Jackson Voices

Sundial Solar Power Developers Helping Jackson Become Greener

Jacqueline LottSolar power is currently the fastest growing form of energy in the world. The use of solar energy is increasing two-fold. There’s a black-owned, Jackson-based business, Sundial Solar Power Developers, which is introducing its solar panel systems within the state of Mississippi.

 
  

  

    


  
  	    

      The Human Element Missing in the Job Hunt
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Anthony TidwellThe job market is volatile and a little scary, but there are  opportunities for those in search of a new career. I speak from  firsthand experience because I recently went through a career change.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Merit Pay? Simply Pay Mississippi’s Teachers a Higher Salary
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Darien SpannPlease don’t be offended, but there are some bad teachers in  Mississippi. There are absolutely some folks who should not have entered  the teaching field.  However, let me be perfectly clear, the good  teachers outnumber the bad.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Open Your Eyes to Art in Unusual Places!
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Donna EcholsOne day last week while rushing from one meeting to the next in downtown  Jackson, I stopped in my tracks! What was in front of me was amazing. A  true work of art, literally.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Getting To Know People Produces Empathy
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Mallory PickeringI often see bumper stickers that read “coexist,” and I think to myself:  “what a low bar to set for human interaction.” When we step out of our  comfort zones and get to know someone who is not like us, we set up a  possibility for deeper empathy and maybe even love. That’s a far better  standard than coexistence and mere tolerance, if you ask me.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Longtime Educator Suzette May Retiring After 36 Years in the Classroom
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Sondra BellSuzette May won’t really grasp that she is retired until the school  buses roll this August.  That’s what her husband, the Rev. Joe W. May,  has to say about his best friend, confidante and wife of 37 years.
 
 “She can’t stop smiling in anticipation,” he quips.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      NFL’S Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack, Wife Cabrina Share Their Love Story
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Sondra BellAsk NFL journeyman Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack and his wife, Cabrina, how  they met and you’ll barely hear the answer through their laughter.
 
 “We met at Sarah’s Nail Salon in Ridgeland,” the couple says as they double over in guffaws.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      You Should Know Your Voting Rights
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Stephen WhiteThere’s a widespread misconception that once you become a convicted felon, your voting rights are automatically terminated. In Mississippi, that only applies to a handful of specific crimes. The crimes are murder, rape, bribery, theft, arson, false pretense, perjury, forgery, embezzlement and bigamy. I recently covered an ACLU of Mississippi voter registration drive that targets convicted felons who are eligible to vote.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Review of ‘Fear of a Black Republican’
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Catoria ParkerJackson State University’s Department of Mass Communication recently sponsored a viewing of “Fear of a Black Republican.” It is a documentary by Kevin Williams with the help of his wife, the producer, Tamara Williams. I knew all of this information prior to seeing the movie, but I must admit that I was a little shocked to find that Mr. and Mrs. Williams are both white.  Although I came in with no real assumptions about the film, once I realized that it was a movie about Black people, made by White people, I became very skeptical.
     


    
 


 

  

  

    


  
  	    

      Brandon Resident Considers Race a Hindrance to Sales
    

  
  
      

      
          

  
  

	      
Dilliondria Robinson recently quit her job. The Brandon resident had been working for a home security company and she found herself having a difficult time generating door-to-door sales. She believes her race was a factor in her less-than-stellar sales performance.