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October 1 - 7, 2020
VOL. 69, No. 40
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TSD nets two top honors from Tennessee Press Association TSD Newsroom The New Tri-State Defender earned two, first-place finishes in the Tennessee Press Association’s 2020 newspaper contest cosponsored by the University of Tennessee. Netting awards for The TSD were columnist Lee Eric Smith and Associate Publisher/Executive Editor Karanja A. Ajanaku. Among Group 1 winners, Smith took top honors for Best Personal Column. His entry was headlined “Why are people still talking about Eddie Lee Smith?” It was a tribute to his father, the first African-American elected mayor of Holly Springs, Ms. “Wow! I’m honored that my little love letter to my father resonated with so many people,” Smith said. “He really did lead an extraordinary life, helping a lot of people
Lee Eric Smith
Karanja A. Ajanaku
along the way. I feel like he and my mother are beaming with pride from the other side!” Ajanaku claimed first-place in Group I for Best Feature Photograph. The photo featuring two servicemen reflected generations of service. “Alerted that veterans were being served at the Blues City Café on Beale St., I camped out across the street and snapped away as a line of former service members formed and wound its into the restaurant,” Ajanaku said. “A gray-haired veteran in full uniform caught my eye and – taking multiple shots – I was fortunate to capture his warm-hearted exchange
SEE AWARDS ON PAGE 2
At a press conference described as “the first step in a process, developer and former Shelby County Commissioner J.W. Gibson II shares the goal of seeking a community-driven tax increment financing (TIF) district in South Memphis.
As opportunity knocks in South Memphis, a community weighs in
by Florence M. Howard
Special to The New Tri-State Defender
In Mississippi, an application for voter registration must be postmarked or hand delivered to the Circuit Clerk’s Office no later than 30 days before an election, which this year happens to be on Monday, Oct. 5. (Photo: Tim Evanson, Licensed by CC BY-SA 2.0)
With a key deadline near, Mississippi activists work to register new voters by Najee El-Amin
Special to The New Tri-State Defender
In 2016, Mississippi’s voter turnout rate took a nosedive as 70,000 eligible citizens did not show up to cast a ballot. Activists have been trying to figure out why this happened and how to get African Americans, a powerful voting bloc, energized and back to the polls. Their efforts are coming up against an important deadline. In Mississippi, an application for voter registration must be postmarked or hand delivered to the Circuit Clerk’s Office no later than 30 days before an election, which this year happens to be on Monday, Oct. 5. These registration efforts are taking place as Americans social distance, and COVID-19 has taken nearly 3,000 lives statewide. Now officials have to worry about both keeping the public safe, as well as healthy. Fortunately, for the city of Holly Springs, MS., these obstacles are motivating a few brave souls to get out and do
AT A GLANCE • Mississippians can register to vote at their Circuit Clerk’s office, Municipal Clerk’s office, when they get their driver’s license at the Department of Public Safety, or through the mail by downloading a voter registration form and mailing it to your Circuit Clerk. • For more information about voting, visit www. MSVoterID.ms.gov or call 844-678-6837. what’s necessary to get people to the polls. Dr. A.J. Stovall, professor and head of the Social Science division at Rust College, is one of the people leading the effort. Stovall long has been an advocate for voting but he believes that there is an even greater sense of urgency this year. “As a result of the events over the summer, the political consciousness has been heightened.” Stovall said. “It’s gonna get more people out to vote than normal.” Stovall has partnered with the Andrew Goodman Foundation whose mission is to empower youth by get-
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In the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, a coalition of private, public and community leaders are coming together – and standing apart – in an effort to break the cycle of historic disinvestment in South Memphis. During a recent press conference where social distancing was practiced, real estate developer J.W. Gibson II announced that the Southeast Regional Development Corporation (SRDC), with the support from the Shelby County Mayor’s Office, intends to submit a development plan and application for a community-driven Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district in South Memphis. It’s an effort to attack blight and improve the overall quality of life. South Memphis currently has over 5,800 vacant lots and buildings, and even more substandard housing that is still occupied, according to a SRDC news release. As a TIF district, tax revenue generated by residents in the area will be reinvested in South Memphis to address crumbling infrastructure, depreciating neighborhood values, and educational supports for youth, Gibson explained. “The disinvestment that is taking place in Black neighborhoods is destroying families and keeping residents anchored to poverty,” the SRDC press release asserted. “This ends today.” Held in the lobby of the Vasco A. Smith, Jr. County Administration Building, the press conference was attended by a contingent of elected officials lending support for the new, minority-led development plan. South Memphis is one of eight “blighted” areas in designated communities called Opportunity Zones (OZs), which seek to encourage investments in housing, neighborhood
Residents in South Memphis have long advocated for better housing, according to Greater White Stone Baptist Church Pastor Roger Brown (center), who opened the presentation with a prayer. (Photos: Gary S. Whitlow/GSW Enterprises)
“It’s time for South Memphis residents to see serious, longterm investment in the neighborhood that they love.” — Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris infrastructures such as retail centers, and more. Other OZs include ZIP codes in Binghampton and the Poplar Corridor, Downtown and the Medical District, North Memphis and Uptown, Orange Mound and the Fairgrounds, the University of Memphis, Whitehaven and Millington. Residents in South Memphis have long advocated for better housing, according to Greater White Stone Baptist Church Pastor Roger Brown, who opened the gathering with a prayer. His church has a community development corporation, The Stone CDC, and has already purchased lots for affordable senior housing. Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris
made note of the community efforts underway. He also expressed confidence that the minority-led development team will take the right approach and that they will be open to community feedback. “This community has organized and advocated for investment for decades,” Harris said in a statement in the SRDC press release. “It’s time for South Memphis residents to see serious, long-term investment in the neighborhood that they love.” A former Shelby County commissioner who worked on the Memphis 3.0 strategic plan, Gibson grew up in Dixie Homes. He said that his involvement in that plan “planted a seed” and fueled his involvement in other redevelopment initiatives. He called the press conference on the TIF “the first step in the process” in bringing those with a similar interest together with community leaders. “It is high time the Black community receives the commitment seen by Downtown and Midtown to bring
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