JULY 4, 1963

Clyde Kennard — railroaded in 1960 because he dared to try to enroll at an all-white college in Mississippi — died of cancer just months after being freed from prison. He died on the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, which promised “all men are created equal.”

After World War II ended, Kennard taught denazification classes to German students. Years later, he served as a paratrooper in the Korean War. Afterward, he attended the University of Chicago, where he worked on a political science degree, only to have to return home to help his mother after his stepfather died.

He started a chicken farm to help her make ends meet and tried to finish his degree by applying to attend the nearby college, now known as the University of Southern Mississippi.

The State Sovereignty Commission, headed by the governor, used Black leaders to try and dissuade Kennard from enrolling at the all-white college. When that failed, there was a plot to plant a bomb in the Mercury car he drove.

On Dec. 6, 1958, he wrote a letter to the editor of the Hattiesburg American, questioning the logic of the “separate but equal” approach: “After our paralleled graduate schools, where do our parallels of separate but equal go? Are we to assume that paralleled hospitals are to be built for the two groups of doctors? Are we to build two bridges across the same stream in order to give equal opportunities to both groups of engineers? Are we to have two courts of law so as to give both groups of lawyers the same chance to demonstrate their skills; two legislatures for our politically inclined, and of course two governors?”

Months later, when he attempted to enroll at the college, constables claimed they found whiskey under the seat of his car, despite the fact he was a teetotaler. When he continued his fight to attend, he was arrested on charges, this time for reportedly stealing chicken feed.

Kennard went to Parchman prison, where he was forced to pick cotton from daylight to dark. In 1961, he was diagnosed with colon cancer, but wasn't released from prison until two years later, just months before he died.

In 2005, the man who testified against Kennard admitted that Kennard had done nothing illegal. A year later, a judge tossed out Kennard's conviction, clearing his name for good. A new book by Devery Anderson details Kennard's life and what Anderson calls a “slow, calculated lynching.”

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

An analysis paid for by the Legislature reaffirms the position that the yearly cost of living adjustment — often referred to as the 13^th check — that retirees in the state pension system receive cannot be reduced or taken away, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said.

Hosemann's office refused to release the report provided by the Jones Walker Law Firm, saying it was the work product of an attorney-client relationship.

Instead, Hosemann released a statement saying, “I have never veered publicly or privately from our commitment to employee and retiree benefits. I do not and will not support removing or changing the cost of living adjustment for these individuals.

 “Jones Walker law firm was hired to provide us with information about how the COLA operates in law when others were discussing freezing it. What we confirmed is exactly what we believe: the law protects the COLA in Mississippi for employees and retirees.”

Through the years there have been discussions about at least freezing the annual 3% cost of living adjustment that state retirees receive. Freezing the COLA has been viewed as a way to alleviate the financial stress that some maintain the system faces.

Many retirees opt to take the cost of living increase as a so-called 13^th check in December instead of it being divided and added to their monthly retirement check.

READ MORE: PERS Board pondering changes to cost of living increases, other recommendations for Legislature

According to the Transparency Mississippi web site, Ridgeland-based Jones Walker was hired by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, which Hosemann chaired until July 1, to look at the COLA provided to the retirees in the state's Public Employees Retirement System. Jones Walker was paid $8,500, according to the Transparency web site.

A letter from Jones Walker found on the state's Transparency website outlines that the law firm “has been asked to advise you with regard for potential challenges in connection with a freeze or other adjustment to the COLA under PERS. Our engagement is limited to a review of and advise regarding this matter.”

PERS has about 360,000 members including current public employees and former employees and retirees. Those in the system include state employees, university and community college staff, local school district employees and city and county employees. While the system has assets of about $32 billion, there have been concerns about the financial viability of the system because of debt of about $25 billion.

READ MORE: Legislation to strip key power of PERS Board passes both chambers

Because of those concerns through the years, there has been talk of freezing or changing the COLA.

During an October meeting of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, House Speaker Jason White, who is chairing the committee for the new fiscal year, asked PERS officials if they had looked at some type of reduction in the COLA. Senate President Pro Tem Dean Kirby asked similar questions.

Both said after the meeting they were not advocating for a reduction in the COLA, but trying to gather information.

Ray Higgins, the executive director of PERS, said his Board has looked into the COLA issue, but upon questioning, added, “But the prevailing and historical comment is you cannot make those changes.”

During various meetings in recent months, Hosemann has reiterated his commitment to maintaining the COLA.

In March on social media, he said, “To be very clear: I remain committed to protecting all of the retirement benefits of all of our retirees and our current employees. I also remain committed to shoring up the retirement system, which the executive director has now informed us is $25 billion underfunded.”

During the 2024 session, the Legislature pumped about $110 million into the system – far short of what some argued is needed to maintain its fiscal integrity. Legislation also was passed to strip a significant amount of the power of the PERS board and place that authority with the Legislature.

But the bill stripping that authority, also included language reaffirming a commitment to protect PERS benefits, such as the COLA.

The bill, in part reads, it “shall not be construed to provide authority to reduce or eliminate any earned benefits to be provided by the state” to members of the system.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

A federal judge in Mississippi has blocked enactment of a Biden administration rule designed to prevent medical care from being denied to those seeking treatment related to gender identity or sexual orientation.

The lawsuit U.S. Southern District Judge Louis Guirola Jr. ruled on Wednesday was filed by 15 states, including Mississippi. But he said his injunction preventing the Biden administration from enforcing its rule would apply nationwide. His ruling is likely to be appealed.

On social media, the Human Rights Campaign proclaimed, “This is not over. All LGBTQ+ people should receive the health care we deserve and be able to make informed decisions about our own bodies.”

The Biden administration rule enacted earlier this year is designed to ensure those seeking medical care on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation are not subject to discrimination. The rule is supposed to cover entities receiving federal funds for the delivery of health care.

The states argued against being forced to provide gender-affirming care through Medicaid programs or through health plans for state employees. In addition, the states argued against private insurance companies being required to provide such care.

“Injecting gender identity into our state's medical system is a dangerous pursuit of a political agenda from the Biden Administration,” Mississippi Attorney Lynn Fitch said in a statement. “Medical professionals should not be forced to provide gender transition surgeries or drugs against their judgment and hospitals should not be prohibited from providing women-only spaces for patients. I am proud to lead the multistate effort with Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti to stop the Biden Administration and push back on this reckless rule.”

The lawsuit is one of many filed by attorneys general and others objecting to the Biden administration interpreting Title IX to apply to banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and sexual identity. Congress passed, and President Richard Nixon signed into law, Title IX in 1972 to ban sexual discrimination.

In response to one of the similar lawsuits ruled on earlier in Louisiana, Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said, “Every student … deserves to be safe. Every young person deserves protection from bullying, misgendering and abuse.”

Robinson added, referring to the earlier court ruling, “This is MAGA theatrics with the dangerous goal of weaving discrimination into state law.”

Mississippi has passed a state law prohibiting minors from receiving gender-affirming care even if it is recommended by physicians.

On social media, Gov. Tate Reeves said, “The Biden Administration attempted to undermine Title IX by dramatically reinterpreting its meaning to now apply to gender identity. Thankfully, a federal court judge has sided with Mississippi and other states who chose to stand up for women and defend Title IX as it currently exists.”

The lawsuit filed by Fitch and other attorneys general argued that their states could be penalized by the loss of federal Medicaid funds, for example, if they did not adhere to the rule.

In blocking the rule. Guirola cited the Chevron case where the U.S. Supreme Court recently said that federal agencies should not be given deference in their rules-making.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.