‘Murder capital’ state ‘reeks of racism’ and voted worst place to dwell – once more
The “worst” US state to live in this year has been revealed, with people on the internet flocking to give their take on the “murder capital of the world”.
Based on a number of factors, Mississippi ranks bottom of all the 50 US states. According to Wallet Hub, the ‘Magnolia State’ was rated last for education and healthcare, while it came second to last for its quality of life.
Some disdainful Redditors have spoken up about the place, giving their views on the state that “reeks of racism”.
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“Imagine a South Carolinian sitting round a table,” wrote one person. “They’d say ‘thank god for Mississippi – because otherwise we’d be ranked 50th in education”.
(Image: Crazy Travel Addicts/You tube)
“Mississippi has been a shock,” said another. “This is a state baldly built for and still in service of whites only.”
They added: “I can’t state how depressing this was. I realised black people own nothing in this state. It’s like going to Ireland and realising every pub you got Guinness at is owned by the Crown.”
In a YouTube video, blogger Crazy Travel Addict drove around the state, including a remote town called Meridian. “There just looks like there’s very little to do,” the narrator says, as he swerves around run-down, abandoned buildings.
(Image: Crazy Travel Addicts/You tube)
This “built for whites” line holds true – there’s still an outdated law from 1890 that blocks 16% of Mississippi’s Black voting-age population from voting.
The US is one of the few advanced countries that allows people convicted of felonies to be left out from voting once they leave prison. Over the years Mississippi’s Republican-dominated legislature has rejected many attempts to provide some pathway for people who have broken the law to have their rights restored.
The racist policy underscores how these Jim Crow south rooted laws continue to have discriminatory consequences today.
And then there’s Jackson – Mississippi’s capital city – a place dubbed “the murder capital of the US”. The national homicide rate per 100,000 living in America was around 5.5 in 2023. Jackson’s high-water mark in 2021 was a staggering 99.5 – last year that fell to 78.8.
(Image: Crazy Travel Addicts/You tube)
The state as a whole has the highest homicide rate in the country, more than three times the national average.
83% of Jackson’s population is Black, but most of the capitol police are based uptown where the city’s white police live. In other words, it’s an incredibly unbalanced situation where the police department are sent to look after their own, leaving vast areas of the city as a lawless realm.
“If it’s a notion about how we make it safer, then please justify why they are in the areas with the lowest crime?” Jackson’s Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba told the Guardian. “I think it is underpinned by partisanship. Also quite frankly, and honestly, it reeks of racism.”
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