Trash or Treasure?

A 2007 United States Census Bureau report listed Mississippi as the poorest state in the Nation. It definitely isn't the most popular one; between 2000 and 2005, there was a net migration of a mere 75 people into the state.

We do have some sad statistics:

-Per capita personal income in 2006 was the lowest of any state in the U.S.
-For three years in a row, over 30 percent of Mississippians have been classified as obese.
-22.8 percent of its children were also classified as obese.
-In 2004, Mississippi was ranked last among the fifty states in academic achievement by the American Legislative Exchange Council's Report Card on Education
-Mississippi has the lowest average ACT scores and spending per pupil in the nation.

We also have some goofy, backward, amusing and downright strange laws on the books:

-Cattle rustling is still punishable by hanging, pard'ner.
-Private citizens may personally arrest any person that disturbs a church service.
-No turtle races may be held at the airport.
-Mississippi was the last state to repeal Prohibition of alcohol.
-As a result, we have more "dry" counties than any state
-Some counties allow the sale of beer, but only if it's unrefrigerated (you can have your beer, Homer, but you ain't gettin' it cold!)

Because of things like this, and because of the state's complex history, most people have some very strong, negative pre-conceived ideas about Mississippi.

Amazingly enough, those who come and visit anyhow usually change their minds. I recently stopped into Taylor's Food Store for a cup of coffee and a chat. As I headed back to the deli counter, I saw Mr. Sonny talking to a tall man in bicycle shorts and a dayglo yellow windbreaker--not standard attire for these parts. Turns out he is a native Californian who, at the age of 63, was in the midst of his third cross-country bicycle tour. He had first driven from coast to coast in the northern states, then the central ones; due to learned prejudice and preconceived notions, he had saved the southern route for last.

We asked him for his impressions, and he was genuinely pleasantly surprised at the sincerity, kindness, and helpfulness of Mississippians. He could actually picture leaving his home in the beautiful Napa Valley and living in rural Mississippi, he said. One of the younger locals gathered around couldn't quite believe that statement until several of the rest of us piped up and admitted that we, too, had once been passers-through and have since become transplants, thriving in the local soil and climate of hospitality. We all agreed that you couldn't pay us any sum of money to live anywhere else in the world.

Mississippi may have its shameful statistics, but it has some pretty amazing things to be proud of, too:

-The state has the nation's lowest living costs.
-In spite of having the lowest per capita income, Mississippians consistently rank as one of the highest per capita in charitable contributions.
-Mississippi was the first state to pass a Married Women's Property Act.
-Mississippi has elected more African-American officials than any other state in the United States.
-In 1936 a Mississippi doctor performed the first bone pinning in the United States. This led to the development of the "Rush Pin", which is still in use.
-The first human lung transplant was performed in 1963 at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi.
-In 1964, the first heart transplant was also performed at UMMC.
-The world-renowned USA International Ballet Competition takes place in Jackson every four years.

Culturally, Mississippi has so rich a heritage!

Mississippi has generated rich, quintessentially American music traditions: gospel music, country music, jazz, blues, and rock and roll were all invented, promulgated, or heavily developed by Mississippi musicians.

The Delta region has been historically significant in the development of the blues, producing such greats as: Charlie Patton, Muddy Waters, Mississippi John Hurt, Willie Brown, Big Joe Williams, Howlin' Wolf, Bo Diddley, and B.B. King. The state also played a significant role in the integration of American music. Its musicians combined musical traditions from Africa with the musical traditions of white Southerners, which were largely rooted in Celtic music, to create Creole music.

Mississippi's complex history has inspired great storytellers. Award-winning authors native to or associated with the state include William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Eudora Welty, Richard Wright, Ellen Douglas, Willie Morris, Shelby Foote, Margaret Walker Alexander, Ellen Gilchrist, Alice Walker, John Grisham, and James Autry.

Come on down and find out why it's called the Hospitality State, and savour some of the rich traditions that make up the best of Mississippi. It sure isn't what you thought it was, and you might even stay a while...