Mississippi News
President Clinton honors life, legacy of Gov. William Winter
President Bill Clinton among attendees to honor legacy of William and Elise Winter
Katie Blount, executive director of the state Department of Archives and History, said that the Two Mississippi Museums “stand at the intersection of Gov. William Winter's three greatest passions: history, education and racial justice.”
It was at those museums — the civil rights and history museums in downtown Jackson on Tuesday — that Mississippi paid its final respects to Winter, the 58th governor and conscience of the state. Winter died in December 2020, a few months before his wife and partner of 70 years, Elise, passed away.
READ MORE: ‘One of the greatest Mississippians': Former Gov. William Winter remembered by friends, dignitaries
Former President Bill Clinton, whose terms as governor of Arkansas partially coincided with Winter's tenure as Mississippi governor in the early 1980s, was among the about 800 on hand Tuesday to honor both the Winters at the Two Mississippi Museums.
“We were neighbors and so much more,” said Clinton, who at age 75 is about 22 years younger than Winter was when he died. Clinton went on to say that the Winters “had the most unusual balance. They were highly intelligent, highly energetic and openly ambitious and as good as gold because their ambition was for something worth being ambitious about.”
The Winter family decided not to hold a public service for the Winters during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it would have been a tragedy to completely forgo such an event considering the Winters were part of the fabric of Mississippi for more than half of a century.
Winter was elected to the Mississippi House in 1947 and later served in a litany of statewide offices, culminating with his tenure as governor. It was during that tenure that his crowning achievement was realized: the Education Reform Act of 1982, which enacted public kindergartens and a host of other improvements to the state's schools.
As Clinton pointed out, Winter lost two elections for governor before finally capturing the seat. Those losses were attributable in large part to Winter's moderation on the issue of race.
“When we were governors, it was rare for someone who was actually winning (elections) to stick his neck out on civil rights and have a good time doing it,” said Clinton, referencing that “Bill,” as he called Winter, always remained upbeat despite those two losses. He attributed Winter's positive disposition to Elise.
While the Winters had a long political career, they might have been as influential after leaving office. Elise was active in Habitat for Humanity and played a key role in the development of the program in both the state and nation.
Republican Haley Barbour, who served as governor in the 2000s, told of how Winter and Reuben Anderson, who was the state's first Black Supreme Court justice and later served with Winter on the Board of Archives and History, brought him the plan to develop the Two Mississippi Museums. The plan was approved and funded by the Legislature during Barbour's tenure as governor.
Barbour also recounted asking the Democratic Winter to serve on a recovery board after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 2005. He said Winter played a key role on that board “because he loved Mississippi.”
It was after leaving politics that Winter became synonymous with racial reconciliation. The Winter Institute of Racial Reconciliation was developed, and he apologized personally for some of his past rhetoric, though he was universally viewed a moderate on racial issues throughout his tenure in politics.
Anderson said when the state flag containing the Confederate battle emblem was finally taken down in the summer of 2020 and Anderson symbolically accepted the old flag as chair of the Archives and History Board, his old friend “was on my mind.” Anderson said the flag would not have been taken down if not for the work Winter had started many years ago.
At the event, Spence Flatgard, the current president of the Archives and History Board, which Winter served on for 50 years, announced that $5 million had been raised for the William and Elise Winter Education Endowment to ensure that all children across the state would have an opportunity to tour the Two Mississippi Museums.
Blount said the Winters believed “all of us, especially our children, must understand who we are and where we come from. And let us be lifted by (the Winters') hope, by their faith that in Winter's words, ‘We use our history to develop a more stable, more just society.'”
READ MORE: William Winter, former Mississippi governor who ushered in education reform, dies at 97
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi News
Medgar Evers to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
SUMMARY: Medgar Evers, a civil rights leader and World War II veteran from Mississippi, will posthumously receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Evers was assassinated in 1963 and played a key role in organizing voter registration drives during the Civil Rights Movement. President Biden made the selection, adding Evers to a list of distinguished Mississippians who have won the award. Evers will join the likes of James Earl Chaney, Fred Haise, B.B. King, Tennessee Williams, and Oprah Winfrey. The news was announced on Facebook.
The post Medgar Evers to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom appeared first on www.wcbi.com
Mississippi News
Two injured after being shot multiple times in McComb
SUMMARY: Two men were shot multiple times in McComb near the intersection of 14th Street and Nelson Drive. The victims were identified as 27-year-old Marlik Harvey and 28-year-old Domonique McBride, both with multiple gunshot wounds. One victim was airlifted to UMMC in critical condition, while the other was treated and released from a local hospital. No suspects have been identified at this time. Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact McComb Police at 601-684-3214.
The post Two injured after being shot multiple times in McComb appeared first on www.wjtv.com
Mississippi News
Governor signs bill enacting more protections for children online
SUMMARY: Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves signed the Walker Montgomery Protecting Children Online Act into law in response to the death of a Starkville teen. The law requires parental permission for minors to create social media accounts and places restrictions on social media platforms, such as not sharing a minor's location, displaying inappropriate ads, or selling personal information. The law will go into effect on July 1 and aims to protect children online. It passed both houses of the Legislature without opposition.
The post Governor signs bill enacting more protections for children online appeared first on www.wcbi.com
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