution. … The problem is real and a strong Voter ID law is part of the solution."

—State Sen. Joey Fillingane, Y'all Politics op-ed October 2012

“This legislation is about protecting the integrity of Mississippi’s elections. This legislation is a direct result of the majority of Mississippians expressing their desire for a constitutional voter ID requirement in the state. We want everyone to participate in the election process, and we want that process to be fair and secure.”

—Gov. Phil Bryant, May 2012

"Voter ID is not about intimidation; it is simply about integrity and having a fair and honest election."

— Pete Smith, spokesman for Gov. Haley Barbour, 2004

"We need voter ID and we can't stop until we get it. … We need to continue to prosecute those who steal your vote."

— Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, Neshoba Democrat, July, 2009

The city has made its picks to the 1-percent sales-tax commission.

City officials had requested an opinion from the Mississippi attorney general's office on whether members of the city council could sit on the commission. It's unclear whether than opinion has come back.

In any case, the city's picks include Yarber along with James Anderson, an attorney for the city of Jackson, and Dr. Charles Williams, interim director of the city's public works department. Jackson is advertising for a permanent public works director.

“Ninety percent of Jackson citizens decided on Jan. 14 they wanted better streets and an improved water and sewer system,” Yarber said in a press release. “We’re excited to put forth these appointments to the commission so citizens will finally have the opportunity to see their 1 percent sales tax go to work for them.”

The tax was expected to generate about $15 million a year for infrastructure upgrades, but a recent change in state law is likely to reduce that sum.

"A Mississippi Love Story" is a documentary about JFP's own Eddie Outlaw and his partner, Justin, living as a successful, committed gay couple in Mississippi, but without the legal right to marry.

The documentary is available to rent or own on Vimeo On Demand. A special screening will take place at the Mississippi Museum of Art Friday evening from 6:30-8:30 p.m.

Here's the trailer:

A Mississippi Love Story - Trailer from Fisher Productions, LLC on Vimeo.

An the full release, verbatim:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 27, 2014

CONTACT: Eddie Outlaw, (601) 955-3474, [email protected] Robbie Fisher, (601) 941-1865, [email protected]

JACKSON, Miss – Mississippi-based film producer Robbie Fisher and Fisher Productions, LLC announces the release of a short documentary entitled A Mississippi Love Story. The film introduces the viewer to Eddie and Justin, together living what might otherwise be considered an ordinary life during an extraordinary time in history. It provides a glimpse into the relationships the two have with one another, and with family, friends and their Deep South hometown. Against the backdrop of legal battles about same-sex marriage, Eddie and Justin share their personal take on what love really means.

“It was important to us, as Mississippians, to tell the story of this loving and devoted couple who are productive business people and well-liked members of the community, and who want their legal union to be recognized in their home state,” said Fisher.

The 13-minute film is now available on Vimeo on Demand for a $1 rental fee or for purchase for $2.50.

Cinematographer Lauren Cioffi spent months, beginning in March 2013, documenting the day-to-day lives of Eddie Outlaw and his partner Justin McPherson Outlaw. A second unit team captured footage in Washington, D.C. as the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on California's Proposition 8 and on the Defense of Marriage Act. Editor Azod Abedikichi employed an upbeat and whimsical style, which included animating original illustrations by Joy Abedikichi, to capture the essence and spirit of the subjects. Composer Chris Gibbons' simple and beautiful Red Tango reflects the energetic and optimistic disposition of Eddie and Justin.

WHAT: A new short documentary about the lives of Eddie Outlaw and Justin McPherson Outlaw in Jackson, Mississippi, throughout the months surrounding the U.S. Supreme Court rulings in the DOMA and Prop 8 cases.

WHO: Produced by Fisher Productions, LLC, featuring Eddie Outlaw and Justin McPherson Outlaw

WHEN: Now available on Vimeo on Demand

WHERE: vimeo.com/ondemand/mslovestory

The United States lost a slow-moving, rainy match against Germany, where the Germans appeared to dominate time of possession and hold the U.S. to very few scoring opportunities.

Despite the loss, the Portugal win over Ghana by a single goal, 2-1, kept the United States is second place in Group G, meaning the U.S. and Germany will advance.

Verbatim statement from the Travis Childers campaign:

"One thing is clear tonight; Senator Cochran does not have the confidence of his state, let alone his own party. The majority of Republicans voted for change in Washington. And if we are going to change Washington, we will need to change who we send to Washington.

"The same people will give us the same results of gridlock, and elected officials will continue fighting each other rather than fighting for Mississippians. It is time for a change, and I believe I can best represent the future of Mississippi in the United States Senate.

"I look forward to a spirited debate with Senator Cochran on the many issues facing Mississippi. And I am calling for Senator Cochran to join me in a series of debates beginning next month, so voters can clearly see the differences."

The American Family Association won’t accept mail using the new Harvey Milk postage stamp—not even donations. AFA released a statement late May urging their supporters not only to refuse to buy postage donning the face of the late gay California politician, but also to reject mail received with that postage.

Experiments conducted by other bloggers show that the AFA will hold true to their incessant boycotts: each sender got his money back.

Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California, promoted gay rights legislation and was assassinated in 1978. He is still an icon for gay activism and “gave hope and confidence to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in the United States and elsewhere at a time when the community was encountering widespread hostility and discrimination,” according to a USPS statement released after the reveal of the new Milk stamp.

The AFA, however, believes the commemoration of Milk is “disturbing to say the least,” touching on the fact that the stamp was introduced after seven years of lobbying by the drag queen (they leave out prominent LGBT-rights activist and San Diego Human Rights Commissioner) Nicole Murray-Ramirez.

The AFA cites Milk’s biography The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk to claim he was a pedophile. Milk, according to the source, had a relationship with a 16-year-old while in his thirties. “This is not diversity; this is perversity,” Tim Wildmon, AFA president, said in a press release.

Either way, AFA is missing out on a few $5 to $10 checks (and one $100 one) from some hilarious Internet trolls.

Unknown Hinson & Billy Joe Shaver

Verbatim release from Chism Strategies:

Last night we conducted the final track of our MS Senate GOP runoff surveys. We surveyed 697 voters statewide. The MOE was +/- 3.8%. The survey was restricted to voters from the GOP primary on June 3rd. It does not include potential voters who did not participate in that election.

McDaniel holds an eight point lead among GOP voters who went to the polls on June 3rd and plan to return on Tuesday.

How We See It

Unless Cochran expands the electorate with general election Republicans and crossover Democrats, McDaniel wins.

The electoral math is much closer than the polling. Cochran heads into Tuesday only about 6,200 votes down out of a total of almost 319,000 cast on June 3rd. (We assume the third candidate’s supporters do not migrate to Cochran.)

No Polling Can Measure the Implications of Two Unprecedented Actions in Mississippi Politics

- Surrogates for the 42 year GOP incumbent are groveling for Democrat and union votes in the runoff after his campaign spent millions in the Primary bashing President Obama and his policies. Can Cochran’s team execute their elaborate, expensive GOTV plan?

- Will this pivot to a more centrist message erode his conservative base? Republican office holders have gotten way out ahead of their constituents. Are the establishment Republicans able to bring the rank and file to Cochran? Will there be a backlash from this top down directive?

June 18 concluded the first eight cycles of the USA International Ballet Competition. Round one, which included 91 dancers, ended with 54 dancers moving to round two.

Eighteen senior male dancers have moved to round two, along with 14 senior female dancers, seven junior male dancers and 15 junior female dancers. The countries with the most dancers entering the round are Japan, the U.S., the Republic of Korea and Brazil.

Here are the competitors.

Senior Males

Aaron Smyth (Australia)

Andile Ndlovu (South Africa)

Byul Yun (Republic of Korea)

Dae Han Na (Republic of Korea)

Gantsooj Otgonbyamba (Mongolia)

Ilya Artamonov (Russia)

Ivan Duarte (Brazil)

Jeong Hansol (Republic of Korea)

Ji-Seok Ha (Republic of Korea)

Jun Tanabe (Japan)

Kota Fujishima (Japan)

Mengjun Chen (Peoples Republic of China)

Mozart Mizuyama (Brazil)

Nayon Rangel Iovino (Brazil)

Rodrigo Almarales (Cuba)

Sebastian Vinet (Chile)

Steven Loch (USA) Telmo Moreira (Portugal)

Senior Females

Arianni Martin (Cuba)

Ga-Yeon Jung (Republic of Korea)

Heewon Cho (Republic of Korea)

Hitomi Nakamura (Japan)

Irina Sapozhnikova (Russia)

Jessica Assef (Brazil)

Kaori Fukui (Japan)

Melissa Gelfin (USA)

Olga Marchenkova (Russia)

Shiori Kase (Japan)

Sirui Liu (Peoples Republic of China)

Tamako Miyazaki (Japan)

Ye Lim Choi (Republic of Korea)

Yui Sugawara (Japan)

Junior Males

Aran Bell (USA)

Blake Kessler (USA)

Daniel Alejandro McCormick-Quintero (Mexico)

Gustavo Carvalho (Brazil)

Jinsol Eum (Republic of Korea)

Taiyu He (Peoples Republic of China)

Yue Shi (Peoples Republic of China)

Junior Females

Ami Naito (Japan)

Gabrielle Chock (USA)

Gisele Bethea (USA)

Katherine Barkman (USA)

Mackenzie Richter (USA)

Mizuho Nagata (Japan)

Olivia Gusti (USA)

Paula Alves (Brazil)

Paulina Guraieb Abella (Mexico)

Rieko Hatato (Japan)

Romina Contreras (Chile)

So Jung Lee (Republic of Korea)

Victoria Wong (USA)

Yasmin Lomondo (Brazil)

Yoshiko Kamikusa (Japan)

"The dancers competing in the 2014 USA IBC are presenting a high caliber of artistic performance and skill,"USA IBC Executive Director Sue Lobrano said in a press release. "Anticipation is high moving into the Contemporary Round II."

The competition hits the pause button tonight, June 19, though, as the Trey McIntyre Project gets ready for a performance at 7:30 p.m. Lobrano said at a press conference that this will be one of the group's last performances. Round two begins June 20 at 7:30 p.m.

For more information, visit usaibc.com

The American Family Association Action Voter Guide has made its Internet rounds this election season, prompting Christian voters to prioritize conservative ideologies at the polls.

Live music and new releases...

Tyrone Hendrix and Dennis Sweet IV will be heading for the Ward 6 City Council Election, which is scheduled for July 1.

In yesterday's election, Hendrix came out on top with 546 votes. Sweet was only nine votes behind with 537 votes total. Rashaad Crisler came in third place with 429 votes. The polling results can be viewed in its entirety on the city's website at http://www.jacksonms.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=79.

Hendrix was born and raised in Jackson. He is a longtime Democratic Party operative who helped manage Jonathan Lee's campaign for mayor in 2013 and worked with Regina Quinn during the recent special election for mayor. Before working for Lee last year, Hendrix—who runs a political consulting firm with his wife, Ercilla—was deputy campaign manager for Hattiesburg Mayor Johnny Dupree's 2011 gubernatorial bid.

He was also state director for Organizing for America, a grassroots advocacy group affiliated with the Democratic National Committee, and other community-organizing groups. During the 2009 Jackson mayor's race, Hendrix worked on the campaigns for state Sen. John Horhn in the Democratic primary and Harvey Johnson in the runoff and general election. In 2008, Hendrix worked on Barack Obama's first presidential campaign.

In a recent interview with Jackson Free Press, Hendrix explained what his top priorities would be if he obtained the Ward 6 seat.

"Hands down, in the first few weeks I’ll be going to the residents of Ward 6," Hendrix said. "I think that we can’t get so caught up in what we think the issues are, and I think we have a pretty good sense of what they are because I, personally, go knock on doors and make phone calls every day to residents of Ward 6. But at that particular time I think we’ll have to reinforce what we think the biggest issues are.

"…We also have problems with our children not having a place to go so they walk the street, they stay at home, they get in trouble. They say an idle mind is the devil’s workshop. The saying is often used, but it also applies particularly in Ward 6 because a lot of places have closed down, particularly the parks. The park areas that we have in the ward, if they are open, they are unsightly. It’s not inviting for people to want to come and spend time in that green space, which would be a great place for kids to go."

Sweet works with his father at Sweet & Associates, where the younger Sweet specializes in civil litigation, civil rights, personal injury, medical malpractice, premises liability and criminal defense.

Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Chicago, Sweet has practiced law in Mississippi since 2008. He has also worked as an adjunct professor and volunteer pre-law adviser for Tougaloo College, where he earned his bachelor's degree in 2004. Sweet attended Thurgood Marshall School of Law, and he received a Master of Laws from the George Washington University Law School in 2011.

In a recent interview with JFP, Sweet talked …

Before now, I had hardly watched any ballets. I saw "The Nutcracker" live once when I was in elementary school and again at after a pep rally in high school. I own that soundtrack plus a couple more ballet scores, but other than that, the world of dance is a mystery to me.

But one of the perks of my job at the Jackson Free Press is receiving opportunities to cover events such as the USA International Ballet Competition. After the coverage we did in preparation for the event, I wanted a chance to see how it all came together and exactly what the big deal was about surrounding this event.

The USA International Ballet Competition began in 1979, with ballet dancer, author and educator Thalia Mara and a host of others spearheading it. People always wonder why the competition is here out of all of the incredible cities in the nation. The answer? Mara saw a need for more arts and a bigger dance community in the south. The USA IBC is one of only four ballet competitions that International Theater Institute of UNESCO has sanctioned in the world. The others are in Moscow, Russia; Helsinki, Finland; and Varna, Bulgaria. Like the Olympics, USA IBC occurs every four years, and this is its 10th cycle and 35th year.

The committee's organizers seem to have pulled out all the stops for this year's competition. On opening night June 14, a succession of speakers, including Mayor Tony Yarber and USA IBC Director Sue Lobrano, took the stage, delivering speeches on how proud Jackson is to see so many faces from so many places. Audience members watched an inspiring film about the USA IBC's history and then dancers from all around the world walked down Thalia Mara Hall's long aisles, a member of each group carrying the flag of their native country. 2002 USA IBC junior gold medalist Joseph Phillips, who is from the U.S., lit the competition's torch and stood in the middle of the 91 dancers who hail from 20 different countries.

Complexions Contemporary Ballet performed "Innervisions," a modern dance work set to Stevie Wonder songs. In leaps and bounds and turns, the troupe sent the audience to a place of love, heartbreak, self-fulfillment, beauty and the fullness of a life well-lived.

June 16, I headed to Thalia Mara Hall to cover session four of round one. Competitors included American dancers Megan Wilcox, Savannah Louis, and Olivia Gusti; Japanese dancer Mizuho Nagata; senior Korean dancers Ga-yeon Jung and Ji-Seok Ha; Mexican dancer Daniel A McCormick; Chinese dancer Mengjun Chen; Brazilian dancer Mozart Mizuyama; Phillipine dancer Jayson Sarino Pescascio; and Russian dancer Olga Marchenkova.

The dancers performed variations from ballets such as "Flames of Paris," "Sleeping Beauty" and "Swan Lake." The most impressive performances,—at least to a inexpert ballet spectator like me—were the pas de deux. Such grace and strength seem to be required, and the crowd cheered loudest at the end of those performances.

Mizuho Nagata performed the …

The International Gumbo Festival returns to downtown Jackson.

The Mississippi State Supreme Court has denied Attorney General Jim Hood's request for an explanation of their March decision in the case of Michelle Byrom, Tom Freeland of the North Mississippi Commenter reports.

Byrom had been on a death row for participating in the murder of her abusive husband. However, evidence came to light that raised strong doubts about the extent of Byrom's participation in the crime and the state's high court declined to schedule her execution and ordered a new trial with a new judge.

Hood, a former prosecutor and the state's only statewide Democratic official, blew a gasket and demanded that justices explain their rationale.

Not only did justices not bend to Hood's request on the Byrom case, just for good measure they also threw out the death sentence of a man named Roger Lee Gillett and ordered him re-sentenced.

The Associated Press reports: "Gillett was convicted in 2007 in Forrest County on two counts of capital murder for his role in the deaths of a Hattiesburg couple and the transporting of their bodies to Kansas in a freezer. While in custody in Kansas, he attempted to escape. That crime was one of the aggravating factors prosecutors presented jurors to support the death penalty.

"The Supreme Court, in its 6-3 decision Thursday, says not every escape is considered a crime of violence under Kansas law. Therefore, wrote Justice Ann Lamar, the Kansas crime cannot be used to support a death sentence in Mississippi."

Regional picks and new releases