What Started a Mississippi Prison Riot? Depends on Who You Ask

by Seth Freed Wessler on May 22 2012, 9:37AM

A for-profit, Corrections Corporation of America facility holding non-citizen inmates is on lockdown after a weekend riot. Officials insist it was a gang feud. But reports from inside suggest a pattern of abuse and neglect that has recurred at privately run prisons.

Topics: Criminal Justice, Immigration

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Congress Speaks on Voting Rights—and Mississippi Hollers Back

by Brentin Mock on May 18 2012, 9:56AM

The intersection between what congressional Democrats and state Republicans are attempting around voting shows a tragic collision in which democracy, citizens of color, and many living in poverty will be the casualties.

Topics: Brentin Mock, Politics

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White Teen Gets Life in Gruesome Mississippi Hate Crime

by Jorge Rivas on March 23 2012, 11:39AM

One day after Deryl Dedmon was sentenced to two life terms in prison after pleading guilty to murder under a state hate crime law, he, and two other teens were charged and pleaded guilty in U.S.

Topics: Criminal Justice, /NOW Blog

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Mississippi Hate Crimes Increase Even As Counties Underreport Stats

by Jorge Rivas on November 29 2011, 12:36PM

Nationwide, hate crimes remained about the same, going from 6,604 in 2009 to 6,628 in 2010, according to the FBI. But activists say the real number is even higher.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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Mississippi Sorority Recalls ‘The Cosby Show’ By Dressing in Blackface

by Jorge Rivas on November 16 2011, 1:19PM

Six students at the University of Southern Mississippi dressed in black face to depict the Huxtables at an off-campus 1980s themed costume party.

Topics: Arts & Culture

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Mississippi Votes No on Initiative 26, but Zygote-Rights Zealots Press On

by Akiba Solomon on November 9 2011, 3:18PM

Like the Energizer Bunny, the eggs-as-people movement plans to keep going and going and going. Thankfully, so do the folks who continually defeat them.

Topics: Akiba Solomon, Health, Personhood

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Mississippi Ballot Initiative Fights for the Rights of Fertilized Eggs

by Akiba Solomon on November 4 2011, 2:32PM

If the state votes yes on Amendment 26, fertilized eggs will be deemed people. Abortion will be illegal, even in cases of rape, incest and pregnancies that could kill the mother.

Topics: Akiba Solomon, Personhood

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Teen Accused in James Anderson’s Killing Linked to Other Hate Crimes

by Jorge Rivas on October 28 2011, 10:44AM

Parents, students and now the Department of Justice say Deryl Dedmon has been involved in multiple hate crimes in Mississippi.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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White Teen Accused in Hate Crime Killing of Black Man Says He Was ‘Seeking Revenge’

by Jorge Rivas on September 26 2011, 12:47PM

The AP reports that Deryl Dedmon wanted payback for being robbed weeks earlier. James Craig Anderson payed the ultimate price.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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Death Penalty “Unlikely” for Mississisipi Teen Found Guilty of Running over James Anderson

by Jorge Rivas on September 23 2011, 1:21PM

Hinds County district attorney says he’ll likely grant the victim’s family’s wishes and spare the life of the teen found guilty of running over James Anderson.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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Family of James Anderson Opposes Death Penalty in Alleged Hate Crime

by Jorge Rivas on September 15 2011, 2:01PM

“The punishment for those with hate in their hearts should be one tempered with love,” says the family.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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James Anderson’s Partner Can’t Join Family’s Wrongful Death Suit in Mississippi

by Jorge Rivas on September 9 2011, 1:48PM

Under state law, Anderson’s male partner of 17 years is not allowed to join the family’s civil suit against the white teens suspected in his high-profile murder.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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How Personhood Mississippi Perverts Black History to Fight Abortion

by Akiba Solomon on September 9 2011, 12:15PM

Personhood Mississippi, the group behind the anti-choice ballot initiative Amendment 26, is the latest group to hijack racial justice history for a profoundly unjust cause. This sleaze has got to stop.

Topics: Akiba Solomon, Personhood

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Family Files Suit Against Mississippi Teens Accused of Hate Crime

by Jorge Rivas on September 6 2011, 12:15PM

The family’s suit names all seven teens as defendants.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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New Details in Violent Mississippi Murder of James Craig Anderson

by Jorge Rivas on August 23 2011, 12:25PM

Family members remember the man who loved his church choir, his partner, and the four-year-old girl they raised as their own.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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‘Reverse Racism’: A Sad Misnomer for a Tragic Mississippi Murder

by Terry Keleher on August 16 2011, 9:24AM

The family of a white teen charged in a horrific anti-black murder says he is the victim of “reverse racism.” Sadly, we must again point out that power, more than prejudice, is the foundation of racism. Terry Keleher breaks it down.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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Hundreds Remember Mississippi Hate Crime Victim James Anderson

by Jorge Rivas on August 15 2011, 1:55PM

The crime has shocked the nation and put local officials in the hot seat.

Topics: Criminal Justice, Video

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Video Shows White Teens Driving Over Black Man in Mississippi Hate Crime

by Jorge Rivas on August 8 2011, 12:43PM

The group was allegedly out to find, hurt, and kill the first black person they saw. James Craig Anderson, 49, became their victim.

Topics: Criminal Justice

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Haley Barbour Leads War on Medicaid as States Ready Health Reform

by Julie Appleby on March 22 2011, 9:51AM

The likely GOP presidential candidate says Medicaid recipients drive BMWs in Mississippi.

Topics: Health

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Howard Industries Lawsuit Helps Fuel Myth of Black and Latino Beef

by Julianne Hing on March 4 2011, 5:13PM

Four black women have filed suit alleging the company preferred to hire undocumented workers. But a union battle is what’s really at stake.

Topics: Immigration

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