Ellington

Rep. Bennie Thompson has some serious competition in the general election for his 2nd Congressional District seat this November. His Republican opponent Yvonne Brown may not have the big bucks that Thompson has collected, but she's got confidence, with good reason.

As the second-term mayor of Tchula, Brown managed to pull together a new $1 million municipal building for a local government that bordered on bankruptcy. Vowing to strike a blow for home-ownership in the largely poor municipality, Brown convinced the federal government to contribute about $3 million into a public-private project to add 61 affordable, single-family homes.

She's also managed to bring high-speed Internet to the town of Tchula, in line with her resolve to push the rural community into the Information Age.

Even before Brown became mayor of the community of about 2,300, she'd made a name for herself coordinating mission activities for Grace Community Church and the Women's Missionary Union of the Mississippi Southern Baptists, bringing hundreds of volunteers to Tchula to provide free medical clinics, and classes in home repair, GED, computers and parenting.

Brown, who is divorced with two grown children, easily won the mayor's office a second time, despite being a Republican candidate in a largely Democratic Holmes County area.

Thompson's got the clout, but that doesn't matter to Brown.

"I feel like a shark in the water," Brown told a small crowd of women at a recent meet-and-greet in Raymond. "I said, 'I'm gonna get him.' There was something in his posture. He knew I was not playing."

Brown spoke with the JFP after her Raymond engagement.

On your Web site, you make more than one reference to working for the empowerment of people. How do you plan to go about it?

My district is under the welfare-state mentality, and what I'm trying to do is encourage people to improve their standard of life. One of the ways to do that is to promote jobs, education, technology and home ownership.

What can a congresswoman do to help?

Well, a congresswoman has access to so many programs that can help, say, first-time homebuyers with down-payment assistance and getting people to the point where they understand their finances. A lot of people have taken for granted their credit, and so I have 32 families right now that I'm helping to walk through credit counseling. They're not bad people. They just didn't realize how important their credit history is.

On your Web site, you tout the importance of access to information. How will you provide this access?

I would provide a task force whose job is to go out into the district, find out what the real needs are, and bring them back and put it in a form that's disseminated. We hear a lot about minority (businesses) not being able to get contracts. First of all, you need to understand the process. For so long, people have not had access to the real information about how you qualify for federal contracts. You have to be certified, bonded; you've got to have your credit together. A lot of people think, "I didn't get this contract because I'm African American." Well, no, maybe not. Were you ready? Success means preparedness. Only if you are prepared when those bids are lost do you have a right to complain. There's more to it than just knowing how to write an RFP.

How do you propose to get this training?

It goes back to that task force. Right now, we don't have access to the congressman, in my opinion. He's not accessible. I will be available. I would hire someone in the district to go out and be that voice in their ears, but he would have people backing him up to make that happen. It couldn't be just one person. He would be like a chief of staff for the district.

Your Web site refers to helping people "organize themselves, and mobilize resources to solve problems of common interest." How do you plan to do this?

Well, this is also about relationships. It's almost like going back to the old bartering system. You've got something I need, whether it's information or something physical. Let's come together and build a community. We're so disenfranchised; we've become so mobile that we're not together anymore. I said to one gentleman that we'd come through a period in our history where we became so "me-ized" that we forgot how important relationships are. Whether that's in business or community, you've got to have those relationships in order to make it work.

Tell me about your plan to encourage work-force development.

It's back to basics. I serve on a work-force investment board in Mississippi, which is a vehicle for bringing people together. We oversee the WIN Job Centers, we work with the community junior college system—which is the best junior college system in the country, by the way—and we do a lot of job training through the community college system, and we have companies who come to the junior colleges for job training. It's very basic.

One of your agendas is encouraging home ownership in your district, but lenders tend to shy away from affordable loans for people with bad credit and low income.

BankPlus has a program where if a person can demonstrate the ability to pay back, they can get them in a house. If they're a renter and they've demonstrated the ability to pay on time, they can put them in a house even if they only make minimum wage. Working with BankPlus, for example, or Fannie Mae—HUD has a program where they will allow vouchers to be renewed for down payment. Again, it's about partnership and relationships.

How will you bring your constituents into the Information Age?

When you look at cities like Tchula, I had to fuss like heck when they were running the DSL lines coming up through Madison. They were going to completely skip over my area. They were going to go all the way to Greenwood. I said, "Excuse me? What about us?"

What was so bad about Tchula?

Well, Greenwood has a better-established tax base. They do have an industrial park. Viking Range is already there, so they decided, I guess, to go where the population is. But my thoughts were: You have a community right here that needs access, and if you don't put that access there, how are people empowered? This was 2001. We now have DSL in Tchula.

What else do you plan to bridge the divide?

I'm not going to re-invent the wheel. There are so many programs already in existence that can help me with this. The USDA has—

You mean the people who grade our beef?

Yeah, they also deal with rural broadband interconnectivity. They have technology programs that I think are under-utilized. One example is the BRAVO program, which means Bringing Rural America Venture Opportunities. It is a mentorship, entrepreneur program where they take corporations and partner them with upstarts. They will partner them with people to get them financing, support them, encourage them and send them on their way. In Oklahoma, this program is being used with the Ute Indians. ... If it can be done in Oklahoma, it can be done here.

Did the Utes have the advantage of a federal tax-free zone?

Mmm-hmm, and so we've got everything here to make it work.

Except a tax-free zone. This was on a reservation, right?

But what we do have now is we've got the GO Zone.

I think you only have this remaining month to take advantage of it.

Really? They need to go back and revisit that, but we have many tax incentives in our area. Our area, for instance, has been designated as a HUD renewal community, so there's a lot of things that you can layer together to make it work.

You mention an internship program on your Web site. How does that work? Does this coax firms to hire graduates?

Yes, it's kind of like going back to JA—you know, Junior Achievement? I was a product of Junior Achievement. It's basically taking that company and taking students, whether they're graduates or post-graduates, and putting them in those businesses and letting them learn the ropes and encouraging them to go out.

So could you could find work for a graduate with a useless B.A. in psychology?

It's the willingness and the aptitude to learn, not the degree. .... It's about taking people and putting them in positions and allowing them on-the-job training. I think we don't need to stop at postgraduates. We need to reach as far back as junior high school and do internships. I used to take my girls to work with me when I worked as a customer-service rep. They learned how to type; they learned how to be professionals.

What most identifies you as a Republican?

I identified with the party of Lincoln because of a few basic principles, including faith, family, the abolition of slavery and being self-sufficient.

You seem progressive in some ways.

Well, I am. I think I'm too independent for the Democratic Party. I'm not going to walk lock-step with either one of them, but I'd rather be with the Republicans.

Did Nixon's Southern Strategy effect you?

No. I didn't say the party of Nixon. I said the party of Lincoln. The reality of it is that this is the party of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman.

That was a century ago.

But I'm saying, it's still the mindset that a lot of blacks relate to. I'm talking about pioneering and being independent. I'm talking about being self-sufficient, about when family came together, and they're not relying on government.

But you can't ignore the political tide that happened in the 1960s and 1970s. Plenty of Mississippians switched to the Republican Party because Lyndon Johnson, the Democrat, signed the Voting Rights Act.

In the 1960s, when there was such turmoil in the state, I have to remind people that it was not the Republican Party that was siccing the dogs on folks. It was the Democratic Party. And it was also the Democratic Party that shut down the Republican initiative of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments. That was initially a Republican initiative, and the Democrats shut it down, and it took all of the time in the 1960s to get it back on the table and make it a reality.

But a lot of Democrats who supported that are now Republicans.

But still, in whole, there were Democrats who didn't agree with what was going on, and they jumped over to the Republican Party because they thought it was the right thing to do. I think you had two types of transitions that went in the Republican Party.

But you recall when Johnson lamented that he'd signed away the Democratic South with the Voting Rights Act.

Oh, yes.

How does that reflect on you?

Again, I don't focus on what was. I focus on what is today. And this is a time of healing and reconciliation.

How do you feel about Democratic signature issues, like the morning-after pill?

I have a hard time with that because that's still promoting abortion in my mind. If that is the morning-after pill, then that is a convenient way of saying, "Oops, I've made a mistake, and I've got to get rid of this mistake." A child is not a mistake. I don't care what the circumstances were in which it was conceived. I have a slight problem with that.

Do you have any similar problems with in-vitro fertilization, which creates dozens of embryos that get washed down the drain?

I don't know that, but if that lady's trying to get pregnant, my hat's off to her.

How many residents in Tchula are on welfare?

A great percentage of our community is offered Social Security and other things. We have a population with a lot of elderly, and there are a lot of children.

How does that affect you?

I try to improve the quality of living for my community. You have people there who are just two or three generations removed from being on a plantation, so a process of education is needed.

So you're a supporter of government aid?

Absolutely, and other tools as well. You've got to have a GED class. I'm going to encourage you to go to school. Let's get some job training. The majority of getting a job is attitude.

What's your take on the war in Iraq? As a congresswoman, it will likely come up.

I have to look at things in the providential scope. I don't believe in war, but sometimes war is necessary, and I believe we should've taken care of business a long time ago, before we even got to Iraq. So we're there now, and we need to take care of business.

I believe there needs to be a comprehensive exit strategy out of Iraq. I believe, however, that we don't need to leave too soon. I believe that the country deserves a democratic, stable society, and if we can nurture that, then we need to do that.

Were we misled into the war?

I don't think so. I think the information on both sides—and you got people saying, "Well, I voted for it, but now I didn't." So I don't think we were misled. I would hope and believe that a lot of intelligence went into that. I don't think the president took that lightly. I find it hard to believe. … I will always support our troops.

Some people say that you can support them by bringing them home.

Well, I don't believe in cutting and running, but I believe that they need all the financial support they need, they need moral support—because we have to keep in mind, this is not like the war in the 1960s and 1970s when enlisting was not a choice. … But today you have a choice. Every person in the military chose to go. We've got to support their choice to support our country.

What of the back-door draft—the extension of military contracts beyond the time enlistees signed up for?

I don't think that's fair. I think if someone signed up for a certain time, then don't pull the wool over their eyes.

The argument is that we'd really be short-staffed over there if we don't do it.

Well, that's a catch-22. You've asked people to volunteer and then you're going to commandeer them. I just don't think that's right. We have to look at another solution.

Is the Republican majority in Washington taking America in the right direction?

I think there are a lot of people who need to put the brakes on. We need to go back to basics, and I think that's what the country is calling for. The budget deficit is out of whack. Let's bring some sensibility back, so from that standpoint I'd say the Republicans are big spenders.

So you believe in stronger federal oversight of spending?

There needs to be some oversight. There are projects that do need federal appropriations that are within reason, but a bridge to nowhere? Any good business will fail if you spend more than you take in. So yes, I'd have to put in measures that push for oversight.

Where do you and national Republicans part ways?

I believe in affirmative action. The playing field is not level, and if man is left to his own devices, it will never be level. In that case, government is a good check.

I think the minimum wage needs to be raised to a livable wage, though what is livable in Tchula is different from the livable wage in Connecticut.

Why aren't Republicans supporting you?

I think they have become battle-weary and defeatist. That's why we've got to think positive. We've seen people come very close, but there's never been a candidate like me, not that I'm all that and a bag of chips. … I think it's important that the readers understand that I don't have a silver bullet for everything that's out there, but I will work my darndest to make sure that business gets taken care of in the district.

There is growing environmental awareness since Katrina, particularly on the Coast. Is global warming on your agenda?

I think the world goes through cycles, and global warming is part of that cycle. The earth is getting warmer. It is something to be reckoned with.

But are we causing it?

I don't think it's us, per se. It's a cyclic issue.

Well, scientists estimate that the planet has gone through plenty of warming and cooling periods, but they don't have evidence of such rapid heating over the span of a century—usually over the course of a few thousand years, or a million years.

Well, see, when you say "a million years" and all that, I guess because I'm a—I got to be careful how I use this word because people are going to say, "What the heck is she talking about?"—

Are you saying that you don't think the planet is more than a million years old?

I'm a Biblicist, and according to the historical references in the Bible mathematically, it says 10,000 years old or more. I don't buy the millions and millions of years thing. We may be older than 10,000. We may be older than 100,000. I still believe that the Earth is heating up. We're seeing some changes in the Arctic. I believe global warming is an issue, I believe there are a lot of things contributing to that, but I don't think it's us. It's cyclic.

How do you feel about raising fuel standards for automobiles?

I think it's a bureaucratic issue that goes back to having the political will to do what's right for the people. We need to do what's necessary to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. We need to do what we need to do to encourage development in flex-fuels and bio-fuels. But then there's two issues I don't hear a lot of people talk about. One: We haven't built any new refineries in 40 years. We've also given some huge tax breaks to the oil industry. We need to cut that crap out.

Where has your opponent failed in business encouragement?

He's rated 40 percent by the chamber of commerce on his pro-business votes.

Can you think of a specific example?

I would have to go back through and see.

Some "anti-business" votes are made for health or environmental reasons.

I just can't see voting against economic development. If we're talking about economic development and improving the quality of life, I just can't see being anti-business.

Here's a popular question since Bill Clinton. Have you ever used pot?

I became a Christian Oct. 13, 1976. Anything covered under the blood will stay there.

What's that mean?

Is your wife Christian?

More knowledgeable than me perhaps.

Ask her about it.

Previous Comments

ID

80581

Comment

I really enjoyed this interview. Mayor Brown has always intrigued me and it is no surprise that she firmly believes in what she says. I agree with Adam on this: it would be wrong to dismiss her.

Author

c a webb

Date

2006-09-27T17:16:53-06:00

ID

80582

Comment

After reading the interview, I'm seriously considering voting for her. I don't agree with some of the things she said (like Iraq and abortion), but she seems to have some innovative ideas and seems to be a level-headed person and has independent thoughts, unlike a lot of the nationally-known Republicans.

Author

golden eagle

Date

2006-09-29T10:19:08-06:00

ID

80583

Comment

I personally would have a hard time voting for a self described "Biblicist". Mostly because, for me, that means that they are willfully ignoring scientific evidence. Which gives me the heebee jeebies about having them set policy. Because willfully ignoring data, and facts, and scientific consensus when making policy decisions is generally a recipe for disaster. Other than that, she seems like a charming person. But I really don't want her as my representative in Congress.

Author

kate

Date

2006-09-29T10:35:50-06:00

ID

80584

Comment

yeah, I'm with Kate on that. Being a Christian shouldn't mean you have to relinquish relevant information from science and from common sense. I enjoyed the article, though. thanks Adam!

Author

Izzy

Date

2006-09-29T10:42:30-06:00

ID

80585

Comment

Um, yeah. I have issues with her. Bless her for what she's doing for that community. But I want no woman in congress who is a "biblicist" and who doesn't understand the "morning after pill". I definitely have issues with her saying that whatever she did the day BEFORE she "became a christian" doesn't count because its "covered under the blood".

Author

Lori G

Date

2006-09-29T11:31:54-06:00

ID

80586

Comment

And, after thinking a bit, I wonder how she recifies that thinking with the fact that the very population she would like to be more "independent and self-sufficient" (underpriviledged men and women) are the very ones most often to suffer from an unwanted pregnancy. Which, once again, limits their choices and access to education.

Author

Lori G

Date

2006-09-29T11:42:40-06:00

ID

80587

Comment

You know, Ali, that's true, and especially someone who is working in low income communities where people may not have access to accurate information regarding methods of birth control. Still, I do like to see a woman in a strong leadership role. It makes me feel that it's possible.

Author

Izzy

Date

2006-09-29T11:43:57-06:00

ID

80588

Comment

looks like we cross-posted. but it's the same idea. I think that lack accurate information and access to bc is one of the biggest stumbling blocks to low income communities. These young men and women aren't told how to prevent catastrophe & they spend the rest of their lives impacted by this. I'm not saying that if they want to have a child at that age, they shouldn't. I'm just saying that someone should be teaching them how to avoid pregnancy before it happens.

Author

Izzy

Date

2006-09-29T11:46:23-06:00

ID

80589

Comment

Adam might want to do an update. While Tchula has a $1 million municipal building it no longer has a police or fire department as of this week. Tchula police chief, others laid off to cut costs Greenwood Commonwealth, MS - Sep 26, 2006 TCHULA - Efforts to rein in municipal spending have resulted in job losses in this Delta town of 2,200, including Sharkey Ford, the police and fire chief. ...

Author

Rob

Date

2006-09-29T22:12:20-06:00

ID

80590

Comment

Soapbox time. What can a congresswoman do to help? Well, a congresswoman has access to so many programs that can help, say, first-time homebuyers with down-payment assistance and getting people to the point where they understand their finances. A lot of people have taken for granted their credit, and so I have 32 families right now that I’m helping to walk through credit counseling. They’re not bad people. They just didn’t realize how important their credit history is. There is a little known fact about credit counseling. Most creditors consider credit counseling to be a Chapter 13. If you look at Fannie Mae and FHA guidelines, they consider CC to be the equivelent of a Chapter 13 and treat it as such. That means you can't get a mortgage for 2 years with a good lender (although subprime ones will lend you money). CC is a bad thing. It gives you the bad aspects of a bankruptcy and none of its benefits. I hope this politician realizes this when she has these people get CC as they will find out when they finally do try to buy houses that they are considered bankrupt.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-10-01T21:08:44-06:00

ID

80591

Comment

The Clarion Ledger today has an article on Tchula and Brown. It seems many feels she can't even handle the business of Tchula appropriately. I have personally been there many times over the years, and see nothing she did besides getting a new city hall for her.

Author

Ray Carter

Date

2006-10-06T08:49:54-06:00

ID

80592

Comment

Ray, isn't that the town where that artist that was very talented while being a sharecropper that got ripped off by the Epps lady in Jackson?

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-10-06T09:17:58-06:00

ID

80593

Comment

I think that was Tchula. I remember the incident well. The house the lady purchased with the ill-conceived or questionably-obtained money is next door to one of my high school friends. I can't look at that house without getting angry about what happened to that man, the artist.

Author

Ray Carter

Date

2006-10-06T09:31:49-06:00

ID

80594

Comment

tell me about it. I knew them through the mortgage business. You want tot alk about subprime lending, predatory lenders? That was one of them. Wasn't ill conceived, she said she'd do his taxes or something like that and took all of his grant money from the feds for painting and the poor guy owed the IRS while only making 12,000 or so a year. I'd see him at BAM getting a coffee after all that, the husband I mean, and i'd want to whip his ass. There is a word for that couple and it would get me banned from this site. would love to see the artist's work sometime though. Was really talented. Hope someone sponsored him.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-10-06T09:45:07-06:00

ID

80595

Comment

and ray, anyone that wants to help people get homes by putting them in consumer credit counseling isn't the smartest cookie in the world or is well intentioned but ignorant. Hmmm...I'll help you get a home by putting you in bankruptcy.

Author

Kingfish

Date

2006-10-06T09:48:33-06:00

ID

80596

Comment

Adam, I just finally read your interview - it's really good. I didn't want to even read it, but it was worth reading for sure. And Mayor Brown did say a few things that I thought were smart, like a livable wage, and the budget deficit being 'out of whack,' but she she's not so independent about the party line concerning Iraq, and she didn't know the GO Zone expires, and in vitro embryos are ok.. Well, I was impressed that she got DSL to Tchula.. But what did it for me was the comments on global warming (also GOP party line) and just how old is this planet - yikes! I've never heard the term Biblicist, that is just beyond my small circle. And then the remark about 'anything covered under the blood' - Adam, did you ever ask further about that? I'd sure like to know more. Sounds like a good excuse..but creepy. Like some of the new tv shows, Jericho, Heroes. And people think the Islamists are nutty. Well, thanks for that interview, the questions were just great. And here's a link to a fun piece about Tchula http://www.deltablues.net/tchula.html I gotta get up there one of these days.

Author

sunshine

Date

2006-10-11T13:03:55-06:00