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GOP Using Katrina Aftermath to Gut Anti-Poverty Efforts
The New York Times is reporting that conservatives in Washington are reacting in a very cynical way to the poverty exposed to the world by Hurricane Katrina:
After ICE Raids, Some Kids Reunited with Parents or Relatives in Mississippi
Scott County Youth Court Prosecutor Constance Slaughter-Harvey watched Thursday morning as a few children reunited with and embraced parents whom, just a day before, they had been separated from after U.S. federal ICE agents arrested them.
LADD: Let the Music Play
I've never understood folks who listen to only one type of music. That's kind of like eating McDonald's for every meal; how can one live that way? I could have gone down that road, though. I grew up hearing nothing but country music in Neshoba County. It was the '60s for heaven's sake, and not a single Motown tune. Or Dylan. Or the Beatles. Basically no music that was remotely diverse or revolutionary. I knew Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner and Merle Haggard and Charlie Pride (OK, a bit of diversity) intimately, however. I'd sing their songs (horribly) at the top of my lungs in the back seat of my stepdad's Olds 98 on our car trips.
[Ladd] Rest In Peace
When Dr. Monique Guillory called me and said she wanted to bring the "Without Sanctuary" exhibit to Jackson, I swallowed hard. I knew about the horrifying and controversial exhibit of lynching photographs, the images that sear themselves into your psyche and refuse to let go. I hadn't seen the actual exhibit; I lived across Central Park from it for a while in New York, but never quite got up the courage to go. But since returning home, I had looked at the 81 photos posted online; I knew this would be rough.
What are you grateful for this Thanksgiving?
OK, as we all anticipate a great Thanksgiving meal or two or three, let's take time to give thanks for what we have. What are *you* grateful for? Please share below.
The Trial Begins ... Officially
We left Jackson early (7 a.m.!) to get to Philadelphia for the official opening of the trial — although there is not a lot of activity to cover today. There was a bit of excitement when Killen was wheeled into the courthouse — alongside J.J. Harper! Some reporters were asking his attorney why he was with a Klansman, and then Minna (Skau of Politken in Denmark, our friend from the day before) whipped out the business card Mr. Harper had given her the day before to show his Klan connection.
The British Are Coming, by Herman Snell
British indie-pop invades Martin's Sunday night.
The birth of MTV in August 1981 was boycotted and banned in Jackson. I wanted my MTV. So at the tender age of 11, teen angst set in. Months later, the local cable company gave in to the pop gods, and my musical education began.
Here Comes Da Judge
Damn, it's time for more Morgan-Quitno rankings. The last time we got dinged, it was for being the 10th most dangerous city, based on 2001 crime statistics and released last fall (and reported by daily media this spring as if they had just come out). In this round, though, the Lawrence, Kan.-based book publishers have the state of Mississippi in its sights. (Didn't that town learn anything about needless agitating back in frontier times?) This hellhole of a state we live in, it seems, is the 14th most dangerous, our second-worst ranking ever. We were more dangerous in 1999 (13th) and hit our safety peak in 1994 (the first year of the rankings). And, after all, Vermont is the safest state, and we wouldn't want to rank anywhere near them wussy-butts, even if they do, too, appreciate the right to arm bears, er, bear arms.
A Long, Long Road
"Donna, you know what? I run Jackson," declared Mayor Frank Melton, scrunching his face up into one of his trademark snickers that are cute and creepy at the same time. "I do it in a weird way, but I run Jackson."
Times Columnist on the New Evangelicals
Regardless, this evangelical shift should be noticed ... and applauded, I would add.
In a way, it was great to see the New York Times' Nick Kristof write about the changes that have hit the evangelical movement in this country—specifically the move away from telling women what to do with their bodies and adults what to do in the bedroom toward issues that, well, seem to follow the teachings of Jesus a bit closer like alleviating poverty, protecting the earth ("creation care") and fighting the AIDS epidemic. But the remarkable part is that this column is written as if he just figured this out. (Guess he hasn't been listening to Speaking of Faith religiously every Sunday morning, eh?) And that says a whole lot about the New York media elite—they tend to be clueless about what is happening in the rest of the country, and they still make proclamations on behalf of the rest of us. (I recall that yuck David Brooks using a town just across Maryland in Pennsylvania a few years back as an example of crossing the meatloaf line into "red" America, for instance.)
Young and Restless, by David Chilton
Two years ago I went to an all-ages show at Musiquarium. As I entered Banner Hall, I heard this massive buzz from upstairs. My jaw dropped when I entered MQ, because there were well over a hundred kids packed in the room, jumping up and down to a heavy riff scratched out by a handful of fans who were no more than 16.
Farish Street Blues: Rebuilding A ‘Music Town," by Scott Barretta
I wouldn't have a gal on Farish Street, I wouldn't speak to one that lived on Mill
— Doodleville Blues, by John Henry "Bubba" Brown & Cary Lee Simmons
So, Does This Mean Bennett Will Walk?
So, it is possible that Mayor Frank Melton has fibbed againthis time about the suspect in the Memorial Day shooting confessing to him on tape. The D.A. doesn't have the tape, the detective doesn't have the tape, and an old police friend of Melton'swhom Melton said he gave it towon't confirm or deny whether he did. WTF? The bigger question this should raise for people is how many of the men who have "turned themselves in" to Melton over the years have ended up going free? And is that why they do itbecause they know the track record might help them? We've reported numerous cases in which these men have gone free, and we have questioned why media in the past allowed Melton to pit them against the JPD when they complained about him and his cop friends "bringing in" certain criminals.
Hastert: New Orleans ‘Could Be Bulldozed'
Here's a link to the now-infamous story about House Speaker Dennis Hastert's truly execrable remarks about the city of New Orleans. No KatrinaBlog would be complete without this story in its archives.
Face to Face with Killen
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photo by Kate Medley: Edgar Ray Killen is helped into his car as his wife and supporters look on.
Plame-Gate Moves Closer to Karl Rove
Big news today was that Karl Rove was a source in a Time magazine story that helped out undercover CIA investigator Valerie Plame. Newsweek reports:
Noose Found on Door of Black Columbia Professor
Well, if anything, the Jena 6 situation is going to expose the racism and bigotry in our midst—all of our midst. And that is a damn good thing. We've got to clean out these wounds and deal with the ugliness. And you can't do that if you're in denial about it being there. Associated Press:
Barbour: 'Why I'll Veto the Tax Bill'
*verbatim via e-mail* There has been a lot of discussion over the past few days about Senate Bill 2310, which proposes to eliminate the sales tax on groceries and increase the tax on cigarettes. Despite the initial claims that this proposal is simple and revenue neutral, this bill in fact shortchanges our towns and cities which are already strapped in post-Katrina times and destroys our ability to increase needed funding for education in the future.
Evolution Of A Man: Lifting The Hood In South Mississippi
Read the JFP's full "Road to Meadville" blog/archive here
Uptown Hate
When the 2000 election devolved into chad-counting in South Florida, I headed down from New York City to cover the mess for the Village Voice. And with all the talk in the media of how there couldn't possibly be any conservatives in Palm Beach I decided to see what I could turn up.