Mississippi’s House of Representative’s Pass Jim Crow Law

Lawmakers in Mississippi are at odds over a bill that would create an unelected, state-appointed court system in a district within Jackson, a majority Black city, with some concerned that the move smacks of a modern-day Jim Crow regime. The Republican-controlled Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill (HB1020) last week to expand the Capital Complex Improvement District, a defined area within Jackson, and create a separate court system within the city – which is 83% Black, according to US Census data – that two state offices, both of which are currently held by White officials, would entirely appoint. Our special guest is Congressman Bennie Thompson, the Democrat who represents the state of Mississippi in the US House of Representatives. We are also joined by journalists Barrington Salmon and Austin Cooper.