Jackson Free Press

Looking at 29-year-old Marcus Coleman, you may not see a Republican nominee for a city council seat.

Raised with his twin brother in south Jackson by his liberal parents, Coleman is the black sheep of the family when it comes to politics. His grandmother was shocked when he told her he was conservative, and his mom jokes about not being able to vote for him.

That hasn't deterred him from seeking the Ward 7 Jackson City Council seat held by Democratic incumbent Margaret Barrett-Simon, who already bested June Hardwick in the May 7 primary.

Coleman graduated from Wingfield High School in 2002, and received his nursing diploma from Virginia College in 2006. He's been married for five years and has an 8-year-old son, and lives off Savannah Street.

On Friday, Coleman wore sneakers, blue jeans and a purple V-neck T-shirt for our interview at the Eudora Welty Library.

Why are you running for city council?

Well, no disrespect to Mrs. Simon, but she's been in office for over 25 years. I know there have been some things done in the Fondren area, but times have changed, and generations have changed. Government has changed, and technology has changed. Now it's our time. We have a lot of youth that are running for office, and I think we, as Jacksonians, tend to go on name recognition ... and vote the same people into office.

Tell me a little bit about yourself?

I am very conservative, and that surprises a lot of people: first, because I'm African-American, and second, because I'm young. I'm all about personal responsibility. The government should step in, but only when the people have tried as hard as they can. Then they can intervene, but only for a certain amount of time. Honestly, I think a lot of the people that run on the Democratic ticket, it's strategic. I think a lot of them may have conservative views, but they have to run as a Democrat to get elected.

What would be your top priority for the ward?

Everyone says the same thing: crime, infrastructure, jobs. All of those are important. As far as crime goes, you are never going to stop crime. You can lower it, but you can't avoid crime. When it comes to infrastructure and (as far as) the streets go, there is no sense in paving the roads if you then have to go back and fix the pipes. I think the primary thing should be to fix the pipes and make sure the water is clean, because that's more important than the streets. I know it takes money to do these things; that's why I would support with a 1-percent sales-tax increase, as long as I knew that money was going toward the infrastructure.

Including the oversight committee?

With those committees, you never know. We have a lot of complaints, but we elect the officials to see things get done, but we have to do things ourselves.

What can we do about crime?

Employment isn't going to get any better unless crime gets better. Jacksonians will go to Madison and Flowood and spend money, but citizens in those towns won't come here, at least not to spend money. That's a major issue. As far as crime goes, I think there are some things we can do. It all starts at home. People want to make excuses for the kids. Drugs have my kid doing this, drugs have my kid doing that. You have to have a tough skin about these things and realize they are choosing to do those drugs and have a strong mind about it.

How about the unemployment and underemployment?

A few years ago, I would have said education and college. Nowadays, college doesn't guarantee anything. We have people with college degrees doing jobs designed for people without a degree. You want to bring businesses in, but you aren't going to do that when businesses and people don't feel safe. Nobody wants to come shop in Jackson if they don't feel safe and they don't feel like their car is safe. We have to fix these other issues first.

How would you represent your constituents?

I think I can be beneficial in that area because, and again no respect to Mrs. Simon, but I'm not an attorney*. I have a regular job where I work eight hours a day, and I don't have any obligations outside of my family, so I have more time to spend time out in the community. I bring a relaxed demeanor. People might relate to me because of my age. They might say "Hey, here s a young black guy attempting to do something."

(*Editor's note: Barrett-Simon is not an attorney, either.)

How well would you work with Democrats?

It won't be an issue, because they'll hear me out, and I'll hear them out. If our goal is to do what's best for the city, then we won't have any problem getting along. I don't have an issue working with anybody, as long as we're working for my ward and my city.