Mississippi Free Press

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Last Notes

2026-11-07 21:45:06 GMT

Data center regulation itself was not on most midterm ballots, and it wasn't among the top issues for most voters. But hard-line stances against the server warehouses were woven into the platforms of many candidates.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/ai-data-centers-took-a-beating-in-the-midterm-elections-a-reckoning-may-be-ahead-for-tech-giants/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/577/344/904/018/160/original/b6baccbaee64d568.webp

2026-11-06 17:45:11 GMT

OPINION: "While the White House has denied that politics plays a role in who receives aid after shocks, local communities are now shouldering more of the cost of preparing for, responding to and recovering from disasters than they did before 2025," Daniel P. Aldirch writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-disaster-aid-has-become-a-political-lottery/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/570/739/181/428/522/original/369bb9e5ea2dcd36.webp

2026-11-05 14:45:21 GMT

OPINION: "The dog park, like the local knitting club or the Saturday pickleball group, does the job a corner bar used to do. There are regulars and running jokes, and once a person is known, a spot in the conversation is reserved for them," Johnson writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-dog-parks-are-an-antidote-to-the-isolation-and-division-that-social-media-can-fuel/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/564/369/785/609/100/original/aa1fa0bfc10837d9.webp

2026-11-04 17:53:02 GMT

OPINION: "The Trump administration denied 26% of major disaster declarations in 2025, more than double the rate of the year before and well above the 15% denial average of the past two decades.
Denials have not fallen evenly," Daniel P. Aldrich writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-disaster-aid-has-become-a-political-lottery/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/559/445/399/806/366/original/392cbd5b751c42c8.webp

2026-11-03 18:03:54 GMT

A Mississippi federal court has denied SpaceX’s’s bid to dismiss a lawsuit over its operations in Southaven, Mississippi, clearing the way for civil rights groups to continue to sue the tech giant for alleged Clean Air Act violations.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-court-rejects-spacexs-bid-to-throw-out-suit-alleging-clean-air-act-violations-in-southaven/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/553/825/824/270/754/original/7b3998dfdfa0be8d.webp

2026-11-01 17:15:17 GMT

OPINION: "Even in states with no ban on the books, circulation rose. … Whatever the proponents of a ban were trying to accomplish at a local school district level, its effect on demand often traveled well beyond the district where the books were challenged," Basavaraj writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-silencing-artists-often-backfires/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/542/310/045/295/536/original/73da23d4042a1bb0.webp

2026-10-26 15:37:04 GMT

Former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned with Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Colom at Columbus High School on Oct. 22, 12 days ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/photos-kamala-harris-and-scott-colom-campaign-in-columbus/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/507/949/974/917/417/original/0627f3fd8c1370c9.webp

2026-10-24 23:30:09 GMT

The special election is necessary due to the death of former House District 70 Rep. William "Bo" Brown, who died on June 8 after a length illness. The district is located exclusively within Hinds County, Mississippi.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/meet-the-candidates-for-mississippi-house-district-70-in-the-nov-3-elections/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/498/485/623/183/510/original/9fbdb82d3b1745c3.jpeg

2026-10-24 23:00:43 GMT

In multiple instances, the Mississippi Free Press found that information listed in the statewide elections database was incorrect, including erroneous polling place addresses.
That can cause voters who use the state's polling place locator tool to go to the wrong location on Election Day.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/local-mississippi-officials-have-made-138-polling-place-changes-ahead-of-the-2026-election/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/498/369/739/789/544/original/3206c2e4470494ea.jpeg

2026-10-23 21:28:46 GMT

Hundreds showed up to the Columbus High School gymnasium in Columbus, Mississippi, on Oct. 22 to see Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Colom appear with former Vice President Kamala Harris as Colom's campaign enters its final stretch.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-matters-kamala-harris-campaigns-with-scott-colom-in-columbus-to-boost-voter-turnout/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/492/345/982/498/847/original/d57b129f5e37868e.jpeg

2026-10-20 19:45:12 GMT

“We’re no longer a democracy, and we’re transitioning over to an authoritarian president where the country now is no longer a country of the people by the people, for the people," Ty Pinkins said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/independent-senate-candidate-ty-pinkins-says-mississippi-must-try-something-different/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/474/951/841/792/331/original/96ae4cd5c3de7d20.webp

2026-10-14 17:04:52 GMT

Former Vice President Kamala Harris is visiting Columbus, Mississippi, to campaign with U.S. Senate candidate Scott Colom on Oct. 22 as part of a broader blitz to support Democratic candidates throughout the country.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/kamala-harris-visiting-mississippi-to-campaign-with-scott-colom-on-oct-22/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/440/347/462/124/957/original/477d116c886435e3.webp

2026-10-10 14:15:08 GMT

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Curtis Flowers' murder convictions in 2019 due to claims of bias in the makeup of the jury. The court found Mississippi had tried to exclude 36 Black prospective jurors in the first four trials.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/curtis-flowers-wrongfully-imprisoned-on-murder-charges-for-23-years-dies-at-56/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/417/030/816/663/694/original/2f49be9d0a48a2dd.webp

2026-10-08 15:05:45 GMT

What questions or concerns do you have about elections in Mississippi?
Registration? Polling-place access? Getting to the polls? Voter rolls?
Bring them to our next virtual Trusted Elections Solutions Circle on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
Your voice. Your concerns. Our elections.
Register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/coMblcHBRuWqjNNGoe_HqA
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/405/905/291/877/381/original/553b08665fd0e76d.jpeg

2026-10-01 16:15:11 GMT

The letter, which multiple households have received in recent weeks, comes three months after a group of residents sued xAI and subsidiary MZX Tech, alleging that persistent noise and vibrations from the company’s energy plant in Southaven are degrading their quality of life.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/xai-moves-to-buy-out-southaven-residents-who-agree-not-to-sue-it-over-power-plant-noise-letter-shows/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/366/542/139/441/612/original/8a7518abe55ddfc2.webp

2026-09-25 16:20:06 GMT

Artificial intelligence giant xAI is offering buyouts to residents of Southaven, Mississippi, if they agree not to join a class-action lawsuit brought against the company for alleged “nuisance-level harms.”
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/xai-moves-to-buy-out-southaven-residents-who-agree-not-to-sue-it-over-power-plant-noise-letter-shows/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/332/587/582/339/668/original/356265dee51b26ce.webp

2026-09-24 21:49:20 GMT

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump released information from a forensic examination of Nolan Wells’ cellphone as well as details of the official autopsy Thursday, just days after a Mississippi grand jury declined to recommend anyone be charged in the teen's death.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/lawyers-for-nolan-wells-family-highlight-cellphone-data-autopsy-report-and-push-for-investigation/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/328/219/913/169/261/original/db97e78850bf6317.webp

2026-09-24 21:30:10 GMT

OPINION: "Unlike the federal government, counties and states must balance budgets. When Washington offloads costs, states face a choice between cutting services, raising revenue through tax increases, or both," Cate Elander and Rebecca Baker write.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-is-coming-due/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/328/144/520/196/855/original/61f0ffd56af0ac8b.jpeg

2026-09-24 15:45:13 GMT

“This morning, we notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes,” the outlets said in a joint statement posted on Sept. 21 on X.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/cnn-ms-now-politico-say-theyve-notified-trump-theyre-suing-over-denied-white-house-access/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/326/788/101/898/255/original/b318b48fe432ca39.webp

2026-09-21 19:20:06 GMT

OPINION: "Mrs. Ross showed me in third grade. My mother showed me in a little voting booth next to City Hall. I wasn’t persuaded by an ad. I watched the people I loved and trusted participate in the process and teach it to me," Torsheta Jackson writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/editors-note-we-battle-voter-apathy-by-showing-not-telling/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/310/646/101/323/519/original/7326f9bc6eba433e.jpeg

2026-09-15 21:45:11 GMT

OPINION: "These first responders may also need to recover human remains from the rubble. Surrounding these moments of intimate grief are dust, toxic fumes and cries for help. And this trauma takes a toll," Roberto Lucchini writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-toxic-dust-and-ptsd-may-be-accelerating-brain-aging-among-9-11-first-responders/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/277/242/795/613/130/original/1d2bd7d8ebbfd632.webp

2026-09-15 14:45:25 GMT

The Republican senator from Vicksburg also ended any rumors of him running for attorney general next year, saying that he would not be able to give his full devotion to the campaign because of his work.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/briggs-hopson-mississippi-senate-appropriations-chairman-wont-seek-reelection-or-run-for-higher-office/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/275/592/189/534/816/original/c0f2510084429386.webp

2026-09-15 13:45:15 GMT

Mississippi launched its Workforce Pell Grant program on July 1. Coordinated by Accelerate MS, the program allows eligible students to use federal Pell Grant funds to complete approved work training programs at eligible colleges and universities.
Qualifying programs are still early in development.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-launches-workforce-pell-grant-applications-for-training-programs/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/275/355/609/327/831/original/3157dbf433f82e8e.webp

2026-09-15 13:15:24 GMT

“It's really important to preserve dark sky areas, the same way that you would have a wildlife refuge, like the sky is part of the environment, part of their habitat,” said Murry Burgess, an assistant professor at Mississippi State University.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/as-data-centers-expand-advocates-call-for-regulations-on-lights/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/275/238/191/000/127/original/2f4fb6430b151903.webp

2026-09-07 19:45:06 GMT

“I think curating those experiences that tell the story of our state and tell the story that is uniquely Jackson is where we're headed,” Downtown Jackson Partners President Liz Brister. “We just need everybody to get on board."
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/jackson-nonprofit-aims-to-activate-downtown-spaces-through-public-art/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/231/472/137/712/393/original/8ddfd92ac18781b7.webp

2026-09-06 18:45:07 GMT

OPINION: "Our world seems to be reverting back to a violent and separated history, where people are not fighting for each other but fighting against each other," Alexis K. Ellis writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-coping-with-unexpectedly-losing-a-loved-one/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/225/573/927/862/262/original/442ec628d2d998c8.webp

2026-09-03 17:45:07 GMT

Senatobia Police Chief Harold Vanderford submitted his resignation on Tuesday, but the city's board of aldermen declined to acknowledge it and instead voted unanimously to fire Vanderford, according to the city clerk.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/senatobia-police-chief-fired-after-reports-on-racist-texts-in-wake-of-baby-kohen-wileys-killing/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/208/351/044/603/719/original/c4fe5255c46d89c0.webp

2026-09-03 16:45:15 GMT

“When I went back to the blues in Mississippi, that changed how I sing,” the late jazz artist Cassandra Wilson once explained. “I think a lot of jazz musicians are afraid of the blues, because there’s a certain emotional vulnerability when you get into this material."
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/person-of-the-day-cassandra-wilson-jackson-born-jazz-artist-and-grammy-winner-dies-at-70/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/208/115/651/046/592/original/4ae447a456d9d514.webp

2026-08-29 19:15:06 GMT

“Walker Montgomery should be here with us today. He should be moving into his dormitory, meeting up with friends, and running to class. That he is not is a tragedy,” said Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch in a press release.
Montgomery, 16, took his own life after a sextortion scheme in 2022.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/nigerian-man-arraigned-in-mississippi-for-alleged-sextortion-that-caused-teens-suicide/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/180/393/309/741/304/original/27c5a7c0f5880f8f.webp

2026-08-29 13:45:07 GMT

Police executed a search warrant at Piney Woods School in Rankin County, Mississippi, on Monday as part of the murder investigation of former COO William Boland.
Boland was found dead last year after being placed on leave due to allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a student.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/police-execute-search-warrant-at-piney-woods-school-to-look-for-evidence-on-school-officials-death/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/179/095/769/503/076/original/b8865fcaadc9d2c5.webp

2026-08-26 15:30:35 GMT

OPINION: "Impact is about inspiring change. And preferably regardless of political party. The stories that have true impact show and appeal to humanity as our entire team is trained and eager to do," Donna Ladd writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/editors-note-playing-the-long-game-for-mississippi-this-is-about-impact-on-peoples-lives/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/162/523/555/323/624/original/998e67c6b640409e.jpeg

2026-08-22 20:45:06 GMT

While Shelby Allen waits for a decision from FEMA on her individual assistance application, she said the hardest part has been watching her children cope with losing the only home they have ever known.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-flood-survivors-urged-to-apply-for-fema-assistance-after-arthur/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/141/111/032/430/971/original/b8b88fdd8f2b519d.webp

2026-08-18 17:10:05 GMT

Nolan Wells' 19th birthday is on Aug. 19.
As Christine and Elmore Wonsley continue to grapple with the loss of their son, they were joined by attorney Ben Crump, the Rev. Al Sharpton and others on Thursday to call for an FBI investigation into Wells' death.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/nolan-wells-family-and-supporters-call-for-fbi-investigation-into-his-cause-of-death/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/117/616/330/878/225/original/f053d5866ce7f7a4.jpeg

2026-08-14 21:45:14 GMT

“That realization is really sinking in, that we don’t have our son physically here anymore,” said Nolan Wells’ mother, Christine Wonsley. “Our lives have forever changed. This new normal is something I would never wish on anyone, not even my worst enemy.”
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/nolan-wells-family-and-supporters-call-for-fbi-investigation-into-his-cause-of-death/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/096/048/820/091/122/original/1540aeb5980992b9.jpeg

2026-08-14 21:11:55 GMT

Nolan Wells’ family and supporters are calling for the FBI and U.S. Justice Department to investigate the cause of his death.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/nolan-wells-family-and-supporters-call-for-fbi-investigation-into-his-cause-of-death/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/095/916/151/954/872/original/f38d155732ece19d.mp4

2026-08-09 22:45:23 GMT

OPINION: "We were all duped. It was probably the scariest encounter I've ever had with AI because I realized that the whole time, AI has been harvesting our talents, our knowledge and our likeness for likes, Shanina Carmichael writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-ai-threatens-to-steal-black-talent/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/067/974/043/589/045/original/0cff07c082adde26.jpeg

2026-08-07 22:30:25 GMT

MFP Weekly Roundup: August 3-7, 2026
🗣 Catch up on all the latest stories from the Mississippi Free Press.
Read: https://www.mississippifreepress.org
Give: https://givebutter.com/mfpdonate
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2026-08-03 16:25:50 GMT

OPINION: "For decades, the United States made steady progress in reducing surface ozone pollution, the main ingredient in smog. But that progress—made as vehicles, industries and power sources became cleaner—is increasingly being overshadowed," Weizhi Deng, Jun Wang and Meng Zhou write.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-wildfires-are-reversing-americas-progress-on-ozone-pollution/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/032/507/602/218/105/original/459d8bbf17fe16bd.jpeg

2026-08-02 18:45:05 GMT

Dr. Moby Solangi warned of the "canary in the coal mine" with pollution in the Mississippi Sound.
“What the canary is telling you is: we are next,” Solangi said. “This is an existential threat.”
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-sound-will-be-a-dead-sea-within-a-generation-due-to-spillway-openings-coalition-warns/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/027/392/919/143/980/original/c1bc3637ceee5199.jpeg

2026-08-02 13:45:09 GMT

This past May, an EF3 tornado destroyed 46 homes, damaged eight businesses and injured four people in Lamar County. Local nonprofits, churches and national disaster relief organizations responded in the storm’s aftermath.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/lamar-county-nonprofits-work-to-strengthen-disaster-response/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/026/213/368/927/060/original/99edf59c006ef925.jpeg

2026-07-31 22:15:54 GMT

"Going to something like that with such a big crowd felt like going to Hollywood at the time,” bluesman James "Super Chikan" Johnson said about performing at the Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival for the first time. “I was still shy about so many people watching me perform, and I remember closing my eyes thinking it’d keep them from seeing me."
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/delta-musicians-honor-blues-and-gospel-traditions-at-clarksdale-sunflower-river-festival/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/117/016/897/295/817/586/original/0ee72784ac18f8a3.jpeg

2026-07-28 15:30:27 GMT

Princesses of indigenous communities across the nation sat on stage during the opening ceremony of the Choctaw Indian Fair in Choctaw, Miss., on July 15, including 2025-2026 Choctaw Indian Princess Lexi Rodriguez on the right.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/photos-fairgoers-embrace-traditions-at-the-2026-choctaw-indian-fair/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/998/316/045/871/984/original/0a1b2c78a98a695c.jpeg

2026-07-27 22:45:08 GMT

The killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, one of at least 10 during immigration enforcement operations since the start of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign, sparked widespread protests in Houston and calls for an independent and transparent investigation.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/passengers-in-texas-ice-shooting-say-officers-not-in-danger-driver-was-parking-when-shots-fired/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/994/363/007/370/707/original/b522a15c988c614a.jpeg

2026-07-19 01:30:12 GMT

Cyclosporiasis is a gastrointestinal illness, typically accompanied by symptoms like watery diarrhea, loss of appetite, weight loss, bloating, nausea and fatigue. It can be contracted by consuming infected food or water. It cannot be spread person-to-person.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-issues-emergency-declaration-on-cyclosporiasis-will-monitor-intestinal-infection-cases/
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2026-07-06 21:45:05 GMT

"If I hear of anybody coming into town, meeting with those dogs over supper, cutting deals with Walmart, and a baby's blood has filled the streets, we gonna have a problem,” Jaribu Hill said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippians-march-for-1-year-old-kohen-wiley-demanding-accountability-after-police-shooting
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/875/218/358/471/681/original/7a6110861458d914.jpeg

2026-06-29 13:45:15 GMT

George Quinn with the Young Elected Leaders Project said younger people are not necessarily unwilling to run for office. Instead, he said, many face practical concerns that make other career paths more attractive.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/age-gap-persists-between-mississippians-lawmakers/
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2026-06-17 02:21:40 GMT

LATEST: Police tear-gassed protesters who gathered outside the Senatobia Walmart where a police officer shot and killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley on Sunday.
Read more: https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-1-year-old-child-in-response-to-senatobia-shoplifting-call/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/763/059/705/733/067/original/1dce1f1dacd18908.webp

2026-06-14 12:15:12 GMT

EDITOR'S NOTE: "Thanks to your efforts, MFP’s calendar is packed with parades, block parties, festivals and celebrations happening across the state. At last count, we’re up to over 70 Juneteenth events in counties serving 1.8 million Mississippians," Liam Pittman writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/editors-note-you-helped-us-identify-70-juneteenth-events-in-mississippi-find-one-near-you/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/748/406/632/889/945/original/c147affa4070d5a7.jpeg

2026-06-04 13:45:08 GMT

"Our main rule is to limit participating locations to within one mile of the main corridor of Highway 15 so that people don’t get lost trying to find places that are too far out," organizer Timothy Bozeman said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/the-hwy-15-yard-sale-brings-hundreds-of-vendors-to-east-mississippi-towns-stretching-from-newton-to-maben/
https://assets.journa.host/media_attachments/files/116/692/137/134/979/363/original/6e5c20c9762ae0fb.jpeg

2026-06-02 23:00:08 GMT

A state takeover of Jackson’s water system will be temporarily limited after U.S. District Court Judge Henry Wingate partially granted the Mississippi capital city’s request for an injunction against the state-created Metro Jackson Water Authority Act, a decision praised by Jackson Mayor John Horhn.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/jackson-mayor-declares-victory-for-our-city-as-judge-limits-state-takeover-of-water-system/
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2026-06-02 16:15:08 GMT

“We might not win today, but there’s tomorrow,” Deborah Griffin said. “We’re looking forward to changing this around in the state of Mississippi.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-voting-activists-brace-for-redistricting-fight/
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2026-05-27 15:56:14 GMT

An Associated Press investigation found that at least 10 detainees, all men, have died by suicide since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, a pace that far exceeds the growth in the detainee population.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/ice-detainees-are-dying-by-suicide-at-an-alarming-rate-an-ap-investigation-finds/
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2026-05-22 13:45:08 GMT

“The state of Mississippi will continue to do everything in its power to help Mississippians rebuild and recover,” the governor said in a news release Tuesday. “My Major Disaster Declaration request is the next step in that process.”
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-governor-requests-major-disaster-declaration-for-five-counties-after-may-storms-tornadoes/
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2026-05-19 14:30:27 GMT

Israel Makoka thinks of Sergio, his friend during the early days of his detention. No miraculous release from Jena is likely to await him, nor any of the countless other immigrants Israel witnessed filtering in and out of his cell block in the facility.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/shackled-isolated-and-pressured-to-self-deport-makoka-brothers-recount-ice-arrests/
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2026-05-15 23:45:07 GMT

“Researching so much about my family, I have read so much about history, so many histories and reconstruction, history and everything, and it was told with such a slant (that) I'm thinking, ‘So many professional historians got this wrong—I can fill in the gaps,’” author Ellen Morris Prewitt said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/person-of-the-day-mississippians-local-ancestors-inspire-murderous-time-traveling-women-in-new-novel/
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2026-05-09 16:15:06 GMT

The Supreme Court ruled that Louisiana relied too heavily on race when creating a second Black-majority House district as it attempted to comply with federal law. The high court’s decision gives Republicans grounds to try and eliminate majority-Black districts that have elected Democrats.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/white-tennessee-republicans-erase-states-only-black-us-house-district-after-court-neutralized-voting-rights-act/
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2026-05-07 20:15:08 GMT

OPINION: "I study influences that affect global temperatures year to year, such as El Niño, wildfires and solar cycles. Some make Earth hotter. Some make it cooler. And one particularly unhealthy influence has been quietly hiding a large amount of global warming—until now," Michael Wysession writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-2025-was-hotter-than-it-should-have-been/
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2026-05-06 22:45:06 GMT

Bethel Free Health Clinic, one of the few places for the uninsured to get care at no cost, faces a rent increase tied to federal funding cuts that is forcing the nonprofit to raise new money so that it can keep seeing patients.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/biloxi-free-health-clinic-fights-to-stay-open-amid-rising-costs/
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2026-04-28 18:45:11 GMT

“Nana, they have the boys," Gail Baptiste's granddaughter yelled, after ICE agents surrounded and took brothers Max and Israel Makoka away just as they were set to board their school bus in Diamondhead, Mississippi.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/max-and-israel-makoka-were-waiting-for-a-hancock-high-school-bus-ice-took-the-brothers-instead/
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2026-04-22 19:00:58 GMT

Thalia Vrantsidis’ ensuing research on human understanding eventually led her to write a paper on the subject of why people often favor simpler explanations even if a more complex explanation would more accurately describe a situation.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/person-of-the-day-thalia-vrantsidis-starkville-professor-examines-why-people-gravitate-to-easy-answers/
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2026-04-15 22:56:42 GMT

Faulty water meters and inaccurate billing have left many Jackson, Mississippi, residents struggling to pay their monthly water bill, which can reach massive levels.
Rita Brent and Brad Franklin founded Operation Zero Out: Jackson to help give residents relief by paying overdue bills.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/operation-zero-out-campaign-launches-to-clear-expensive-water-bills-in-jackson-mississippi/
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2026-03-06 23:56:22 GMT

"Mississippi needs an aggressive and proactive representative in Congress who can both propose and deliver consistent opportunities, resources, funds, and benefits to the Mississippians who need them," said Evan Turnage, a Democrat running to represent Mississippi's 2nd congressional district in the March 10 Democratic primary election.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/us-house-candidate-questionnaire-evan-turnage-democrat/
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2026-02-26 22:45:06 GMT

Americans who can't afford beef a year into President Donald Trump's second term "have so many proteins to choose from," U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, a Mississippi Republican, said in response to a question about steep food costs.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/americans-who-cant-afford-beef-have-so-many-proteins-to-choose-from-says-us-sen-cindy-hyde-smith/
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2026-02-22 22:45:03 GMT

“It’s America’s unfinished business—we’re free, but not equal,” Jackson told the Associated Press. “There’s a reality check that has been brought by the coronavirus, that exposes the weakness and the opportunity.”
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/the-rev-jesse-jackson-who-led-the-civil-rights-movement-for-decades-after-king-has-died-at-84/
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2026-02-18 16:45:10 GMT

Jason Haley’s Southaven home is one of the closest to the gas plant helping power Grok, where 18 turbines now operate 16 to 24 hours per day and have made his life at home “torture,” he told city officials.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/as-musks-xai-data-centers-encroach-on-southaven-north-mississippi-residents-push-back/
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2026-02-06 21:00:08 GMT

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, is white but represents the state with the largest percentage of Black residents, called Trump's racist video depicting the Obamas as primates “totally unacceptable” and said the president should apologize.
https://buff.ly/UxHsJZm
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2026-02-03 23:45:04 GMT

OPINION: "In a functioning democracy, the order matters. We investigate first. We label later. We grieve before we justify," Duvalier Malone writes. "When the government speaks before the evidence is laid bare, it does not calm the public. It is preloading the verdict."
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-the-rush-to-justify-renee-goods-killing-should-scare-every-american/
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2026-02-03 20:09:57 GMT

OPINION: "A pioneer in investigative journalism, [Ida B. Wells] developed data collection and interview techniques, single-handedly waging a nationwide anti-lynching campaign. Historians say she was the most famous Black woman in the U.S. during her lifetime," Richard Campbell writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-ida-b-wells-and-the-campaign-against-lynching/
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2026-01-31 15:45:05 GMT

"Price’s termination was based on a book similar in nature to other books contained in the library, which leads this Court to believe the decision was indeed reached ‘in a whimsical manner,’” the Mississippi Court of Appeals said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/educator-fired-for-reading-i-need-a-new-butt-to-students-must-be-reinstated-mississippi-court-rules/
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2026-01-31 13:45:05 GMT

The historic ice storm left Oxford, Mississippi, without power.
Here are some photos of the city in the aftermath.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/photos-oxford-mississippi-after-the-ice-storm/
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2026-01-31 00:29:00 GMT

The Justice Department said Friday that it was releasing many more records from its investigative files on Jeffrey Epstein, resuming disclosures under a law intended to reveal what the government knew about his sexual abuse of young girls and his interactions with rich and powerful people.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/justice-department-says-its-releasing-3-million-pages-from-its-epstein-files/
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2026-01-30 13:45:06 GMT

A historic late January 2026 weekend ice storm left Oxford, Mississippi, frozen and without power. Here are some photos from Lafayette County after the storm.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/photos-oxford-mississippi-after-the-ice-storm/
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2026-01-29 22:57:42 GMT

States like Mississippi—slammed by a deadly, multiday winter storm that left hundreds of thousands of people without power in bitter cold—are looking to a slimmed-down Federal Emergency Management Agency for support.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/states-reeling-from-winter-storm-encounter-a-smaller-fema/
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2026-01-23 21:30:13 GMT

The Mississippi Free Press is looking for new Voices writers. Columns should be between 700-1,200 words and sources fact-checking the included information. Submit opinion columns to the MFP at [email protected].
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2026-01-23 20:49:43 GMT

Animal advocates are racing to rescue more than 200 dogs from a rural Mississippi property before a massive winter storm is set to hit the country Friday.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/animal-advocates-rush-to-save-more-than-200-dogs-in-mississippi-before-winter-storm/
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2026-01-23 16:00:47 GMT

OPINION: "I had the misfortune in 1978 to capsize while sailing a boat on the Charles River in Boston. My shame turned to a dermatologist’s visit when I broke out in rashes the next day. You fell in the Charles at your peril," James Salzman writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-environmental-cleanup-laws-have-made-a-huge-difference/
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2026-01-23 15:01:03 GMT

“We’ve just got concerns that we’re going to see tens of thousands of Mississippians—potentially hundreds of thousands … forgo insurance because it’s unaffordable,” said Mississippi Hospital Association President and CEO Richard Roberson.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/federal-cuts-test-mississippis-health-care-system/
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2026-01-23 14:45:06 GMT

Along with its food drive, the Oseola McCarty Youth Development Center has delivered toys and clothes to needy families during the winter. The center has a culture of selflessness based on its founder, Janet Baldwin.
“If angels are real, and if they exist on Earth, that woman is one of them,” Sara Watts said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/hattiesburg-social-work-student-works-with-youth-center-to-feed-68-families-after-snap-cuts/
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2026-01-14 17:02:07 GMT

OPINION: "I did not grow up in Mississippi and never set foot on Mississippi soil until I was an adult. I came here to walk in [my great-great grandmother] Bettie’s footsteps," Sharon Leslie Morgan writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-i-have-chosen-to-die-in-mississippi/
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2026-01-13 23:39:10 GMT

Claudette Colvin, whose 1955 arrest for refusing to give up her seat on a segregated Montgomery bus helped spark the modern civil rights movement, has died. She was 86.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/person-of-the-day-claudette-colvin-pioneer-of-early-civil-rights-movement-dies-at-86/
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2026-01-12 17:01:43 GMT

OPINION: "If the rivers of Mississippi were ever dredged, there would be many bodies that are unaccounted for.
"How do I overcome this historical trauma so that I can be a discerning person of integrity who is dedicated to building a better society?" Sharon Leslie Morgan writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-i-have-chosen-to-die-in-mississippi/
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2026-01-11 18:13:26 GMT

Fire ripped through Jackson's only synagogue on Saturday, heavily damaging the historic house of worship in what authorities say was an act of arson.
Beth Israel synagogue, the largest in Mississippi, has long been a target of antisemites. It was the site of a Ku Klux Klan bombing in 1967.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/arson-suspect-arrested-after-fire-at-jacksons-beth-israelsynagogue-the-site-of-a-1967-kkk-bombing/

2025-12-22 20:30:12 GMT

"(Frank Lloyd Wright) wanted to eliminate barriers between life inside and life outside for anyone who lived in one of his homes, so everything is adjacent to where an activity needs to happen and is easy to navigate," Betsy Bradley said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/a-3d-work-of-art-fountainhead-house-set-to-display-its-geometric-designs-after-restorations/
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2025-12-18 16:25:55 GMT

OPINION: "Rising food insecurity, worsening chronic disease and shrinking access to basic health care have become everyday realities for too many families. These crises did not appear suddenly," June Gipson writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-how-mississippis-community-organizations-are-filling-the-gaps/
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2025-12-12 21:55:03 GMT

House Democrats released a selection of photos from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein on Friday, including some of Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and the former Prince Andrew.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/house-democrats-release-photos-of-trump-clinton-and-andrew-from-epsteins-estate/
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2025-12-07 13:45:06 GMT

Blake Price said tariffs have narrowed pricing gaps between imported and domestic seafood.
“They have great potential to provide much-needed relief and create an even and fair market for our U.S. commercial shrimp industry … across the board of commercial seafood industries."
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/gulf-shrimpers-see-long-awaited-moment-on-federal-seafood-labeling-laws/
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2025-12-01 23:00:44 GMT

Letitia Johnson, a candidate for Mississippi Senate District 26, spoke with the Mississippi Free Press about issues ranging from public safety, Jackson’s water system, data centers and more ahead of the Dec. 2 special runoff election.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/qa-letitia-johnson-mississippi-senate-district-26-candidate/
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2025-11-28 00:20:04 GMT

Emmett Till, who lived with his mother in Chicago, had been visiting relatives in Mississippi when he was murdered. His body wouldn’t be recovered until three days later, when two boys who were fishing found it in the Tallahatchie River.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/barn-where-white-men-murdered-emmett-till-to-be-preserved-as-a-reverent-sacred-site/
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2025-11-27 19:03:46 GMT

The stereotypes boil down to this: Pumpkin pie is favored by white northerners while sweet potato pie is a favorite among Black southerners. But for culinary historian and author Michael W. Twitty, the issue is more nuanced.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/sweet-potato-or-pumpkin-the-thanksgiving-pie-debate/

2025-11-27 00:12:55 GMT

"I am running for state senator because District 24 deserves to be heard. District 24 deserves the resources that its citizens need. Our families deserve access to health care that's close to home. Our children deserve fully funded schools," Curressia Brown says.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/qa-curressia-m-brown-mississippi-senate-district-24-candidate/
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2025-11-23 15:45:05 GMT

Jason Lewis became interested in learning the Choctaw language. At 21, he listened to recorded lessons in the language but still found it challenging to grasp it. In 2009, he decided to move to Mississippi.
“I knew that (this is) the only place where (the language) actually exists, spoken every day,” Lewis said.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-choctaw-dictionary-project-helps-tribe-preserve-language/
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2025-11-21 15:45:07 GMT

“Our language is not just a means of communication; it is the living spirit of our identity, our stories, our traditions, and our connection to the land and ancestors,” MBCI Tribal Chief Cyrus Ben said in a statement.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-choctaw-dictionary-project-helps-tribe-preserve-language/
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2025-11-17 18:43:41 GMT

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians received a grant for its Choctaw Dictionary project in 2020. However, as the department was nearing completion of the dictionary, the Trump administration terminated the award.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-choctaw-dictionary-project-helps-tribe-preserve-language/
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2025-11-17 15:45:08 GMT

Jackson residents could find out Thursday whether they’ll be paying more for water bills.
A federal judge is set to make a decision about whether to allow JXN Water to raise utility rates by 12% in Mississippi’s capital city.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/jackson-water-rate-increase-decision-could-come-thursday/
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2025-11-16 14:45:07 GMT

OPINION: "[O]ne of the comments that came up in my discussion group was, 'You have to start somewhere.' Even if it just takes a small group of concerned citizens. There is no magic wand that will solve the issues discussed at our Solutions Circles, but you have to start somewhere," Assistant Editor Kevin Edwards writes.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/editors-note-our-solutions-circles-welcome-your-voice/
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2025-11-13 17:45:14 GMT

The emails, made public by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, add to the questions about Trump's friendship with Epstein and about any knowledge he may have had in what prosecutors call a yearslong effort by Epstein to exploit underage girls.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/see-the-emails-epstein-said-trump-knew-about-the-girls-and-spent-hours-with-a-sex-trafficking-victim/
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2025-11-13 14:45:11 GMT

The Supreme Court has rejected a call to overturn its landmark decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. Clerk Kim Davis had been trying to get the justices to overturn same-sex marriage rights and a lower-court order that she pay $360,000 in damages and attorney's fees.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/us-supreme-court-rejects-kim-davis-call-to-overturn-same-sex-marriage-rights/
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2025-11-10 22:29:56 GMT

The Mississippi Department of Human Services can no longer replace stolen SNAP benefits after Congress allowed a program to expire that replaced SNAP benefits stolen by card skimming and other forms of fraud.
MDHS is urging residents to change their PINs monthly and monitor transactions.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-snap-beneficiaries-set-to-begin-receiving-partial-food-aid-payments/
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2025-11-07 18:36:59 GMT

Across Mississippi, businesses, churches and other organizations are helping provide food aid to residents in need amid uncertainty about SNAP food assistance as the federal government shutdown drags on.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-communities-provide-food-aid-as-residents-struggle-amid-snap-uncertainty/
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2025-11-06 22:45:08 GMT

Theresa Gillespie Isom flipped a Republican-held Mississippi Senate seat while running on Medicaid expansion and helping rural hospitals.
https://www.mississippifreepress.org/democrat-theresa-gillespie-isom-flips-gop-held-mississippi-senate-seat-in-north-mississippi/
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