Mississippi GOP Faces Backlash Over Redistricting Vote at Segregation-Era Site

Mississippi Republicans are scheduled to hold a special legislative session on May 20 to redraw the state’s congressional map at the Old Capitol Museum in Jackson, a location with deep ties to segregation and slavery. The session was moved to the Old Capitol from the newer Capitol building due to renovations in the House chamber.

The Old Capitol was the site of Mississippi’s 1861 vote to secede from the Union over slavery and later hosted lawmakers who drafted the 1890 state constitution, which institutionalized Jim Crow segregation against Black Mississippians.

Critics Condemn Location as Symbolic of Historical Oppression

Democratic state Representative Kabir Karriem, chair of Mississippi’s legislative Black caucus, criticized the choice of venue. “I was a little taken aback with the location of the Old State Capitol,” Karriem told The Guardian. “Even though they said that they were doing some remodeling, the optics of it are horrific for 1.2 million Black folks here in the state of Mississippi.”

Supreme Court Ruling Paves Way for Redistricting Without Protections

The redistricting vote follows the Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which last week gutted key provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The ruling removed federal oversight of racial gerrymandering, allowing states like Mississippi to redraw congressional districts without protections for Black voters.

Cheikh Taylor, chair of the Mississippi Democratic Party, condemned the session as an attempt to consolidate power. “This special session is about power, and making sure Black Mississippians never have enough of it to threaten the people who currently hold it,” Taylor, who is also a state representative, said in a statement.

“And now they plan to do it in the Old Capitol, the same building where Mississippi voted to secede from the Union over slavery, and where white supremacist delegates crafted the 1890 Constitution that stripped Black citizens of their voting rights and ushered in decades of poll taxes, literacy tests and racial terror. Rep. Kabir Karriem is right. It is a slap in the face to the 1.2 million African Americans in this state. It is also a confession. They are returning to the scene of the crime to try and finish the job.”

National Trend: GOP Rushes to Redraw Districts Ahead of Midterms

Republican-controlled states are accelerating redistricting efforts, driven by the Supreme Court ruling and pressure from former President Donald Trump, who has urged GOP leaders to act to prevent potential losses in the November midterm elections.

Mississippi has the highest percentage of Black residents of any U.S. state, at approximately 38 percent. Critics warn that the redistricting process could leave Black voters without meaningful representation in Congress.