Institute of Government
Executive Summary Report
The Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus, in collaboration with Jackson State University’s
Institute of Government (IOG), hosted a summit on September 26, 2013 at the JSU Main
Campus for newly-elected African American mayors from central Mississippi. The summit,
“New Mayor’s Perspective on the First 100 Days,” began at 9:30 a.m. in the Dollye M.E.
Robinson Building. Mayors participating in the summit were elected to their first terms in July,
and represented for the first time in the State’s history African Americans serving as municipal
leaders from four major communities in Mississippi’s most populace region. The Mayors panel
included Chokwe Lumumba of Jackson, George Flaggs of Vicksburg, Percy Bland of Meridian
and Arnel Bolden of Canton. Over 350 people attended the forum, which was open to the public
and included many state legislators, former mayoral candidates from the Jackson area, students,
faculty, staff, and administrators. The summit provided great opportunity for both the public and
city leaders as it created a venue for newly elected officials to share their views and plans with
constituents.
Following are two IOG Executive Summary Reports from Institute Associates that capture the
significance of the summit and its value to public dialogue on the status, needs, and opportunities
for government and public leaders in shaping a 21st Century direction for the State.
Panel Discussion: “New Mayor’s Perspective of the First 100 Days”
September 26, 2013
Byron D’Anda Orey, Ph.D.
Institute Associate
Professor, Political Science
Jackson State University
As moderator, I was charged with the duty of introducing each of our panelists. I designed
approximately 10 questions to ask of the entire panel. These questions were derived from
extensive research on each of these cities, as well as the campaigns and their current position,
albeit brief, as mayor. The following introductions were provided by the panelists:
Honorable Chokwe Lumumba, mayor of Jackson: The former city councilman was outspent
significantly but still emerged a victor in a crowded Democratic primary field — to the surprise
of many political observers. He went on to defeat three independent candidates. As an attorney
(Wayne State University law degree) and civil rights leader, Lumumba has been deeply involved
in myriad political campaigns and legal battles. Among his most pressing issues now are
handling infrastructure issues, namely mandated sewer and water upgrades.
Honorable George Flaggs, mayor of Vicksburg: The former state representative won a bruising
Democratic primary before his victory in the general election. During his 25 years in the
Mississippi House of Representatives, Flaggs served as chair of the Corrections Committee and
served on several committees, including Appropriations and Banking and Financial Services.
Flaggs received his bachelor’s degree in industrial technology from JSU. Among his biggest
challenges: Dealing with an antiquated commission form of government that makes effecting
change difficult.
Honorable Percy Bland, mayor of Meridian: With an overwhelming win in the Democratic
primary, Bland defeated Republican Cheri Berry in a high-stakes rematch from 2009 to become
the city’s first black mayor. Assuring voters he would be “the mayor for everyone,” the former
healthcare administrator hit the ground running, naming a new police chief and others to top
positions a day after taking office. Bland received his master’s of public health from the
University of Southern Mississippi and currently serves as an adjunct professor at Mississippi
State University of Meridian branch in the Health Care Administration Program.
Honorable Arnel Bolden, mayor of Canton: The State Farm Insurance agency owner endured a
tough runoff in a municipal election plagued by claims of corruption and strong-arm election
tactics. Many in the community are looking to Bolden as a breath of fresh air in local politics. A
fixture in the Canton business community, Bolden is tasked with governing Madison County’s
most populous city, which includes the Nissan auto plant. Bolden earned his bachelor’s degree in
marketing from Southern University.
The mayors were first asked to give brief introductory statements and to provide a brief
discussion of issues that they campaigned on. The follow up question focused on the challenges
that they have faced while in office and have these challenges posed a problem for them
accomplishing their goals.
The mayors were also asked about potential tourism opportunities and whether they had thought
about any brands for their city, particularly given the success of Vicksburg and Canton. Of
course, Vicksburg has the Civil War Memorial Park and Casinos and Canton is home to a
number of popular movies having been made in their city. Lumumba was asked whether his
focus would turn to tourism, particularly focusing on the downtown development, with such
projects as the Farish Street project. Bland was asked what opportunities existed for his city,
given that it is a major thoroughfare with it being the first major city that people driving west on
Interstate 20 comes in contact with.
The conversation then transitioned into a discussion of race relations, given Mississippi’s
infamous past. The discussion closed with the moderator stating: “There is a seminal body of
research originated by Clarence Stone that discusses the concept of urban regimes. Based on this
concept the business elites tend to be the real leaders of major urban cities. Using the case of
Atlanta, Maynard Jackson when elected in the late 1960s first attempted to provide a
redistributive approach, where lower income individuals, mainly a large concentration of blacks,
would be provided assistance to move out of poverty. However, business elite quickly began
challenging this approach. Jackson’s successor adopted the model that focused on developing
strong ties with the business community. In doing so, given the zero sum game of monetary
resources, people in poverty suffered. For example, during the Olympics a large portion of poor
people were displaced from the Techwood area and it was converted into Olympic Village. That
said, how can a city move forward without utilizing the resources of the business community,
particularly when they are often White and the city is predominantly black. This discussion is
derived from the racial tension that has haunted Mississippi for years.”
Mayor Flaggs responded suggesting that one way to get around the so-called zero sum game is to
improve public works wages, which would in turn improve private sector wages, because of the
competition. Additionally, he noted that if the city worked with businesses, such support would
translate into jobs. He stated that the city recently worked to convert a hotel that was in
bankruptcy into a four star hotel. This collaboration will result in a win/win situation: the
business elite win, the city wins and the workers win. Mayor Lumumba stated,
I think that the balancing is important. One of the things we try to use is called the
50/60 rule. What we want to say to Jackson and we are saying, in case anybody
here is interested, is that it is open for business. We want businesses to come here
but with the awareness that if you come to Jackson, then you have to employ the
people of Jackson. So we are talking about 60% of the employees that you have
with boots on the ground should come from Jackson, of course we will take some
from our brothers in Vicksburg and Canton, we don’t want to put them out, but we
want to make sure our people are being employed, that’s the point. Secondly, the
50% rule in which 50% of your contractors need to be expanding the economy’s
economic base, which means the minority contractors…. We have a real serious
problem, I think that something like less than 1% or slightly over 1% of the actual
revenues which come in for businesses go to quote and quote minority businesses
in Jackson. That’s a small amount and so what we need to do is to change the
economy in a way that it will include more people and you have to have specific
ways in which you attempt to do that.
Lastly, Mayor Bolden stated, “I talk to companies on a consistent basis about their wage
practices, increasing the wages accordingly so that a person can have the substance to
provide for themselves. So in relation to the question, yes, we are having initiatives in
place to make sure that our African American community is empowered and that we can
increase the jobs for our segment as a community.”
Panel Discussion: “Passing the Torch of Leadership –
Being Prepared to Take It”
September 26, 2013
Dr. Shonda Lawrence
Institute Associate
Assistant Professor, Interim Program Director
Bachelor of Social Work Program
Jackson State University
This session was a Jackson State University student panel discussion with newly elected mayors
representing Jackson, MS. (Chokwe Lumumba), Vicksburg, MS. (George Flaggs), and Canton,
MS (Arnel Bolden). The purpose of the activity was to allow students to ask questions of
mayors related to pressing local/state social and political issues. Responses were expected to
give students an in-depth analysis of the topics presented and directive information on how one
might address specific issues from a political viewpoint.
The panel of students included Mark Roth and Regina Lacking, Social Work; Tim Abrams,
Educational Leadership; Kiyadh Burt, Political Science; Travis Ballard, Sociology; Ryan P.
Brown, Sherika N. Rimmer-Harvey, and Jeremy Armstrong, Public Policy and Administration.
They developed questions, vetted by the session facilitator, within their perspective areas. The
newly elected mayors were asked to respond to questions that related directly to constituencies of
their communities, and state and national policy. Each of the mayor’s responses was limited to
three (3) minutes.
Student inquiries encompassed significant areas of which the Mayor’s input and actions might
have a great influence. A few of the topics raised led to discussions related to military veterans
assistance, healthcare, foreseeable educational enhancements to schools/education based on the
expected growth of the Nissan plant and related suppliers, cooperative agreements between cities
and Jackson State University that would allow students to serve as city interns, and advice on
how students should educate themselves so that they too could become change agents for their
respective communities. Each of the Mayor’s was also asked to expound on what they are doing
to provide a strong foundation for future leaders.
The impact of the summit on the students can best be summed up in their own words. The
following are a few student comments on the summit and their experience as a participant:
“I found the panel discussion to be very enjoyable. It was good to hear the
mayors' visions for their cities. There was certainly a sense of excitement that I
gathered from the mayors about the work soon to take place in their respective
cities.” Ryan P. Brown, Public Policy and Administration
“I was delighted with my experience at the Mayors’ Summit. I thought the
structure was efficient and allowed for an informative question and answer
section. For future reference, I would attempt to allow more time for general
questions from the audience. I was pleased with the character and transparency of
the mayors, and lastly I thought the reception after the program proved to be a
great opportunity to network with important individuals of the metropolitan
community.” Kiyadh Burt, Political Science
“As I reflect on my experience many things come to my mind. First, the
brainstorming and preparation time was a positive experience because I had the
opportunity to meet cohorts from other disciplines. I build relationships with my
classmates but never have the opportunity to meet others. Since the time of the
Summit I have seen and spoken to other panel members. I was challenged to hear
their views on issues that they consider to be crucial and important. Second, to
have the opportunity to meet, greet and interact with the Mayors was a positive
experience for me. I was impressed at their humility and willingness to address
the issues we felt were important. To represent JSU in this manner with the
Mayors was a form of empowerment, teaching me to utilize my voice in
addressing concerns and advocating for change. Last, the reception was
extremely nice and provided a very relaxing atmosphere for networking to take
place.
I enjoyed the opportunity to network and make/build new
relationships…....If I could represent JSU in this manner again, I would be
honored to do so.” Mark Roth, Social Work
“I was afforded a potentially once in a lifetime opportunity to serve on the student
panel which interviewed several mayors from the central MS surrounding areas.
As a graduate student in the field of Social Work, such a platform reignites the
passion for the cause of the people. All too often elected officials ride off into the
sunset with a victory and constituents never engage with them again until “reelection” time. The mayoral summit allowed students, professionals, elected
officials and the public to begin conversations of real life issues that will require
follow-up in some capacity. I certainly hope the summit was the first of many in
an effort to seek true accountability of the offices they hold.
I believe my voice counts and learning to engage in the political arena can create
opportunities for greater work in the community. The people need to know that
society still has caring individuals who will hold to their word. In some regards it
seems that we as a people have lost the fire but opportunities such as the summit
reminds us that there is still a bush burning and it’s up to us to fan the flames.
More importantly we must continue such engagements and educate those within
our sphere of influence on the importance of community engagement. I look
forward to working with and collaborating on future endeavors.” Regina L.
Lacking, Social Work
Providing an opportunity for students to interact and participate in such a forum promotes an
academic environment of excellence.
Students networked with Mayors and other political
figures, exchanged ideologies, methods and expressions of passions for servitude in leadership.
Altogether, this was a great event for students, staff, faculty, administration, and the community
at large.
The Mayor’s dedication to their constituencies, cities, and Mississippi was apparent in their
commentaries. The common thread throughout was collectivity. The Mayor’s spoke as one on
standing together to address issues plaguing all cities, functioning outside of isolated silos,
learning from one another, and helping each other for the common goal of creating opportunities,
policies and plans for a stronger, healthier, more prosperous and connected Mississippi.
Students Left to Right: Tim Abrams, Kiyadh Burt, Regina Lacking and Mark Roth.
Mayor Arnel Bolden – Canton, Dr. Shonda Lawrence, Mayor Chokwe Lumumba – Jackson,
Representive Alyce Clarke