Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee’s attempt to censor the content of the city’s public library of what he calls “sexual content” is set for a resolution tonight. Protesters from an organization that believes that LGBTQ+ people practice “sexual perversion” plan to crowd the meeting and speaker list in support of the mayor’s book-banning plan.
Larry Hollins said that having his brother, Gregory Hollins, sentenced to 60 years in prison under Mississippi habitual-sentencing laws without the possibility of parole is like throwing him away.
Professor of Religion Mary Thurlkill hosted a brown bag “Religion for Lunch” conversation on Feb. 1, 2022, to discuss Ridgeland (Miss.) Mayor Gene McGee’s demand that the local public library purge LGBTQ+ books or not receive the $110,000 in funding they are due. Several students, faculty and staff members attended the discussion, including Associate Religion Professor Fei Lan.
CJ Winship (she/her) shares how Ridgeland Public Library gave her the resources she needed to reassure that she wasn’t broken just because she was gay. The representation of LGBTQ people like her in books helped CJ be at ease with just being herself.
Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee is withholding $110,000 of funding from the Madison County Library System allegedly on the basis of his personal religious beliefs, with library officials stating that he has demanded that the system initiate a purge of LGBTQ+ books before his office releases the money.
Marvin Hogan, founder of Friends of Children of Mississippi, battled for a more equitable education for all Missisippians for 53 years until his recent death on Nov. 6, 2021, at age 83.
Christine Loftin believes medical marijuana could save the life of her son, Bryan, who has mitochondrial disease. But more than a year after Mississippians voted to enact a medical marijuana law, Gov. Tate Reeves has not called a special session to create a program.
Speech-language deficits are the most common childhood disability, affecting around one in 12 children. Without treatment, speech-language problems can lead to behavioral challenges, mental-health problems, difficulty reading and academic failure. The Magnolia Speech School is a nonprofit school established with a mission to help children with communication disorders develop their potential through spoken language and literacy. The program takes kids as young as 1 year old up to age 13.
“I talked to my teacher about how everyone was calling me an oreo because at the time, it was a very hurtful comment. I’d always been around mostly white people, and to be in this new Black community and to feel rejected by that community, a community that I really wanted to be a part of, was very difficult,” teenager Yasmike Ware explains about her award-winning “OREOntation” podcast.
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