Donna Ladd | Stories | Jackson Free Press | Jackson, MS

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Donna Ladd

Commentary by Donna

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EDITOR'S NOTE: 19 Years of Love, Hope, Miss S, Dr. S and Never, Ever Giving Up

"I dedicate this first 19 years to Charles Corder, Herman Snell, Stephen, Jimmy, Alisa, Bingo, staffers over the years, advertisers who got it, and all of you who have believed …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Systemic Racism Created Jackson’s Violence; More Policing Cannot Stop It

"You don't destroy hope and safety of generations of young people with threats of being burned at a stake for flirting, with the state's largest newspaper announcing it in advance …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Rest Well, Gov. Winter. We Will Keep Your Fire Burning.

"Through the life of this newspaper and my adult years back in Mississippi, Gov. Winter and Mr. Meredith have been living history who have connected the past and present for …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: The Joy and Pain of Fighting for U.S. Democracy

Donald Trump is just one man. The real threat is the terrifying number of Americans who dote on him no matter what he does. His supporters are often described as …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Learning to Roar in Mississippi from Anne, Hazel and Fannie Lou

Mississippi has long had women warriors who don't flinch at attempts to make them shut our little mouths, who stare back, who write scathing columns, who get the hell beaten …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: No More ‘Lynching Logic’ to Excuse Brutality Against Black People

"The most common excuse we hear is (Jacob) Blake was wanted for a sexual-assault warrant. So, all of us should be outraged enough to think it was just fine for …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Life in the Shadows of Neshoba County’s Confederate Statue

As a Neshoba County kid, I grew up in the shadows of the Confederate statue that loomed in front of the courthouse.

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Tate Reeves Needs to Stop Making Excuses, Start Leading

"Gov. Tate Reeves is spinning. He is grasping at any straw he thinks can divert attention away from his abysmal leadership during the COVID-19 crisis in Mississippi."

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Stop Glamorizing the Cruelty of Racist Ancestors

"The Legislature put up this flag as a stated symbol of white supremacy in 1894 as all those hideous soldier statues were popping up with their sappy remembrances, and it …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Dear Dr. Dobbs, Mississippi Needs Precise COVID-19 Data

It’s often been a slog to get good and relevant information about the spread of the coronavirus that isn’t either confusing or incomplete, or what we get may combine apples …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: ‘Essential’ Truths: Gov. Reeves Is Failing Many Mississippians

There is no such thing as a 'nonessential' Mississippian." When I saw Gov. Tate Reeves' tweet that on April 23, I stared at my screen. As a native Mississippian, I …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Gov. Tate Reeves Has Failed the COVID-19 Leadership Test

Tate Reeves’ leadership logic says it’s OK to endanger people’s lives to keep churches and guns stores open using a constitutional excuse, but then ignore constitutional precedent on a procedure …

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EDITOR'S LETTER: Keep Calm, Stay Safe and Flatten the Curve

"Flattening the curve" matters. We can all help limit the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in our own communities by social distancing, avoiding groups and staying home as much as …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Jackson’s Need for a Collaborative ‘Growth Mindset’

"On vexing community issues like violence, we can find and embrace solutions that are evidence-tested in other cities and that make a hell of a lot of sense for Jackson …

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DOSSIER: Shame on WLBT for Dishonoring Past with Empty Crime Rhetoric

WLBT, the NBC affiliate of the Atlanta-based Gray Television, climbed fully on board with U.S. Attorney Hurst's false rhetoric that Jackson leaders and other locals are somehow "denying" gun violence …

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DOSSIER: Chuck Todd’s ‘Naive’ Screw-up Is Warning for Mississippi Reporting, Too

If you were caught up in the spirit of the holiday, as I was on Christmas Eve, you might have missed one of the most disturbing interviews ever with a …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Be Clear; Trump (and Clinton) Caused Own Impeachment

"Impeachment is hell for a the country—but the reasons impeachment proceedings begin are very serious. They are the kinds of violations of public trust than set dangerous precedents for the …

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DOSSIER: Mississippi Secrets Revealed, from 'Ole Miss' to RFK to Charles Overby

"Most people in Mississippi who do not agree with the radical-conservative, racist status quo have always been afraid to speak publicly about it—certainly at least the white ones."

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Meet the Mississippi Free Press, Focused on Causes and Solutions

The need for a new moral and cultural compass is why I and my co-founder Kimberly Griffin are announcing a new media project today called the Mississippi Free Press, which, …

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DOSSIER: Shanda Yates' Win in Mississippi Inspires Voters, Teaches Lessons

If the last week has proved anything, it's that people in the U.S., in Mississippi and especially in the Jackson metropolitan area are excited about a political newcomer, Shanda Yates, …

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DOSSIER: From Bashing 'Boys of Spring' to Unpacking a Mississippi-Brexit Love Affair

"TV networks may live and die on ratings and people screaming opinions at each other from two "sides," but our democracy really can't take much more of this kind of …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Mississippi Women, It’s Your Time to Speak Up, Lead

Election season was tough for Mississippi women as usual. It was a time for broken promises and slights as we watched male candidates, and their women enablers, show little apparent …

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DOSSIER: Of Corporate Media and Insulting Shenanigans

What a week. The last 10 days saw not only the official demise of the Mississippi Democratic Party, at least the way it's run and strategized now, but it was …

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Mississippi Democratic Party Needs to Overhaul Strategies, Outreach, Diversity

Prominent novelist Angie Thomas is planning to leave Mississippi due to the toxic politics here, on prominent display in last night’s election outcome. The wildly successful graduate of Belhaven College …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Recovering Out Loud from Loss and Breast Cancer

"We must breathe through it all—the physical pain, anguish, stress, disappointment. We must just be present in our lives and accept and release whatever happens. Honestly, I can't imagine a …

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Dehumanization Spreads Racism, Destroys Lives

Dehumanizing other human beings, as Trump does with about any person of color who dares criticize him, is ripping our country apart, just like it did during the Civil Rights …

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