The photo shows Pi Kappa Alpha members wearing face paint and dressing like native tribesmen. This controversy comes after similar photos were taken by the fraternity to whom Republican Lt. Governor. Tate Reeves was a Millsaps employee, and Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s yearbook page for the medical school, which shows a man wearing blackface and another dressed in full Klan regalia. Confederate reverence is a long-standing tradition at Mississippi colleges and universities. A spokesperson for Reeves, the GOP frontrunner, released a brief statement acknowledging that Reeves was an honorary member of Kappa Alpha Order. This order holds an “Old South” costume in recognition of Confederate culture. Reeves’ office has not provided any further information on the matter. Reeves still preside over the Senate at press time Monday. We will update this story after adjournment, if Reeves speaks with the media. Hood, the Democratic Party’s leading candidate to be governor in 2019, met Monday afternoon with reporters at the Stennis Press Club luncheon. It was sponsored by the Mississippi State University Stennis Institute of Government, and Capitol Correspondents Association. Below are his verbatim answers to reporters’ questions and the audio of his conversation with them: Mississippi Today: I wanted you to have a chance publicly to comment on the yearbook issues, as well as other news that has been coming out over the past few weeks. Hood: “You know what was out on Tate Reeves? Y’all need to ask him that question. The picture they had in the Clarion-Ledger was the one I saw. I thought it was KISS, but I was shocked to see their bodies. I don’t know the name of the party, and I don’t remember if I was still at school. I was working as an oil and gas engineer at Mississippi State in the fall of 1983, so I would not have been involved in fraternity activities. I don’t remember when this picture was taken. It’s not clear to me what the context is. I don’t have any other comments. “I don’t have any other words to say.” Mississippi Today: Have your ever worn blackface?” Hood: “No. Hood: “No. It would make me suffocate to death. It’s impossible to wear a mask when I go hunting. If you’re not wearing a mask when you go hunting in Arkansas, the die-hard duck hunters are going to shoot you. It would smother you to death, so it is impossible for me to say no.” Mississippi Today: What do you think about a Klan hood or robe? Hood: “I can’t recall going to any place where I was dressed like that.” No. No. That’s something I have to admit. For Americans, the question is: “What’s someone’s record after?” What have you done? I made the DA office look like Mississippi, and I made the AG office look like Mississippi. I have fought for working people regardless of race or color. My entire history, my entire life, and my parents’ upbringing taught me to treat people the same way as I would want them to be treated. That’s not all I believe. You know what? I believe we should judge people who speak at events that you are actually in office at and those filled with Rebel flags. This sends a negative message to 38-40 percent or even 50 percent of the people in our state. “So I believe we should be judged based on what we did afterwards. Editor’s Note: Hood refers to a widely circulated photograph of Reeves speaking during a Sons of Confederate Veterans 2013 event in Vicksburg. The photo shows several Confederate battle flags, and other official symbols representing the Confederacy, lining the stage behind and in front of Reeves. Associated Press: Have Sons of Confederate Veterans ever spoken to you? Hood: No. Hood: No. Hood: “You know what? I don’t know if it even exists anymore. I was able to see some photos from ’13. The Klan was funny to me when I was in high school. In high school, the Klan was a joke. We all believed they were gone and dead. It was not something I had read in my history books. It was only through my own experience with the Mississippi Burning case that I discovered the truth. I was able to see the fear in the eyes of both African Americans and Choctaw Indians about how they were treated during that time. I started to learn. I began to learn about our history and the events that took place in our state. We’ve been held back over the years because we’ve hidden our history, and we were ashamed of that. Our diversity is one of our greatest assets. With the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum in downtown Jackson sitting right above us, I believe you will soon see more tourists coming to this area. Editor’s Note: In 2005, Hood was the state’s attorney-general and prosecuted Edgar Ray Killen in connection with the 1964 murders that took place to civil rights workers James Chaney (and Andrew Goodman) and Mickey Schwerner. This case is commonly referred to as “Mississippi Burning”, which was the title for a 1988 movie about the unsolved murders.