Jackson Free Press

I didn't know specifics about it before I went. Much of what I knew, I pieced together here and there from hearing conversations about it. The facts were all cut and dry. They pretty much went like this: "Racists are there. ... It's where the three civil rights works were buried under the dam. ... Ronald Reagan launched his "southern strategy" there when he was running for president. ... It has cabins. ... The Choctaw reservation is not far away. ... And even more racists are there."

I never had much of a desire, even as I got older, to learn anything else about the Neshoba County Fair. I was content with my ignorance. Last Wednesday, when my co-worker Ward Schaefer topped off my gas tank on our way to the fair, we had two different plans. His was to report on speeches, and mine was to see if anyone reacted to us posing as a couple. Barack Obama is president, but it's still the Neshoba County Fair.

The red mud squished beneath my thong sandals. I was happy I'd left my peep-toe stilettos at home, jealous of the Timerland boots he was wearing.

"They're like actually cabins," I heard myself say aloud. I knew there were going to be cabins, but I had no idea it was a neighborhood of cabins, lined up like row houses. People sat on their respective porches, looking on as Ward and I awkwardly consulted the map, trying to figure out how to get to the square. We left the suburbs of cabins and entered the main square.

Attorney General Jim Hood had just finished speaking, and music blared from speakers. It was break time. After we oriented ourselves, and Ward got in a brief conversation with Hood, we decided to settle in under the pavilion. Sitting on the last row, I snuggled up as closely to Ward as heat and humidity would allow.

"Let's count the black people," I said to my boyfriend-for-the-day. I'd already spotted one black man walk into a cabin while Ward talked to Hood. At least 30 minutes had passed, and he'd yet to come back out.

"Like an index. A BPX. A black people index," he responded.

As he took out his notebook to start the tally, we spotted two black gentlemen pouring drinks for passersby. I looked right over my shoulder and spotted an older black woman, donning a black cotton muumuu with festive flowers sprouting up from the hem, handing a younger white gentleman a cold drink. Sweat glistened on her forehead.

"We should also count the Asians," said Ward, the child of a Chinese mother and Irish-German father.

"So far, I've seen zero," I assured him.

The man to our left kept eyeing us suspiciously. I saw him tap his friend and point in our direction. I feigned a sweet smile. He smiled a curious, "Are they ‘together' or just together?" one.

The band closed out its joyous song about whiskey, beer and being southern, and introduced another.

"I know y'all know this one. It's going to close us out," the lead singer announced. I hoped for Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places," until the lead singer said, "It's a familiar hymn we sing up in north Mississippi," and the band started playing "It Is Well."

I love that hymn, but there was something unsettling about singing it at the Neshoba County Fair. The band reached the chorus, "It is well ..." I told Ward he was supposed to echo. He did. I didn't. All was not well with my soul. I spotted the sign behind the band, boasting that this year marked the 121st fair.

"There've been 121 of these?" I mumbled. I picked up my phone to do a quick Google search.

"There's a black man with locs!" Ward pointed out excitedly. He was walking alongside a white guy. The two looked to be friends. I wondered if those two knew that six days after the FBI found civil-rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner buried 15 feet below the ground's surface in 1964 fewer than six miles north on Highway 21, the fair kicked off. I'd just learned that. Then I wondered if they cared.

As the crowd cleared out, I looked for a handheld fan that wasn't endorsing a political candidate, and Ward made a call back to the office. I found church-style fans with "pur air" stamped on them. "Beautiful lies," I thought.

Ward asked if we could go grab a bite to eat before coming back to the square to hear congressional candidate Alan Nunnelee's 10-minute speech. We walked slowly, chatting, and a woman caught my eye.

"Y'all hungry?" she asked. "We have plenty of food."

Ward and I looked at one another. I knew he'd want to go in. It was, after all, an offer for free food. I obliged him.

Up one, two, three, four shallow stairs, I could feel the woman's eyes on my back. "You're probably just being paranoid again," I thought. A quick glance over my shoulder confirmed I wasn't; I caught her still looking.

The four people in the cabin's kitchen introduced themselves quickly, as did we; then they ushered us to the island in the middle of the small room where food sat buffet style. We put food on our plates, and I sat mine down to get drinks.

"Do you want tea, lemonade or bottled water, sweetie?" I asked Ward. The little girl who sat on an adult's hip couldn't control her mouth, as it dropped open.

Ward chuckled. "Water is good."

"Y'all can go out on the porch to eat or upstairs," someone said.

We walked up the stairs and positioned ourselves on the modest balcony. A black woman dressed in an apron and hair net walked out of the back door of a cabin across the way, tossing a bucket of water out, as Ward ate from his plate and mine.

"There's another black person," he said.

"Yep," I replied, letting the sip of water I took punctuate my one-word sentence.

A gentle breeze blew, and the American flag I was sitting behind reached back and hit me in the face. "Wow," boyfriend-for-a-day said.

"I just got hit. In the face. With an American flag," I said.

"Wow. That's a metaphor for something," Ward said, chuckling.

"Yeah; it's a metaphor," I agreed.

We threw away our plates, thanked our hosts and went back down to the plaza to hear Nunnelee speak.

"Together, we can write history. ... But how will our grandchildren and their grandchildren know of the greatness of America?" Nunnelee asked during the opening few sentences of his speech. "Will posterity enjoy the blessings of liberty secured for us by our grandparents and their grandparents before them? ... (W)ill the greatness of America be barely a chapter in their history books? A record of what once was? The answer to that question is in our hands," he declared before going on with a Nancy Pelosi-obsessed diatribe.

The crowd hooted, hollered and agreed. I sat, finally figuring it out, as I looked over and spotted two more black people. I wasn't uncomfortable chiefly because of my race. I was uncomfortable because I didn't belong. The liberties Nunnelee preached about and the ones the American flag that licked my face in the breeze over lunch symbolizes weren't always meant for me. The disparities in this country and "our" Mississippi are just as much about class and the natural-born, government-acknowledged right to stake claim and pursue happiness as they are about race. It just so happens the powers-that-be granted some posterity and their inalienable rights a few generations after everyone else.

A total of 20 blacks and zero Asians later, Ward and I left the fair, headed to the Choctaw reservation. The closer we got to the exit gate, the less oppressed I felt. Florence Mars writes in "Witness in Philadelphia" about the fair of 1964, after FBI agents found Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner buried:

"The fair almost seemed the same. There were the same speakings, bands, horseraces, community exhibits, dances, sings, and carnival activities; the same crowds milled near the pavilion ... and there was the same talk about how good it was to be back. The unpleasant events of the summer were not discussed. ... Still, there was an air of unspoken tension greatly heightened by the bizarre presence of the auxiliary police."

The unspoken tension, for me, 46 years later, still clung to the air. Maybe there's a metaphor for that, too.

Previous Comments

ID

159099

Comment

Natalie--I enjoyed your article, especially since I was at the fair at the same time. Being white, I couldn't see the fair through your perspective. Back when my nephew was playing basketball at Murrah in the 1990's, I found myself on many occasions as part of a minority of 1% or less. I'm sure my perspective on those occasions might have differed somewhat from the perspective of the 99% majority. Didn't you find it amazing that in Philadelphia, MS, a total stranger graciously invited a mixed raced couple into her home for a meal and a chance to sit down and rest? What an amazing change from the events of the 1960's. Often a look or expression is interpretted to be whatever we expect it to be. It would be odd for this woman to invite you in for a meal and then have her stared at you with any malicious thoughts. That's not to say that you didn't get a second look or two because of your skin color. I felt like the same happened to me at those basketball games. It's just hard for you or I to know what thoughts were behind those second glances. We can assume to know, but an assumption is far from a certainty. Again, let me say that I found your story very interesting. As an aside, I'm going to guess that your trip to the fair didn't include a stop to watch the harness racing. Otherwise, your count total would have far exceeded 20 for your trip to the fair (and I'm talking race fans, not just trainers and riders). Frank.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-04T20:37:44-06:00

ID

159104

Comment

The Neshoba County Fair - it is what it is! I have to give credit where credit is due, the Republican party with the southern strategy, only did what the Democratic party did with the black vote - and they flipped the script with the low-wage, working poor, under educated white vote. It was smart and it's working very well! Very, very well. It's sad to see people vote against their very own best interest, but just like the Neshoba County Fair, it is, what it is!

Author

Duan C.

Date

2010-08-05T07:35:01-06:00

ID

159105

Comment

Also, I want to add one more thing - Natalie it was definately a good article. But I'm to a point where I think Mississippians are ready to redefine the state, seriously! Not saying everyone is going to sing kumbia, but for example the Neshoba County Fair - it's at its full grown potential, your not going to see it get any bigger that it is today. The news cycle is a 24 hour a day/ 7 days a week/365 days a year machine. People can't just get loosey goosey and say what they were saying at that very same event in the '60s. It's going to be there, because some people can't let it go - but it's there perogative to attend that stuff, it's up to us create something different, something to give those that think like you and Ward, that think outside the box, that think differntly than those who attend the Neshoba county fair. The opportunity is there, we just have not had anyone step up to the challenge yet? Maybe that is something you can look into, create an political event that is inventing to EVERYONE will all kinds of political idealogies, instead of one idealogy and host the event in maybe, say Hinds County? No one said it can't be done and it can be for those who don't like the idea or the culture of the Neshoba County Fair! Just something to think about?

Author

Duan C.

Date

2010-08-05T07:49:42-06:00

ID

159110

Comment

Natalie, I've been waiting to read a piece like this for a few years, since I first went out to the fair. I've only been one time. Had a great experience playing music on a porch, eating wonderful food, nice company. BUT, I couldn't escape this sense of strangeness, almost a galapogos-esque tribe of souls who had never been in contact with a broader world. And who wouldn't. It is part deliberate intent, and part the negative effects of entropy, of houses getting passed down, of people inviting people they know - it's inevitable our world will change, but certain places will retain older traits longer. Even in Jackson, where I often attend racially-mixed parties and have neighbors of different races, I struggle with the scene of musicians I know, and the feeling of often attending events where the line up of musicians is all-white and often the audience is, too. I know I need to do more to blend the new view of reality into the mix, but there's this sort of flow coming from people already in the scene which sometimes keeps it there. Similar to trying to get more women into line ups, though that seems to have changed significantly in the past 4-5 years.

Author

Izzy

Date

2010-08-05T11:28:49-06:00

ID

159154

Comment

Frank Ezelle, I enjoyed your comment, especially the reference to the mixed couple being invited in by white strangers. To add more perspective to your take, Dick Molpus, no Republican on any level, has a cabin at the fair and he regulalry invites people of all races and persuasians to enjoy his family cabin. My wife went one year and had a great time. BTW, Frank did you or one of your relatives once have a blog page? If yes please send me the link. I enjoyed reading the historical info presented on the site, especially the references to the Jackson Chamber of Commerce's response to desegregation. [email protected] Also my son Frank attended Murrah HS with your son in the 90"s. Go Mustangs!

Author

FrankMickens

Date

2010-08-05T20:27:00-06:00

ID

159164

Comment

On a night when I can't sleep, multiple replies: ---Scott, your comment might not have been related, but it was much appreciated. I well remember your years on the Millsaps basketball team. ---Frank: (1) I actually was at the fair this year as one of those guests of Dick and Sally Molpus. (2) The civil rights blog you refer to was something I did a few years ago about my father's civil rights involvement in the 60's and 70's. Now that I've ended my huge Millsaps photo project, maybe I can get back to it: http://robertezelle.blogspot.com/ (3) Travis and his brother Robert (co-valedictorian plus football, soccer, and more) are my nephews. ---Natalie: I hope that some didn't miss this key point in your story: "I sat, finally figuring it out, as I looked over and spotted two more black people. I wasn’t uncomfortable chiefly because of my race. I was uncomfortable because I didn’t belong." That says so much about how far Mississippi has come in regards to judging a person by their skin color. Truthfully, I felt somewhat uncomfortable throughout the day except when visiting with friends at the Molpus cabin. I felt like a guest at a huge family reunion where I only knew a few people--my comfort zone greatly diminished as I wondered through the unfamiliar faces while taking photos ( http://fle-pics.smugmug.com/Events/2010 ). It's a unique event and while some read of your experiences and thought the NCF was a group of people clinging to the past, I read your account and thought about how far this state has come. Thanks again for the interesting article.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-06T01:36:42-06:00

ID

159167

Comment

Thanks for the picture credit, but I didn't take the picture that's shown here. I just checked the print copy and saw that I did take the one that shows up there. I've never been to the Neshoba County Fair when anybody was present. I stopped by there one time when it was deserted and took a few pictures, including the one in this week's print copy of the JFP. I'm not really bothered by the misattribution but thought I should mention it since whoever did take the picture might want the credit for it. -- Natalie Maynor

Author

Oldster

Date

2010-08-06T06:57:16-06:00

ID

159172

Comment

Thx, Natalie. We'll get it fixed.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-06T10:29:34-06:00

ID

159187

Comment

The man to our left kept eyeing us suspiciously. I saw him tap his friend and point in our direction. I feigned a sweet smile. He smiled a curious, “Are they ‘together’ or just together?” one. Y'all should've just given each other the tongue to see what they'd do...lol!

Author

golden eagle

Date

2010-08-08T11:51:25-06:00

ID

159199

Comment

By any chance was this piece written by the same person who took it upon themselves to count the black folks pictured in VIP magazine a few years back?

Author

bill_jackson

Date

2010-08-10T11:43:38-06:00

ID

159213

Comment

Nope, Bill, that was me. And I'm white. People of various races are capable of noticing glaring disparities. In the case of VIP, though, they have become marginally more diverse in both editorial and advertising (assuming it's separate there) since we pointed out the obvious about a corporation (Gannett/Clarion-Ledger) that brags all the time about its diversity. So maybe it did some good. However, we hear they are still mailing VIP to "certain" ZIP codes. Same with Portico Jackson, the local version of the Portico mags started in Birmingham that use the "affluent" ZIP code formula as well.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-10T15:15:13-06:00

ID

159214

Comment

What's so bad about targeting your demographic? I thought both of those publications were subscription based, are they not? I live in the 39157 area, and I don't receive VIP, I only see it at the barber shop (which is 39211). Furthermore, not every place you go to is going to be diverse enough for your liking. For instance, several years ago I took my kids to the Jackson Christmas parade and it seemed we were the only whites there. However, the other night I went to Burgers & Blues and the crowd was nicely mixed. I guess you could say "defacto" segregation will always be around simply because of people's tastes are different.

Author

bill_jackson

Date

2010-08-10T15:32:39-06:00

ID

159222

Comment

I think the question is: What is your demographic, and why? This should be especially pertinent to VIP, which is now owned by a major newspaper company that talks a whole lot about diversity. Thus, it is hypocrisy to only target a certain demographic. I don't know if you can subscribe to VIP or not. You can subscribe to Portico. But as we understand it, much of their circulation numbers comes from the free copies they mail to certain households. Of course, such "forced" circulation doesn't mean people *read* it, but it is a way to claim a certain circulation number. It's not just a question of being "diverse enough" -- it's a larger issue than that. I grew up in Neshoba County going to the fair; I know and understand its special place in this country's race narrative (including Ronald Reagan's infamous use of the southern strategy there). I grew up amid rampant racism at the fair, and I have seen no real attempt to make the fair more welcoming to African Americans, or even just people who are sickened by all the rebel flags. The fair has gotten all sorts of praise over the years and glowing media from the state's press. I find it weird that people get all worked up because a black woman dares to go there and point out the (white) elephant in the room: It's stuck in the past, racially speaking. And that's sad.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-10T18:51:05-06:00

ID

159224

Comment

my demographic is single/divorced 40 something that lives in Ridgeland because I like the location. I can ride my bike from the house and be on the Trace in less than 10 minutes. And Ridgeland is convenient for me.

Author

bill_jackson

Date

2010-08-10T19:04:44-06:00

ID

159230

Comment

At the beginning of the article it's clear that Natalie went to the fair expecting to find a hotbed of racism. In general, it seems like examples of racism were hard to find unless one wants to argue the racism of the Confederate flag--but the Confederate flag was never mentioned in the article. I wonder if Natalie thought that she would ever be writing, "I wasn’t uncomfortable chiefly because of my race." That's a striking statement. Uncomfortable because of differing politics, uncomfortable because it's easy to feel like an outsider if this isn't your umpteenth visit to the fair, uncomfortable maybe because of the difference between urban and rural points-of-view, but not uncomfortable because of race. It's a point worthy of notice.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-10T20:17:27-06:00

ID

159234

Comment

I've been thinking today about all-white events & if it's possible that they aren't inherently racist at some level. There was a CD release party for a friend's new disc last Friday at the old war memorial. I saw one african american person there for about 10 minutes. The rest of the crowd as far as I could see was all anglo-american. I found myself distracted by this fact. And worried. But some friends I know were telling me not to think it immediately meant a racist situation. And I'd hate to call anyone there out for that as I know many of the people well and know they have black friends, co-workers, co-creators, etc. so my question to the JFP nation is, does a situation like that inherently mean a racist environment or can it be neutral? I really want to know what you think. It matters to me a lot.

Author

Izzy

Date

2010-08-11T08:06:00-06:00

ID

159235

Comment

Is this question being asked as a two-way street? For example, if it had been a rap group at the War Memorial Building and only black faces were to be seen, would it be a racist environment? Either way, I don't think that a gathering of all whites, all blacks, all latinos, etc, can be considered automatically as a racist environment. If there had been 100 black faces in the crowd last Friday, would anyone have been upset? Far from being upset, I think everyone would have been thrilled with the larger crowd and the wider community acceptance of Taylor's music. It's hard for me to see where a gathering that would have welcomed more people of all races could be considered a gathering with any racist undertones.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-11T08:23:43-06:00

ID

159236

Comment

Maybe I need to let go of this lens. As Natalie points out in her column, the significant point to her at Neshoba ultimately was not race but culture and values. It's difficult to let loose of the watchdog mentality for me. Having grown up around so many situations where all-white meant people of color are not welcome, I have a hard time existing in those spaces without being anxious that someone will feel unwelcome.

Author

Izzy

Date

2010-08-11T08:34:48-06:00

ID

159237

Comment

This is a complicated conversation, and I don't have much time to engage today or even this week. I will make a few hit-and-run points to consider, though: An all-white event could be "racist," and the all-black rap event not, easily. For one obvious thing, a white event might have a history of not being welcoming to "others" (Neshoba County Fair fits this one in general, although some specific individuals (like Dick & Sally Molpus) are exceptions. It can also be very true that white people can choose not to attend events where they expect too many people of color to be there because it's not "safe," etc.) Read up on "tipping-point" research for more on this. Now, events segregated one way or the other are most certainly the *result* of white supremacy and the tradition of segregation, which even has "segregated" the kinds of music different races listen to even if it came from the same sourc. (I mean, study where hip-hop came from, for goodness sake.) And, yes, we should all be concerned about events that are all of one race in a city that is as diverse as ours. And it is particularly worrisome to see all-white events (or magazines) purporting to represent a city that is this much majority-black. Someone made an effort to exclude somewhere along the line that led to this point. Our society will continue to suffer until we address more of these inequities. My answer to the excuses given for lack of diversity is always that someone isn't working hard enough to reach out to the entire community. The result of that is distrust, bad perceptions, bad policy, unfunded education and lack of understanding of where things like drug-war-induced crime in the black community actually came from. When I was diversity chair of a national media group, I would get all sorts of excuses for all-white staffs of alt newspapers around the country, and in cities with demographics like ours. I would hear all the time that they hired a person of color once (or twice), and he or she left. As if white people don't leave. If we want to live in a truly integrated society, we have to do something about it, especially if we're part of our nation's dominant white culture. We have to reach out. Here at the JFP, we do everything we can to always have a "pipeline" of people of color to be part of what we do, starting with middle- and high-school youth training and internships. Does everyone (white or "other") walk in the door ready to be a JFP reporter? Heck no. But it would be irresponsible for me to throw up my hands and say, "oh, well!" I have to "be deliberate," as my friend Dana Larkin put it one time years ago. The good news is that it isn't hard. The hardest part for many people is realizing that we need to do it. All I have time for. Cheers, all.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-11T10:13:05-06:00

ID

159238

Comment

You know what Izzy - I'm going to be honest with you and I'm giving this perspective as a carpet-bagger. Living in Chicago in my adolescent years, half the stuff I pay attention to now, would have never dawned on me until I moved here. FrankEzelle - made this comment "if it had been a rap group at the War Memorial Building and only black faces were to be seen, would it be a racist environment?" We had a long thread in regards to Club Dreamz and DrumminD - wanted to know if he would be accepted, because the one time he went downtown, some freakish black fella popped out of nowhere and wanted to know "why" a white guy was down there? There have been things I have attended down here to where - you do get eyeballs from people, like how did this person get up in here? But if I attended the very same kind of event at home, it wouldn't be an issues, because of the diversity of the city. Even if my office hosts an bbq or luncheon, the black people assimilate to a couple of tables and the whites assimilate to another, its sad to see - that we can't be out of our comfort zone. Looking at the St. Pats parade, Hal & Mal's, the JFP annual awards party, you can see that things are changing and more and more people are interacting with different groups, but we still have a ways to go.

Author

Duan C.

Date

2010-08-11T10:18:12-06:00

ID

159239

Comment

BTW, it is also helpful to look at the *real* history of black and white church in Mississippi and Jackson to inform this conversation. Don't miss what the white churches did around civil war time and then through Jim Crow years. That history has shaped the de facto segregation of today. Sadly. See our issue this week for a short piece by James Meredith about how the black and white churches need to start working together to help Mississippi's children. All of them. He's right: The white church, in general, in Mississippi was an integral part of the supremacy and violence that has led to the violence among many young African Americans today. They have a responsibility to work to erase this legacy. It's alway amazing to me to hear uninformed white Mississippians complain about the violence in cities like Jackson apparently with no clue that many of us white folks descended from some of the most violent people in our nation's history who terrorized African Americans during many of our lifetimes (or from the "upstanding" white citizens councilors who egged them on with rhetoric and boycotts, or pay the killers' and maimers' legal bills). Yes, people can change, and we can change our society. But remaining willfully ignorant about the causes of the problems in our "inner cities" (a phrase I hate) is shameful.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-11T10:18:24-06:00

ID

159240

Comment

Ladd you brought up a good point - when you look at the Southern Baptist Convention, yes it is attended by both (blacks and whites) - but in regards to mingling amongst the pastors, its just like the lunch tables, blacks at one table and whites at the other tables. What makes it so bad, its church folks! lol!!! My mother is episcopalian and she is in Memphis, now her church is diverse for a small congregation. Interesting point Ladd

Author

Duan C.

Date

2010-08-11T10:58:03-06:00

ID

159249

Comment

Race relations and Civil Rights history in Mississippi. It's such a complicated picture that too often gets painted with broad strokes. It's gotten to the point where the full history is difficult to know. Here's an example since we are talking about Phildelphia, MS. We all know that there was KKK opposition to white students from the north coming to Mississippi during the summer of 1964. History will always remember that fact because of Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner. How many know that in the summer of 1966 white students from the north were still being told that they weren't wanted or needed--but this time is was by the Mississippi's black leaders of the Civil Rights movement. Or how about when Headstart was organized in Jackson in 1965. That certainly didn't thrill the KKK and their ilk. After a successful year in 1965, there was a Mississippi organization that pushed for the defunding of the Jackson Headstart program. That organization was the NAACP, upset because the Jackson Headstart program was being run by a bi-racial steering committee. It's complicated stuff and I wonder if all the details will ever get examined as a total package. I'm not sure if there would be much of an audience for anyone trying to tell the full story.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-11T12:45:33-06:00

ID

159253

Comment

It is actually even more complicated than that, Frank, especially if you start delving into the history in the Klan Nation section of the state in southwest Mississippi. And the real, unwhitewashed history shows, among other things, that white Mississippians were among the most brutal in the country and the toughest civil rights nut to crack. White folks here were so dug in that Dr. King et al's non-violent movement didn't really work in our state. It took everyday black men arming themselves to protect their families against the Klan and their defenders (Americans for Preservation of White Race and Citizens Council based here in Jackson) to break the back of Jim Crow in Mississippi. They had to scare the hell out of white Mississippi to make it happen here. And there were all sorts of disputes between civil rights groups themselves, from the moderate NAACP to the more "radical" SNCC, and beyond. And then there was Charles Evers, and his bizarre place (and activities) in the midst of it all. It's all much more interesting than the history books or the same old Black History Month stories tell us. But I'm not quite sure what your point is in pointing the "complicated" part out now. That fact just means that we need to talk more honestly about our race history, and not just buy the crap about it all being in the past. And, of course, our busiest threads on here are about race, usually populated with people who claim we shouldn't talk about it. It's the elephant in the room, both at the Neshoba County Fair and in the rest of the state (and country). If there is one truth amidst it all, it is that white supremacy led to massive violence and resistance in our state, making our resistors some of the most violent criminals in the country, including right here in Jackson where officers of the law threw children into the livestock pens at the fairgrounds in 100-degree heat and left them there for hours. And the seeds planted then have grown into the societal problems that many of the children of those same criminals of old have no interest in helping solve. They just want to point fingers and keep the same people under their thumbs. That must change if this state is ever going to get off the bottom of the barrel. And, yes, we can tell many "complicated" stories along the way, but it changes nothing about what our task is: to break the back of white supremacy and break up the legacy that was hoisted on African Americans in our state and beyond. We can do it, but not by living in the state of denial and defensiveness so many people exist in. It's time to grow up, white Mississippi. We can fix this, but it won't be easy or comfortable. But it's the hand our forebears dealt us.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-11T13:04:20-06:00

ID

159261

Comment

Donna noted.. "... it changes nothing about what our task is: to break the back of white supremacy and break up the legacy that was hoisted on African Americans in our state and beyond." That sums up the challenge we face as a community and as a state moving forward. We have to make it plain that white supremacy (and the various power brokers clinging to it to preserve the status quo) is indeed the invisible elephant in the room of our state. From educational funding, to Medicaid and economic development, the impetus for the standard State of Mississippi stance is "How can we maintain the status quo of white supremacy while at the same time not appear to be maintaining it to the populous?". From school re-segregation to the refusal to accept federal funds for social programs, it seems anything that threatens to stabilize or empower poor (read minority) communities throughout the state is vehemently opposed by the political powers in this state. A massive conversation that leads to a mobilization of a more representative cross section of people to become politically aware and active must take place in order to actualize substantive change in this state. The complex history, political machinations, and economic policies must be brought to light in a more democratic fashion in order to gain a better perspective on these issues. It's not about who opposed what during the civil rights movement, it is about lessons learned in democracy, justice, and freedom that must be utilized by decision makers at various levels of government moving forward. Kudos Donna, you and JFP are a wonderful asset to the state.

Author

Renaldo Bryant

Date

2010-08-11T15:52:31-06:00

ID

159262

Comment

Thank you, Blackwatch, and nice post.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-11T15:59:34-06:00

ID

159269

Comment

I was at a memorial service this afternoon so I've been away from my computer for a while. There were a lot of my father's peers at the service, white Mississippians who contributed greatly to the advancement of Civil Rights in this community and state. It's a generation that's getting old. A generation that is dying off with no one interested in the documentation of their story. I tried to get Jerry Mitchell and the Clarion-Ledger interested on two occasions. Not much success there, presumably because these people muddy the water when it comes to the Civil Rights story in Mississippi. But getting back to my last post, my point was simply that the Civil Rights story is a complicated one. That fact is amply illustrated by the comments to this story.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2010-08-11T19:55:08-06:00

ID

159270

Comment

I would love to do that story. I love complicated narratives.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-11T21:42:50-06:00

ID

159273

Comment

@ Ladd "And the seeds planted then have grown into the societal problems that many of the children of those same criminals of old have no interest in helping solve. They just want to point fingers and keep the same people under their thumbs" That is what I mean by caste system in Mississippi Excellent point, couldn't have said it better myself

Author

Duan C.

Date

2010-08-12T07:17:22-06:00

ID

159283

Comment

I might not need to step into the discussion at this point because many important points have already been brought up, but I think one thing was missing from the article and discussion (although was slightly discussed by Frank), is that there is an amazing family reunion-like dynamic to the festival. I attended in 2008 and 2009 and stayed with a friend at her family's cabin. And yes, I heard some blatantly racist comments by older white people who assumed I agreed with them because I was white. But I also spent time with a family that doesn't always get along or get to see each other as often as they would like. But each year, they all make the effort to stop whatever they are doing in their "real lives" to come home and catch up and enjoy each other's company as best they can. Which is kind of amazing, because I can barely see both of my brothers more than once a year. I don't want Jackson to have a NCF, but I would love it if Jackson had the sort of event that would bring lots of people back at the same time. I've been here 4 years, and already so many dear friends have come and gone. The St. Patty's Parade is the closest big event that brings people home year after year. Schools have homecomings, but I'd love Jackson to have a homecoming weekend.

Author

Katie

Date

2010-08-12T10:43:04-06:00

ID

159284

Comment

Agreed: The reunion component is the good side, Katie. And it's why I would like to see the fair folks and cabin owners be more proactive about bringing the fair into this century. It's kind of personal for me: I'm felt the pain of my town/county's past all my life, and I hate to see them do something year after year that gives the impression that so little has changed there on the race front.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2010-08-12T10:51:38-06:00