By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Well better late than never, y’all. The great state of Mississippi officially ratified the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution on February 7, 2013. For those counting, we’re now 50 states out of 50 against human bondage. Who says no progress is being made? And to whose credit is this crowning achievement? Why Abraham Lincoln, of course. Well, sort of.
It seems Ranjan Batra, a professor of neurobiology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, just finished watching Steven Spielberg’s Oscar nominated movie, Lincoln (filmed here in Richmond, you know). That got the academic wondering if the Magnolia State ever did ratify the law to free over half its citizens. Batra consulted Ken Sullivan, an anatomical material specialist at UMC, who sliced right into the subject (pun intended). Sullivan’s sleuthing found that while the legislature passed the bill authorizing ratification in 1995, one final requirement had never been met. Mississippi’s secretary of state had forgotten to send a copy of the bill to the federal register’s office for inclusion. On January 30, 2013, the Honorable Delbert Hosemann corrected the oversight and mailed the bill. On February 7 the bill officially became law and Mississippi joined the rest of us. Welcome back!
In honor of the occasion, let’s raise our mint juleps high and hear the sweet sounds of Alan Jackson and the Bellamy Brothers singing the newest of southern anthems:
Source: Newsmax
UPDATE 2/24/2013: Our friend and fellow guest blogger, David Drumm (“Nal”), has come up with this interesting twist in the story:
Reporter Jerry Mitchell of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger circled back yesterday for an interview with the Assistant Secretary of State who says she mailed in the paperwork …
She distinctly remembers sending in the final paperwork in 1995 to have the 13th Amendment ratified, she said. ”That was taken care of. That was important to me.”
Source: Maddow blog
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Somewhere in the distance, that plaintive twang, the mating call of the wild banjo. As the modern world encroached on their natural environment, such conflicts are bound to happen.
Wow! I do not believe it was a mistake. Remind me to stay out of Mississippi.
raff
at one time i had a job that required me to occasionally deliver cars to jackson mississippi.
to put it in the local vernacular, “you ain’t missin nothin”.
Gene,
The movie Deliverance comes to mind!
Thanks for the update Pete!
I can not help it.
One Mississippi, two Mississippi. ….
The real story is that it took Mississippi until 1995 to ratify the 13th Amendment.
So states that became states almost a full century after the civil war, such as Hawaii and Alaska, passed the 13th Amendment,but one of the most pro-slavery states didn’t until now, or at until 1995. Well, it probably wasn’t politically popular to do so until fairly recently. Mississippi is a state controlled by the Christian rightwing who still adores their beloved Confederacy, a wannabe nation that was born to defend the biblical values of slavery in the bible, which are of course, in the bible.
By gwad… Wha dis contry comin too… Them dang yanks ain’t gonna be happy til dem people get educumation…. Conversation heard at the local barber hop…..
Mark,
Better late than never… I suppose…..
Follow…
Back to the future …
Next up…….. Repeal the Voting Rights Act so the southern states are free to change their voting laws. The oral arguments will begin on Feb 27 at the Supreme Court.
“The real story is that it took Mississippi until 1995 to ratify the 13th Amendment.”
Nal,
You took that comment right out of my mouth. 135 years to ratify and then “glory be” they forgot to get the right signature. Intentional……………..?
Mississippi story takes a turn
Reporter Jerry Mitchell of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger circled back yesterday for an interview with the Assistant Secretary of State who says she mailed in the paperwork …
She distinctly remembers sending in the final paperwork in 1995 to have the 13th Amendment ratified, she said. ”That was taken care of. That was important to me.”
Swarthmore,
With this group of Supremes, getting rid of the voting rights act could be possible and devastating.
Nal 1, February 23, 2013 at 12:01 am
The real story is that it took Mississippi until 1995 to ratify the 13th Amendment.
exactly what i thought soon as i read that line in the article
nice article Mark
Marco McMillian Dead: Openly Gay Mississippi Mayoral Candidate’s Body Found, Homicide Suspected
By HOLBROOK MOHR 02/28/13
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/28/marco-mcmillian-dead_n_2780698.html