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This story originally appeared in the Jackson Free Press. It was added to the Mississippi Free Press website in 2025.
Note that any opinions expressed in legacy Jackson Free Press stories do not reflect a position of the Mississippi Free Press or necessarily of its staff and board members.

In millions, how many Americans are permanently dis-enfranchised from voting due to felonies: 3.9 (1 in 50 adults)
Percentage that number of black Americans imprisoned in state prisons for drug offenses increased between 1985 and 1995: 707 (whites: 306%)

Percentage of black men in Mississippi disenfranchised due to felonies: 30+
Percentage of Mississippi’s population that blacks comprise: 36.3
Percentage of state prison population that blacks comprise: 70.5
Percentage of those imprisoned in U.S. under the age of 35: 57
Number of black males in U.S. who will go to prison during their lifetime: 1-in-3

Between 1985 and 1995, the number of blacks incarcerated in state prisons for drug offenses increased by 707 percent, while incarceration of whites rose 306 percent. (NAACP)

In Mississippi, African Americans comprise 36.3 percent of the population but make up 70.5 percent of all incarcerated citizens. (2000 Census) This wide difference of 34.2 percent is lower than only a few states: Alabama has a disparity of 35.9 percent and Illinois a whopping 47.8 percent. The national average difference is 31.4.

Mississippi native Donna Ladd and partner Todd Stauffer founded the Jackson Free Press in 2002 in the capital city. The heavily awarded local newspaper did many investigations heralded across the state and nation and served as a paper of record due to its diversity, inclusion, in-depth reporting and deep connection to readers and dedication to narrative change in and about Mississippi. In 2022, the nonprofit Mississippi Free Press, founded by Ladd and JFP Associate Publisher Kimberly Griffin in 2020, purchased the journalism assets and archives of the Jackson Free Press. A Google grant through AAN Publishers enabled Newspack's integration of the JFP archives into the Mississippi Free Press website to become part of a more searchable archive of recent Mississippi history and essential journalism.