Mississippi legislature creates an all-White court system in Jackson
This article was first published on Feb. 4 2022
In a town that is 80% Black, Mississippi Republicans have introduced a bill that will create a separate, unelected court system appointed entirely by white state officials.
House Bill 1020 will create a separate court system of judges, public defenders, and prosecutors for the city of Jackson, Mississippi. The bill will also allow the expansion of a separate capitol police force, which will be expanded into the white neighborhoods of Jackson.
The consequence of this law, according to protesters, is that the Black-majority population of Jackson, Mississippi can no longer choose who defends, prosecutes, or even judges their cases in the court system. In other words, the bill stifles their right to vote on who is in charge of vital legal proceedings.
The author of the bill, District 8 Republican Rep. Trey Lamar, who currently lives over 170 miles away from Jackson, believes the bill will “help Jackson and Hinds County leaders crack down on crime by creating lower courts in the district.”
However, the mayor of Jackson, Chokwe Lumumba, condemned the bill and called it “oppressive.”
“It’s oppressive because it strips the right of Black folks to vote,” Lumumba said.
“It’s oppressive because it puts a military force over people that has no accountability to them. It’s oppressive because there will be judges who will determine sentences over people’s lives. It’s oppressive because it redirects their tax dollars to something they don’t endorse nor believe in.”
Ilana Garnica