Women-run nonprofit/nonpartisan newsroom reporting causes, solutions, context since 3/20. Mantra: "Do the right thing and wait." Give: mfp.ms/donate Props: mfp.ms/impacthttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.orghttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml5djfyuhk24Thousands of Mississippi voters receive wrong polling-place information from the state's elections database each year, causing some to miss their chance to vote. Experts point to potential solutions, including systems other states have adopted that could help. buff.ly/jNtiFbN https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-voters-keep-getting-wrong-polling-place-information-experts-and-other-states-point-to-solutions/05 May 2026 23:26 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml5djfyuhk24https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml5baclczx2iThe clinic plans to continue serving patients while it builds new support. In March, leaders launched the 1,000 Good Samaritans campaign, which aims to raise more than $250,000. https://buff.ly/QgdGB7a05 May 2026 22:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml5baclczx2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml5ayqkuxs2zMedical-cannabis advocates tout Mississippi House Rep. Lee Yancey as an ally they can count on. They hope Yancey carries his momentum to the state Senate, as Yancey has announced his intention to run and succeed the retiring Dean Kirby, R-Pearl, in 2027. buff.ly/QzSKXlv https://buff.ly/QzSKXlv05 May 2026 22:40 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml5ayqkuxs2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml55uz6bni25OPINION: “We get threatening calls all the time, especially when things like that happen in the Middle East,” Fouad Berry, a board member at the Islamic Institute of Knowledge in Dearborn, Michigan, told WXYZ, a local ABC News affiliate. “And we’re anticipating that.” https://buff.ly/bkmkOve05 May 2026 21:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml55uz6bni25https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml54w7hfo72hFor the first time since news of Mississippi’s $77 million welfare scandal first broke in 2020, a judge has sentenced one of its conspirators, even as six others await sentencing. https://buff.ly/yvo4D8t05 May 2026 21:27 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml54w7hfo72hhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml54v2fxkw2vFor the first time since news of Mississippi’s $77 million welfare scandal first broke in 2020, a judge has sentenced one of its conspirators, even as six others await sentencing. https://www.mississippifreepress.org/accountant-anne-mcgrew-is-first-person-sentenced-in-mississippi-welfare-scandal-but-6-remain-unsentenced/05 May 2026 21:27 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml54v2fxkw2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml52jnb3dt22The Metro Jackson Water Act, a new law creating an authority to take over the Mississippi capital city’s water system, is temporarily blocked while a federal judge reviews its legality. https://buff.ly/0IyytO505 May 2026 20:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml52jnb3dt22https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4x6hd2tf2h“Greenwood Leflore Hospital is 120 years old. It has survived a lot. As of June 15th, it may be closed,” said Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Colom. https://buff.ly/yejZHk105 May 2026 19:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4x6hd2tf2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4tt3sdv424"Policies that significantly reduce obstacles to clinical research can in turn help close the widening gap between cannabis markets and address their public-health implications," Wang and Chan write. https://buff.ly/cQMyV5x05 May 2026 18:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4tt3sdv424https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4qhs7vfx22Pass Christian Civil Defense Director Parnell McKay looks over the town’s main business district on Aug. 23, 1969, after hurricane Camille devastated the Mississippi Gulf Coast. See more of Jack Thornell's historic photos of Mississippi: buff.ly/J3HTOAC05 May 2026 17:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4qhs7vfx22https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4osln7dg2sMississippi Sen. Jeremy England said he and Sen. Johnny Dupree have "already talked about sometime in this offseason going to visit the Department of Health to find out whether that’s something we need legislation for or whether that’s something that can be done administratively." https://buff.ly/bSA4oYs05 May 2026 17:15 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4osln7dg2shttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4n4msovw2uOPINION: "Now, the important thing to know is that MFP Upbeat will be 100% opt-in," Features Editor Nate Schumann writes. "No one will be automatically subscribed to this Sunday newsletter. We are building this newsletter from the ground up." https://buff.ly/rQ8HWPH05 May 2026 16:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4n4msovw2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4jrlgwi32j“Fluoride is very granular when you put it in, and it wears out the pumps,” Lucedale Mayor Al Jones said. “Over time, our equipment has failed, and it’s very expensive to replace." https://buff.ly/PJjX51005 May 2026 15:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4jrlgwi32jhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4jl3m6fl2sOn April 28, Mississippi officials launched the long-awaited Local Government Disaster Recovery Emergency Loan Program, offering temporary assistance in the form of a $125 million loan pool to municipalities struggling with weather-related expenses. https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-launches-emergency-loan-program-for-municipalities-struggling-after-winter-storm-fern/05 May 2026 15:41 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4jl3m6fl2shttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4jkmtrca2uOPINION: "With its potential benefits and risks, K-12 schools are actively trying to adapt teaching and learning. But as schools seek to navigate into the age of generative AI, there’s a challenge: Schools are operating in a policy vacuum," Janice Mak writes. buff.ly/H4Id2bV https://www.mississippifreepress.org/opinion-schools-are-largely-on-their-own-on-developing-ai-policies/05 May 2026 15:41 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4jkmtrca2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4jd6tuzf2eOPINION: "With its potential benefits and risks, K-12 schools are actively trying to adapt teaching and learning. But as schools seek to navigate into the age of generative AI, there’s a challenge: Schools are operating in a policy vacuum," Janice Mak writes. https://buff.ly/Mja7dmD05 May 2026 15:37 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4jd6tuzf2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4i3tlhex2mThe Supreme Court's order, signed by Justice Samuel Alito, temporarily allows women seeking abortions to obtain the pill at pharmacies or through the mail, without an in-person visit to a doctor. https://buff.ly/skeTO6105 May 2026 15:15 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4i3tlhex2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4ggb2ai62gA white Mississippi state leader is calling for the elimination of the state’s only majority-Black congressional district after the U.S. Supreme Court weakened the Voting Rights Act in a ruling Wednesday morning that could allow Southern states to slash Black representation in Congress. https://buff.ly/PiKwgy505 May 2026 14:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4ggb2ai62ghttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4eqeuqko2uThe Supreme Court's recent majority opinion on a Voting Rights Act case described racism as a problem of the past. Others saw the decision as another example of its resurgence—“a defibrillator to the heart of Jim Crow," as one Louisiana politician put it. https://buff.ly/mbKcc2005 May 2026 14:15 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4eqeuqko2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4d3jvhti2j“Jackson should not be asked to carry the greatest risk without having the authority to govern the assets it owns,” Mayor John Horhn said. https://buff.ly/wM9PoY605 May 2026 13:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4d3jvhti2jhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml4bfiqop52gMore than 3,000 people, mostly residents of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, signed a petition urging the Makoka brothers' release from ICE custody after an Alabama resident started it on April 27. https://buff.ly/9D4uo2w05 May 2026 13:15 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4bfiqop52ghttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml47phoh3j2zAlex Bostic said that his parents letting him make his own decisions was the best thing they could have done to help him become successful. “When they got out of my way, I was free to make my own mistakes,” he said. https://buff.ly/HsyF9YK05 May 2026 12:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml47phoh3j2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2r7m44kf22As Mississippi prepares to enforce a new voter citizenship law in the SHIELD Act, two state senators on opposite sides of the debate are discussing whether birth certificates can be made easier to access for people who may need them to stay registered. https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-senators-seek-easier-birth-certificate-access-under-new-voter-law/04 May 2026 22:53 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2r7m44kf22https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2qrepjcp24“As soon as those budget cuts started, I knew it was going to affect everyone in the service professions, so it hit the hospitals, it hit the housing authority, it hit the free clinics, it hit the food pantries—it hit us all,” Jan Vest, who is also treasurer for the Hancock County Food Pantry, said. https://buff.ly/ac8RQPe04 May 2026 22:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2qrepjcp24https://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2nfzgjmv2bA Mississippi bus driver shepherding about 40 children home from Hancock Middle School had an asthma attack last Wednesday that led her to black out while the bus was in drive. Quick-thinking students safely brought the vehicle to a halt. https://buff.ly/WFeQTUe04 May 2026 21:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2nfzgjmv2bhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2k5chg452iThe Metro Jackson Water Act, a new law creating an authority to take over the Mississippi capital city’s water system, is temporarily blocked while a federal judge reviews its legality. https://buff.ly/0ovCxbj04 May 2026 20:46 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2k5chg452ihttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2gpiksv62g“I have parents that are older,” Shakeila Robinson said. “They are both 70-something years old. GLH is all they know. This is a great concern, family-wise.” https://buff.ly/5zRXyz604 May 2026 19:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2gpiksv62ghttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml2de5rcav2h"Legalization (of marijuana in some states) did not result in meaningful increases in clinical trials. This suggests that barriers to cannabis-related clinical research … remain substantial," Wang and Chan write. https://buff.ly/fLKNTjk04 May 2026 18:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml2de5rcav2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml27z2rypa2zDr. Martin Luther King recruits Mississippians for a march on Washington D.C., in Batesville, Miss., on March, 19, 1968. See our gallery of Jack Thornell's historic photos of Mississippi: buff.ly/J3HTOAC04 May 2026 17:45 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml27z2rypa2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/mississippifreepress.org/post/3ml26bp34rd2x"There’s a whole lot of things that get in your way if you let it. But if there’s a path for you that God made for you, that path is going to reveal itself,” retired MSU art professor Alex Bostic said. https://www.mississippifreepress.org/person-of-the-day-alex-bostic-retired-starkville-professor-artist-designs-two-stamps-for-americas-250th-anniversary/04 May 2026 17:14 +0000at://did:plc:wb4judvgfjbiqu646hkggjxc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml26bp34rd2x