Mississippi
Women advocate for paid leave, equal pay – Mississippi Today
Mothers and advocates with the Black Women’s Roundtable gathered at the Capitol Thursday and called on the Legislature to prioritize women and children this year.
Speakers asked lawmakers to act on a range of issues from midwifery care to child care, but all their priorities centered around making women more financially secure in the poorest state with the worst maternal health outcomes.
Advocates brought with them “money bags,” which they said would be placed on the desks of all lawmakers.
“Inside those money bags are coins that represent access to child care, access to health care, higher wages for families and the need to move paid family and medical leave,” said Robin Jackson, director of policy advocacy for the Mississippi Black Women’s Roundtable. “We are not asking you anymore – we are telling you ‘Secure the bag for Mississippi families.’”
Shequite Wilson-Johnson, a mother of five and assistant professor at Mississippi Valley State University, spoke about her struggle to birth her children safely and with job security – even when she worked her way up the social ladder.
Wilson-Johnson was a teenager when she had her first baby. By her second child, she was in college, working up until the day she gave birth. With her third, she was married. With her fourth, she had a master’s degree, and with her fifth, a doctoral degree. But she never got paid time off, and she was laid off twice after giving birth – including with her last child.
“Understand this: No matter how hard I worked, no matter how hard I tried, no matter the education I had, no matter the standard of life, I was still told, ‘You don’t matter,’” Wilson-Johnson said.
There are currently two bills moving through the Legislature that would create the state’s first paid parental leave mandate for state employees. The bills wouldn’t help people like Wilson-Johnson, but they would be a start, and might encourage the private sector to follow suit and “do the right thing,” said Rep. Kevin Felsher, R-Biloxi, and author of the House’s bill.
But it isn’t just about the money. Studies show that paid maternity leave drastically benefits the health of mothers and babies – including reducing postpartum depression and infant mortality, and increasing bonding and breastfeeding.
There are a dozen states that mandate paid parental leave across both private and public sectors. But the majority of states offer paid parental leave to state employees.
Sen. Angela Turner-Ford, D-West Point, voiced her support for paid leave during the press conference.
“Our state does lag behind, whether it’s welcoming a newborn, caring for an elderly loved one, or managing a personal health crisis,” Turner-Ford said. “… Come back next year if we have not passed this legislation, hold us responsible, make us do more.”
Wilson-Johnson, of Indianola, also struggled to find adequate and affordable child care for her children, even when she worked at a child care center – a common plight for mothers everywhere.
Two out of five child care workers in America make so little they need public assistance to support their families. In Mississippi, there are so few child care employees willing to work under the industry’s conditions that it’s affecting every other sector of the job market, with moms staying out of work because they can’t find a safe day care in which to place their children. It’s costing Mississippi $8 billion, according to a report from the Mississippi Early Learning Alliance.
Bills aimed at allocating funds from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant, or TANF, to create child care vouchers for needy parents died in committee.
Advocates commended lawmakers for passing 12 months of postpartum Medicaid coverage in 2023, calling it “a win” – but emphasized the need to do more, and quickly. Mississippi, the state with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation, was among the last states to ensure that these mothers could continue their Medicaid coverage for a year after they gave birth – the time during which most maternal deaths occur.
In fact, between 2018 and 2023, the Mississippi Legislature only passed four bills related to maternal health, according to a study by researchers at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann told Mississippi Today he recognizes the need for legislative action supporting women, and that’s why he founded the Women, Children and Families Study Group, a Senate committee tasked with reviewing the needs of women and children in the state, in 2022. He said more maternal health bills were passed in the last two years than ever before.
“This session, I hope to build on that progress by passing bills for paid maternity leave for state employees and enhancing postpartum depression screening to ensure more effective and efficient care,” Hosemann said.
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A prolonged and dangerous flood event is unfolding along the Mississippi River, where heavy rain that fell this month across the Ohio and Mississippi river basins have pushed the waterway to critical levels, prompting road closures, emergency preparations and warnings to residents.
Why It Matters
The Mississippi River is a critical transportation route for agricultural and industrial goods, and high water levels are affecting river navigation and barge movement.
AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski reported that “some of the ports along the river below St. Louis may be closed due to high water,” and that tugboats will have to move with reduced loads because of increased flow speed and reduced bridge clearance.
Beyond economic concerns, tens of thousands of residents in unprotected lowlands are at risk of prolonged inundation. Levees are being tested across multiple states.
AccuWeather
What To Know
Communities in Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana are bracing for flooding expected to persist throughout the month. In Vicksburg, Mississippi, the river is projected to crest at 48 feet around April 21, according to forecasts. Farther south in Natchez, Mississippi, peak flood levels may not occur until April 22, with recovery efforts likely continuing into next month. Officials in several counties have begun closing roads and building temporary flood walls to protect homes and businesses.
“We are going to have numerous streets and roads close, including Highway 465 that runs between Highway 61 North and the Eagle Lake community,” Warren County Emergency Management Agency Director John Elfer told Jackson, Mississippi, news station WLBT.
In some of the hardest-hit areas, road closures could last “for days,” AccuWeather reported.
“When we close streets and roads, not only is it illegal but it’s dangerous for folks and motorists to bypass those barricades,” Elfer said.
Storms from April 2 to 6 damaged more than 300 homes across Mississippi, injured seven people and left one dead, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.
In Greenville, Mississippi, the river is expected to crest at 52.5 feet on April 22. Power outages and business shutdowns are anticipated as water threatens ports and grain terminals. In Natchez, similar threats loom with flooding already making roads like Carthage Point impassable.
According to AccuWeather, “as the lower end of the Ohio crests into this weekend and begins to recede during the following couple of weeks, waters will slowly rise farther downstream.”
Areas from Osceola, Arkansas, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, are on alert, with crests not expected until late April and water levels possibly not falling back to normal until mid-May.
What People Are Saying
AccuWeather senior meteorologist Bob Smerbeck told Newsweek: “We still have a long way to go, the lower Ohio Valley is cresting this weekend, so it’s going to take a while to get into the lower Mississippi River.
“I think the weather is going to work out in the flooding’s favor, at least through the weekend. There’s some isolated storms right now, mainly east of the Mississippi and parts of Tennessee and Mississippi, but it’s very light and isolated, so we don’t expect much of a problem from those.
“Multiple rounds of showers and thunderstorms next weekend could possibly linger into the following week.”
Warren County EMA Director John Elfer told WLBT: “This is not the first time we’ve seen 48 [feet]. We saw 57.2 back in 2011 and that was a big one. We don’t anticipate that this time. Forty-eight is a moderate flood.”
What Happens Next
As the flood wave continues moving south, officials warn that the situation could worsen if additional storms hit the region. While forecasters see a brief period of drying across the Tennessee and Ohio valleys, further rain mid-next week could add to flood risks.
As the old adage goes: When one door closes, another opens. That was the case for one of Mississippi’s favorite fast food restaurants.
Just under three months after closing its downtown Jackson location, Chick-fil-A has opened a new franchise in the metro area. The wildly popular chain welcomed customers to its latest spot in Flowood this week.
Located along Lakeland Drive and Treetops Blvd. just past the Pearl River and right next to the GI Associates, the Magnolia State’s newest Chick-fil-A is now serving up its mouthwatering chicken, savory fries, delicious milkshakes, breakfast, and more.
The new location is open every Monday through Saturday from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m., and, of course, closed on Sunday.
Mississippi
Weather threats for Mississippi return: Large hail, damaging winds possible Thursday night
‘The main threats are primarily damaging wind gusts up to 70 mph and hail up to golf ball size.’
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- Severe thunderstorms are expected to impact Northeast Mississippi Thursday evening.
- Damaging winds up to 70 mph and golf ball-sized hail are possible.
- The fast-moving system is predicted to enter the state around 6 p.m. and exit by midnight.
- A marginal risk of severe weather, with winds up to 60 mph and quarter-sized hail, extends further south.
After several days of calm weather severe thunderstorms are back on the radar for portions of Mississippi Thursday evening into the night.
“The main threats are primarily damaging wind gusts up to 70 mph and hail up to golf-ball size,” said Christopher Rainer, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Jackson. “This is in the northeast portions of the state.”
The area at greater risk of severe weather extends across the state from Philadelphia over to Cleveland and north. The area south of that down to Laurel and just south of Vicksburg is in the Marginal Risk category.
“For those areas we’re looking at damaging winds up to 60 mph and hail up to quarter size,” Rainer said.
Rainer said the system should move into Mississippi around 6 p.m. and be in the Jackson area around 11 p.m. It should move out by midnight.
“This is a fast-moving system,” Ranier said.
After that, Mississippi will enjoy warm spring weather and sunny skies into next week.
National Weather Service forecast in, near Jackson, MS
- Today: Sunny, with a high near 81. West southwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Thursday night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. Mostly clear, with a low around 53. West southwest wind around 5 mph becoming north after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 72. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
- Friday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 47. North wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
- Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph in the morning.
- Saturday night: Clear, with a low around 46. North northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 79. Light southeast wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
National Weather Service forecast in, near Hattiesburg, MS
- Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 83. Calm wind becoming west southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
- Thursday night: Mostly clear, with a low around 55. West southwest wind around 5 mph becoming northwest after midnight.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 76. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph.
- Friday night: Clear, with a low around 47. North wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
- Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 72. North northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
- Saturday night: Clear, with a low around 45. North northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 80. Calm wind becoming south southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.
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