July 2, 2018. Madison, Mississippi. Image.

When people think about Mississippi, they think the 60s and the Civil Rights violence. The image of Mississippi has not changed. The reality is very different. The fact that the races get along and actually like each other must be the best kept secret in the nation. People are polite and well educated. And Jackson and the surrounding areas are pleasant places to live. But when you hear people speaking about Mississippi the words you hear are backward, racist and poor. For me, the image is so different to the reality that I wonder what needs to be done to change the image of Mississippi to bring it up to date.. Lots of writers live in Mississippi. And artists and musicians too. Festivals abound. Oxford has more than 40 writers living and writing in Oxford in addition to all the writer who have either moved or died. I can talk about writers with anyone as this society is well read, more than any place I have lived. PBS produces a half hour program each week called Conversations. The host talks with a person who has done something. I try to watch each week as a way to learn more about Mississippi. The guests are all living in Mississippi. The guest last week was a writer who lives in Oxford. He writes plays and books and film scripts. He spoke of the famous people he had written for. But he has always lived in Oxford even though he wrote for producers working in Los Angeles. I forget his name but the conversation was fascinating. The host asked a final question of the writer, saying, "What would you would like to be done in your future?" The answer surprised me. He said that he wished the legislators would spend some money to change the image of Mississippi and to give out the message about Mississippi, describing the pleasures of working and living in Mississippi. I agreed with him. Mississippi has never gotten over the violence of the 60's. It is time to change the image to the reality of the present day.