LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

To the Editor:

A week has passed since our 2019 statewide elections. I see online all manner of Facebook posts and opinion pieces from those of us who identify as Democrats and “left-leaners” — some written by prominent political operatives, including former candidates.

I am dismayed that whereas up to this point, we at least had one Democrat elected to statewide office — Attorney General Jim Hood — now there are none. The margins of the existing majority in both houses of legislature also increased substantially.

It seems we are getting further and further away from government that actually reflects our diverse state. This lack of accurate representation has potentially severe consequences in Mississippi for healthcare, education, infrastructure, civil rights, employment prospects and affordability.

During a recent visit to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in Jackson, I was reminded once again that in the years immediately following the Civil War, the majority of the population of Mississippi was black. After the brief Reconstruction years, federal protections for newly emancipated black people receded, and the reign of terror that was the Jim Crow era began. For the next 70 years, the relegation and enforcement of black people to second-class citizenship meant that they could be attacked and killed with impunity. In order to save their own lives and to have some prospect of a better life, black people fled Mississippi and other Deep South states in droves, making their way to prosperous urban centers like Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Detroit.

The terror campaign succeeded in the Magnolia State: black Mississippians now make up 38 precent of the population. In our racially-polarized political system where black people are overwhelmingly identified with the Democratic Party and white people with the Republican Party, gerrymandering and voter suppression ensure that the likelihood of a Democrat being elected in any competitive race becomes slimmer and slimmer each election cycle.

In my work consulting with and training leaders in congregations across the South and beyond, I help church leaders look beyond blaming any one person as the cause of the challenges they face, but instead to look at the complex systems in which they operate. Taking a systems approach, it’s not enough to say, for example, “If we just got a new pastor, all our problems would be over!” We have to go deeper and ask questions like, Why did we choose this pastor? What is our history with previous pastors? What are our patterns? What new things do we need to learn to help our ministry with this pastor succeed? What do we have to let go of?

These are similar to the questions I am asking now regarding the Mississippi Democratic Party. What is our history? What are our patterns in seeking to elect Democrats? What did we learn this time that can help us be more effective next time? What inspiration can we tap into from those who paved the way for us to be where we are now? How can we build strong bridges and powerful networks between our various communities? How do we address the internal racial issues that hold the Mississippi Democratic Party back?

Many years ago, my thenpastor in Washington, D.C., preached a sermon about being thankful. One of the things he shouted into the microphone that day was, “It’s a blessing to know that something is wrong!” In other words, we can’t begin to seek healing unless we know that we are not well. After November 5, 2019, we understand without a doubt the MDP is not well, and is in fact declining in health.

I am thankful to know that. It helps us get clarity on what needs to be done.

At the same time, I am filled with gratitude for so many things relative to where we find ourselves two weeks before Thanksgiving.

I am grateful for all the many qualified Democratic candidates who ran for office this cycle, including former Mayor André DeBerry, who was the Democratic nominee for State Senate District 10, for which I ran as well.

I am grateful for Mayor Kelvin Buck and the board of aldermen passing the ordinance prohibiting discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. I appreciate being in one of the most progressive municipalities in our state, the fourth to enact such protections.

I am grateful for all the Mississippians who exemplified courage and fortitude in difficult, divisive times, including James Meredith, Fannie Lou Hamer, Medgar Evers and our own Ida B. Wells-Barnett. May their examples light our way.

I am grateful for the legacy of Rust College, which just celebrated its 153rd anniversary — a school which has had an immeasurable positive impact on our town, county, state, nation and world.

I am grateful for The South Reporter as our county’s journal of record, where we can learn from one another and share ideas.

In the Bible, we read, “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (I Thess. 5:18). I pray that all of us are mindful of this admonition to always be grateful, while we strive to make Mississippi a better state for all of us.

Sincerely,
Rev. Carlton E. Smith

Note: Rev. Carlton E. Smith is a member of the Congregational Life Staff for the Unitarian Universalist Association and a member of Asbury United Methodist Church. He can be reached at carlton@carltonesmith.com.