Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

2

Smokey Robinson!"#$%&'(&&)&&*+,

The Arena at Golden Moon

When It Rains, It Pours!-"./#0"12&3+#45&6Earn up to $45

in bonus point value.

Call 78*9986(:8;999 or visitTicketmaster.com for tickets.

<:2999&!40=4>%.&!?=@1&A#"B4=>CJoin us at midnight in the

Silver Star Promenade after the show!

We AreD@"#5&E4F@#&E@C?#.8

Vegas with Sweet Tea!!"#$%&'()"$&'"*+$,&-&./+0,#12&34&-&56788699:6;<:=&-&1116>"#$%$()"$$"*+$,60+?

@&A")"%+>?"B,&+C &,/"&3(**(**(>>(&D#BA&+C &./+0,#1&EBA(#B*

Smokey Robinson

<:2999&!40=4>%.&!?=@1&A#"B4=>C

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

3

Cover photo of Brittany Henderson and Kristen Lucas

by Virginia Schreiber

VIR

GIN

IA SC

HR

EIBER

jacksonian

debi green

4 ..............Editor’s Note

4 ................... Slowpoke

6 .......................... Talks

10 ........................ Tech

12 ................... Editorial

12 .... Editorial Cartoon

13 ................. Opinion

20 ....... Spring Fashion

26 .................. Hitched

29 .............. Diversions

30 ........................ Film

31 .................... 8 Days

32 ............. JFP Events

33 ...................... Music

34 ......... Music Listing

36 ..................... Sports

38 ....................... Food

41 ................ Astrology

42 ......... Fly Shopping

March 7 - 13, 2012 VOL . 10 NO . 26

T H I S I S S U E :

c o n t e n t s

New DigsSome elementary schools kids in west Jackson can look forward to a brand new school soon.

8

14

Debi Green’s job is to bring businesses to-gether to improve the economy and quality of life for the greater Jackson area. Green began working with the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership in 1985 and is now the executive director of membership, sales and retention for the partnership. “I am essentially the voice of the business community (in Jackson),” Green says. “I go out and visit with new businesses that have lo-cated in the greater Jackson area and talk with them about available opportunities. I help them take opportunities to grow their busi-ness, have greater visibility in the community and make good investments.” In addition to encouraging membership in the organization, Green recently developed a new professional women’s group called WIN—Women’s Information Network. WIN kicked off in August 2011 and has since grown tremendously. The group allows women to come to-gether to network with one another and grow personally and professionally. WIN holds lun-cheon meetings on the fourth Tuesday of each month for women to hear educational speak-ers and discuss issues of interest to women professionals, such as health, fi tness, career opportunities, home and more. Green is also heavily involved with Pinelake Baptist Church, where she works as a decision counselor by counseling people on

spiritual matters and welcoming new mem-bers. Green said she loves making a difference in people’s lives and strengthening the com-munity, whether it is through her church, WIN or the Chamber Partnership. “I believe in who we are, in our purpose and in what we are doing,” Green says. “(The chamber partnership) encompasses all aspects of what a business needs, whether it is a big business or a small mom-and-pop store. I con-sider this my ministry. I have a chance to make a difference in somebody’s world as it relates to their business.” Originally from Vicksburg, Green moved to Hattiesburg in her freshman year of high school, where she attended Hattiesburg High School. She went to the University of South-ern Mississippi from 1973 to 1975 and was focusing on nursing before she paused her ed-ucation for marriage. Green moved to Jackson in 1980 with her former husband. Green has two daughters and three grandchildren. Her daughters are Dacia Green, a registered dieti-cian at UMMC, and Brittany Green Chris-tian, who is completing an education degree to teach middle school and eventually college. If you would like to participate in WIN, to be a guest speaker for one of the luncheons or to get more information, email dgreen@greaterjacksonpartnership.com or call 601-948-7575.

—Dustin Cardon

29

ERIC

ETH

ERID

GE

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com42

XxxxxXxxxxx

VIR

GIN

IA SC

HR

EIBERV

IRG

INIA

SCH

REIBER

CO

URT

ESY JH

& H

AR

CH

ITEC

TS

Ranking RepLong-time Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson talks about what’s important to him.

Warm and FuzzyA new interactive art exhibits comes to Jackson, and it’s all about community participation.

Color Me This, TooWhen it comes to fashion features, we just can’t get enough. Here’s what didn’t fit up front.

Meredith W. Sullivan

Last week, I was part of a panel that ex-plored the question of why more wom-en don’t run for public office, sponsored by She Should Run. The Washington,

D.C.-based organization is at the vanguard of researching the current landscape (women hold only 17 percent of congressional seats, for example) and dispelling the myths of women taking leadership positions. As I listened, it occurred to me that we women relinquished our personal power. It’s not surprising given the unrelenting attack on our freedoms and rights since the height of the women’s movement in the 1970s. Pam Shaw, a consultant with the Center for Education Innovation, asked each panelist questions based on her profession. Mine in-volved the role of women in the press. She be-gan by asking whether being a woman affected how I approached journalism. My answer (in a nutshell): How could it not? Being a woman is who I am. It’s not ev-erything I am, of course, but it is one of my reality lenses. I have others: being an immi-grant and being white among them. Since that evening, I’ve thought about what the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision really means to women. Re-gardless of whether your faith or morality al-lows you to embrace the decision in practice, it was still a game-changing victory for women in America. Ultimately, the decision provided a legal basis for claiming our bodies as our own. We are not the property of the govern-ment, or our husbands, lovers, or even that of our children. The decision also highlights that our sexuality is part of who we are. We can’t disconnect from it, and we shouldn’t. One of the weirder effects of the women’s movement is that many of us tried to be men. Women popped up everywhere wearing suits and ties, albeit more fashionable versions. We padded our shoulders to within an inch of our ears to disguise our lack of upper-body strength. We railed against women’s roles of wifedom and motherhood, demanding that men share in them equally. We mistak-enly thought that by growing virtual balls, we would magically open the doors to men’s back rooms and stinky locker rooms. We thought becoming men would be easy. Ultimately, of course, women can no more be men than cats can be fishes or trees can be puppies. Denying our fundamental es-sence never works for long. But thwarted in our giddy ideological pendulum swing, many of us simply went back to sleep. We failed to organize strongly to with-stand the onslaught of resistance. We didn’t speak up enough about the powerful econom-ic and religious forces aligned to roll back the freedoms we had scratched and bled to win. We failed to tell our daughters that freedom requires constantly struggling with those who believe civil rights is a zero-sum game. Forty years later, conservatives are shov-ing women’s backs to the wall. Again. We’re not the only group under attack, but being

women—regardless of ethnicity—cuts across all those other designations. Together, we are the majority. And that’s powerful. 2012 is a much different world than 1973. This is a world where our access to in-formation and our ability to network (aka or-ganize) is, for most, ubiquitous. In this world, others hear our voices instantaneously and globally. And we don’t require a megaphone, just an Internet connection. I’m hardly a Luddite, but it’s taken me a while to understand the power of social media. Even this late bloomer can’t deny its power to shake up the status quo and unite people of like persuasions. My small Internet universe contains politicians, artists, teachers, moth-ers, fathers, and people of all races and sexual orientation. It contains believers of diverse the-ologies and experts in numerous disciplines. Daily, everything from silly animal tricks and bumper-sticker opining to uplifting quotes bombard me. But my network also gives me access to serious journalistic investigations and research into real issues that affect my life. Most important, though, is social media ability to bring injustices and lies to light and right wrongs. Women should fiercely embrace that power. The playing field may never be level, but we can do our damndest to plow under the highest hills and fill in the lowest informational swamps. The danger is that we’ll end up doing a lot of ineffectual navel gazing. Machiavelli said that we should keep our friends close and our enemies closer. It’s good advice. We must be ever vigilant to the subtleties of sexism (and the overt attacks from people like Rush Lim-baugh), becoming as finely tuned to it as some are to that of racism. And we can’t hesitate to call it out at every opportunity.

That brings me back to women reclaim-ing their power. Some people—mostly white men by my tally—find the power every wom-an inherits as her birthright to be threatening. Primarily, the one power women have that men don’t is the ability to bring life into the world. Without the power, some seek to con-trol it. From burning witches and outlawing midwives, they would have us believe that they can’t leave womanhood in our feminine, dain-ty hands. But as any woman who has birthed a baby knows, our hands are far from delicate. Still, we’ve allowed the shouts of our persecutors to wear us down, and we’ve de-veloped some bad habits. We obfuscate and soften our words; we don’t speak up for fear of offending; we don’t arm ourselves with facts. Instead of leading, we’re conciliatory. We speak in soft and passive language and won-der why no one’s listening. Manifesting our power is also every wom-an’s birthright, as it is for every man. Women are more than half the population of the world; yet we limit ourselves because we believe we can’t win. First, it’s not true. A woman is just as likely as a man to win an election, for ex-ample. Second, winning isn’t always a worthy goal. Much of our strength comes from our bias for cooperation and compassion. Most women would rather be part of an effort for greater good than assume leadership. That’s OK. Women are most effective when we co-operate and share the work. What is damaging—to our sisters and to our world—is to refrain from enjoining the work at all. Fighting for our rights isn’t something we can do once, then sit back and enjoy. Not if we expect to keep them, not if we want to give our daughters (and sons) a better world.

editor’snote by Ronni Mott, Managing Editor

A Woman’s Power

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

4

R.L. Nave

Reporter R.L. Nave grew up in St. Louis, graduated from Mizzou (the University of Missouri), and lived a bunch of other places before coming to Jackson. He interviewed Bennie Thompson and wrote Talks. Contact him at 601-362-6121 ext. 12.

Former New Yorker Meredith W. Sullivan is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology. She spends her days dreaming about where to travel next. She is enjoying life in Fondren with her husband and Diggy dog. She coordinated Spring Fashion.

Pamela Hosey is originally from West Point, Miss. She loves to write, read James Patterson novels and spend time with her family. She wrote a Hitched article.

Adam Perry

Account Executive Adam Perry is a local musician who lives in Flowood where he, his wife and daughter are herded through life by two supreme beings posing as unruly house-cats. He manages JFP sales accounts.

Briana Robinson

Deputy Editor Briana Robinson is a 2010 graduate of St. Andrew’s Episcopal School. Her hobbies include photography, ballet and ballroom dancing. She is a sophomore at Millsaps College. She wrote the music story.

Sharon Dunten came to Mississippi as a journalist to cover Hurricane Katrina. She visits Mississippi often to write and photograph the state and its distinctive culture, which captured her heart. She wrote the Diversions feature.

Dustin Cardon

Copy Editor Dustin Cardon is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi from Brandon. An English major, he enjoys reading fantasy novels and wants to write them himself one day. He wrote the Jacksonian.

Sharon Dunten

Pamela Hosey

Virginia Schreiber

Staff photographer Virginia Schreiber is a recent graduate of Millsaps College. When she’s not working, she spends her time watching films of the Peter Pan genre. She took many of the photos in this issue.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

5

Saturday, March 17th, 2012$5 at the door – Indoor & Outdoor shenanigans

RAIN OR SHINE! Professional stage, lighting, and sound

Irish Food, Irish Beer, Irish Fun!

DON’T MISS

901 E. Fortifi cation Street | 601-948-0055 | www.fenianspub.com

Legacy (Traditional Irish): 2p-4:30p | Otis Lotus (Grateful Dead Tribute): 5p-7:30pGary Burnside (Hill Country Blues): 8:00p-10:30p

Dead Irish BluesThursday, March 8th • 8p-11pSt. Pat’s Pre-Party with Pratty (Celtic Rock)Friday, March 9th • 9p-12a

Newly minted Ward 3 Councilwom-an LaRita Cooper-Stokes walked into the City Council chambers at City Hall on Friday ready to make

changes. The first thing she noticed was that council members’ chairs had been rearranged since her last visit. “It’s counter-clockwise. I’m sitting in three. I’m not sitting counter-clockwise. It’s been clockwise for years,” Cooper-Stokes said of the seats, each marked with a name plaque. From left to right, the order was Ward 7, 6, 4, 5, 2 and 1, with an empty spot for Ward 3 between Councilman Tony Yarber of Ward 6 and Ward 4’s Frank Bluntson. “This means, to me, we’re turning back the clock,” Cooper-Stokes said. “I won’t have any part in this.” Even before Cooper-Stokes’ swearing-in, she was causing waves reminiscent of the countless her husband, Kenneth Stokes, sent through City Hall during his 22 years as Ward 3 Councilman. A fiery divide between Cooper-Stokes and Ward 1 Councilman Quentin Whitwell has become a hot debate. Whitwell told re-porters the day before the Feb. 28 Ward 3 runoff election that he had heard of voter intimidation at some of the precincts during the special election Feb. 14. His comment caused an exchange between Cooper-Stokes’ husband (now a Hinds County supervisor) and Whitwell in The Clarion-Ledger.

“If I was trying to intimidate him, I’d come knock the (expletive) out of him,” Ken-neth Stokes told reporters. “I don’t have to make idle threats. A threat would be me putting my foot up his (expletive). That would be a threat.” Whitwell said there is no place for com-ments like that from public officials. “His comments are shameful,” Whitwell told the Jackson Free Press Friday. “They are an indicator of why we have a drying up pop-

ulation in this city. We need people who want to govern to make Jackson a better city.” Cooper-Stokes’ swearing-in speech brought Whitwell’s comments about the elec-tion back to the forefront. “After the unprecedented, unlawful and unrepentant interference to the runoff elec-tion process by a member of the Jackson City Council representing Ward 1 into the elec-

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

6

Hinds County Judge Houston Patton administers the oath of office to Ward 3 Councilwoman LaRita Cooper-Stokes. Her husband, Hinds County Supervisor Kenneth Stokes, holds the Bible.

Cooper-Stokes Making Waves by Jacob Fuller

n e w s , c u l t u r e & i r r e v e r e n c e

Wednesday, Feb. 29 Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood and state Auditor Stacey Pickering sue Hinds County District 1 Supervisor Robert Graham. The suit alleges that Graham violated the law by submitting time sheets that show he worked for the city during the time he was running training classes for his company. … Davy Jones, former member of The Monkees, dies of a heart attack at age 66.

Thursday, March 1 The Mississippi Supreme Court sets March execution dates for two more death row inmates, Larry Matthew Puckett and William Gerald Mitchell. … Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio claims that President Obama’s birth certificate is a “computer-generated forgery.”

Friday, March 2 Jaco’s Tacos, one of the downtown Jackson’s newest restaurants, celebrates its grand opening. … A United Nations pan-el says both forces loyal to former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and opposition fighters committed war crimes during a conflict in Libya last year.

Saturday, March 3 High-school basketball teams face off in championship games at the Missis-sippi Coliseum. … About 100 tornadoes touch down in at least 10 states Friday and Saturday, killing at least 37 people.

Sunday, March 4 A judge allows Alabama’s Jefferson County, where Birmingham is located, to move forward with bankruptcy. The county borrowed more than $4 billion for its sewer system. … U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor endorses Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination.

Monday, March 5 The Jackson Redevelopment Author-ity approves a non-binding memorandum of understanding to loan $10.2 million to Farish Street developers. … The Apple App Store reaches 25 billion downloads.

Tuesday, March 6 City officials announce plans for the first Southern Crossroads Music and Tamale Festival in August. … Ten states hold primary elections. This “Super Tuesday,” 419 delegates are up for grabs. Presidential candidates need 1,144 dele-gates to secure their party’s nomination. Get news updates at jfpdaily.com.

The Anti-Masonic party held the first presidential primary convention in Baltimore, Md., in 1831. The Anti-Masons were also the first third-party group and supposedly invented party platforms.

SOURCE: U.S. DIPLOMATIC MISSION TO GERMANY

Developer Ted Duckworth is moving forward with plans for a new development. p 9

JAC

OB FU

LLER

WAVES, see page 7

IN• Patterned nails

• Pencil skirts

• Colorful socks

• Man bags

• Accessories for men

• Statement necklaces

• Boyfriend jeans

• Bold colors

• Denim shirts

• Buttoning the top button of your shirt/blouse

OUT• UGGs

• Crocs

• Ed Hardy

• Mom and dad jeans

• The dirty or grunge look

• Your boyfriend’s jeans

• Anything with rhinestones

• Being too matchy

• Low-cut jeans

• Capris

Spring into StyleIt’s time to bring your spring wardrobe from where ever it’s been hibernating, Jacksonians! When you’re ready to add a few items to bring your look up to date, here’s a handy list for you.

tion affairs of Ward 3, LaRita Cooper-Stokes stands before you today as the Councilwoman of Ward 3,” Cooper-Stokes told the crowd. “She got sworn in. She needs to fo-cus on governing,” Whitwell said. “I look forward to working with her on the City Council.” The councilman defended his earlier statements, saying there was nothing unlawful about them. “I’ve never accused any candidate of wrongdoing,” he said. “I have a duty, as do all elected officials, to make sure our election commission (is) properly staffed and properly trained. It’s well documented that I had prob-lems in my election, and we had irregularities in those (Ward 3 elections).” Cooper-Stokes claims a reporter told her about Whitwell’s statement on Feb. 27. “It was solely unfounded, and Whit-well is a liar. And he has refused to apolo-gize,” she said. Whitwell is not the only one claiming foul play at the Ward 3 polls. Cooper-Stokes’ opponent in the runoff election, Joyce Jack-son, filed an official election challenge with the Circuit Court March 2. “I’m going to contest the entire election because it was too much fraud,” Jackson told the JFP earlier. She declined to comment further last Friday, saying only that her legal counsel advised her not to speak with the me-dia before the court hearing. Jackson told the JFP Tuesday that her lawyer, John Reeves, had until Monday eve-ning to file the appeal, but that to her knowl-edge, a court date had not been set. Cooper-Stokes defeated Jackson by 156 votes, double the 78 votes that the Hinds County website reported in its unofficial re-sults on election night. While Jackson is claiming poll fraud in court, Kenneth Stokes said to supporters at his wife’s swearing-in that he made sure the votes weren’t tampered with after the election. “We rode around by the courthouse, trying to make sure they (were) not going to mess with that (ballot) box. And the door was open,” Stokes said. “So we tried to shut the door, and we talked with the judge. We said: ‘Judge, this courthouse door is open. Would you come lock it?’ This is true. And we locked that door. We ain’t taking no chances.”

Cooper-Stokes said she plans to con-tinue the role her husband played in the City Council. She said he taught her to be ac-cessible, open and honest. “I have learned a lot from being beside my husband all these years,” she said. Several of the councilwoman’s support-ers spoke after her swearing-in. All used the platform to praise Cooper-Stokes, who has never held public office. Several also took the time to speak less-than favorably about Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. and the City Council. Gilbert Sturgis, former at-large member of the Hinds County Planning Board and a community activist, said the mayor, who was in Washington, D.C., for a meeting at the White House, needs to stop bringing items to the council at the 11th hour. “The mayor is not here,” Sturgis said. “The mayor does not work with the City Council, and (Cooper-Stokes) knows that. She knows what she has to do. I’m going to continue to handle this mayor until he decides that the buck stops with this City Council.” Cooper-Stokes told reporters at City Hall on Friday that children will be her first priority as councilwoman. “I want to work closely with the schools in Ward 3,” she said. “I will begin to start to visit the schools and talk with the administra-tions to see how the City Council, and Ward 3 in particular, can help to keep our children in schools every day.” Cooper-Stokes concluded her speech by stating her support for economic devel-opment, calling her ward “greatly advanced compared to other wards.” “Ward 3 is officially open for business,” she said. The councilwoman began her term Monday. The Hinds County Circuit Court could overturn the Feb. 28 election based on Jackson’s election appeal, however. In that case, Ward 3 will have to hold a third election. Until then, Cooper-Stokes is moving forward. “The race in Ward 3 will be run by relay, with God the Father in the first leg, Je-sus Christ in the second leg, the Holy Spirit in the third leg, with LaRita Cooper-Stokes running in their footsteps,” she said. Comment at www.jfp.ms.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

7

talk n e w s , c u l t u r e & i r r e v e r e n c e

WAVES, from page 6

TThe Legislature: Week 9

Save Up to 75% on over 5,000 MedicationsCall MedSavings Express today to learn how

you can save on your medication.-Mention this ad for FREE shipping.-

Call MedSavings Express TODAY! 601-853-6070Fax: 601-853-6077 • www.medsavingsexpress.com

717 Rice Road, Suite A, Ridgeland, MS 39157

Locally Owned & Operated

No Fees

No Co-Pays

No Deductibles

Use YourPrescription

ONLY SAVINGS

Drug Strength Our Price

Celebrex 200mg $158.92

Lipitor 40mg $189.98

Singulair 10mg $157.98

Benicar 40mg $134.54

Plavix 75mg $143.41

Viagra 24tabs $155.28

3 month supply Generics but Brands are available!

C

Plans for a new elementary school in west Jackson are nearing completion. The new school, which will be built at 1520 W. Capitol St., will replace

Barr and Poindexter elementary schools. JH&H Architects, the firm that is de-signing the school, is planning a two-story building with 18 classrooms, a representa-tive from the firm said at a January school board meeting. The plans also include computer labs, a media center with a reading room, play-grounds and art rooms. Pre-kindergarten through first-grade students will have classes on the ground floor, while second through fifth graders will have classes upstairs. Because the property has a steep slope down from the street, the architects’ plan includes two retaining walls to even out the land, one in front of the school and one at the back. Only the top floor of the school will be visible from the street. The new school will be built in the same area where Barr and Poindexter are now lo-cated, next to the Boys and Girls Club, and will serve about 400 students. The school will be named for Jessie Bryant Mosley, who helped save the historic Smith Robertson School from being torn down, and Edwin Mullen, a former teacher and Jackson Public Schools principal. The JPS board approved naming the new school in honor of Mosley and Mullen at a Febru-ary meeting. In addition to serving as the first di-rector of the Smith Robertson Museum,

Mosley established a child-care center near Poindexter and Barr elementary schools. She also organized the National Council of Ne-gro Women Inc. for Mississippi. She died in 2003 at age 99. Mullen was born in Grenada and served in the Army during World War II and the Korean War. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Jackson State University and his master’s degree from the University of Michigan. He and his wife, Daisy, were both teachers. After retirement, he worked part time as coordinator of the parent center at Van Winkle Elementary School. He died last year at the age of 86. After his death, JPS issued a resolution mourning Mullen’s passing.

“Mullen was a valued and treasured part of the Jackson Public School District Family, and his dedication, commitment and pas-sion to teaching our children will undoubt-edly leave a void,” the resolution states. At the board’s January meeting, board member Timothy Collins said it could help the area to have a brand new school built in the neighborhood. Otha Burton, who is also on the school board, said he thought that the project was one of the most exciting develop-ments going on in west Jackson right now. After the design for the school is final-ized, the board will put out a request for bids for the construction of the project. Comment at www.jfp.com.

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

1

8

New School Planned for West Jacksonby Elizabeth Waibel

CO

URT

ESY JH

&H

AR

CH

ITEC

TS

Plans for a new school on West Capitol Street call for large windows to let in natural light.

FILE

ART

educationtalk

Hinds County has agreed to change the way Henley-Young Juvenile Justice Center treats children housed at the facility.

• Two for One Margaritas

on Wednesdays

• Live Music Fridays

• Full Bar

318 South State Street | Jackson, MS

www.jacostacos.com

NOW OPEN

6550 Old Canton Rd, Ridgeland, Msmedfi shgrill.com • 601--956-0082Free

Open Mic NightEvery Thursday • 8:30pm

-Live Music Every Wednesday-

Mediterranean Fish & Grill presents

Eddie CottonFriday & Saturday • 9:00pm

Sunday • 6:00pmwith King Edward

Fish Special$10.99 with two sides

M-F until 6:30

Street Date: 3/14/12Ad Deadline: 3/8/12

601-919-2829 5417 Lakeland Drive ~ Flowood, MS 39232

Dinner: Tues. -Sat. | 5pm-9pmBest of Jackson 2008 - 2011

Now OfferingLIVE MUSICFriday andSaturday Nights

developmenttalk

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

9

Adeal to redevelop the old Mississippi School for the Blind site is finally com-ing to fruition. The District Land Development

Company, through its manager Duckworth Realty, finalized a deal Feb. 24 with the State Department of Finance and Administration to purchase the property off Interstate 55 in north Jackson for $3.3 million. The deal has been in the works since 2006. It required state legislators to pass a bill in 2010 to allow Mis-sissippi to sell the property. “That (bill) got changed three different times. It got vetoed by the governor one time,” said Ted Duckworth, president and CEO of Duckworth Realty. The bill that finally passed, House Bill 637, gave the state Department of Finance and Administration the rights to sell the property. The District Land Development Company’s payment for the land will go to the Missis-sippi School for the Blind, now located across Eastover Drive from its former location. On Monday, Duckworth said he was excited to finally purchase the property. The plans for The District at Eastover, at the corner of the Interstate 55 North Frontage Road and Eastover Drive, include 500,000 square feet of retail, hotel, restaurant, office and residential space, Duckworth said. The company will

build the project in phases, with construction of the first phase beginning in fall of this year. “We think it’s a four-to-seven-year build-out,” Duckworth said. “We think the first building will be delivered sometime in the summer of 2014.” Duckworth expects the completed Dis-trict at Eastover to generate about 600 jobs and, potentially, about $1.9 million in annual revenue to the city and $4.9 million to the state. However, the biggest benefit for Jackson will come from retaining growth in the city, Duckworth said. Kevin J. Upchurch, executive director of the Department of Finance and Administra-tion, agrees. “We believe that this project will spark tremendous economic development op-portunities and growth for Jackson and Mis-sissippi,” he said in a statement. “It is going to generate property taxes and sales taxes, but even bigger than that is really just the ability to be able to maintain some growth in the marketplace,” Duckworth said. “There’s been so much growth (outside Jack-son). ... Had there been a site in the city, a lot of those things wouldn’t have occurred.” The District at Eastover has an advan-tage over suburban development, because the population is already close by. During the day, three times as many people live and work

within a five-minute drive of the location than in Ridgeland, Duckworth said. And the devel-opment will help keep the population in Jack-son and give them a nearby place to go. Unlike some of the mixed-used devel-opments in the suburbs, which provide little more to look at than concrete, brick and mor-tar, Duckworth said The District will keep many of the existing trees as part of green spaces for residents and visitors. “We just want to have that feel that this is a place where you want to go hang out,” Duckworth said. Chris Mims, director of communications for Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr., said the city has been communicating with Duck-worth Realty about the project for years. “Ted Duckworth is really a pioneer in mixed-used development here in the city of Jackson,” Mims said. “He worked on the Electric Building. It was an office building that he transformed into a mixed-used development that has apart-ments in the upper floors and now has a cou-ple of restaurants located there.” Duckworth said he doesn’t expect any costs to the city for infrastructure changes, because the Interstate 55 Frontage Road and Eastover Drive provide plenty of street access to the property, and the property already has sufficient water and sewage access. While interest in the project has been stirring for years, Duckworth said that until it purchased the land, The District Land De-velopment Company had nothing physical to offer potential partners. As such, it has yet to finalize building contractors, or hotel, restau-rant, office and retail partnerships. The School for the Blind will use part of the sum paid for the land, $1.2 million, to build a storage and maintenance building on its current campus, located across Easto-ver Drive from its former campus, as well as a new residence for the school’s superintendent, Rosie L.T. Pridgen. The remainder of the $3.3 million will go into the School for the Blind Trust Fund. Comment at www.jfp.ms.

Duckworth Finalizes Bid for Eastover ‘District’

CO

URT

ESY

DU

CK

WO

RTH

REA

LTY

Developers plan to build The District at Eastover at the former location of the Mississippi School for the Blind off Interstate 55 after numerous delays.

by Jacob Fuller

4654 McWillie Dr., Jackson|Hours: Mon.-Thurs. 10AM-9PMFriday & Saturday 10AM-10PM, Sunday CLOSED

Voted Best Veggie Burger-Best of Jackson 2010-2012-

707 N Congress St., Jackson | 601-353-1180

Open 11am-2pm, Sunday thru Friday

Best Fried ChickenIn Town & Best Fried Chicken in the USA

-Best of Jackson 2003-2011--Food & Wine Magazine-

2481 Lakeland Dr

Flowood, MS 39232

601-932-4070 tel

601-933-1077 fax

Drop In For Our

Early Bird SpecialM-Th from 5-7

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

10

Let’s take a little diversion from talk-ing about hardware, software and tech companies this week. All the re-cent discussion about charter schools

and virtual charter schools got me thinking about the role technology does and should play in education of our children. This is not a column about charter schools and whether or not they are the answer to what ails our public schools. In-stead, it’s more to answer a question that has been rattling around in my ol’ noggin: Why has technology not been better used in our public schools? When you consider what technology has done in the business world over the last 50 years—heck, over the past 20 years—you have to wonder why our schools have not made the same type of advancements. The business world has become more effi cient, and smaller businesses have been able to scale their operations faster. The abil-ity to use talent from around the world in one operation is now commonplace thanks to email and Skype. Large fi le boxes and overstuffed satchels are no longer required to carry just about every fi le you need for a project. And meetings and presentations are now far more interactive and engaging than they once were. (OK, so most meet-ings are still boring and useless.) But our public schools? They are still using overhead projectors and writing on transparencies. They still consume reams and reams of paper every week. Students are still lugging heavy textbooks and hav-ing to make multiple trips to their lockers between classes. Why? Is it the failing of the schools? No. Not at all. It’s simply the result of the free market system. Businesses invest in technology at a much faster rate because it either saves them money or makes them more money. Either way, it affects the bot-tom line. For public schools, investment in technology costs money, and in Mississippi we’ve resisted paying any more money into our schools than absolutely necessary.

Thankfully, some people and organi-zations are trying to do something about this. In Mississippi, we have the Barksdale Institute, which not only pushes education but also technological advancement. Then there are tech giants Bill Gates and the late Steve Jobs. Gates runs a foun-dation that, in addition to countless other humanitarian endeavors, seeks to place technology in schools.

Jobs was a champion of education, and part of his vision for Apple—and especially the iPad—was the role they could play in education. Thus, his last, greatest achieve-ment may have been this year’s earlier an-nouncement about textbooks coming to the iPad. Not only will they be dynamic, these textbooks will cost a fraction of what their paper-product counterparts cost. Apple, Microsoft, Dell, HP, Google and other tech companies also offer steep discounts and donate hardware to schools and educators. Sadly, this is not enough. For all that Barksdale, Gates, Jobs and others have done, it is still not enough. Until the state of Mississippi decides it is time to invest heavily into upgrading the technological infrastructure of our public schools, then we will continue to lag behind.

For all of the talk about “running government as a business,” we have failed to do something very basic with the pub-lic schools. We have failed to look at how we can use technology to make education more effi cient, more profi table and more successful. Mississippi needs to invest in a pro-gram to extend high-speed mobile and wireless Internet access throughout every

part of our state. This is the fi rst step. We are bet-ter off than some critics say, but we are nowhere near well off enough to do what we need to do for our schools. The state also needs to look now at how we can put iPads and laptops into the hands of every student and teacher. This is a hefty investment, but the payoffs

are huge. It provides a tremendous advan-tage for teachers to be able to interact with their students in the classroom setting. (I’m not advocating that these machines neces-sarily go home. Some schools with similar pilot programs in other states and Canada keep the machines in-house.) To do this, we need to partner with private benefactors who will help achieve this goal. It can’t be done overnight, and it can’t be done all at once. But by partnering with private industries, we can move for-ward faster. Some public schools have done very well with technology, but the state cannot boast a universal approach to using technol-ogy to make major changes at the classroom level. Teachers want this change. Students would welcome this change. And Missis-sippi would benefi t from this change.

Hacking Education

CO

URT

ESY

LFT

Tools like the SmartBoard Interactive Whiteboard make education fun.

Revealing Heaven On Earth

8:30 a.m.A Service of Word and Table

9:30 a.m.Sunday School for all ages

11:00 a.m.Worship Service

Live Streaming at www.gallowayumc.org

Televised on WAPT

Children’s Church Ages 4-Kindegarten

Nursery Available Ages 6 weeks-3 years

305 North Congress StreetJackson, MS

601-353-9691 English 601-362-3464 Spanishwww.gallowayumc.org

Magnolia Data SolutionsEnvironmental Services and Information Destruction SpecialistsEnvironmental Services and Information Destruction SpecialistsPa

rtoftheSo

lution, Not the Problem

Part of the Solution, Not the

Problem

Do you, or your business, have confi dential information that needs to be destroyed?

Magnolia Data Solutions offers Hard-Drive shredding to make sure your business stays compliant with all information regulations.

160 Fairbanks St. • Jackson, Ms 39202 • www.MagnoliaDataSolutions.comEPA, HIPA, GLBA & FACTA Compliant

For more information on how we can help your business, please call 601-919-0062

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

11

Email letters to letters@jacksonfreepress.com, fax to 601-510-9019 or mail to P.O. Box 5067, Jackson, MS 39296. Include daytime phone number. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Or write a 300-600-word “Your Turn” and send it by email, fax or mail above with a daytime phone number. All submissions are subject to fact checks.

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

12

o p i n i n g , g r o u s i n g & p o n t i f i c a t i n gjfp op/edEDITORIAL

Stop the City Council Game-Playing

The link from education to the economy, health and crime is easy to see, and Blueprint Mississippi 2011 makes this compelling case with fresh data. As a teacher at one of Jackson’s public high schools, I work mostly with low-income students, and I believe education is the best way to intercept the

cycle of poverty. Yet even innovative policy solutions will only make incremental change without the grassroots support of the communities they seek to serve. By looking for answers in education, we are counting on students to lift our communities and our economy. In the face of economic and social obstacles, this is a hefty burden for an adolescent to carry. If they are to succeed, students need support and guidance from day one. The Jackson Free Press pointed out that children need preparation even before kindergarten. This should include not just a large vocabulary, but also behavioral, emotional and moral instruction. Students like mine may not get such instruction at home. It truly takes a village. Regardless of whether there are two, one or no parents around, children of all ages need to see strong role models in their community. These role models must be in school, in church, in businesses and on the streets. In teaching, we say “show, don’t tell.” For students to know what they are capable of, we must show them what people who share their skin color and gen-der and who came from their neighborhood have accomplished. Too often, this message of empowerment is drowned out by violent, mate-rialistic and divisive distractions. Many organizations, like the United Way and Young Life, already work with students to pave their road to success, but the kids only benefit if they choose to engage. With so much riding on our students’ choices, Jackson needs a united, grassroots movement that can reach every child. This movement will invoke the key to Janice Parker’s life story: “leading by ex-ample.” It will show children, from day one, what they are capable of achieving and how to achieve it.

—Alexander BarrettJackson

YOUR TURN

Movement for Education

Mississippi is on the verge of being the last state in the union to adopt a net-metering policy. I have tried for about two years to bring the topic of net me-

tering to the attention and action of our state legislators. Others in our state have been trying longer than I have. I have repeatedly contacted Sen. W. Briggs Hopson III, R-Vicksburg, Rep. George Flaggs Jr., D-Vicksburg, and Rep. Alex Monsour, R-Vicksburg, who represent my county of resi-dence, Warren County. Sen. Hopson is the only one who has ever responded, but he showed no interest in pushing or supporting net metering. If you are not familiar with net metering, consider learning more about it. Briefly, net metering requires public electricity providers, like Entergy, to credit customers’ accounts if the customers generate their own electricity. The energy provider is required to allow customers to connect and send their excess electricity into the grid. By adopting a net-metering policy, the state could open job opportunities to small Missis-sippi companies at no taxpayer cost. A net-me-tering policy does not require interest-free state loans to out-of-state companies for unproven technologies, as has been done recently with KiOR. A net-metering policy merely requires action by the Public Service Commission and the state Legislature. Almost all other states are already taking ad-

vantage of net metering. For families and small businesses nationwide, solar power is the most popular renewable energy, and solar-power panel systems are readily available in almost all states. Mississippi stands out—along with Tennessee, South Dakota and Washington, D.C.—as a state without a net-metering policy. Louisiana and Ar-kansas, both Entergy customers, have such poli-cies, and Entergy customers there can have net-metering systems installed and receive credit for the electricity they produce. Because Mississippi is so late to adopt a net-metering policy, the state can learn from all the other states’ actions to develop the best pos-sible net-metering policy. Net metering is old technology now. The Monroe, La., area has at least four solar-power providers. Small business-es in Mississippi could immediately move into the growing market of solar and wind energy if the state would adopt a net-metering policy. In addition to my local state leaders, I have (over the past two years) contacted MPB, Jackson TV stations and The Clarion-Ledger regarding net metering. However, my attempts to bring net metering to the public view have failed. I hope that the Jackson Free Press can bring net metering to the public attention, and that people will ask their state officials to develop the best net-metering policy in the nation.

W.D. CorsonVicksburg

YOUR TURN

Bring Net Metering to Mississippi

Here we go again. When the Jackson Free Press started 10 years ago, the City Council members from Ward 1 (Ben Allen) and Ward 3 (Kenneth Stokes) were constantly at each other’s throats. It wasn’t an intellectual disagreement with occasional laughs; they made the city look like a

laughing stock with their constant insults of each other. Now both men are gone—but are replaced by surrogates, so to speak. The Ward 1 councilman is now Quentin Whitwell, a lobbyist Allen supported in his bid for the seat. And Stokes’ wife, LaRita Cooper-Stokes, has taken his place. Many people had feared that Cooper-Stokes would be a repeat of her hus-band—not showing up for work sessions, mouthing off about fellow council members, and spending valuable council time renaming bridges and roads (not a bad thing, as long as other city work is getting done as well). We did not endorse her—she wouldn’t even return calls for her campaign Q&A—but we did hope that she might show up and prove herself to be the better half of the duo. Instead, she immediately brought drama to council, complaining about the chair placement on her first day (see Jacob Fuller’s report, pp. 6-7). And as if it’s 2002 all over again, the Ward 1 councilman has jumped out front as another Stokes’ most vocal (and insulting) critic. In her first week, the two have traded embarrassing barbs—and even probably given some residents in each ward more reasons to feel divided from the people in the other one. This isn’t helpful, and we cannot afford such petty games in Jackson. It’s one thing to disagree, and another to sound like it’s a scuffle at recess. And while we agree with some of Whitwell’s concerns—like that of any elected official, Stokes should actually attend the work sessions—it’s not like he doesn’t have skeletons in his own closet. As a lobbyist, Whitwell has supported payday lenders in their efforts to keep making massive money off many of our poorest communities, such as parts of Councilwoman Cooper-Stokes’ ward. That is, it’s not like Whitwell needs to be throwing stones from his own glass house, even if it is a local sport for people in his ward to belittle a Stokes. Enough already. We need an adult City Council going forward—which includes members who come to all the meetings and take the process seriously. We urge Cooper-Stokes to show us a new level of representation for Ward 3 and urge Whitwell to re-examine his friendly stance beliefs toward enterprises that bring serious problems that plague Cooper-Stokes’ district.

How ironic that Mississippi’s capital city is named after Andrew Jack-son. Last month, state Rep. Andy Gipson, R-Braxton, introduced a

bill that would do precisely what Andrew Jackson feared lawmakers might try. Gip-son’s personhood resolution, and another like it in the Senate sponsored by Sen. Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, would once again ask voters in Mississippi to place an amendment in the state constitution that defines life as beginning at conception. If we put aside the feelings we all have on abortion, I think we can agree that this maneuver is odious. Andrew Jackson be-lieved that the people of the United States were the final authority on any is-sue. He went so far as to argue that federal judges should be elected and that the Electoral College be eliminated. He definitely believed that once the peo-ple spoke on an issue, the decision was final. Jackson was wrong about a lot of things, but he was never more right about anything than the meaning of republicanism. Under our form of government, whether certain in-terest groups like it or not, once the peo-ple have spoken on an issue, it is decided. Recently, however, a radical minority of Republicans has brought our entire con-cept of government under fire. Whether it was the various legal attempts to invali-date the 2008 election of Barack Obama through the courts or the decision to play legislative chicken with the nation’s credit-card bills, this radical minority has cared little for the will of the majority. The issue of personhood, which has never in the history of the United States been considered prior to the last few years, is the newest front in the at-tack on republicanism. Whether or not we support abortion, I certainly hope all Americans support a republican form of government. In fact, the document that the radical minority cites so often, the Constitution, guarantees it. For what it’s worth, the Constitution says nothing about abortion, because no one opposed it in 1787. The Founding Fathers believed abortion was acceptable until a woman could feel the child mov-ing in her womb. Thankfully, Gipson and Fillingane are a lot smarter than George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. Sure, Gipson will claim that his pro-posed amendment is substantially dif-ferent from the one soundly rejected by voters in November. He is wrong. The proposed amendment contains several ad-

ditional clauses, none of which would ef-fectively address the fundamental issues in the original. Local police will still be forced to investigate every miscarriage to determine if it was truly “unintended,” and zealous prosecu-tors looking to make themselves stars in the radical wing of the Republican Party will surely prosecute. The newly proposed amendments are nothing more than an insult to the educated and well-intentioned voters of Mississippi. Requiring another vote on an issue that was already soundly defeated is

a clear attempt to subvert the sacrosanct will of the electorate. It seems that Andy Gipson and Joey Fillingane want to replace that will with their own. Why do these men feel they know better than Mis-sissippians what is good for us? More importantly, why do they feel they know better than women what is good for them? As we’ve seen at the hearings on birth control held recently in the U.S.

House of Representatives, the voices of women have been excluded. Why would these men continue to add fire to the war on women that the radical wing of the Re-publican Party is pushing? I, for one, am certain that it comes down to dominance. For reasons I can-not understand, the thought of indepen-dent women frighten these men—and the radical minority they represent. Perhaps it stems from their religious beliefs. I will likely never know, but wherever it comes from, it is a 19th-century belief that must be purged. We live in a world where a woman is the U.S. secretary of state, where women sit on the Supreme Court and run For-tune 500 companies. They sure as hell can choose their method of birth control. If they take this right away from wom-en of Mississippi, what else does the radical minority want to take away? Should the women of Mississippi be relegated to being pastors’ wives or church secretaries? I hope Andy Gipson and Joey Fillin-gane are willing to engage in an open and fair conversation about these issues. After all, they are obviously smarter men than George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and An-drew Jackson. What can they have to fear by addressing the women of Mississippi? Brian McGowan is an assistant profes-sor of history at a local college. Contrary to popular opinion, he moved to Mississippi from his home state of New Jersey because of the weather, not Snooki.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

13

The Attack on Republicanism

BRIAN M. MCGOWAN

Editor-in-Chief Donna LaddPublisher Todd Stauffer

EDITORIALManaging Editor Ronni Mott News Editor Elizabeth Waibel

Reporters Jacob Fuller, R.L. NaveEvents Editor Latasha Willis

Deputy Editor Briana RobinsonCopy Editor Dustin Cardon

Contributing Editor Valerie WellsMusic Listings Editor Natalie LongFashion Stylist Meredith Sullivan

Writers Torsheta Bowen, Quita Bride, Marika Cackett, Scott Dennis, Bryan Flynn,

Brandi Herrera, Diandra Hosey, Pamela Hosey, Robyn Jackson, Garrad Lee, Larry Morrisey, Robin O’Bryant, Eddie Outlaw, Julie Skipper

Editorial Interns Elyane Alexander, Tam Curley, Brittany Kilgore, Whitney Menogan, Adria Walker

Consulting Editor JoAnne Prichard Morris

ART AND PHOTOGRAPHYArt Director Kristin Brenemen

Advertising Designer Andrea ThomasProduction Designer Latasha Willis

Graphic Designer Holly HarlanStaff Photographer Virginia Schreiber

Editorial Cartoonist Mike DayPhotographers Trip Burns,

William Patrick Butler, Tate K. Nations, Jerrick Smith, Amile Wilson

Graphic Design Interns Eric Bennett,Erica Sutton

ADVERTISING SALESSales Director Kimberly Griffin

Account Executives Amanda Beach, Adam Perry Sales Assistant Marissa Lucas

Sales Interns Morgan Bares, Samantha Towers

BUSINESS AND OPERATIONSBookkeeper Montroe Headd

Executive Assistant Erica CrunkiltonEvents Coordinator Shannon Barbour

Distribution Manager Matt HeindlDistribution Avery Cahee, Raymond Carmeans,Jeff Cooper, Mik Davis, Clint Dear, Richard Laswell

ONLINEWeb Developer Matt Heindl Web Editor Dustin Cardon

Web Producer Korey Harrion

CONTACT US:Letters letters@jacksonfreepress.comEditorial editor@jacksonfreepress.comReleases releases@jacksonfreepress.comQueries editor@jacksonfreepress.comListings events@jacksonfreepress.comAdvertising ads@jacksonfreepress.comPublisher todd@jacksonfreepress.comNews tips news@jacksonfreepress.comInternships interns@jacksonfreepress.comFashion style@jacksonfreepress.com

Jackson Free PressP.O. Box 5067, Jackson, Miss., 39296

Editorial (601) 362-6121Sales (601) 362-6121Fax (601) 510-9019

Daily updates at jacksonfreepress.comThe Jackson Free Press is the city’s award-winning, locally owned newsweekly, with 17,000 copies dis-tributed in and around the Jackson metropolitan area every Wednesday. The Jackson Free Press is free for pick-up by readers; one copy per person, please. First-class subscriptions are available for $100 per year for postage and handling.

The Jackson Free Press welcomes thoughtful opin-ions. The views expressed in this newspaper are not necessarily those of the publisher or management of Jackson Free Press Inc.© Copyright 2012 Jackson Free Press Inc. All Rights Reserved

Recently, a radical minority of Republicans

has brought our entire concept of government

under fire.

And the

Winners of

the Oscars

Pick’em

Are …

First Place($100 Parlor Market)James Griffi n

Second Place($50 Fatsumo Sushi)James Parker

Third Place($25 Parker House)

Perry Allen

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

14

The JFP Interview:

Rep. Bennie Thompson Pulls Rank by R.L. Nave

Bennie G. Thompson has worked for the government his whole life. Born and raised in the small town of Bolton, located 20 miles west of Jackson, he worked as a high school civics teach-

er before becoming the first black mayor of his majority-black hometown where he still lives today. From there, Thompson joined the Hinds County Board of Supervisor where he served for 13 years when won a special elec-tion to fill then-U.S. Rep. Mike Espy’s seat in Congress in 1993. In that time, the Democratic Party to which Thompson belongs has been in the ma-jority for a total of six years. Still, eight terms and three presidential administrations later, Thompson, who served as chairman of the Homeland Security Committee the last time Democrats held power in the House, from 2007 to 2011, wants to return to Washington, D.C., for a ninth term. As a member of Congress, he sees his role as a conduit for grants and other kinds of sup-port, but he is frustrated that cities and coun-ties in his district don’t always take full advan-tage of federal cash. “I’ve run a city, and I’ve run a county. At the federal level, I know the resources to bring to areas if those areas choose to want them,” said 64-year-old Thompson. The congressman points to the Mississip-pi Delta, which comprises the largest portion of his district in terms of area, as a crushed by

what he characterizes as a full-throated effort by the region’s powerful white political and business establishment to keep Delta residents poor and uneducated to maintain a supply of dirt-cheap labor. Thompson names Greenville, the Delta’s largest city, as a symbol of that decline. Never-theless, he believes that other Delta cities such as Clarksdale and Cleveland are primed for economic growth. Coincidentally, Greenville just also hap-pens to be the city where Heather McTeer, his opponent in the March 13 Democratic pri-mary, served two terms as mayor. “Far as I can tell, my opponent’s a good person,” he said of McTeer, adding that he ap-peared in television commercials supporting McTeer during both her mayoral campaigns. The Jackson Free Press sat down with the congressman in his office in sleepy downtown Bolton to talk about his path to power, eco-nomic development in the 2nd Congressional District and Mississippi politics.

You used to teach high school? When I finished Tougaloo (College), I taught school for two years.

What did you teach? Social studies. I have a political science undergraduate degree and, basically, I became politically active my first year in teaching.

Why was that? Because that was the year a lot of the civ-

il-rights emphasis in Mississippi was in getting African Americans elected to public office. The municipal elections were in 1969, but in ‘68 I was teaching in Franklin County, Missis-sippi, and coming home on the weekends.

Was this a segregated school? Oh, yeah. The schools were technically were desegregated in Mississippi in January 1970. We had what was commonly referred to as a freedom of choice, but that was a joke. Black kids chose to go to some of the white schools, but very few white kids chose to go to the black schools, so that was a farce. It ulti-mately went to busing, and when busing came

along the growth of the segregated private schools started. I ran in 1969 for the board of aldermen here.

How old were you at the time? Twenty, and I turned 21 before I took of-fice. I served four years on the board of alder-men here, and that was part of our effort to try to work with the community. There were five aldermen. We thought taking three would give us a working majority then the mayor and town clerk would still be white. But it didn’t work out. Those four years, not much was done be-cause the mayor has veto power and it would

VIR

GIN

IA S

CH

REI

BER

Name: Bennie G. ThompsonAge: 64Born: Bolton, Miss.Residence: Bolton, Miss. Family: Wife, London Thompson; One daughter, BendaLonne; two grandchildrenEmployment: Teacher, Alderman and Mayor, Bolton Hinds County Supervisor, U.S. Representative (1993-present)Currently: Ranking Member, House Homeland Security Committee

VIR

GIN

IA S

CH

REI

BER

Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson talks about the role of men at Central United Methodist Church in Jackson.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

15THOMPSON, see page 16

take four votes to override the mayor. We passed motions to improve the water system here, the water system, to apply for housing grants an the mayor always vetoed everything and we could not get the fourth vote to over-ride. So four years later, we decided this wasn’t working out. So I ran for mayor at the com-munity’s suggestion.

Was Bolton predominantly African American at this point? It was always African American. It’s just that until we ran in ’69 they had never had an election. We forced them to have an election in this town. We could not find any records of elections being held. So I ran for mayor. From 1973 on, when I served as mayor we were able to get a new city hall, a new fire station. We upgraded our water and sewer system. We obtained firefighting equipment; we lowered our fire insurance rating—a lot of things that should have been done all along. The good thing is Bolton sparked the renais-sance of black people running for office in Hinds County because we were the first peo-ple to elect black people in the county.

Even before the city of Jackson? Long before the city of Jackson. We were the poster child for what an aggressive voter education and registration campaign could do. My being fairly young, I spent a lot of time talking all over the state about what communi-ties of color could do if they put their minds to it. To the extent I organized the Mississippi Conference of Black Mayors because we did not have a real forum to get our concerns heard . . . and to that organization’s credit, it’s still alive in 2012. We grew from about 10 mayors back then to pretty close to 100 now. And where they used to be concentrated in the Delta, now they’re all over the state. So that’s a credit to the black political participation. During that time, Sen. Henry Kirksey and I sued the Hinds County Board of Supervisors in 1971 to re-district Hinds County. At that time, Hinds County was about 40 percent African Ameri-can, but there were no blacks on the Board of Supervisors. We got a decision in the latter part of 1978 that said Hinds County has to re-district, you can’t run in districts that are mal-apportioned and deny African Americans the right to choose a supervisor of their choice. Well, when we got the court-ordered plan, this area was one of the majority African American seats on the board of supervisors. So I was asked to run in 1979, and I was fortu-nate enough to win. I served from 1980 until I was elected to Congress. So I’ve been a change agent for a while.

People who spent their careers doing civil rights often get pegged as angry, which is something I’ve heard about you—that you’re an angry black man with a chip on your shoulder. It’s all how it’s interpreted. I’m a proud black person. I take nothing for granted. My first school I attended in this town was called Bolton Colored School. I walked past Bolton School to get to Bolton Colored School. My mama and daddy worked, paid taxes, but their son had to attend an inferior school. That’s his-tory. I don’t ever want history to repeat itself.

To that extent, I have always been a champion of making our system of government work for everybody. If that’s perceived that I’m angry, then I’ll be angry. I’ve been married to the same woman 43 years. I’ve belonged to the same church in this little town all my life. I was a Boy Scout, a paperboy. The only thing is I became involved in the community. Now, if I was a white boy growing up doing that, I’d be a star. I wouldn’t be called angry. I wouldn’t be called having a chip on my shoulder. I’d be called somebody that’s going to go places. If you were to ask people what I’ve done to be considered angry, they couldn’t tell you. I have friends who are ordinary people. I hunt. I fish. I eat at Waffle House. You know what I’m saying? Because I don’t fit the mold of what the system wants of a person, why does that make me angry?

Do you feel like you have a bit of a right to be angry? No, I feel that I have a right in America to choose the route that I take. And that route is one of being a change agent, and many times the system acts negatively to change agents.

The big thing now for candidates of color is to run race-neutral cam-paigns. What do you make of that? In a perfect world, that’s fine. But in real-ity there are still some changes that need to be made. In our state, we’re debating issues like voter ID, which is a poll tax on steroids. We are dealing with an effort to destroy public education.

You mean charter schools? Yes, charter schools. We’re looking at a lot of things that cause me real concern. In a lot of instances, people still are struggling to be the best that they can be. I look at the banks in this community. The majority of them don’t have any person of color on their corporate boards of directors. We still have a lot of work to do, so why can’t a person talk about those issues when they run for public office? Why do I have to run a campaign that does not address them? Other people do, and that’s fine. Bennie Thompson prefers to run campaigns based on the truth.

You’ve been in public service your whole adult life. Given people’s at-titudes toward Congress nowadays, why do you want to come back for a ninth term? I’ve been able to work with a lot of com-munities in my district that need champions. When I talk to mayors and supervisors, they’re looking for an advocate. I’ve run a city, and I’ve run a county. At the federal level, I know the resources to bring to areas if those areas choose to want them. I don’t want to run a city or county anymore. I want to help those local officials. When those officials have come and identified problems to me, I’ve been Johnny-on-the-Spot. But I don’t have a magic wand. I didn’t inherit this district. This district was created long before Bennie Thompson was born but I do all I can to make it better. I support com-munity development projects, health projects.

KEN

YA H

UD

SON

PAT

TI D

RA

PALA

FILE

PH

OTO

WEI

NER

CA

MPA

IGN

MC

TEE

R C

AM

PAIG

NPU

BLIC

DO

MA

IN

GA

GE

SKID

MO

RE

GA

GE

SKID

MO

RE

PUBL

IC D

OM

AIN

GA

GE

SKID

MO

RE

FILE

PH

OTO

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

16

THOMPSON, from page 15

I was the only (Mississippi congressman) to vote for the Affordable Care Act that the presi-dent promoted. When NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) was proposed under Bill Clinton, I was the only person in our del-egation to vote against it because I knew what it would do for a substantial number of lower-

wage employees in our district and in our state. Fast forward, and I was absolutely correct.

Do you think NAFTA contributed to the decline of places like the Delta? Oh, ain’t no question. In just about every area in Mississippi, there was an apparel op-eration that afforded employment to people.

When NAFTA was passed, we lost 1,100 jobs in Greenville Mississippi. Fruit of the Loom had a major facility in Greenville. As soon as NAFTA passed, they closed it. Jockey was in Belzoni for over 30 years, and we had case after case of that. But the Delta was predicated on cheap labor, and a long time before mechanization came, people harvested crops by the sweat of their brow so you had a real need for a labor supply, and those elected officials discouraged any opportunities that would be a threat to that labor supply. (Then-Sen.) John Stennis was Armed Services (Committee) chairman when we located more military bases in this country than at any other time, but none of them were located in the Delta.

You’re saying there was a concerted effort to keep people in the Delta poor and uneducated? Oh, ain’t no question. That’s well-docu-mented. When you start representing a dis-trict that didn’t have the infrastructure to make a difference that is a challenge. A member of Congress is only one person. I can’t apply for the grants. I can encourage communities to do it, and if they do, I can do all I can to help them get it funded.

In other words, people are leaving too much money on the table. No question. That’s because there are still

some capacity issues in communities that are not really up on applying for the programs, managing the grants, and in return a lot of communities suffer. But if you look at every program that has been offered during my 18 years in office, anything that would alleviate pain and suffering, I supported it. So my job in Washington is to support good legislation. The other part of my job is to encourage peo-ple who are elected, appointed, or in respon-sible positions locally to take advantage.

Why don’t you just get on the phone to Mayor Whomever and say, ‘I’ve got this grant, and I need your ap-plication tomorrow.’? I do it all the time. Some do, some don’t. But most of the mayors, with the exception of a few, are part-time. They have limited bud-gets so they’re challenged also. It’s those local officials who tend to be the most aggressive are the ones whose communities reflect things happening. All the grants are competitive, but you have to apply.

So what’s it going to take? People talk about the Delta like it’s a Third World country. I say Third World as opposed to developing because the attitude is that there’s no developing going on. Years of neglect will generate many of the things you have. The only transit system in the

Democratic Congressman Bennie Thompson wants voters to give him a ninth term as U.S. Representative for Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District. Thompson, who lives in Bolton, faces former Greenville Mayor Heather McTeer, in the March 13 primary.

VIR

GIN

IA S

CH

REI

BER

Working with troubled teens at a wilderness therapy program in Utah not only

introduced Allison Meyer to her future husband John Bell, but it brought her a new occupation as well: restaurateur. Bell told Meyer on their first date that he was going to marry her, she agreed and a month later they were officially engaged and almost 4 months later, they have given birth to their first project together: Jaco’s Tacos. Jaco’s Tacos is Downtown Jackson’s newest restaurant and if you think you’re in for the standard Tex-Mex meal, think again. All of the items on Jaco’s innovative menu are not only handmade fresh daily, but they are melded from recipes that Bell experienced from his extensive travels to the Southwest. Start off your meal with the unlimited salsa bar, but make sure you save room for the homemade Guacamole Dip. Jaco’s guacamole is a refreshing, tropical dip made with fresh avocados, ripe tomatoes, jalapeños, onions, garlic, cilantro, and a hint of lime. Make sure you try the Shrimp Brochette, a large shrimp stuffed with fresh mango, jalapeños, and cheese, wrapped in pecan wood-smoked bacon. Jaco’s is taking pizza to a new level with their Mexican Pizza. A made-from-scratch flour tortilla is smothered in melted cheese, pico de gallo, beans, and your choice of grilled chicken, Mojave pork, steak, or shrimp. Add the toppings—jalapeños, onions, bacon, sour cream, and avocado—and you can say adios to your hunger pangs. Looking for something on the lighter side? Give one of Jaco’s fresh salads a try. Fresh salad greens with all of your veggies piled on with pecan wood-smoked bacon and your choice of chicken, pork, steak, or shrimp all mixed in with homemade dressing. If you’re a Tex-Mex traditionalist, give one of the many Quesadilla, Taco, or Burrito options a try. All the steaks Jaco uses are premium cuts and aged to perfection, and all of the meats are fresh, never frozen, seasoned in authentic homemade marinades.

If you feel the need to shake a tail feather on Fridays after a long work week, make your way to Jaco’s for live music every Friday night. Add some of the best margaritas in the city and your weekend is off to a caliente start!

PAID ADVERTISEMENT

Delta is a federally funded transit system in spots. We don’t have a state transit system so to a large extent, the lack of basic infrastructure compounds the problem. But again, those state and county leaders are the ones who are going to have to take advantage of the oppor-tunities to make things happen. And if those things are not a priority, they don’t get done. A member of Congress can suggest, urge, and highly recommend that communities take ad-vantage but at the end of the day, the decision rests with the leaders of those communities.

Are communities in the 2nd Con-gressional District unique in that, compared to the other districts in the state? They’re unique in the sense that the chal-lenges are greater.

Are we at the point where you could argue to a company look-ing to locate a business that they should come to the district as op-posed to somewhere? Or are there structural issues that need to be addressed first? There are places in the district that are more conducive to certain kinds of develop-ment. If a company is going to invest its mon-ey into an area, there are certain things that they look for. They look at how the schools are performing, the health care issue, the hous-

ing that may be available. They might want to know where there’s a symphony or where can my children get a pizza. Somebody might say I want to be close to a river or an interstate highway. There are a lot of variables, but it is public knowledge that when industry is coming that they are going to look for certain things. Just having a lot of people who need jobs is not going to guarantee you that industry is going to invest its money.

Where are those opportunities? Vicksburg, for instance. They have the river and a port. They have a major hospital, River Region Health Center. There’s available housing and an airport nearby. Canton is a community that is positioned to do great things. If you go further north into the district, Batesville is doing a good job. We worked with getting Lockheed Mar-tin located over here in Clinton in the old WorldCom building. Well, that’s 350 jobs. They looked at Jackson, Clinton and Vicks-burg. My role was to say whatever criteria you have, you can get a better fit in Mississippi than you can in any other state. They came back and said, “You’re right.” The GE plant that’s located in Batesville. They’ve been here for going on four years now, and they love it. So we’re able to start the process of attract-ing some Fortune 100 companies to the area.

Some of our communities are gonna have to understand the likelihood of getting an indus-try in your town might be more challenging than you can overcome, but you can still do the things to keep your community safe and sanitary.

You mentioned Canton, which is ex-periencing a lot of growth, especially in terms of its immigrant population. Mississippi is considering immigra-tion legislation similar to what Arizo-na and Alabama have done already. As ranking member of the Homeland Security Committee, which oversees the Department of Homeland Secu-rity, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, what do you think about states treading into im-migration matters? It’s strictly federal jurisdiction. We don’t have the resources at the state level to become the immigration cops.

But the argument is that the feder-al government isn’t deploying the necessary resources. Well, that’s what they say. The jurisdic-tion of my committee has border enforce-ment; Judiciary has interior enforcement. But Alabama just went through its effort of trying to be immigration cops, and it’s proven to be very embarrassing, including the fact that one

of the first people to be caught in that trap was one of the Mercedes-Benz executives. Plus, if you get a state person involved in a federal immigration case, that state person has to follow that case. I don’t believe we have the resources at the state level to start deploy-ing those resources for immigration purposes. Those state and local resources ought to be go-ing to catching burglars, robbers, murders and others committing state crimes. It’s just an effort by certain people in this state to single out immigrants for the wrong reasons.

Do you see this an extension of some of the earlier civil-rights fights you were involved in? It could be because if you look at the background on a lot of immigration challeng-es, most of the people who are in this country illegally are here for economic betterment rea-sons. They work hard at work that otherwise somebody may or may not do. (At) the cotton gin here in Bolton, 75 percent of the employ-ees are Latino. The migrant labor stream is alive and well and this state. If we all of a sudden close the doors to that stream with the threat of passing certain legislation, it’s going to have significant adverse impact in our state.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

17

THOMPSON, see page 19Join For Free!No Contract • 24/7 Access

Thank You for Voting Knockout Fitness & MMA One of the Best Martial Arts Studios in the Jackson Area

Monday - Thursday • 7:00pm - 8:00pmSaturday • 11:00am - 12:00pm205 Belle Meade BlvdFlowood, MS 39232

769-233-7901www.knockoutfi tnessmma.com

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

18

(Next door to McDades Market Extra)Mon. - Sat., 10 am - 9 pm • Maywood Mart Shopping Center 1220 E. Northside Dr. • 601-366-5676 • www.mcdadeswineandspirits.com

Always Drink Responsibly

Put A

On ItTwistTwist

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

19

THOMPSON, from page 17

You don’t think there are enough out-of-work American citizens in Bolton to fill those jobs at the cotton gin if the immigrants went away? I’ll put it to you like this—time will tell. The question is for the type of hours worked and the physical labor that’s required, you might or might not. But it’s a business and if a business is not able to get the labor supply it needs locally, who are we to tell that business who it can employ?

On related homeland-security note, you’ve spoken about domestic ter-rorism. How well are our home-land security agencies positioned to deal with things like the recent Ohio school shooting and last year’s inci-dent involving Rep. Gabby Giffords? There has not been a successful terrorist attempt coming from the outside. We’ve suc-cessfully sealed our borders so terrorists have been kept out since 9-11. What we do see is a growing escalation of what we call lone wolves. The gentleman who killed those individuals in Arizona and shot the Congresswoman, he acted on his own. There was no connection to any foreign or domestic terror organization. He’s just a crazy fellow. This young man who killed the three kids in Ohio, it looks like a combination bullying-mental situation, but he acted on his own. Sure, they’re dastardly deeds, but there’s no conspiracy. And I’m not sure we can protect every person in every situation but if some-body wakes up on a particular day and wants to do harm, and doesn’t mind getting caught, that’s a real challenge.

Lastly, do you know Mayor McTeer? I helped her get elected. I cut a commer-cial for her when she ran, both times.

How do you think she’s done in Greenville in terms of our discussion about progress in the Delta?

I’d say to you like this: The sheriff of Washington County is supporting me. The tax assessor is supporting me. The chancery clerk is supporting me. The clerk of the county is supporting me.

You’ve got a lot of money. What’s that got to do with it?

They have to run, too. Nobody wants to anger a powerful congressman. O.K., brother. Whatever you say. I knew them before they were elected. Just like Heath-er, I helped them get elected. I’ve never told them how to do their jobs but they respect me for being a straight up kind of guy. When I was elected, there wasn’t a single African American in Washington County government. Look at it now.

At some point you’re not going to want to be in Congress anymore. What does the future U.S. represen-tative for the 2nd District have to do, or be, to represent it effectively? You have to care about it. It can’t be a public-relations effort. You have to know individuals and communities. You have to listen to people. I don’t have all the answers, but I’m willing to go to the smallest areas in my state and listen to people. I have a staff that understands we’re here to serve the public. We don’t have voicemail on these phones. When you call here, you get a name. You talk to a person. And just like I made myself available on Sunday morning, I don’t know too many other people who would do that. This is my second meeting. I had one at 7 o’clock this morning. So when I don’t have the energy or the drive, I’ll know. But I’ve been a blessed individual. I’ve seen a lot, I’ve helped change a lot and, I make no bones about it, I want my state to be better. Comment and read other candidate inter-views at jfppolitics.com.

Mississippi’s 2nd District U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson grew up in Bolton, just west of Jackson. In 1969, he became the town’s first black mayor.

VIR

GIN

IA S

CH

REI

BER

Jesse GallagherGriff Howard

Lori Carpenter ScrogginsGinger RankinBrock Freeman

PAUL MITCHELL SIGNATURE SALONNOW CARRYING PAUL MITCHELL AWAPUHI

775 Lake Harbour Drive #H in Ridgeland 601.856.4330 | fax: 601.856.4505

Located in Highland Village, Suite 144 | Jackson MS 39211 601.981.1975 | www.earthwalkshoes.com| Like Us On 601.981.1975 | www.earthwalkshoes.com| Like Us On

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

20

into the colors of the season

Photographer: Virginia SchreiberFashion Stylist: Meredith W. SullivanHair/Makeup: Kate McNeely for Social Agenda (2947 Old Canton Road, 601-982-5547)Models: Kristen Lucas, Mark Bradshaw and Brittany Henderson for The Renee’ Agency (thereneeagency.com)Location: Old House Depot (639 Monroe St., 601-592-6200, oldhousedepot.com)

Kristen is wearing a turquoise dress ($46.95) and yellow teardrop earrings ($16.95) from Pink Bombshell, a fl oral ruffl e tank ($5) and an ivory Gap sweater ($14) from Plato’s Closet, a gray snake skinny belt ($5) from Orange Peel, and coral L.A.M.B. heels ($265) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces.

Mark is wearing a purple Express polo ($8) from Plato’s Closet, RVCA pants ($69) from Slavebird and red suede CONS ($40) from Swell-O-Phonic.

Brittany is wearing a yellow tuxedo blouse ($36.95) and a gold necklace ($24.95) from Pink Bombshell, a pink snake belt ($5) from Plato’s Closet, gray Poleci pants ($14) from Orange Peel, and Madeline green suede heels ($70) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces.

o O o 0 o o 0 O o O 0 o O o 0 o o

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

21

We’ll always love our

prints, but this spring is all about COLOR. You can go light

with pastels or bright with a pop of

color or, better yet, combine the two for a

tone-on-tone look.

Brittany is wearing a blue floral top ($6) from Plato’s Closet, Citizens of Humanity Mandy floral pants ($189) from Red Square Clothing Co., ivory teardrop earrings ($16.95) from Pink Bombshell and Jessica Simpson nude suede platforms ($115) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces.

Mark is wearing a Ben Sherman plaid shirt ($109) and Citizens of Humanity Sid jeans ($205) from Red Square Clothing Co. and Nike Zoom Stefan Janoski shoes ($95) from Swell-O-Phonic.

o O o 0 o o 0 O o O 0 o O o 0 o o

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

22

into the colors of the season

from page 21

Kristen is wearing Citizens of Humanity Chloe cut-off shorts ($168) from Red Square Clothing Co., a floral American Eagle blouse ($8) from Plato’s Closet, a denim shirt ($47.50) from Posh Boutique, and a plaid fedora ($24.95) and multicolored earrings ($16.95) from Pink Bombshell.

Mark is wearing a neon H&M shirt ($7), Madison shorts ($12), sunglasses ($5) and blue Adidas Climacool sneakers ($25) from Plato’s Closet.

o O o 0 o o 0 O o O 0 o O o 0 o o

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

23

Kristen is wearing a light pink bandeau top ($55) and gold Sheila necklace ($150) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces, a red floral maxi dress worn as a skirt ($12) from Orange Peel, a gold triangle necklace ($24.95) from Pink Bombshell, a snake print bangle ($14) from Plato’s Closet, and a blue-and-white scarf ($3) from Repeat Street.

o O o 0 o o 0 O o O 0 o O o 0 o o

0 o O o 0 o o From the Cover:

Brittany is wearing a gray T-shirt ($18.95), pink pleated skirt ($38.95), horn necklace ($24.95), Belle Noel gold ring ($18.95) and handbag ($36.95) from Pink Bombshell; a silk scarf ($3) from Re-Runs Consignment Shoppe; and combat boots ($60) from Posh Boutique.

Kristen is wearing a sheer striped tie top ($38.95), and peach-and-gold earrings ($18.95) from Pink Bombshell, Hudson Nico skinny jeans ($158) from Red Square Clothing Co., L.A.M.B. suede wedges ($345) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces, and sunglasses ($5) from Plato’s Closet.

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

24

into the colors of the season

from page 23

Brittany is wearing a coral BCBG dress ($20) and a feather necklace ($7) from Plato’s Closet; a leather vest ($48.50) from Posh Boutique; Coconuts wedges ($75) from The Shoe Bar at Pieces; a blue-and-silver bracelet ($12.95), a peach-and-gray woven bangle ($12.95) and a gold Belle Noel bracelet ($25.95) from Pink Bombshell.

Kristen is wearing a mint green blouse ($32.95), a gold necklace ($24.95), green and fuschia bracelets ($12.95 each), and a clutch ($32.95) from Pink Bombshell; a green Gap T-shirt ($7) from Orange Peel; light green J.Crew shorts ($10) and heels ($16) from Plato’s Closet; and glasses ($11.50) from Posh Boutique. The Missoni socks are the stylist’s own.

WHERE2SHOP O 0 o O o 0 o o

Orange Peel, 422 Mitchell Ave., 601-364-9977; Pink Bombshell, 1000 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite 5007, Ridgeland, 601-853-0775; Plato’s Closet, 1260 E. County Line Rd., Ridgeland, 601-487-8207; Posh Boutique, 4312 N. State St., 601-364-2244; Red Square Clothing Co., 1000 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite 9004, Ridgeland, 601-853-8960; Repeat Street, 626 Ridgewood Road, Ridgeland, 601-605-9393; Re-Runs Consignment Shoppe, 1645 W. Government Cove, Brandon, 601-824-3663; The Shoe Bar at Pieces, 425 Mitchell Ave., 601.939.5203; Slavebird, 2906 N. State St., Suite 103, 601-366-9955; Swell-O-Phonic, 2906 N. State St., Suite103, 601-366-9955

o O o 0 o o 0 O o O 0 o O o 0 o o

Highland Village | 4500 I 55 North, Suite 120 | 601-981-4311

fab fashion . fun gifts . fresh accessories

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

25

Best Jewelry Designer-Best of Jackson 2012-

West Jackson St. • Ridgeland, MS601-607-7741215 • bfineartjewelry.com

Find Your Pot of GoldSell us your gold and silver for a chance to win $100 cash!PLUS! with every purchase of $25 or more, your could win instant discounts, prizes or up to $100 in store credit!EVERYONE WINS SOMETHING!*All March Long*

5070 Parkway Drive

Jackson, MS

601.991.0500

Mon-Fri 9:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Sat 9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

FIND US ON FACEBOOK!

With so many items to choose from including tops, skirts, pants, dresses, jewelry and shoes, your spring wardrobe has never been so easy to put together.

JumpSpringJumpSpring

We also carry men’s and children’s clothing as well as home items. We receive new merchandise daily so check back frequently.

114MillsapsAve.•Jackson,MS39202•(601)355-7458Friday9:30-5:30&Saturday10:00-4:00

A fundraiser for

The Good Samaritan Center

MARCH TAG SALE

Olde Tyme Commissary

Come Play With Us.

Located in Highland Village

4500 I-55 North Suite 122 • Jackson MS 39211

601.366.1849 • www.commissarytoys.com

Our Eggs Don’t Crack!

Hand painted, personalized wooden eggsan Olde Tyme Commisary original since 1972

-Serving The Jackson Metro Area Since 1972-

OOOlde T

Don’t Crack!

-Serving The Jackson Metro Area Since 1972--Serving The Jackson Metro Area Since 1972-

Voted “Best Tailor”in Best of Jackson 2011 and 2012

FLOWOOD258 Dogwood Blvd. | Flowood, MS 39232Mon-Sat 9:00am-6:00pm | 601.992.1373

RIDGELAND1000 Highland Colony Parkway

Ste. 4004 Renaissance | Ridgeland, Ms 39157Mon-Fri 8:30am-6:00pm | Sat 8:30am-6:00pm

601-607-3443

www.customtailoringbyal.com

Ridgeland & Flowood

Voted the metro’s #1 consignment store in the Best of Jackson 2012.Voted state’s best consignment/resale by Mississippi Magazine.

Ridgeland Location: 626 Ridgewood Road | 601.605.9393REVOLUTION Starkville: 327A Hwy 12 West | 662.324.2641

Like Us on Facebook: Repeat Street Metro JacksonFollow Us on Twitter: @RepeatSt | www.repeatstreet.net

NEW SPRING ARRIVALS ARE HERE!422 Mitchell Ave. in Fondren 601.364.9977

Wear ORANGE into the store March 7-14

to get 10% off your total purchase

If you’re planning a wedding and don’t have the slightest clue about wedding do’s and don’ts, let the experts guide you for your important day. Here are the top-10

wedding etiquette rules no bride or groom should forget during the wedding process.

10. Send invitations to the appro-priate people. If you’re going to invite a friend or family member to the bridal shower or bachelor’s party, invite him or her to the wedding, too. “If not, you’re ba-sically saying: ‘Hey, come to this party. Give me a gift; but you’re not important enough to give a wedding invitation to,’” wedding planner Shanna Lumpkin says.

9. Make sure invitations and programs are properly written. “As far as correct spellings, that’s a given,” Lumpkin says. “If you’re inviting a coworker and you don’t have the wife’s name, get the correct spell-ing. Don’t just say ‘and family.’” Deborah Simmons, an accredited bridal consultant for Signature Occasions, says to always “send a personal, handwrit-ten thank-you note for a gift received.”

8. Take at least half a week off from work before your wedding. Weddings are a big deal and involve a lot of people’s time and effort to guarantee a memorable

day. The last thing you want is to be fa-tigued when greeting 50 or 100 guests at the reception. “The week of their wedding, (couples) don’t need to go to their jobs past Tuesday, so they won’t be stressed out,” suggests Wendy Putt, owner of Fresh Cut Catering and Floral in Flowood.

7. Don’t make your guests wait. If you’ve ever had to wait at someone else’s wedding, you can appreciate this tip. Five minutes can seem like 30 listening to the same organ tune repeat, and looking at a delicious buffet at the reception is nearly torture while guests wait for the bride and groom to have the fi rst bite. “When your guests arrive at the re-ception, food and alcohol—if there is al-cohol—should be available from the very beginning,” Lumpkin says. “… Then they don’t care if you take 30 to 45 minutes to take your pictures. But if they have to wait, that’s just rude.”

6. Choose a reasonable reception venue. It might be nice to have both the perfect wedding and reception venues, but if those areas are too far apart, the only one who will appreciate them after the drive is you. “A venue for the reception needs to be logistical to the ceremony site,” Putt says. “It needs to be accessible. You don’t need

to have a venue that’s 20 miles away from your reception site, because you’ll lose all the guests.”

5. Remember your wedding party’s budget when choosing wardrobes.Even if you’ve found the perfect set of bridesmaids’ dresses, consider your wedding party’s fi nances. “If you’re a younger bride, and all your friends are in college, take that into consideration when you’re picking out bridesmaids’ dresses or tuxedos,” Lumpkin says. “Another option is contributing $50 to make it a little more affordable, so you’re not making your bridesmaids pay $350 for a dress when they don’t have jobs because they’re all still in college.”

4. The reception is for celebrating; the wedding is a ceremony. It’s tempting to try to make your wedding ceremony even more memorable by letting loose a shout, or maybe the sheer excitement causes you to giggle with glee, but the wedding is symbolic of the rest of your life. “Save the fun and the-atrics for the reception,” Simmons says. “Re-member, a wedding is a sacred ceremony.”

3. Be prepared for children. If you’re inviting lots of friends and family to your wedding, chances are a few kids are going to come. “I’ve had a lot of people in the past

few years who say, ‘no kids,’ and I hate to burst their bubble, because sometimes it’s just not possible,” Lumpkin says. She sug-gests having a playroom with toys or video games to keep children entertained.

2. Stick to the schedule. Even though it’s your day, that doesn’t give you license to throw off a painstakingly prescheduled chunk of time. “The wedding party takes cues from you,” Lumpkin says. “Everyone’s going to try really hard to make everything OK,” but if you can’t stick to your schedule, don’t blame other people when things are running late.

1. Be considerate. “No one wants to deal with a bride or groom who is not nice,” Simmons says. Your wedding day should be one of jubilation, not anxiety because something didn’t go as planned. “Don’t forget each other,” Putt says. “That’s the main thing.” Being gracious to your guests and fam-ily will go a long way for both the bride and groom. As Lumpkin says, your wedding day “is kind of what you make it,” so make yours a joyful occasion.

by Byron WilkesWedding P’s and Q’s from the Experts

W

CO

URT

ESY

WEN

DY

PU

TT

Wendy Putt

AD

AM

+ ALLI

Shanna Lumpkin

CO

URT

ESY D

EBOR

AH

SIMM

ON

S

Deborah Simmons

Sharp-Dressed Men

FILE

PH

OTO

The ExpertsWendy Putt, owner

Fresh Cut Catering and Floral 108 Cypress Cove, Flowood,

601-939-4518

Deborah Simmons, accredited bridal consultant

Signature Occasions 209 Commerce Park Drive, Suite A,

Ridgeland, 601-952-1960

Shanna Lumpkin, ownerShanna Lumpkin Events

4500 Interstate 55, Suite 214601-953-1340

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

26

by Pamela Hosey

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

27

Photo byHull Portraits

Owner - Dani Mitchell Turk,

featured on the Food Network’s

Ultimate Recipe Showdown

4950 Old Canton Road Jackson, MS 39211

Phone: 601-991-2253

Cakes and Cupcakes

for ALL Occasions!

Weddings • Corporate Events • Holiday Parties • Tailgate • Business Lunches

1000’s of batteries for everything in the world…For All Your Battery Needs!

601.932.22504220 Lakeland Dr. Flowood, MS 39232

located at the intersection of Airport Rd. & Lakeland Dr.www.batteryworldonline.com

We now have battery packs for Dewalt, Milwaukee & Makita cordless tools.

Mention this ad for

10% offon any cell phone or camera battery. expires 3/21

GottaSwingHattiesburg.com

YourInstructor

Learn to

Swing Dance

398 Hwy. 51 • Ridgeland, MS(601) 853-3299 • www.villagebeads.com

398 Hwy. 51 • Ridgeland, MS(601) 853-3299 • www.villagebeads.com

Create Your Very Own Jewelry!

601-879-8189 124 Forest Park Rd., Flora, MS www.MSPetrifiedForest.com

National Natural Landmark

ES -O -TER - I -CA:A collection of items of a special, rare, novel or unusual

quality. We are Mississippi’s premiere source for metaphysical esoterica from nature.

Featuring:Natural Crystals

Specimens • Pendulums

Books • Wands • Moldavite

Jewelry & More

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

28

Tickets are $8 for adults and $4 for children and include admission into both homes. Tickets can be purchased Monday-Friday 8am-5pm from the City Hall

Visitors Center or the day of the tour from the Skipwith Cottage Visitors Center, located next door to City Hall. Tours depart from Skipwith Cottage.

Saturday, March 10 at 1pmSaturday, March 24 at 1pmSaturday, March 31 at 1pm

(Downtown Council Spring Open House)

Saturday, April 7 at 1pm

Saturday, April 21 at 11am (Ole Miss Red/Blue Game)

Friday, April 27 at 3pm (Double Decker Weekend)

Friday, May 11 at 3pm

For more information, contact the Oxford CVB at 662.232.2477.

Join guide and historian, Jack Mayfi eld for a historicdriving tour of Oxford and the University of

Mississippi on the famous Double Decker bus. Tour will also include stops at two historic homes: the L.Q.C. Lamar House and Cedar Oaks Mansion.

Tour Dates

oin guide and historian, Jack Mayfi eld for a historic

In a couple of weeks, Jacksonians will have an opportunity to participate in an inter-national art event: Cocoon Jackson. “Anyone can participate in construct-

ing the Cocoon,” says Kate Browne, an art-ist, writer and director who is bringing the project to Jackson. “The Cocoon is made almost entirely of local materials. It will be built by members of the community and is meant to refl ect the collective consciousness of the city’s residents.” Participants will build Cocoon Jackson, measuring 26 feet long by 10 feet high, in the Art Garden at the Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.) March 12 through 24, when it will open to the public. The project is part of a sculpture series that already has in-stallations in Cragsmoor, N.Y., Mexico City, and Greenwood, Miss. Inside the larger structure, individu-als will contribute their personal cocoons, Browne says. “These little cocoons are literal vessels for individuals’ hopes and dreams for the future and collectively, they serve to commemorate and record the hopes of the community at large,” she says. “I will also interview those who make little cocoons and record their hopes and wishes. The audio will play on loop as part of the Cocoon installation.” Browne, 51, grew up in rural Pennsylva-nia and graduated from Hampshire College in Massachusetts in 1978. She now lives and works in New York City with her husband, Eric Etheridge, and their daughter, Maud Etheridge.

Can you describe the work of a conceptual artist? A conceptual artist produces work with-out language. In other words, I work through structures and imagery so people can relate to it without the use of words.

What drew you to Jackson to build Cocoon? I am drawn to Jackson because of its rich history and its diversity of people.

Why is recording prayers important for the Cocoon experience? The Cocoon project is a representa-tion of multitudes of individual voices and expressions that, when gathered together, say something compelling and powerful about the community as a whole. These recordings are done anony-mously in a sound-proof place, compiled

and put into an audio loop. The power of the spoken word is inte-gral to the experience. Each vision is going to be different; people will say many differ-ent things. The audio compilation is a cho-rus that speaks to where we are today in the community of Jackson. My job is to bring as many people into the artwork as possible. It is not about my own conceptions of the place or of the com-munity; rather, the participants shape the experience and dictate its ultimate meaning.

How will the cocoons be introduced to the Jackson community? Individuals and groups in the area have begun constructing their own little co-

coons. During the weeks of March 12 through 24, the Cocoon will be constructed, assembled and il-luminated. The Cocoon Jackson pilgrimage, set for Friday, March 23, at 5:30 p.m., is a symbolic ac-knowledgement of the past, pres-ent and future of Jackson. Members of the community will process through downtown Jackson past sites of historical and personal importance. This procession is a shared ex-perience for all involved. Woven mats, made by participants in the days preceding, will be carried through downtown during the pro-cession, arriving ultimately in the Art Gar-den where Cocoon is installed. These mats cover the skeleton of the Cocoon and com-plete the structure. We are asking people to help design the

processional route by marking spots on a map that are important to them or to the history of Jackson. One such interactive map is on the wall of The Palette Café by Viking at the museum. The Cocoon skeleton will be in the Art Garden while close to 200 people come with the woven mats. Each individual in the procession wears a light around their neck. … The procession casts shadows on the streets and buildings important to us as a group. The power of light is important symbolically to illuminate the sites along the route, some of which may have had troubled histories. On Saturday, March 24, at 5:30 p.m., Cocoon Jackson will be illuminated at the

Mississippi Museum of Art, and the public will be invited to enter the completed installa-tion, encountering the collected little cocoons along with the recorded wishes and stories.

Elaborate on the psychological effects of “recovering a childlike state of wonder and surprise.” People participating in the physical construction have interesting experiences that are freeing and surprising. The pro-cess of constructing a little cocoon from

found objects or weaving mats as a co-hesive community carries a meaning that words alone cannot express. The agency of the individual is exercised through the construction or weaving or processing, and the processes are at the same time in service to a shared community goal. This connection of labor in service to a mutu-ally benefi cial end is strikingly powerful. It can be a healing process.

How did you develop the concept of cocoon sculptures? As a writer and director in the theater, I collaborated directly with an audience. Cocoon is created outdoors, and people participate in constructing their sculptures, building the Co-coon and offering their individual prayers and statements. I am fairly invisible. Each Cocoon is about the people in the community and what they want to do with the project. We reach out to different people to get ideas for the material used to build it. For example, in New York, Cocoon was built and shaped with interlocking circles that are shaped around gigs (hooks) with silver maple saplings while another New York location will use orange tubing. In Greenwood, willow was used for the Cocoon. Each large design is a 26-by-10-foot structure, including the frame or skel-eton, and is covered by a semi-transparent skin, but the materials are locally sourced and tied to the community in a very real way. People take their experience very se-riously. It has great meaning, and people who participate are very sincere. Different cultures react to it differ-ently. It’s what makes the entire process so interesting and compelling.

What do you want readers to know about you and your work? I think Jackson is really drawn to places with rich history and a diversity of people. My interest in Jackson comes from growing up in rural Pennsylvania and seeing the world the way I saw it growing up, combined with the elements I saw living in urban New York City. I think growing up in a rural setting is why I have an interest in outdoor work. Jackson is the largest city in a historically vast, rural state, and these characteristics of the place offer very interesting possibilities. In my experience, people will be surprised at the meaning and understanding they gain from participating in a project so uniquely tied to the history of consciousness of their community.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

29

FILM p 30 | 8 DAYS p 31 | MUSIC p 33 | SPORTS p 36

Project Cocoonby Sharon Dunten

AN

NE ET

HER

IDG

E

ERIC

ETH

ERID

GE

ERIC

ET

HER

IDG

E

Cocoon in Plaza de las Tres Culturas, Mexico City

Artist Kate Browne

“The Artist,” this year’s Academy Award winner for the really big awards of Best Picture, Direc-tor and Actor, started out as an

art-house offering. Quite understandably, its makers did not believe that a black-and-white silent film with a funny little dog would appeal to a mainstream audience. But the originality of the film, the quality of the performances and the brilliant mar-keting strategy of the Weinstein brothers caused this film to cross from a niche mar-ket to popular success. Art-house cinema exists because of those brave creative souls who seek to un-abashedly express themselves on celluloid or a digital medium. The typical restraints of big budgets and wanting to please every-one—granny to baby—aren’t issues when someone is following their passion and ful-filling a dream on a micro, if not nonexis-tent, budget. Beyond any expectations you may have, Jackson has an art-house cinema series. The Russell C. Davis Planetarium (201 E. Pascagoula St., 601-960-1550) screens fabulous films in the heart of down-town every Sunday, and the March line-up includes a medley of cinematic diversions: “Balibo,” directed by Robert Connolly, is based on a true story that didn’t reach the international community when it occurred in 1975, and it throws a powerful political punch against government cover-ups. The film depicts the last days of five Australian journalists—Greg Shackleton (Damon Gameau), Tony Stewart (Mark Winter), Gary Cunningham (Gyton Grantley), Bri-an Peters (Thomas Wright) and Malcolm Rennie (Nathan Phillips)—whom Indo-nesian forces murdered while they were re-porting on the impending invasion of East Timor. Roger East (Anthony LaPaglia), a former war correspondent turned freelance journalist, investigates their disappearance and uncovers violent atrocities by the In-donesian government and ugly inaction by the Australian government. “The Skin I Live In,” which was an official selection at the Cannes Film Fes-tival last year and stars Antonio Banderas and Elena Anaya, is an inventive melodra-matic cocktail that only someone with the chutzpah of Spanish director Pedro Almo-dovar would dare try. The movie shakes

up different parts of common Almodovar themes of betrayal, loneliness and sexual identity and adds a kick of sci-fi bordering on horror. The story, twisted and original, concerns Dr. Robert Ledgard (Banderas), an eminent plastic surgeon and university researcher who is literally molding a young woman named Vera (Anaya) into his dead wife’s image. The cuckoo doctor is a Fran-kenstein creator seeking to dominate wom-en and eliminate male interference because of his own tortured background. Everyone suffers, but there is a comic glee in the ex-cessiveness of the tragedy. The Bolshoi Ballet takes center stage in “Le Corsaire,” which was originally cho-reographed by Marius Petipa in 1899 and recently revived and refreshed by Alexei Ratmansky and Yury Burlak. The story involves battling pirates, girls sold into slavery and a love affair between Medora, a young Greek girl, and Conrad, a dashing pirate. However, the story is secondary to the exuberant showmanship and incredible talents of a world-class ballet company. Ac-cording to dance critic Sarah Crompton of The Daily Telegraph, Petipa created “this spectacle of largesse and refinement to al-low lots of lovely young women in short tutus to unfurl their legs in front of an audience of rich patrons. Its three acts run for (hours), … throwing in everything but the kitchen sink in its attempt to delight and titillate.” More than a hundred years later, “Le Corsaire” continues to enchant audiences with the timeless delight of long-legged lovelies running around half-clad. Opera and cinema converge in “La Boheme,” which pairs one of the most beloved operas of all times with exquisite vocalists—Fiorenza Cedolins as Mimi, Christopher Maltman as Marcello and Ramón Vargas as Rodolfo—performing at Barcelona’s Gran Teatre del Liceu Opera. The inspiration for the Broadway musical “Rent,” Puccini’s opera explores the frag-ile nature of happiness in a world of pov-erty, cold and disease. Within everyday life, stuffed with dreams and disappointments, Mimi and Rodolfo find love. And love is definitely something to sing about. For more information on what’s show-ing at Art House Cinema in Jackson, visit msfilm.org.

DIVERSIONS|film

Art-House Offerings by Anita Modak-Truran

The Academy Award-winning film “The Artist” began as an art-house movie.

CO

URT

ESY W

AR

NER

BROS.

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

30

A M A L C O T H E AT R ESouth of Walmart in Madison

ALL STADIUM SEATINGListings for Fri. Mar. 9- Thurs. Mar. 15 2012

GIFT CARDS AVAILABLE

Online Tickets, Birthday Parties, Group& Corporate Events @ www.malco.com

Movieline: 355-9311

DAILY BARGAINS UNTIL 6PM

3-D John CarterPG13

John Carter (non 3-D) PG13

Silent House R

A Thousand Words PG13

3-D Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax PG

Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax (non 3-D) PG

Project X R

The Artist PG13

Tyler Perry’s Good Deeds PG13

Act Of Valor R

Gone PG13

3-D Ghost Rider: Spirit OfVengeance PG13

This Means WarPG13

The Secret World Of Arrietty G

3-D Journey 2 PG

Journey 2(non 3-D)

PG

Safe House R

The Vow PG13

Chronicle PG13

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

31

WEDNESDAY 3/7 The National Cutting Horse Association Championships at the Kirk Fordice Equine Center (1200 Mississippi St.) run through March 16. Free; call 817-244-6188. … Cartoon-ist Marshall Ramsey speaks during History Is Lunch at noon at the Old Capitol Museum (100 S. State St.). Bring lunch; call 601-576-6998. … Jesse “Guitar” Smith is at Burgers and Blues. … Dreamz JXN hosts Wasted Wednesday. … The California Guitar Trio performs at 8 p.m. at Duling Hall. $15 in advance, $20 at the door; call 601-291-7121 or 800-745-3000. … West Restaurant and Lounge hosts the Wild and Out Wednesday Comedy Show at 8:45 p.m. $2. … The Med Grill hosts the Battle of the Bands at 9 p.m. … Dain Edwards is at Fenian’s. … Swing de Paris is at Underground 119.

THURSDAY 3/8 The art show for Liefje Hogg Smith is at 5 p.m. at Fischer Galleries. Free; call 601-291-9115. … The opening recep-tion for Tom Harmon’s art exhibit is from 5-7:30 p.m. at the Municipal Art Gallery (839 N. State St.). Free; call 601- 960-1582. … Kerry Thomas and M.L. perform during Centric Thursday at Dreamz JXN. … Jazz Beautiful with Pam Confer performs at the King Edward Hotel from 7-10:30 p.m. … The play “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” is at 7 p.m. at New Stage Theatre (1100 Carlisle St.); final show March 11 at 2 p.m. $10, $7 children 12 and under; call 601-948-3533. … Trans-Siberian Orchestra presents “Beethoven’s Last Night” at 7:30 p.m. at the Mississippi Coliseum. $31.50-$51.50; call 800-745-3000. … At Hal & Mal’s, the Thomas Jackson

Orchestra plays in the restaurant (free), and Rayland Baxter and T.B. Ledford & Friends perform in the Red Room at 7:30 p.m. ($10; call 601-291-7121). … The Mississippi Acad-emy of Ancient Music Concert is at 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral (305 E. Capitol St.). $20, $5 students; call 601-594-5584 for more details.

FRIDAY 3/9 The Home Show 2012 kicks off at 10 a.m. at the Missis-sippi Trade Mart (1207 Mississippi St.); runs through March 11. $7 general admission, $10 admission and cooking school; call 601-362-6501. … Luckenbach plays at Kathryn’s. … James Bailey and Carole Cantrell perform at Cerami’s. … The Mississippi Symphony Orchestra presents “Chamber III: Three Thrilling Ensembles” at 7:30 p.m. at the Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.). $15; call 601-960-1565. … … Josh Turner performs at 7:30 p.m. at MSU Riley Center (2200 Fifth St., Meridian). $68, $62; call 601-696-2200. … South Bound Traffic plays at Jaco’s Tacos. … Carolina Story is at Sam’s Lounge. … Martin’s has music from Juston Stens and the Get Real Gang with Sun Hotel. … Forever Friday is at 10 p.m. at Dreamz JXN with music from James Crow, K.T., J. Da Groova, Dre Rock and DJ Phingaprint. Call 601-454-8313; email 4everfriday601@gmail.com. … The Chad Wesley Band and Gemma Ray play at Ole Tavern.

SATURDAY 3/10 Bring your family to Zoo Day at 10 a.m. at the Jackson Zoo (2918 W. Capitol St.). $9, $8.20 seniors, $6 children ages 2-12, members and babies free; call 601-352-2580. … Lemuria Story Time at Lemuria Books (202 Banner Hall, 4465 Inter-state 55 N.) features Michael Rosen’s book “We’re Going On a Bear Hunt.” Free; call 601-366-7619. … Cerami’s has music from Ron Sennett at 6 p.m. … The Murrah High School Jazz Band performs at 6:30 p.m. at Murrah High School (1400 Murrah Drive). Free, donations welcome; call 601-937-1135. … Yarn and Wild Feathers play at 7:30 p.m. at Hal & Mal’s. $10; call 601-292-7121. … Seth Libbey and the Liberals are at Fenian’s. … Faze 4 performs at Reed Pierce’s.

SUNDAY 3/11 Andy Hardwick performs during Fitzgerald’s 11 a.m. brunch. … Art House Cinema Downtown at Russell C. Davis Planetarium (201 E. Pascagoula St.) features the films “Balibo” at 2 p.m. and “The Skin I Live In” at 5 p.m. $7 per film; visit msfilm.org. … Roosta Cool, Famlee Jewels and more perform during the Generation NXT Indie Concert Series at 6 p.m. at Dreamz JXN. … Author Katrina Byrd’s “Portrait of a Woman” reading is at 7 p.m. at Lumpkins BBQ. $20; call 601-813-4266.

MONDAY 3/12 Jeffrey Yentz’s “Mississippi … Another Perspective” art ex-hibit ends today at the Jackson Municipal Art Gallery (839 N. State St.). Free; call 601-960-1582. … Enjoy beer, burgers and bluegrass during Raise Your Pints’ He-Man Manly Night at 5 p.m. at Underground 119. $25 (includes commemora-tive glass); visit raiseyourpints.com.

TUESDAY 3/13 The recording of the Mississippi Happening podcast is at 7 p.m. at Pizza Shack, Colonial Mart (5046 Parkway Drive). Visit mississippihappening.com. … James Martin and Mary-ann Kyle perform during the Mississippi Opera cabaret “An Evening with Cole Porter” at 7:30 p.m. at Underground 119. $15, food for sale; call 601-960-2300.

WEDNESDAY 3/14 Political commentators Jere Nash and Andy Taggert talk about redistricting during History Is Lunch at noon at the Old Capitol Museum (100 S. State St.). Bring lunch; call 601-576-6998. … Philip’s on the Rez has karaoke with DJ Mike. … Cary Hudson is at Fenian’s.

More at jfpevents.com and jfp.ms/musicvenues.

BEST BETSMarch 7 - 14, 2012

CA

MIL

LE M

ON

KH

AU

S

by Latasha Willisevents@jacksonfreepress.com Fax: 601-510-9019Daily updates at jfpevents.com

BILL ELLISON

The California Guitar Trio performs at Duling Hall March 7 at 8 p.m. Jazz Beautiful with Pam Confer (Confer pictured) performs Thursdays from 7-10:30 p.m. at the King Edward Hotel.

JFP-SPONSORED EVENTSZippity Doo Dah Parade Weekend March 22-25, in Fondren. The Sweet Potato Queens headline the event that includes Arts, Eats and Beats March 22; a Big Hat Luncheon and music from Molly and the Ringwalds March 23; a children’s street carnival, parade and after-party March 24. Proceeds from fundraisers benefit Blair E. Batson Children’s Hospi-tal. Call 601-981-9606.

BOOM Fashion Show April 5, time TBA. BOOM and the JFP present the city’s hottest spring fashions to benefit Dress for Success Metro Jackson. Includes food and an after-party. Call 601-362-6121, ext. 23; visit boomfashionshow.com.

COMMUNITYEvents at Jackson Zoo (2918 W. Capitol St.). Call 601-352-2580.• Zoo Day March 10, 10 a.m. Enjoy arts and

crafts, games and face painting. $9, $8.20 seniors, $6 children ages 2-12, members and babies free.

• Critters and Crawlers March 10, 10 a.m. For toddlers ages 2-3. Prices vary; call ext. 241.

• Spring Zoo Camp March 12-16, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. For children ages 6-12. $35, $30 members for one class; $115, $105 members for four days.

• Zoo Connections Teacher Workshops March 12 (grades K-2) and March 14 (grades 3-5), 9 a.m. $15, $5 for 0.5 CEU credits optional; call ext. 241.

“History Is Lunch” March 7, noon, at Old Capitol Museum (100 S. State St.). Meet cartoonist Mar-shall Ramsey. Free; call 601-576-6998.

Zip39 CEO Forum March 8, 4 p.m., at Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens and Cannada (1020 Highland Colony Parkway, Ridgeland). Featured executives give insight on leadership. $30; call 601-605-2554.

Precinct 2 COPS Meeting March 8, 6 p.m., at Jackson Police Department, Precinct 2 (711 W. Capitol St.). These monthly forums are designed to help resolve community issues. Call 601-960-0002

Women’s Spring Basketball League Registration through March 9, at Jackson Medical Mall (350 W. Woodrow Wilson Ave.). Register at the Depart-ment of Parks and Recreation from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays. Games begin March 19. $325 per team; call 601-960-0471.

National Cutting Horse Association Eastern National Championships through March 16 at Kirk Fordice Equine Center (1207 Mississippi St.). Free; call 817-244-6188.

Community Shred Day March 9, 7:30 a.m., at Home Depot, North Jackson (6325 Interstate 55 N.). Limit of five bags each; no businesses. Free; call 601-359-3680.

Friday Forum March 9, 9 a.m., at Koinonia Cof-fee House (136 S. Adams St., Suite C). Mississippi NAACP president Derrick Johnson speaks. Free; email nmcnamee@greaterjacksonpartnership.com.

The Home Show 2012 March 9-11, at Mississippi Trade Mart (1200 Mississippi St.). Enjoy product showcases and workshops. Open March 9-10 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and March 11 from noon-4 p.m. The show includes the Taste of Home Cooking School March 10 from 6-8 p.m. $7, $10 admission and cooking school; call 601-362-6501.

Boxers Rebellion Fight Clinic March 9-11, at Mississippi Basketball and Athletics (2240 Westbrook Road). Boxers, kickboxers and mixed martial artists learn ways to sharpen their skills. The luncheon is March 9, and classes are March 10-11 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $125, $100 one day; visit boxersrebellion.org.

Jackson Audubon Society Spring Field Trip March 10, 7:45 a.m., at Turcotte Lab (Highway 43 S., Canton). Carpoolers depart to the Great Blue

Heron, Great Egret and Anhinga Rookery. WMA permit required ($5-$15) at any sporting goods store) except for seniors over 65 children under 16. Free; call 601-956-7444.

Laura Felts Missionary Society 100th Anniversary Celebration March 11, 3:30 p.m., at Pearl Street AME Church (2519 Robinson St.). The event also includes the 53rd annual Richard and Sarah Allen Tea. Free; call 601-979-1474 or 601-352-6087.

He-Man Manly Night March 12, 5 p.m., at Under-ground 119 (119 S. President St.). The fundraiser for Raise Your Pints is a “man-fest” of beer, burgers and bluegrass. $25; visit raiseyourpints.com.

W.I.N.E. (Women Inquiring, Networking and Engaging) Meeting March 12, 6:30 p.m., at the home of deborah Rae Wright (135 Grand Ave.). Attendees meet to discuss a chosen topic. Bring wine; RSVP. Email winejackson@gmail.com.

Community Empowerment and Awareness Month through March 30, at Northside Senior Center (104 E. Northside Drive). Enjoy an inspi-rational movie and popcorn Fridays from 6-8 p.m., and forums Saturdays at 9 a.m. Limited seating; RSVP. Free; call 601-960-2166.

Call for Scholarship Applicants through April 16, at Community Foundation of Greater Jackson (525 E. Capitol St., Suite 5B). Amounts per schol-arship range from $500-$3,200 and are based on merit and need. Apply by April 16. Visit cfgj.org for guidelines. Call 601-974-6044.

Call for Volunteers through April 30, at Jackson Inner-city Garden (Medgar Evers Blvd. and North-side Drive, behind the BP station). Help prepare the garden for spring planting Saturdays from 8-11 a.m. Email tre.roberts@jiggarden.org.

WELLNESSFitness Center, at Jackson Roadmap to Health Equity Project’s Farmers Market (2548 Livingston Road). Options include aerobics and Zumba classes, resistance training, and a children’s gym. Hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays until April 1, and 8 a.m.- 7 p.m. April 1-Nov. 30. Free; call 601-987-6783.

Zumba Classes, at Dance Unlimited Studio, Byram (6787 S. Siwell Road, Suite A, Byram). Classes are held weekly. Visit peurefun.com for class schedule information and directions. $5; call 601-209-7566.

Breast Cancer Conference March 10, 9 a.m., at Cabot Lodge Millsaps (2375 N. State St.). Rebirth Alliance hosts. $50 and up; call 601-966-7252.

The Dragon’s Way Weight Loss and Stress Man-agement Program March 13-April 18, at The Shepherd’s Staff Counseling Center (2508 Lakeland Drive). Space limited; registration required. $199; call 601-664-0455.

Two Dollar Tuesday Zumba Classes, at Richland Community Center (410 E. Harper St., Richland). Paula Eure leads the Latin-inspired dance classes. Visit peurefun.com for a schedule. $2; call 601-209-7566.

FARMERS MARKETSMississippi Farmers Market through Dec. 15, at Mississippi Farmers Market (929 High St.). Open 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays. Call 601-354-6573.

STAGE AND SCREENSky Shows, at Russell C. Davis Planetarium (201 E. Pascagoula St.). Options include “WSKY: Radio of the Stars” Saturdays at 1 p.m. and “Our Home in the Milky Way” Saturdays at 3 p.m. $5.50, $4.50 seniors, $3 children; call 601-960-1552.

“The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” March 8, 7 p.m., and March 11 at 2 p.m., at New Stage Theatre (1100 Carlisle St.). $10, $7 children 12 and under; call 601-948-3533.

Art House Cinema Downtown March 11, 2 p.m., at Russell C. Davis Planetarium (201 E. Pascagoula St.). See “Balibo” at 2 p.m. and “The Skin I Live In” at 5 p.m. $7 per film; visit msfilm.org.

MUSICArdenland Concert Series. Call 601-291-7121.• California Guitar Trio March 7, 8 p.m., at Dul-

ing Hall (622 Duling Ave.). The band consists of Paul Richards of Utah, Bert Lams of Belgium and Hideyo Moriya of Japan. For ages 18 and up. Enjoy cocktails before the show at 6:30 p.m. $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Tickets available through Ticketmaster.

• Rayland Baxter March 8, 7:30 p.m., at Hal & Mal’s (200 S. Commerce St.). The Nashville singer-songwriter is known for the songs “Willy’s Song” and “The Woman for Me.” T.B. Ledford and Friends also perform. $10.

• Yarn and Wild Feathers March 10, 7:30 p.m., at Hal & Mal’s (200 S. Commerce St.). Enjoy cocktails at 7:30 p.m. and the show at 9 p.m. Yarn is an alt-country band from Brooklyn, N.Y., and Wild Feathers, a folk band, is from Nashville. $10 at the door.

Mississippi Academy of Ancient Music Concert March 8, 7:30 p.m., at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral (305 E. Capitol Street). $20, $5 students; call 601-594-5584.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra: Beethoven’s Last Night March 8, 7:30 p.m., at Mississippi Coliseum (1207 Mississippi St.). $31.50-$51.50; call 800-745-3000.

Chamber III: Three Thrilling Ensembles March 9, 7:30 p.m., at Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.). The Mississippi Symphony Orchestra’s quintets perform. $15; call 601-960-1565.

Mississippi Happening March 13, 7 p.m., at Pizza Shack, Colonial Mart (5046 Parkway Drive, Suite 6). Guests include Kate Browne, The Swamp Babies and Nathan Harper. Call 601-497-7454.

“An Evening With Cole Porter” Cabaret March 13, 7:30 p.m., at Underground 119 (119 S. President St.). James Martin and Maryann Kyle perform. $15, food for sale; call 601-960-2300.

LITERARY AND SIGNINGSEvents at Lemuria Books (202 Banner Hall, 4465 Interstate 55 N.). Call 601-366-7619.• “The Healing” March 7, 5 p.m. Jonathan O’Dell

signs books; reading at 5:30 p.m. $26 book.• “Glory Be” March 8, 4 p.m. Augusta Scattergood

signs books. $16.99 book.• Lemuria Story Time March 10, 11 a.m. Free.• “A Good American” March 14, 5 p.m. Alex

George signs; reading at 5:30 p.m. $25.95 book.

“Portrait of a Woman” Reading March 11, 7 p.m., at Lumpkins BBQ (182 Raymond Road). Author Katrina Byrd reads her collection of writings. Din-ner served. $20; call 601-813-4266.

Weekly Storytime, at Campbell’s Bakery (3013 N. State St.) Wednesdays from 4:30-5 p.m. Volunteers and books welcome. Free; call 601-362-4628.

CREATIVE CLASSESEvents at Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St.). Call 601-960-1515.• Little Cocoon Workshops March 10, 10 a.m.,

and March 14, 3:30 p.m. Make sculptures for the Cocoon Jackson exhibit. Free.

• Flower Bulb Lecture and Workshop March 14, 10:30 a.m. $75.

Events at Southern Cultural Heritage Center (1302 Adams St., Vicksburg). Call 601-631-2997.• Ballroom Dance Lessons March 11, 5 p.m.

James Frechette, owner of Applause Dance Fac-tory, teaches the Fox Trot and the Country Two-step in the Academy Building. $10.

• Memoir Writing Workshop March 12-13, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Irene Graham teaches the class at Cobb House. $345, $330 members.

EXHIBITS AND OPENINGSEvents at Jackson Municipal Art Gallery (839 N. State St.). Hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays. Free; call 601-960-1582.• “Mississippi … Another Perspective” through

March 12. See Jeffery Yentz’s works in ink. A por-tion of the proceeds from sales benefits the Bower Center for the Arts and the gallery.

• Tom Harmon Art Exhibit through April 30. See watercolor and oil paintings. The opening recep-tion is March 8 from 5-7:30 p.m.

• Mississippi Celebrates Architecture Exhibit through May 1. The exhibit features works from members of AIA Mississippi and student architects.

Liefje Hogg Smith Art Show March 8, 5 p.m., at Fischer Galleries (3100 N. State St., Suite 101). See the artist’s oil paintings. Free; call 601-291-9115.

Call for Papers through March 9, at Jackson State University (1400 John R. Lynch St.). The Margaret Walker Center seeks proposals for the Creative Arts Festival April 13-14. Proposals should be 250-500 words, and categories include poetry and spoken word, visual arts, writing and performing arts. Call 601-979-2055.

FIGMENT Art Festival Call for Entries. The Greater Jackson Arts Council seeks artists and volunteers for FIGMENT, a free interactive arts event, April 28-29 at North Midtown Arts Center (121 Millsaps Ave.) and throughout the Millsaps Arts District. The deadline for submissions is March 30. Free; call 601-874-7993.

Knife Show and Hammer-in March 10-11, at Mississippi Craft Center (950 Rice Road, Ridgeland). See an exhibit of knives. Jason Knight gives a forging demonstration. $8, children 12 and under, military and police free; $50 demonstration; call 601-892-1867 or 601-720-7342.

jfpevents

Pure Give March 10, 11 a.m., at Pure Barre (Highland Village, 4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 235-A, and 201 Northlake Ave., Ridgeland. Proceeds from the exercise class benefit Community Animal Rescue and Adoption (CARA) at the Jackson location and the Mississippi Diabetes Foundation at the Ridgeland location. Participants receive a free class gift card. Donations welcome (cash or check only); call 769-251-0486 or 601-707-7410.

Parent/Guardian Education Advocacy Training March 10, 11 a.m., at Lumpkins BBQ (182 Ray-mond Road). The topic is “State of Emergency: Mentoring Our Youth.” Lunch provided. RSVP. Free; call 877-892-2577 or 601-862-4772.

Walk Against Fear 2012 March 11-April 7. The civil-rights march for immigrants begins at the Nation-al Civil Rights Museum (450 Mulberry St., Memphis) and ends at the Mississippi State Capitol (400 High St.). Workshops included. Email walk.against.fear.2012@gmail.com.

BE THE CHANGE

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

32

Check jfpevents.com for updates and more listings. To add an event, email all details (phone number, start and end date, and time, street address, cost, URL, etc.) to events@jacksonfreepress.com or fax to 601-510-9019. The deadline is noon the Thursday prior to the week of publication. Or add the event online yourself; check out jfpevents.com for instructions.

Opera Lets Its Hair Downby Briana Robinson

On March 13, Mississippi Opera’s Opera Under-ground series presents Maryann Kyle and James Martin in an Evening with Cole Porter. Kyle and Martin will sing some standard favorites from the

renowned songwriter Cole Porter as well as some of his less-er-known songs. “Night and Day,” “It’s the Lovely” and “In the Still of the Night” are just a few examples.

James Martin is a vocal professor at Millsaps College, and Maryann Kyle is a vocal professor at the University of Southern Mississippi. Both perform with the Mississippi Vocal Arts Ensemble and have active opera and cabaret performance careers. The Opera Underground series, Martin says, is meant to help performers reach a broader audience and “also to show that we don’t just sing with big orchestras on big stages. It’s kind of nice to have an opportunity to let our hair down.” “It’s a really successful experiment as a way of pro-viding more contemporary and intimate performances for people who enjoy great music,” Martin says about the Opera Underground series. “We’re doing opera arias and mixing them with the American songbook standards.” The last installment of Opera Underground this sea-son will be “Great Broads of Broadway” with Lester Senter on May 8. Senter is a renowned mezzo-soprano vocalist who has performed in more than 60 roles across the coun-try and abroad. In 2001, the Mississippi Arts Commission presented her with the Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. Mississippi Opera will also present “The Elixir of Love,” an Italian opera, on April 21 at Thalia Mara Hall. The Opera Underground series is at Underground 119 (119 S. President St.) at 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Admission costs $15 with food for sale. Call 601-960-2300, or visit msopera.org for more information and to buy tickets.

I first heard the Trans-Siberian Orchestra a few years ago, when one of its songs was set to strobing Christmas lights in a beer commercial (which I thought was rather

cool). TSO has made several stops in Mis-sissippi, and I can’t believe that I have never gone to see them or have any of their records. To tell the truth, I’ve never been prop-erly introduced to the band and, because a Saenger Theater production of The Who’s “Tommy” in 1996 was the only rock opera I had ever witnessed (and loved!), I was some-what skeptical. I thought it would be some corporate rock band with old fogies trying to play classical music. I was wrong. Since rock composer and lyricist Paul O’Neill formed TSO in 1996, it has sold more than eight million copies of its first five rock operas, which include “Christ-mas Eve and Other Stories” (1996), “The Christmas Attic” (1998) and “The Lost Christmas Eve” (2004). “Night Castle” (2009) was TSO’s first double album; it debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart, and the Recording Industry Asso-ciation of America certified it gold within eight weeks of its release.

Another gold album, “Beethoven’s Last Night” (2000), was TSO’s first non-holiday release. It features classic works by Beethoven and Mozart as well as several originals. In its 15 years of performing, this band has become one of the world’s top touring acts, playing to more than nine million people in cities all over the world and selling more than $334 million worth of tickets. TSO is an act that both older

and younger audiences can enjoy, infus-ing up-and-coming new talent with well-respected music and musicians who have honed their craft for years. The Trans-Siberian Orchestra will per-form “Beethoven’s Last Night” for only one tour date in Jackson on Thursday, March 8, at the Mississippi Coliseum (1207 Missis-sippi St., 601-961-4000) before heading to the studio to focus on a new album and live concert. For tickets ($31.50 to $51.50), visit ticketmaster.com. Another great band coming to the capi-tal city is the California Guitar Trio, set to play at Duling Hall (622 Duling Ave., 601-941-1432) Wednesday, March 7. The band is comprised of Paul Richards of Salt Lake City, Bert Lams of Belgium and Hideyo Moriya of Japan. The California Guitar Trio recently cel-ebrated 20 years of picking and grinning to-gether. They met in England while studying with legendary King Crimson guitarist Rob-ert Fripp. After touring with Fripp’s League of Crafty Guitarists, the three musicians re-connected in Los Angeles and formed the California Guitar Trio in 1991.

Astronauts used CGT’s music as a wake-up call on the space shuttle Endeavor, and major news networks around the world have featured the band. In 2010, CGT released its album “Andromeda” on Inner Knot Records. “Andromeda” features such musical greats as Tony Levin, Julie Slick, Eric Slick, Tom Griesgraber and Tyler Trotter. The band has had the distinct honor of playing with acts such as Leftover Salmon, King Crimson, Tito Puente and Taj Mahal. The trio released its latest album, “Mas-terworks,” in 2011. CGT’s blend of Euro-pean classical music, bluegrass, rock, blues, jazz and surf rock (just to scratch the surface) has made it one of the music industry’s best-kept secrets. Tickets are $15 and are available at ticketmaster.com or can be purchased for $20 at the door. Both of these shows are must-sees, as is all the awesome local music our city has to offer. Please clear your calendars, and make it a point to hear great music this week. You have plenty to choose from. Have a good one, and if you see me out and about, please say hello!

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

33

DIVERSIONS|music

Rockin’ Guitarsby Natalie Long

Natalie’sNotes

CO

URT

ESY T

RA

NS-SIBER

IAN

OR

CH

ESTR

A

PER

FOR

MIN

G A

RTS

ENC

YC

LOPE

DIA

James Martin and Maryann Kyle will perform a number of hit songs from composer and songwriter Cole Porter as part of the Opera Underground series.

The Trans-Siberian Orchestra will perform “Beethoven’s Last Night” March 8 at the Mississippi Coliseum.

Diana’s Friendship Playlistby Briana Robinson

M

CO

URT

ESY A

STR

ALW

ERK

S

Hot Chip’s “We Have Love” is just one of the songs that both Diana and I love.

MARCH 7 - WEDNESDAY

MARCH 8 - THURSDAY

MARCH 9 - FRIDAY

MARCH 10 - SATURDAY

MARCH 11 - SUNDAY

MARCH 12 - MONDAY

MARCH 13 - TUESDAY

MARCH 14 - WEDNESDAY

livemusicM

arch

7 -

13, 2

012

34

THIS WEEK

Monday - Friday Blue Plate Lunch

with corn bread and tea or coffee

$825

As well as the usual favorites!Seafood Gumbo, Red Beans and Rice, Burgers, Fried Pickles, Onion Rings and

Homemade Soups made daily.Fridays: Catfi sh Plates are $9.75

$4.00 Happy Hour Well Drinks!

601.948.0888200 S. Commerce St. | Downtown Jackson, Mississippi

MAL’S

ST. PADDY’S PARADE

Jackson’s biggest party of the year happens in downtown Jackson!

Coming Soon

WEDNESDAY 3/7Singer/Songwriter Nightwith Natalie Long (DR)

THURSDAY 3/8Thomas Jackson (DR)Rayland Baxter (RR)

FRIDAY 3/9Deadstring Brother (DR)

SATURDAY 3/10Jon Clark (DR)

YARN w/ Wild Feather (RR)TUESDAY3/13

PUB QUIZ w/ Erin & friends

(restaurant)

FRI 3.16: Marching MALfunction & Second Line Stompstart and end at Hal and Mal’s! The Lucky Hand Blues Band and The Rumprollers directly after the night march.WOOD in the Red Room

SAT 3:17

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

35

6791 Siwell Rd. Byram, MS • 601.376.0777www.reedpierces.com

Follow us on Facebook

Faze 4March 11 | 9:00pm

• Live MusicEvery Friday & Saturday Night

NO COVER CHARGE!

• $3 Bloody Mary’s & MimosasEvery Saturday & Sunday until 6pm

The Glitter Boys

March 10 | 9:00pm

WEDNESDAY 03/07

LIVE KARAOKE

LADIESNIGHTGUYS PAY $5, LADIES ENTER & DRINK

FREE CATHEAD VODKA 9-10PM

FRIDAY 03/09

Juston Stens

(Former Dr. Dog)& The Get Real Gang

with Sun HotelSATURDAY 03/10

BANNER

FAIR

Don’t Forget To Stop By Our

MID DAY CAFEServing Lunch 11-2!

ALL SHOWS 10PMUNLESS NOTED

LIVE MUSICCALENDAR

214 S. STATE ST. • 601.354.9712DOWNTOWN JACKSON

WWW.MARTINSLOUNGE.NET119 S. President Street

601.352.2322www.Underground119.com

NOW OPEN ON TUESDAYSWednesday,March 7th

SWING DE PARIS

(Jazz) 8-11, No Cover

Thursday, March 8thANDY HARDWICK TRIO

(Jazz) 8-11, No Cover

Friday, March 9th BIG AL & THE

HEAVYWEIGHTS(Blues) 9-1, $5 Cover before 8:30

$10 Cover after 8:30

Saturday, March 10thBILL PERRY TRIO

(Jazz) 9-1, $5 Cover before 8:30$10 Cover after 8:30

Monday, March 12thHE-MAN MANLY NIGHTBeer, Burgers and BluegrassTips Go To Raise Your Pints

(Bluegrass) 5-10, $25 Cover

Tuesday, March 13thOPERA UNDERGROUND

(Opera) 6-11, $15 Cover

Wednesday,March 14thBEN PAYTON

(Blues) 8-11, No Cover

Thursday, March 15thLISA MILLS

(Blues) 8-11, No Cover

Friday, March 16thGRADY CHAMPION

(Blues) 9-1, $5 Cover before 8:30$10 Cover after 8:30

Saturday, March 17thGRADY CHAMPION

(Blues) 9-1, $5 Cover before 8:30$10 Cover after 8:30

Open for dinner Sat. 4-10pm

Open Mon-Sat, Restaurant open Mon-Fri

11am-10pm & Sat 4-10pm

FREE WiFi

Weekly Lunch Specials

Tuesday March 13

Thursday March 8

LADIES NIGHT w/ DJ Stache

LADIES ENTER & DRINK FREEWELLS & PONIES 9PM-2AM

Monday March 12

Wednesday March 14

KARAOKEw/ DJ STACHE

Friday March 9

2-for-1 Beer SpecialsHighlife, Highlife Lite,

PBR, Schlitz, Fatty Natty

601-960-2700facebook.com/Ole Tavern

sponsored bysponsored by

Saturday March 10

PUB QUIZ2-for-1 Drafts

Naked Godswith

Viva Viva

$9.99

Chad WesleyBand

withGemma Ray

XxxxFire up your computer and start doing research. It is time to fill out your NCAA brackets and win your office pool.

T

Mar

ch 7

- M

arch

13,

201

2

36

Saints Dig a Hole

THURSDAY, MARCH 8 College basketball (noon-2 p.m. CBSSN): In its first C-USA Tournament game, Southern Miss faces the winner of the Rice/East Carolina game. … College basketball (6:30-11 p.m. CBS): SEC Tour-nament live from New Orleans ends the day with Ole Miss facing Auburn starting at 6:30 p.m. Mississippi State versus Georgia follows 30 minutes after.

FRIDAY, MARCH 9 College basketball (6:30-11 p.m. CBS): SEC Tournament quarterfinals could feature Ole Miss against Tennessee and Mississippi State against Vanderbilt, if both state schools win Thursday.

SATURDAY, MARCH 10 College basketball (noon-4 p.m. ABC): The SEC Tournament semifinals could feature Ole Miss against Mississippi State for a third time this season.

SUNDAY, MARCH 11 College basketball (5-6 p.m. CBS): Find out where your favorite team is going in

the NCAA Basketball Selection Show. … Documentary (8-9:30 p.m. ESPN) “The Announcement” by ESPN Films tells the story of Magic Johnson’s announcement to the world that he has AIDS and about his life afterward.

MONDAY, MARCH 12 College basketball (6-7 p.m. ESPN): Get the lowdown on the Women’s NCAA Tournament with the selection show for the ladies.

TUESDAY, MARCH 13 College basketball (6:30-11 p.m. TruTV): The first round of the NCAA Tournament features two games live from Dayton, Ohio.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14 College basketball (6:30-11 p.m. TruTV): The first round of the NCAA Tournament wraps up with two more live games from Dayton, Ohio.

by Bryan Flynn

Follow Bryan Flynn at jfpsports.com, @jfpsports and at facebook.com/jfpsports.

Bryan’s Rant

Founding Chapter, Parents for Public Schools, 1989200 N. Congress, Suite 500, Jackson, MS 39201

www.ppsjackson.org

Join us. For our city. For our children.For our future.

Public schools do more than educatechildren. They measure a city’s pride. They refl ect community. They predict the social and economic well-being of a city’s future.For 20 years, Parents for Public Schools of Jackson has worked to keep our public schools strong, to empower parents as leaders for positive change, and to engagecommunity support of our public schools.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

371060 E County Line Rd. in Ridgeland

Open Sun-Thurs 11am-10pmFri-Sat 11am-Midnight | 601-899-0038

live musicfebruary 15 - 21

New Blue Plate Special

$8.991 Meat, 3 Veggies, Bread and Drink

wed | mar 07Jessie “Guitar“ Smith

5:30-9:30p

thu | mar 08Blake Pierce5:30-9:30p

fri | mar 09Chris Gill & Soul Shakers

6:30-10:30p

sat | mar 10GreenFish

6:30-10:30p

sun | mar 11Shaun Patterson

3:00 - 7:00p

mon | mar 12Karaoke

tue | mar 13Jesse “Guitar” Smith

5:30-9:30p

$10 Daily Lunch Specials Happy Hour Everyday 4p-7p

Late Night Happy Hour Sun - Thur, 10p - 12aDaily Lunch Specials •March 5 - 9

Includes: Dessert, Iced Tea, & tax. Take Out Orders are welcomed.

Mon | Shrimp Etouffee or Meatloaf PieTue | Peppersteak over Rice or

Shrimp ScampiWed | Smoked Pork Loin or

Country Fried Steak

Thu | Ham & Asparagus Lasagna orChicken & Bowtie Pasta

Fri | Catfi sh Parmesan or Beef Brisket

601.978.18396270 Old Canton Rd. Jackson, MS 39211

601-362-63881410 Old Square Road • Jackson

March 10Open Road Show 9:00pm | $5.00 Cover

-Best Of Jackson 2012- 1st: Best Hangover Food in Jackson

2nd: Best Place to Shoot Pool & Best Place to Drink Cheap3rd: Best Dive Bar • Good Showing: Best Plate Lunch,

Best Red Beans & Rice, & Best Jukebox

Wednesday - March 7ROCK KARAOKE

Thursday - March 8Ladies Night: Ladies Drink Free

Fri & Sat - March 9 & 10

Backroads

Sunday - March 119 Ball Tournament

7:00 pm

after St. Paddy’s Day ParadeCrawfish Boil

Free Crawfish601-961-4747

www.myspace.com/popsaroundthecorner

VOTED BEST SPORTS BARAND BEST JUKEBOX!

- BEST OF JACKSON 2011 -

LUNCH SPECIALS

EVERY DAYstarting at $7.95

MARCH MADNESS & SEC HQ!

20 FLAT SCREEN TVS

WED. MARCH 7LADIES NIGHT

& KARAOKE

THUR. MARCH 8BUDWEISER

GAME NIGHTPRIZES & SWAG

FRI. MARCH 9NBA BASKETBALLBEER BUCKET SPECIAL

+ 1/2 OFF BLOODY MARYS

SAT. MARCH 10BRIAN JONES

SUN. MARCH 11$5 SHOTS

MON. MARCH 12IN-DA-BIZ NITE2-FOR-1 SPECIAL

TUES. MARCH 13JACKPOT TRIVIA

Scan this code or textEATWITHUS to 601-707-9733

for the deal of the week

824 S. State St. Jackson, MSwww.clubmagoos.com

- Wednesday - Open Mic Night

- Thursday Night: Ladies Night with DJ Venom

-Karaoke in The Jazz Bar(Thu - Sat)

- Happy Hour in The Jazz BarTuesday - Friday 4-7pm

2 -4 -1 Wells, Calls, & Domestics,PLUS $5 appetizers

To book a private party please call

601-487-8710

DVDJ ReignFriday, March 9

Gas Station DiscoSaturday, March 10

Bourbon St.in the Quarter(Formely Poets)

1855 Lakeland Drive Jackson, MS

601.987.0808

March 9: Colonels9pm, $5 Cover

March 10: Colonels9pm, $5 Cover

Happy Hour2 for 1 EVERYTHING at the BARMon - Sat | 4:00pm - 7:00pmTuesday: Taco Tuesday with Jason Turner$5 All You Can Eat Taco Bar During Happy Houralso Doug Frank & Chris Gill 8pm $5 Cover

Every Wednesday: Karaoke | 7:00pm$1 Drafts | $2 Margaritas

Every Thursday:Ladies Night& Men are Pigs Nightfeaturing SnazzLadies Get In FreeLadies Win Prizes$2.50 Coors Light Bottle

Grab ya beads and come on out!

1428 Old Square Road in Jackson601.713.2700 lastcallsportsgrill.com

Gastronomes across the country, especially those with a penchant for Creole cuisine, know the name John Besh. The man has cemented himself as a pillar of the New Orleans restaurant world,

and as an advocate for young chefs and Gulf Coast seafood conservation. His restaurant empire spans from Restaurant August in the Central Business District to La Provence on Lake Pontchartrain’s North Shore and now to San Antonio with an outpost of his Brasserie Lüke. Beyond owning and operating restaurants, Besh has also appeared as a “Top Chef” judge and a “Top Chef Masters” contestant. More than 200 public-television stations around the country air his cooking show, “My New Orleans.” Besh released his second cookbook, “My Family Ta-ble: A Passionate Plea for Home Cooking” (Andrews Mc-Meel Publishing, 2011, $35), in November. This volume begins with a plea for families to shun salt- and sugar-laden packaged foods, to ignore manufactured convenience and to “cook real food instead.” It’s an admirable mission, and Besh even takes pot shots at food fanatics who “fetishize celebrity chefs” and ignore their own kitchen. From the start, “My Family Table” is a stark departure from Besh’s fi rst cookbook, “My New Orleans” (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2009, $45). In it, Besh paid homage to his hometown and its rich culinary tradition. “My Fam-ily Table” respects that tradition, but it attempts to sim-plify and streamline the fl avors while incorporating more of what makes up modern New Orleans cuisine. This modern approach is evident in the section titled “The Essential Pantry,” which gives equal billing to ha-rissa, hoisin sauce, sambal and rice wine vinegar as it does to familiar ingredients such as grits, pasta, Arborio rice and olive oil. Hoping to entice busy families to cook on weeknights rather than order pizza, Besh has a two-part system. The fi rst step comes to life in the chapter “Sunday Supper.” With families typically having more time in the kitchen on a Sunday afternoon, the idea is to cook large cuts of meat

such as slow-roasted pork shoulder, herb-roasted chicken and slow-cooked beef chuck roast. With the exception of the chicken, most of these recipes require little prep work and are far from fussy. I exclude the chicken because, re-gardless of the seasoning, without fastidious attention to the temperature of the meat, things can go from juicy and succulent to stringy and dry in a fl ash. That being said, Besh’s herb-roasted chicken recipe is easy to prepare and a solid contender for the Sunday dinner table. I found another stumbling block in the “Sunday Sup-per” section: the slow-cooked beef chuck roast. In this

recipe, the cook takes a 5-pound chuck roast, seasons and sears the meat, and then roasts it on a bed of vegetables in a low oven for one hour and 15 minutes or until it is a rosy medium rare at 125 degrees. While this procedure would work beautifully with a tender cut like prime rib, it falls fl at with chuck. Even with the lightly marbled, grass-fed Cha-rolais beef that Besh recommends in the book, the results will be pretty, but little more than a chewy hunk of meat over a bed of undercooked vegetables. Disastrous as the chuck roast may be in its original form, beef comes into its own in the chapter “School Nights.” Working with leftovers from “Sunday Supper,” dinners take minutes instead of hours. Two cups of diced meat from the herb-roasted chicken is easily transformed into an Asian chicken salad full of the bold fl avors of basil, cilantro and mint. Even the chuck roast redeems itself in a hearty baked pasta dish. What was once chewy becomes a rich component of a pasta casserole that is on the table in less than an hour. For those worried that Besh has lost his New Orleans touch, never fear. “Jazz Brunch” features new takes on some old favorites. Gone are the Canadian bacon, English muffi n and ordinary hollandaise sauce of eggs Benedict. For his version of the classic poached-egg dish, Besh uses crab cakes and a decadent satsuma hollandaise. Garlicky baked oysters offer the best of the Gulf, and the crown roast of pork with dirty rice dressing revives a favorite Cajun side. “My Family Table” contains stunning photographs and, mostly, well-planned recipes. It is another excellent cookbook from a man eager to share his love for food and his home with his readers. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Besh estab-lished himself as a representative of New Orleans and Louisiana, and he’s done it with a passion for his craft and a hearty smile. While some of the recipes in “My Family Table” may take a few attempts to perfect, it’s a solid addi-tion to any bookshelf.

by Andrew Dunaway

Real Food at Home

CO

URT

ESY

AN

DR

EWS

MC

MEE

L PU

FLIS

HIN

G

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

38

My mother was one of the best cooks in the world. On any given day, she could make a meal fi t for a king. Mother had her own natural rhythm, her own unique swag.

She would sing the hymns and praise God while si-multaneously cooking for 15 people, me included. I loved my mother’s cooking so much that I would hang on her apron string and watch her every move. She was truly an artist. She could craft up recipes that could

raise the dead. I would rhythmically pat my foot under the table as I ate her cooking. I would often use these and other gestures to show my appreciation and affection for her hard work and dedication to the art of making us happy. I remember one Sunday night I came home late and saw a four-layer chocolate cake sitting on the kitchen table.

Mother was up, as usual. (She would not sleep until the last of her children were safe at home.) I asked her if this cake was for a special occasion, and she said no. She was always reading my mind, so she told me that I could have a piece but to save some for the other children. Well, since I was the oldest in the house at that time, I felt special.

Fit for a King

FILE

PH

OTO

DINING|food

4 9-inch cake pansCooking spray4 cups sugar3-1/2 cups all-purpose fl our1-1/2 cups cocoa powder3 teaspoons baking powder3 teaspoons baking soda2 teaspoons salt4 eggs1 cup evaporated milk

mixed with 1 cup water1 cup vegetable oil4 teaspoons vanilla extract2 cups boiling water

Frosting2 sticks butter completely

melted1 cup cocoa powder6 cups powdered sugar2/3 cup milk2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Grease and fl our the cake pans, or spray them with cooking spray. Pre-heat oven to 350 de-grees. Mix sugar, fl our, cocoa powder, baking

powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Add eggs, evaporated milk, vegetable oil and vanilla extract, and beat on me-dium speed for four min-utes. Stir in boiling water to make a thin batter. Pour into pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cake springs back upon touching it in the mid-dle or when a toothpick

inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for about 10 minutes, and turn out onto waxed paper. Cool completely. To make the frost-ing, stir in cocoa with melted butter. Add pow-dered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency. Add more milk, if need-ed. Stir in vanilla.

MOTHER’S CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE

John Besh shows his love for New Orleans and its cuisine with his latest cookbook.

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

39

M E D I T E R R A N E A N G R I L L

(a very high-class pig stand)

856 Main Street • Madison, MS • 601.853.8538Come Try the Best Bar-B-Que In Madison

Try The

OPEN WEDNESDAY – SUNDAY

Lunch Specials are listed daily atwww.stevestown.com

200 South Lamar St.T: 601.714.5683

904 B EAST FORTIFICATION • JACKSON, MS601.352.2002 • WWW.GLENNFOODS.COM

NEED TO FUEL UP BEFORE THAT NEXT ALL-NIGHT STUDY SESSION?LET BASIL’S BELHAVEN GET YOU GOING!

BELHAVEN10% OFF

WITH LOCAL COLLEGE ID

Purchase Regular HibachiDinner And Two DrinksAnd Get A Second Hibachi Dinner 50% Off

second hibachi must be equal or lesser valueoffer valid monday-thursday after 5pm

601.948.8808100 E. Capital St. Suite 105 • Jackson MS • www.wasabims.com • wasabijackson@gmail.com

sushi, steak, martini and more!

Mar

ch 7

- M

arch

13,

201

2

40

www.thepizzashackjackson.com

Best Pizza2009-2012

2nd Location Now OpenMon - Thur: 11am-9pm |Fri - Sat:11am-10pm | Sun: 11am - 7pm

5046 Parkway Drive Colonial Mart Jackson, MS 39211O! of Old Canton Road | 601-957-1975

Serving Lunch& Dinner DailyNEW BELHAVEN LOCATION: 925 East Forti! cation

(in the former FabraCare Building, between Kat’s & Fenian’s)Mon - Thur: 11am-10pm | Fri - Sat: 11am-11pm | Sun: 11am - 9pm

601-352-2001 | thepizzashackjackson.com

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

41

Check out fl yjfp.com for information about other sales around the city, trends and various things fl y people should know.

Send sale info to fl y@jacksonfreepress.com.

Mar

ch 7

- 13

, 201

2

42

Drench Day Spa and Lash Lounge (118 W. Jackson St., Suite 2B, Ridgeland, 601-707-5656) Check out the Eberjay night wear, perfect for warmer nights ahead.

Leap Frog Children’s Con -signment and More (104 Village Blvd., Madison, 601-898-0727) Make sure your kiddo is ready for Easter with our new tees.

Nancy Price Interior Design (3110 Old Canton Road, 601-982-4181) Nancy Price has a new collection of fabulous and affordable small sculptures.

Coattails (111 W. Jackson St., Ridgeland, 601-853-1313) Colored denim is all the rage for spring. Stop by and see all of our fabulous colors for spring and summer.

Blue Jean Boutique (608 Highway 51, Suite C, Ridgeland, 601-605-2929) Once the boutique reaches 200 Facebook “likes,” you’ll enjoy 20% off your next purchase.

SHOPPING SPECIALS

Alternative Apparel burnout tee, Slavebird, $28

Agood stylist always has options. We show up to a shoot with more clothes than we need, just in case. That means we always have pieces or looks that we love but just couldn’t work into the current assignment. Here are a few of my favorites that didn’t make the spring fashion shoot (see page 20) but could well be in your

wardrobe for the upcoming season.

RVCA plaid shirt, Slavebird, $52

Coral pink skinnies, Pink Bombshell, $36.95

Green lace shorts, Posh Boutique, $42.50.

Twelve watches, The Museum Store at the Mississippi Museum of Art, $22

Lucky Brand cut-off shorts, Plato’s Closet, $12

J.Crew T-shirt, Orange Peel, $8

Handmade wooden bead necklace, The Museum Store at the Mississippi Museum of Art, $48

Banana Republic neon blouse, Orange Peel, $8

Where2Shop:The Museum Store at the Mississippi Museum of Art, 380 S. Lamar St., 601-960-1515; Orange Peel, 422 Mitchell Ave., 601-364-9977; Pink Bombshell, 1000 Highland Colony Parkway, Suite 5007, Ridgeland, 601-853-0775; Plato’s Closet, 1260 E. County Line Road, Ridgeland, 601-487-8207; Posh Boutique, 4312 N. State St., 601-364-2244; Slavebird, 2906 N. State St., Suite 103, 601-366-9955

The Rest of the Storyby Meredith W. Sullivan

jack

sonf

reep

ress

.com

43

2807 Old Canton Road in Historic Fondren601.366.1602 www.rainbowcoop.org

BeautyIsn’t Just

Skin Deep

• No Animal Testing• No Parabens• Organic• Natural

1046 Greymont Ave. (behind La Cazuela)M-F 8am-9pm • Sat & Sun 7am-7pm

CALL US AT 601-397-6223!

Security Cameras • Attendant On DutyDrop Off Service • Free Wi-Fi

Alfa™ believes good customers should be rewarded. That’s why our new automobile policy recognizes loyalty and good driving habits and rewards you with lower rates. For a free quote, call or stop by today. We’re right there with you with service you expect and savings you deserve.

AUTO • HOME • LIFEw w w . A l f a I n s u r a n c e . c o m

Kodi D Hobbs1425 Lakeland Dr.Suite 110FJackson, MS 39216Bus: (601) 321-9364KHobbs@alfains.com

New Savingsfor AutoCustomers

6030 I-55 North- EXIT 102B(601) 977-9040

It’s ALWAYS FRESH in the

Best Salon & Best Hair Stylist- 2010 & 2011 Best of Jackson -

LACEY’SS A L O N

Hair & Accessories

601.397.6398 | 1935 Lakeland Dr.

-Wood Fired Brick Oven Pizzas--Hookahs on a Beautiful Patio--Now Serving Lebanese Wine-

-Now Serving Spirits--We also cater weddings & parties.-

1896 Main Street, Ste A in Madison601-853-0876 • mezzams.com

M-Th 11-2, 4:30-9 • F-Sat 11-2, 4:30-10

Mediterranean Cuisine

Now Serving $10 Lunch

Includes entree, side, and tea.