In the News, Fall 2023
“In the News” is published quarterly and provides a sampling of stories, articles, or reviews that reference or relate to beliefs, myths, and narratives in Southern culture since 1970.
“If you look up ‘weird laws in Tennessee,’ you’re likely to find a list of truly unusual things that people claim Tennessee legislators have enshrined into law. From prohibitions on ice cream in pockets, to restrictions on the number of women allowed to cohabitate, to whether or not roadkill is acceptable food, some things Tennessee is said to have enacted as law truly sound too good to be true.”
“W. Ralph Eubanks speaking at Holtzclaw Lecture at Hinds Utica campus” from the Vicksburg Post (October 2, 2023)
“‘Although I use the blues as a narrative thread, I am referencing the blues as a music of protest rather than the blues we use to attract tourists,’ Eubanks said. ‘I think every Mississippian should develop a closer idea of the real Mississippi Delta beyond the mythology that has been constructed over the years.’”
“Alabama finally has a new congressional map after a lengthy legal fight” from NPR (October 5, 2023)
“Once again, the same three-judge panel reviewed Alabama’s map. The state argued that this was a new map, passed along new rules, so the old order should not apply. Besides, the state said considering race when drawing the map would have been racial gerrymandering and therefore illegal.”
“Book bans are on the rise in the Gulf South. Here’s what’s being challenged in Louisiana” from WWNO (October 6, 2023)
“Moe Moore stands in the Fant Memorial Library at the Mississippi University for Women in Columbus, Mississippi, on Oct. 4, 2023. Moore, a former graduate student at the university, said book bans perpetuate a myth that stories featuring exclusively white and straight characters should be the standard.”
“A federal judges says Georgia’s political maps must be redrawn for the 2024 election” from NPR (October 26, 2023)
“A group of civil rights and religious organizations challenged the maps, arguing that Black residents fueled Georgia’s population growth in the decade before the 2020 census, but that reality did not translate into adequate political representation in Atlanta or Washington, D.C.”
“‘Bubba’ Copeland: Alabama mayor’s suicide spotlights the dangers of outing” from AP News (November 9, 2023)
“After the disclosure, the state Baptist organization said it was aware of allegations of ‘unbiblical behavior’ involving the pastor. And a nationally syndicated radio show said Copeland should be ashamed because the Bible teaches that it is an ‘abomination’ for a man to dress in women’s clothing.”
Originally published at http://modernsouthernfolklore.com on November 16, 2023.
