Greenville is an example. The Mississippi town was home to approximately 40,000 people in 1967. This large part of the population was supported by agriculture and industry. According to the 1970 Census, poverty was still 29 percent. The city was divided evenly on the basis of black-white racial lines, and schools were segregated at the time. Today, the majority of the city’s leadership and the schools are black, despite the fact that de jure segregation was ended 50 years ago. As industries have ceased to exist and agriculture has become more automated, poverty is now at 35 percent. John Hines (D-Greenville), state representative, stated that “part of the Delta was industrialized” and that the transition has not been made. “The investment to double-down on these workers was never made.” Mississippi’s poverty statistics are well known, regardless of how hard elected officials try to reduce the nation’s leading poverty rate. Warren, a Massachusetts senator seeking the Democratic nomination for the presidency, made this rare decision to make poverty, and racism, the central theme of her appeal to Democratic primary voters in Mississippi, and those watching the live televised Jackson State University town hall. Hines stood in front of the CNN stage and said, “Now the chickens are coming home to roost.” We need to make the kind of investment they (state leaders), are willing to make on the Gulf Coast, in northeast Mississippi, and in Desoto County. Hines stated that there is no other reason why something hasn’t happened. “It has always been clear that the Mississippi Delta must rise before the rest of the state can rise,” Hines said. Interstate 55 is a symbol of Mississippi’s dividing line. Most Mississippians live west of this freeway, which includes the Delta. Warren’s first town hall question, where Warren was asked by a grandmother of 10, about the 400-year-old legacy of slavery, featured race as a predominant theme. Warren described chattel slavery as a “stain of America” that has connections to the country’s current state. Warren said that it’s not only the original founding. Warren said that it was not just the original founding. There are many ways to think about how reparations should look. In Washington County, where Greenville is situated, 92 per cent of the population was enslaved by the government in 1860. The effects of this are still evident in high poverty rates, low life expectancy, and other poor outcomes. Warren visited Cleveland and Greenville earlier in the day to walk neighborhoods that have complex problems due to a lack viable housing options. Warren spoke about her affordable housing program, which aims to reduce the financial burden of low-income Americans and middle-class Americans by lowering rental costs by 10%. Warren’s plan calls for investing $500 billion over ten years, which will be financed by higher taxes on the richest citizens. This money will then be used to build 3,000,000 new housing units. Bobby Moak, Mississippi Democratic Party Chair, said Warren’s Cleveland-Greenville visits are similar to New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy’s poverty tours through the Mississippi Delta 50 years ago. The landmark civil rights legislation was not yet fully implemented. Ellen Meacham, University of Mississippi journalism professor and author of “Delta Epiphany,” a 2018 book about Kennedy’s visit, stated that Kennedy did not assert that the region’s deep poverty was fixed. Meacham stated that other politicians have visited Mississippi Delta since Kennedy’s visit, including Bill Clinton and John Edwards, to discuss change. Meacham stated that none of the other politicians seemed to be able to speak as comfortably about race like Warren. Warren didn’t shy away from discussing racism in her remarks on economic inequality. Not just the speech that should be condemned but also systemic discrimination that permeates almost every institution and aspect of American life. Independent Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont politician, has been criticized for not focusing their platforms on income and wealth inequality. Warren’s visit to Mississippi is a clear appeal to the strong Democratic voter bloc of black citizens. It is setting new standards for how national candidates will treat Mississippi. Mike Espy, 2018, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate from Vermont, stated that Mississippi is an “always overlooked” state. Some feel Warren’s Delta visit was a temporary respite from the sense of forgetfulness that can result from policies that favor urban areas more than rural. Eulah Peterson is the mayor of Mound Bayou. She said that the first step was to acknowledge the existence of the area and its need. “In the grand scheme of things, nobody thinks as much about the area as they should.” It’s important for us, citizens and taxpayers. We have every right to be included in your plans.” Pam Chapman (a Cleveland resident and activist), agreed with Peterson. “It would be a great honor to have a presidential candidate visit the Delta to meet the Delta’s needs and to help them make plans. She said she wants to work with us to bring better housing to this area. So, she asked for a tour of some of the housing to show her how important and valuable it is to the Mississippi Delta. Dyamone White, a town hall attendee, said that President Donald Trump addressed a rally at Mississippi Coliseum, on the east side, of downtown Jackson. However, Warren visited “negligible spots” such as west Jackson. White stated that Warren spoke more about the issues faced by everyday Mississippians (such as affordable housing) than its own elected officials. White stated that the cheers of the crowd of 600, particularly after a question on the impeachment Donald Trump, could indicate Mississippi is turning purple. White stated, “I hope Phil Bryant wasn’t watching.” “I hope he’s seeing that nobody’s comfortable, and we’re tired off being at the bottom.” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Warren whether she believed Mississippi should change its state flag design. It features the Confederacy battle emblem, which was used to fight for slavery during the Civil War. She answered without hesitation, “Yes,” Warren met with local leaders during the Greenville tour to learn more about how the Delta is plagued by a lack of affordable housing. According to Daniel Boggs (CEO of Greater Greenville Housing), Greenville has the highest concentration of substandard housing. Over 730 families are waiting to be able to rent a unit from the nonprofit community development corporation. “Errick D. Simmons, the mayor, has already worked with his team to determine the type of housing that is required. He just needs more resources. Warren stated that the federal government could be a good partner in this endeavor. Boggs expressed gratitude for the opportunity to meet, but was unsure if the housing plan she proposed would benefit Greenville or other areas similar to it. “Everyone we met from the D.C. region just wants to throw one policy after another and say, “We’re going to fix it.” It’s not that easy. Although I have not had the opportunity to read her bill yet, I feel very optimistic. He said that although I understand where she stands on affordable housing, and that she has a positive outlook on the issue, I would like to know what her solution is to fix it in rural America. Many politicians today extol jobs and employment as the only solution to poverty. However, a single mother of two would need to work 56 hours per week at the minimum wage in order to reach the poverty line. Mississippi’s Republican leaders are generally against any increase in the minimum wage. They have also tended to only accept raises for state employees, including teachers, during election years. Meacham stated that poverty and its ties with slavery and discriminatory Jim Crow laws are like a name politicians “dare to not speak.” Meacham stated that even if stronger anti-poverty policies are implemented at the federal level Mississippi will not be able to move the needle until it provides quality education for all children and “acknowledges and grapples with the systemic injustices that have impacted generations and people of color.” “There has never been a reckoning.” To support this important work, you can make a regular donation to our Spring Member Drive today.