Mississippi Today
Nation’s debt default would hurt Mississippi’s already fragile jobs market more than most
Mississippi's already lackluster employment numbers would be impacted more than most states if Congress does not raise the debt limit to pay the nation's bills.
If there is a long-term lapse in the nation's ability to pay its debt, the state could lose as many as 64,000 jobs or 5.4% of its workforce, according to a recent report by Moody's Analytics, a subsidiary of Moody's credit rating agency. In a short-term scenario, Mississippi would lose as many as 21,700 jobs or 1.23% of its workforce. Moody's predicts only five states would lose a larger percentage of their workforce than Mississippi.
“The blow to the economy would be cataclysmic,” Moody's said of a “prolonged breach” of the debt limit. Moody's reasons that states that depend more on federal revenue would be the ones most negatively impacted if the nation defaults on its debt.
The Republican leadership of the House is currently refusing to raise the nation's debt limit to pay past commitments made by Congress unless multiple cuts are made to future spending. Congressional leaders and President Joe Biden currently are negotiating a deal that will result in raising the credit limit. If no deal is reached, projections are the nation could be unable to pay its debt starting in early June.
The debt limit debate comes as Gov. Tate Reeves has touted the state's job growth as part of his reelection campaign. The Republican Reeves will likely face Democratic Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley in the November general election.
After April's unemployment rate of 3.4% was announced for Mississippi, Reeves said: “Reaching a record low unemployment rate in back-to-back months speaks volumes to Mississippi's momentum. Our education system is thriving, jobs are plentiful, and there are more opportunities than ever before. We're making historic investments in workforce development and infrastructure and are attracting thousands of high-paying jobs to every region of the state. It's a great day to be a Mississippian.”
Despite those low unemployment numbers, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals that there were fewer Mississippians working in April of this year than in April 2022. In April 2023, 1.212 million were employed — 8,089 fewer than were working a year ago.
April marks the seventh consecutive month where there were fewer Mississippians working than in the prior year, according to BLS data. There are 2,073 fewer jobs in April 2023 than in January 2020 when Reeves took office, though April 2023 numbers are still preliminary.
Employment numbers have been tenuous in Mississippi for some time. The state's highest levels of employment occurred in May 2000, when there were 1.24 million employed. That number has never been surpassed.
Mississippi's labor force participation rate also peaked in early 2000, when 62.85% of the people eligible to work were employed. The state's rate is currently at 54.5% and trails the national average of 62.9% and all other states with the exception of West Virginia.
Responding to those numbers in the past, Reeves has said there are jobs available for people who want to work.
But those jobs pay less than jobs in other states. Mississippi has the lowest mean or average household income at $65,156 per year. Mississippi has trailed the rest of the nation in per capita income for decades, though Reeves points out per capital income has increased by 21% or $8,100 since 2019.
Wages in Mississippi, like in the rest of the nation, have been increasing since the pandemic. Personal income in Mississippi grew by an annualized rate of 4.1% between the third and fourth quarters of 2022. During the same period, the nation's personal income grew by an annualized rate of 7.4%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1896
MAY 18, 1896
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-1 in Plessy v. Ferguson that racial segregation on railroads or similar public places was constitutional, forging the “separate but equal” doctrine that remained in place until 1954.
In his dissent that would foreshadow the ruling six decades later in Brown v. Board of Education, Justice John Marshall Harlan wrote that “separate but equal” rail cars were aimed at discriminating against Black Americans.
“In the view of the Constitution, in the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens,” he wrote. “Our Constitution in color-blind and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens. In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law. The humblest is the peer of the most powerful. The law … takes no account of his surroundings or of his color when his civil rights as guaranteed by the supreme law of the land are involved.”
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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Mississippi Today
Renada Stovall, chemist and entrepreneur
Renada Stovall sat on the back deck of her rural Arkansas home one evening, contemplating life when she had a life-altering epiphany…
“I gotta get out of these woods.”
She heard it as clear as lips to her ear and as deep as the trees surrounding her property. Stovall's job as a chemist had taken her all over the country. In addition to Arkansas, there were stints in Atlanta, Dallas and Reno. But she was missing home, her parents and friends. She also knew, she needed something else to do.
“I thought, what kind of business can I start for myself,” said Stovall, as she watered herbs growing in a garden behind her south Jackson home. Some of those herbs are used in her all-natural products. “I know when I lived in Reno, Nevada, where it's very hot and very dry, there really weren't products available that worked for me, my hair, and my skin suffered. I've got a chemistry degree from Spelman College. I took the plunge and decided to create products for myself.”
In 2018, Stovall's venture led to the creation of shea butter moisturizers and natural soaps. But she didn't stop there, and in December 2022, she moved home to Mississippi and got to work, expanding her product line to include body balms and butters, and shampoos infused with avocado and palm, mango butter, coconut and olive oils.
Nadabutter, which incorporates Renada's name, came to fruition.
Stovall sells her balms and moisturizers at what she calls, “pop-up markets,” across the state during the summer. She's available via social media and also creates products depending on what of her ingredients a customer chooses. “My turmeric and honey is really popular,” Stovall added.
“The all-natural ingredients I use are great for conditioning the skin and hair. All of my products make you feel soft and luscious. The shea butter I use comes from West Africa. It's my way of networking and supporting other women. And it's my wish that other women can be inspired to be self-sufficient in starting their own businesses.”
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1954
MAY 17, 1954
In Brown v. Board of Education and Bolling v. Sharpe, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the “separate but equal” doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson was unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment, which guaranteed equal treatment under the law.
The historic decision brought an end to federal tolerance of racial segregation, ruling in the case of student Linda Brown, who was denied admission to her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of her skin.
In Mississippi, segregationist leaders called the day “Black Monday” and took up the charge of the just-created white Citizens' Council to preserve racial segregation at all costs.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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