The Southern Youth Commission is a new organization on the Mississippi gulf coast fighting to take down symbols of white supremacy. On July 28, they held their first rally and march, with support from the Mississippi Rising Coalition, and the Jackson and Hancock County branches of the NAACP. These organizers – some still in high school – brought out progressive community members who braved the heat and rain, marching across the bridge from Biloxi to City Hall in Ocean Springs. The SYC demands that Ocean Springs mayor, Shea Dobson, and the Board of Aldermen remove the racist state flag from all public buildings. Dobson recently caused outrage by flying these flags, despite objections from the community. But the march of July 28 showed that the movement to remove all symbols of white supremacy is building strength.
