News

Johnson Kicks Off Make A Difference Day

Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. announced the city's Make a Difference Day this morning during a press conference at the Jackson Zoo's Livingston Park.

Levee Board Talking Tax Hikes

The Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District Levee Board may be gearing up for a district expansion to pay for a proposed flood-control plan for the Pearl River.

Jeff Weill is accustomed to disagreement. On the Jackson City Council, where he has represented Ward 1 since 2007, he is usually the first and sometimes only member to criticize city spending plans or support budget cuts. The council's lone Republican is now running for Hinds County Circuit Judge.

Sticks & Stones

Kelsey Ann Jackson threw up. The thought of going to school that morning made her sick. She cried about the mean girls she would have to face in her sixth-grade class. After her mom dropped her off at her grade school in Brookhaven, Jackson walked as slow as she could to her class, dreading the coming ordeal more with each step.

‘I Wanted to Die'

I remember the first time I was ever bullied. I was in kindergarten, and this little girl made fun of my curly hair and thick glasses. I retaliated by putting chips in her grape juice.

‘They Accepted Me'

After leading a pretty comfortable existence in Gayhead Elementary School, where I'd attended on and off from first grade, fifth grade ended.

NAACP Report Condemns Tea Party Racism

A new report issued by the NAACP finds that the national tea-party movement has resentment about racial and social issues running throughout its many factions. The study, titled "Tea Party Nationalism," finds the conservative movement that often purports to focus on spending and fiscal responsibility to be "permeated with concerns about race and national identity and other so-called social issues."

Mississippi AIDS Assistance Program Not Enough?

Last night, the Jackson city council renewed its 2010 contract agreement with the Mississippi State Department of Health, making temporary rental or mortgage assistance for low-income victims of HIV/AIDS possible. But some HIV/AIDS activists argue that compared to other states, it's not enough assistance.

Entergy DOJ Investigation Kept Secret

Mississippi Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley said he is frustrated that Entergy Mississippi was slow to reveal a weeks-old U.S. Department of Justice civil investigation into Entergy Corporations' energy-purchasing practices.

Nick Mosca

Seven years ago, only four out of every 10 Mississippians drinking public water drank fluoridated water, a basic public-health measure in most states. Today, roughly 55 percent of the state's population drinks water treated with fluoride. That change is due in no small part to the efforts of Nick Mosca.

Johnson Asks Adult Nightclub to Take Down Billboards

Read Johnson's letter

Johnson Pulls Ordinance After Debate

Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. pulled a proposed ordinance he introduced after a council member argued during yesterday's work session that it removed power from the city council to appoint members to city boards.

Downtown Bodega Opening; King Edward Wins Award

The recently opened Standard Life building will soon have a New York-style grocery store and deli. Gwin Wyatt and her husband, Frank, decided to open the store after her daughter, Brooke Wyatt-Kuhne, moved into the King Edward Hotel while serving as the artistic director of International Ballet Competition in Jackson this summer.

State to Address Minority Business Participation

The state Legislative Joint Study Committee on Minority Business Participation in Public Contracts, Professional Services and Public Works will meet at 2 p.m. at the Capitol today.

Andre Cooley

Andre Cooley says he lost his job because he is gay. Cooley served as a juvenile corrections officer with the Forrest County Sheriff's Department from November 2009 until June 15 of this year. On Monday, the ACLU filed a lawsuit on Cooley's behalf against the sheriff's department, Sheriff Billy McGee and two other department officials.

Council to Finalize $2.8M in Bonds

The Jackson City Council will vote during tomorrow's council meeting on whether to allow a $2.8 million tax increment financing agreement help finance the redevelopment of the King Edward Hotel and Standard Life building.

Hinds Seeks $400K for Hwy 80

Hinds County has applied for $400,000 to help redevelop brownfield sites along Highways 18 and 80 in Jackson. The county Board of Supervisors approved an application today to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the grant funds. The grant would help the county assess sites along the highway corridors that might be brownfields—old industrial sites that have not been redeveloped because of real or perceived environmental contamination.

Community Events and Public Meetings

5:30 p.m., The Positive Ones Breast Cancer Support Group Meeting at Baptist Medical Center (1225 N. State St.), in the Hederman Cancer Center. This support group for breast cancer patients and survivors will be held in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Come to give and gain strength through shared experiences. Call 601-948-6262 or 800-948-6262.

Leah Vincent

As a psychology major, Leah Vincent was more mesmerized with the brain than hair, but when her friends encouraged her to pursue her hobby of hairstyling, she decided to change career paths. "I wasn't sure if psychology was for me, but I always knew that I had an interest in styling hair," she says.

NY Times' Bob Herbert on 2008 JFP Report on Barbour's Domestic Murderer Pardons

In his column today, New York Times columnist Bob Herbert writes again about the need for Gov. Haley Barbour to free the Scott Sisters, who are serving life sentences for a 1993 armed robbery that allegedly netted them $11 each. He astutely draws a contrast between their case and the murders Barbour pardoned or helped in 2008, most of whom brutally murdered wives or girlfriends. In his column, Herbert gave credit to the Jackson Free Press and Slate magazine for cataloguing the details of those murders. The piece in Slate was by a column by Radley Balko published Dec. 17, 2009: Haley Barbour's Bizarre Pardon Record. In his column, Balko referred to the JFP's 2008 reporting (and linked to it) when listing the gruesome details of the domestic murders.

Sleep Quick; Let's Dance

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Whitney Place In the Works

Watkins Partners Developer David Watkins said today that his plans for a multi-use development on eight acres of land in Fondren will replace the deteriorating 1930s business strip used as a set for "The Help" with vibrant residential and retail space.

Organizer Promotes Downtown Film Festival

Downtown Jackson will come alive this month with the Mississippi Film Institute's Mississippi International Film Festival, local radio producer and Mississippi Film Institute founder Edward Saint Pe told a crowd at Koinonia Coffee House's Friday Forum.

Clancy Walker

When doctor's diagnosed Clancy Walker's 3-year-old son, Grayson, with juvenile diabetes a few months ago, it ignited her desire to raise money and awareness about the disease.

It's the Weekend

This weekend is one to spend with the family, attending events that everybody can enjoy. To start the weekend off, check out the second annual Fais Do-Do tonight, Oct. 15, at The Commons at Eudora Welty's Birthplace (719 N. Congress St.) brought to you by the Jackson Arts Collective. The event features live music, dancing and more, starting at 8 p.m.; $5 but be sure to bring at least $3 more for a bowl of jambalaya. E-mail [e-mail missing] for more details. For something more laid back, pack everybody into the car and go out to eat for some family time over dinner with no worries about cooking or cleanup. The variety of restaurants in and around Jackson is spectacular; choose any type of food you desire whether it be American, Italian, Asian or even Lebanese. Head to the JFP Restaurant Listings for a list of amazing restaurants that the entire family will enjoy. Step outside your comfort zone and enjoy food that you have never considered before--you may find your new favorite on the JFP Menu Guide.

Health-Care Lawsuit Moves Forward

United States District Judge Roger Vinson ruled yesterday that a multi-state lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the health-care reform law passed by the U.S. Congress earlier this year can move forward, The Christian Science Monitor reports.

EPA Sued over Clean Water Act

The Mississippi Sierra Club is joining a host of organizations to demand that the United States Environmental Protection Agency write new rules regulating the use of oil dispersants and adhere to current laws overseeing the use of potentially dangerous chemicals in the environment.

Ellington