Mississippi

Democrat Mike Espy and Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith participate in a televised Senate debate Tuesday night in Jackson, Miss.

Politics & Government

Racial Controversy Stirs Mississippi Senate Runoff

3:01pm November 21, 2018

At a debate Tuesday night, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith apologized to anyone offended by her "public hanging" remark. Her African-American opponent Mike Espy said she reinforces stereotypes about the state.

Queue Listen Now

A woman walks into the Jackson Women's Health Organization, the last abortion clinic in Mississippi, on April 5.

U.S. Judge Strikes Down Mississippi Law That Bans Abortions After 15 Weeks

11:31am November 21, 2018

by Emily Sullivan

The judge blocked the state from enforcing its ban, writing that Mississippi passed a law that it knew was unconstitutional.

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., at a Senate hearing in May. She is under sharp criticism for her comments about a "public hanging" in a state with a dark history of lynchings.

Politics & Government

GOP Senator's 'Public Hanging' Comment Roils Mississippi Runoff Election

4:51pm November 12, 2018

by Debbie Elliott

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, facing African-American opponent Mike Espy on Nov. 27, was caught on tape saying about a supporter, "If he invited me to a public hanging, I'd be on the front row."

A plaque marks the gravesite of Emmett Till at Burr Oak Cemetery in Alsip, Ill. The 14-year-old was killed in Mississippi in 1955. The FBI has reopened the investigation into his lynching.

National

A Brutal Lynching And A Possible Confession, Decades Later

4:17pm October 27, 2018

by Wade Goodwyn

A recent book recounts the brutal lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till in 1955. In it, the woman who accused the boy of assault admits she was lying. The FBI has reopened the murder investigation.

Queue Listen Now

The Rev. Michael Jossel remembers excitement about the mule train when he was a teenager. He says people were caught up in the belief that change was going to come, and willing to get fired for supporting the campaign.

National

How A Mule Train From Marks, Miss., Kicked Off MLK's Poor People Campaign

7:00am May 13, 2018

by Debbie Elliott

Martin Luther King Jr. chose Marks as a starting point for the economic justice fight because of the entrenched poverty he saw there. Today, poverty remains a challenge in Marks.

Kevin Young's 2012 essay collection The Grey Album: On The Blackness Of Blackness was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.

Books
Arts

Filtering American History Through A 'Brown' Lens

11:00am April 26, 2018

by Karen Grigsby Bates

Kevin Young's new book of poetry, Brown, is colored by memories from his family and childhood, U.S. history and black culture.

Abortion-rights advocate Kim Gibson, a "clinic defender," keeps watch at the entrance of the Jackson Women's Health Organization clinic, the only clinic providing abortions in Mississippi, last month.

National

Reproductive Rights Advocates Challenge Dozens Of Mississippi Abortion Restrictions

2:33pm April 09, 2018

by Sarah McCammon

The state recently passed the most restrictive abortion ban in the country, and advocates are now challenging a slate of other laws and regulations restricting the procedure.

The Jackson Women's Health Organization clinic in Jackson, Miss. is currently the state's only abortion clinic. The clinic has sued the state in response to a new law restricting abortion access.

Mississippi Governor Signs Nation's Toughest Abortion Ban Into Law

10:23pm March 19, 2018

by Jenny Gathright

The state's only clinic that does abortions has filed a lawsuit in response to the new law, which bans abortion after 15 weeks of gestation.

The head of the Jackson Women's Health Organization clinic in Jackson, Miss., says she plans to sue if the governor signs the bill into law. This is the only clinic in Mississippi that performs abortions.

Mississippi Legislature Approves Bill Banning Abortions After 15 Weeks

6:21pm March 08, 2018

by Merrit Kennedy

The measure, which is poised to become law once signed by the governor, allows for exceptions only in a "medical emergency and in cases of severe fetal abnormality."

Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., announced on Monday that he would be resigning in April.

Politics & Government

Ailing Mississippi Sen. Cochran To Resign, Setting Up 2018 Special Election

6:46pm March 05, 2018

by Jessica Taylor

"I regret my health has become an ongoing challenge," the 80-year-old Republican said Monday. His decision sets up a nonpartisan special election to coincide with the November general election.