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Lance Bass on God, Being Gay and Loving His Sweet Mama
Two years after I graduated from high school in 2004, Lance Bass came out of the closet on the cover of People Magazine. His revelation struck a chord for me not just because he was a celebrity, as...
View ArticleDiane Bass’ Testimony to Her Church
This is an excerpt of a letter Lance Bass' mother, Diane, wrote to her church about her son's homosexuality.I am here to share my testimony. Please know that I am NOT here to debate the issue of...
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#Not1More Deported Mom
On an ordinary Monday, many mothers and fathers went to work at Howard Industries in Laurel, Miss. It was Aug. 26, 2008. The Howard Industries raid, in which a record-breaking 600 people were detained,...
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Dear Mom
No day goes by that I don't think of her. I sometimes wonder how she found and continues to find the willpower, and I have for many years.Losing my father when I was 6 seemed like the end of the world...
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My Persephone
As I scramble during spring to find natural remedies for my allergies, my mother, Carolyn Miller, is full of delight as her babies awaken to greet the new season.Snapdragons, dahlias and monkey grass...
View ArticleAn Apology from Mother to Son
My Dearest Son,After you left the house that morning, an overwhelming feeling of guilt and shame consumed me. When you woke up, instead of offering you a smile and a hug to start your day off, I jumped...
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My Stealthy Superhero
I felt strangely sad the day my parents got rid of the Chrysler Spirit with chipped baby-blue paint that my mom had driven for years. I remember a tear rolling down my face the day, a few years later,...
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Meditations on Motherhood
When I try to clear my mind, an image that comes to mind is a dandelion in the middle of a rolling green meadow, downy white seeds blown hither and yon by the wind.To me, this is motherhood—growing,...
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Proud Mama
My mom is a sigher. On any given day, she would walk in after work, sling her leather purse onto the kitchen counter and let out a heaving sigh that would shake the house. I would look in the laundry...
View ArticleTo Mommy With Love
I have always been a pretty artsy-craftsy person. It came from my mom, who created her own art in frames by using old fabric and leftover wallpaper from her DIY projects. I picked up on it at an early...
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Jailhouse Blues: Is Help on the Way for the Raymond Detention Center?
One morning last summer, Larry David McLaurin and his cellmate ate breakfast in their cell in Pod B3 at the Raymond Detention Center.Sometime later that day, during rounds, a jail guard observed...
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JXN Scavenge
The beginning of summer reminds me of graduating high school, and the long expanse of freedom that lay ahead. One of my favorite things about that summer was the scavenger hunts my friends and I would...
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Grr, Baby
In July 2012, higher-gravity beer hit Jackson refrigerators, and then, last summer, folks learned the ins and outs of home brewing. The beer trend spreading across Jackson this summer is the concept of...
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Lifting Up Black Boys: What the Experts Say
Like the billion locusts that emerge every 17 years to descend on the Northeast, sometimes the thing we call news has a remarkably simple basis: We cover it because it's rare. Uncommon.So when a...
View ArticleThe Summer Problem for Kids: In Mississippi, the Hottest Months Put...
When schools let out across Mississippi in May, more than 450,000 children headed into 11 weeks of summer. For some kids, that means weeks of camps, traveling, and educational programs. For others,...
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Better Options for JPS’ Boys of Color?
Dr. Cedrick Gray, the eternally upbeat bowtie-wearing superintendent of the Jackson Public Schools, says there was a time when he was a hardheaded little boy coming up in Memphis."When I was growing...
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A Canon, If You Please
Driving to Canada to attend an experimental music festival with a guy who looks like a drug dealer will teach you a thing or two. First, at the border, don't let your companion say the two of you are...
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Tastes of Summer
When putting together suggestions of food and beer pairings, I decided to go with seasonal beers, specifically those best for warm weather. Truth be told, I am only an occasional beer drinker, so I was...
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The Vegetarian's Brew
Being a vegetarian or vegan means you have to get accustomed to all kinds of awkward situations. It doesn't have to be complicated, though. The truth is that some meals people prepare are already...
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The 3rd Annual Beer Taste-Off with Raise Your Pints
For the third year straight, we invited the folks over at Raise Your Pints to come to the Jackson Free Press offices and share their insights on great craft beer. This year marks the first that...
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