News

Medgar Evers home may become National Park Service site

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The home where Mississippi civil rights leader Medgar Evers was assassinated in 1963 gets thousands of visitors each year, operates as a college-owned museum and relies on state grants and private […]

News

Stories captured by The Mississippi Link in 2013

By Ayesha K. Mustafaa Editor During the year 2013, The Mississippi Link carried articles of historic relevance to its readers. Standing out are these headlines: • Remembering the 1965 Lanier High School National Championship Basketball […]

Education

Myrlie Evers honored with National Urban League Civil Rights Award

The Alcorn family congratulates civil rights icon Myrlie Evers for being honored with the National Urban League Civil Rights Award. Mrs. Evers, who serves as Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence at Alcorn State University, accepted the award at the 2013 National Urban League Conference held July 24-27, 2013, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

 “We are extremely proud for Professor Myrlie Evers for adding another coveted award to her array of honors,” stated Alcorn President M. Christopher Brown II. “We are grateful for everything Mrs. Evers is doing for the nation and for her invaluable contribution as faculty at Alcorn.” […]

News

Miss. voter ID law expected to be used by 2014

Mississippi voters could have to start showing photo identification at the polls by the June 2014 federal primaries, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann said last week after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that certain state and local governments no longer need federal approval to change their own election laws or procedures.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 has required Mississippi and other areas with a history of racial discrimination, mainly in the South, to get clearance for changes as large as implementing a voter ID law to as small as relocating a precinct.

In a 5-4 ruling, justices blocked enforcement of a provision in the 1965 Voting Rights Act that requires Mississippi and several other state and local governments to get federal approval before making any changes to voting laws or procedures. Preclearance has been required in areas with a history of racial discrimination, mainly in the South. […]

Events

Alcorn honors Medgar Wiley Evers’ life and legacy, unveils memorial statue

June 13, 2013, will forever be written in history as a day when the life and legacy of American hero and Alcorn alum Medgar Wiley Evers ’52 was honored by dedicating a heroic size statue on the campus of his alma mater. Hundreds gathered for the memorial dedication ceremony to witness the historic event.

The official dedication of the Medgar Wiley Evers ’52 Memorial Statue, began with presenting of the colors by Mississippi Highway Patrol Honor Guard, the Pledge of Allegiance, and an invocation by Reverend Dr. Jerry Young, New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi. Erin Pickens, anchor at WJTV, CBS, served as Mistress of Ceremony. […]

Events

Widow works to preserve Evers’ civil-rights legacy

Myrlie Evers-Williams acknowledges it would be easy to remain mired in bitterness and anger, 50 years after a sniper’s bullet made her a widow.

Instead, she’s determined to celebrate the legacy of her first husband, Medgar Evers – a civil rights figure often overshadowed by peers such as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.

Events including a black-tie gala are being held this week to remember Evers, the first Mississippi field secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. He was 37 when he was assassinated on June 12, 1963. […]

Events

Medgar Evers honored at Arlington 50 years after assassination

Slain NAACP field secretary, civil rights leader, World War II veteran, father and husband – Medgar Wiley Evers, was honored Wednesday at Arlington National Cemetery in a wreath-laying ceremony, organized by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP.) 

Next week will be the 50th anniversary of the assassin’s bullet that killed patriot and stalwart for civil rights – Medgar Evers, a son of Mississippi.  He was respectfully honored Wednesday in a beautiful and well-attended ceremony with distinguished speakers including former President Bill Clinton, Attorney General Eric Holder, NAACP Mississippi State Conference President Derrick Johnson, NAACP President Ben Jealous and NAACP Chairman Emeritus Myrlie Evers-Williams.  Roland Martin, of TV One and the Tom Joyner Morning Show, presided as Master of Ceremonies.  […]

News

Obama calls Medgar Evers a ‘Warrior of justice’

On Tuesday, President Barack Obama visited with Myrlie Evers-Williams, a civil rights heroine and widow of Medgar Evers, and other members of the Evers family, to commemorate Medgar Evers’ life and contribution to the Civil Rights Movement.

President Obama said during the visit that Medgar Evers was a warrior for justice, and the tragedy of his death turned into a rallying cry for a movement.

Fifty years ago, on June 12, 1963, Medgar Evers was shot and killed in front of his home in Jackson, Mississippi. […]