Community Events and Public Meetings
2:30 p.m., Book Buddy Volunteer Training at Boyd Elementary School (4531 Broadmeadow St.). The program aims to help children progress in school. Rebecca Starling of Jackson Public Schools is the trainer. E-mail [e-mail missing].
TV Station Takes Detention Center Video to Supreme Court
WDAM's parent company, Raycom Media, and 30 additional media organizations including the Society for Professional Journalists, are petitioning the Mississippi Supreme Court to intervene in a lower court's decision that prevents the South Mississippi television station from airing videos showing abuse at the Forrest County Juvenile Detention Center in Hattiesburg. The video shows six juveniles in a "physical exchange" with detention center staff, the SPJ reports.
Bill Proposes to End MPB Funding
Mississippi Public Broadcasting Acting Executive Director Jay Woods said a proposed bill that would eventually end state funding for his agency due, in part, to its supposed "liberal" bias would hinder the state's educational and economic growth.
Shifting Demographics To Cause Worker Shortage
Georgia diversity trainer Al Vivian predicts a shortage of workers within the next 10 years, if economic and demographic trends continue at their current pace.
Plan Your Weekend
It might be abnormally cold this weekend, but brave the cracked cuticles and chapped lips to see what's going on in Mississippi. Head to the Millsaps Arts District at 9 p.m. to see Johnny Bertram and the Golden Bicycles and New York band Ladycop perform. If you're in the mood for a little bit of country, soul and rock, tonight then head to the MSU Riley Center (2200 5th St., Meridian) at 7:30 p.m. to see Shelby Lynne perform. Tickets are $36 to $42. If you don't want to travel out of the city limits, warm up and watch "Client 9" at 7 p.m. and "White Material" at 9 p.m. at the Art House Cinema inside the Davis Planetarium (201 E. Pascagoula St.). Tickets cost $9 for each screening. For more information, visit http://www.msfilm.org. For more options, check out the JFP Events Calendar.
Shirley Brewer
Shirley Brewer has seen plenty of changes from her perch at the Fondren McDade's Market. Brewer has worked at the grocery store for the past 27 years, seeing the business change names and owners from Jitney Jungle to Winn-Dixie to, in 2004, McDade's.
Public Involvement is Necessary for Fairly Redrawing District Lines
There was some good news at the state Capitol in January. The Joint Legislative Redistricting Committee met to announce their plans for passage of a redistricting plan this legislative session. It's good to see that they are listening to Mississippians and are committed to adopting a timely and fair plan.
Statewide Smoking Ban In the Works
A joint House and Senate Public Health Committee heard opinions yesterday from health advocates and business representatives about the potential consequences of a statewide smoking ban, as proposed by Senate Bill 2726.
Beer Legislation Dead on Arrival?
Despite a grassroots effort to modernize state laws on beer and beer brewing, the Mississippi Legislature is unlikely to pass any bills this session to change the status quo.
Chandler Griffin
For years, Chandler Griffin has observed the tough work of international development. As a documentary filmmaker for nonprofit organizations working in Rwanda and Uganda, among other countries, the Jackson native has seen the challenges of trying to build sustainable programs. But he never imagined tackling those challenges himself.
State of the State: A Fact-Check
Gov. Haley Barbour used his final State of the State address, on Jan. 11, to tout his resume of accomplishments over two terms. Ever the savvy political communicator, the governor stretched the truth and papered over the more complicated reality. In other instances, his claims were outright wrong. Here's a selection of Barbour's claims and that truth behind them.
[Kamikaze] Taking a Stand
I've always said if change were going to come in Jackson, it wouldn't come easy. I've known for years that some folks would have be dragged kicking and screaming into the new millennium. A "rebirth" isn't going to be pleasant. In fact, it's going to be painful for some.
Life Goes On
Two nights before Halloween, on Oct. 29, 1995, Robert Estes' life changed forever. As a boy, Canton native Estes loved to travel to see his family in St. Paul, Minn., and when he graduated from high school he moved there.
Letting a Little Luck In
What do good-looking men, lentils, no housework and kissing all have in common? According to superstition, they all bring good luck in the new year.
Soda for Tea
As 2011 marches on, our well-intended New Year's Resolutions can gradually fall by the wayside. I have found that when my New Year's goals are broad and vague— "Be healthier! Lose weight!—I quickly give them up. When my goals are small, specific and attainable, I'm more likely to keep going.
Bringing the Outside In
"A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books." —Walt Whitman
The New American Myth
When I was 6 years old, the concept of zero made my brain hurt. "How can there be nothing?" I wailed in utter frustration. "Even when you take away all the apples and all the oranges, you still have the basket; you still have the air!"
History's Return
Gov. Haley Barbour is a sucker for anniversaries, apparently. In his final State of the State address last week, the governor said that 2011—the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Rides and the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War—was the year to make a proposed Mississippi Civil Rights Museum a reality.
Latinos and Loans
Mississippi could be headed for a courtroom showdown if the full state Legislature passes an anti-immigrant bill mirroring an Arizona law that forces law-enforcement to profile people they suspect to be undocumented residents.
Stand Up to Senate Scheme for Votes
The Mississippi Senate shamed our state Tuesday when it approved an Arizona-style anti-immigrant law that will require law enforcement to profile anyone they think could be an "illegal" immigrant and demand their papers.