Ban-the-Box a Good StepFor decades, employers from fast-food joints to mall boutiques and financial-services firms to news organizations have been asking prospective employees about their criminal histories.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Literary'If anyone is aware of the multiple, offensive meanings of the term tar-baby, it's the former governor and Yazoo City native with a history of landing in hot water over racist comments.
... The People Are ScrewedBoneqweesha Jones: "Welcome to Ghetto Science Public Television's Post-Midterm Election Wrap-Up News Brief. I'm your on-the-scene reporter and host here to discuss the recent November 2014 Midterm Election Massacre."
Behind the FaçadeThe TODAY/AOL Ideal to Real Body Image survey released in February said that women spend an average of 355 hours, or 14 days, each year grooming themselves.
Your Turn: Republicans Ignoring Positive Economy SignsLet the good times roll! What is this election really about? The economy, stupid! The president and Democrats have done a masterful job of turning around the recession economy they inherited from the Republicans in 2008.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Viable'Despite the early problems with the online health-care exchanges and other bugs, every day new information emerges about the financial and health benefits of the ACA.
A Lesson in CharacterOne of the most interesting aspects of being a high school teacher is observing the social interactions that occur between the students. If you throw in the fact that I only graduated from high school myself four years ago, the …
Mississippi: Clawing to the TopAs we've all been riding high in recent weeks over the Mississippi State football team's meteoric rise on the media radar, we've all seen those tweets. You know, the anti-Mississippi ones that we all know go deeper than football rivalries.
Hop on the ‘No More’ BandwagonIn many ways, I believe tackling domestic abuse in the football arena is the exact right place to focus. It's hard to imagine a more macho sport where power is the goal.
Men: Don’t Wait on Women to ActMississippi is only as strong as our women. And right now, by most economic and social indicators, Mississippi is not very strong.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Valid'Pickering is splitting hairs. The state has shorted its own standard of funding for public education 15 out of the last 17 years.
Soul-O-WeenMiss Doodle Mae: "Jojo, our fearless, creative and innovative leader, wants to celebrate Halloween differently this year. His plan is to celebrate soul with the Jojo's Discount Dollar Store Soul-O-Ween Party and Sale.
An Open Letter to My Sister, and Men EverywhereThe danger in expecting women to meet some standard of purity or respectability is that when some man decides that a woman's purity is compromised because of her low-cut dress or that she's not a virgin, he assumes that gives …
Pledge Aligns Childers with Hate GroupsTravis Childers' stance has consistently been anti-immigration, so his opposing amnesty for "dreamers," young people whose parents brought them into this country without authorization when they were too young to object, is no surprise.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Without'Rev. Mychal Massie seems to suggest that the racism and lack of opportunity that African Americans face on a daily basis is nothing compared to the issue of abortion, and that those who worry that African Americans "can't get food" …
Courting Dixiecrat VotesThis election season has been exceedingly disappointing to me as a liberal. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would see a Democratic candidate sign a pledge from a xenophobic hate group to attract votes from the right.
Conceiving a Smarter FutureWe're on an arc of history where too many of our lawmakers (and voters) aren't willing to address the disparities that our racist history created—unequal school funding due to forced, ingrained poverty—and aren't willing to say out loud what many …
His Ongoing Love AffairTo say that I had a sour spot for musicians, singers, rappers and artists is really putting it mildly. I had no interest in being involved with another person who wanted to be a "star."
It’s OK to Be CriticalMusic is an art form, so it's entirely subjective. But it's also objective. The goal is to reach wider audiences, to evolve and become better over time.
Listen to the Music and Watch Jackson GrowAs you will read throughout this issue, there's great music in the capital city area, and the scene seems to get better with each annual Jackson Free Press Music Issue.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Helicopter'When you get down to it, if anyone in Mississippi could procure a helicopter on short notice, it's one of the most powerful and best-paid lobbyists in Washington, D.C.
Protecting America’s Commander-In-ChiefI am Brother Hustle writing on behalf of Chief Inspector, Lieutenant-Colonel "Beat Down" Lipscomb, Ghetto Science Team Security Specialist. As a proud American and former military police officer, he is very concerned about President Obama's security.
Bulldog by BloodGrowing up a Mississippi State fan was great until I realized just how hard it was.
Stop Blaming the VictimsIn the past few weeks, I have watched countless victim blamers come out to ask why Ray Rice's wife, Janay, stayed rather than focused on his violence. The truth is, victims stay for many reasons. I know I did.
Stinker Quote of the Week: 'Amnesty'Immigrants do jobs that Americans simply won't do. And, many economists agree that the presence of immigrants, who buy just as much stuff as citizens, is a net benefit to the economy.
The Jail Needs a Sense of UrgencyCrime is a hard thing to solve. It is the tragic confluence of poverty and generations of miseducation, not to mention institutional racism, patriarchy, childhood abuse and other structural biases. So it's no wonder that jail and prisons are among …
Working Together to Forge a New Path in Jackson and the CountryTonight at 6:30 p.m., Rich Harwood, founder and president of The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, will talk about ways the community—and the country—can come together when he speaks at Millsaps College's Community Forum.
Why Do Children Stay?It is time for all adults, with children or not, to reconsider traditions on corporal punishment and pay attention to both research on its harmfulness and expert advice on how to mete out smarter, non-physical discipline.
One of the most interesting aspects of being a high school teacher is observing the social interactions that occur between the students. If you throw in the fact that I only graduated from high school myself four years ago, the …