Everybody is for progress, but no one wants to change.
But things in this world don’t change unless someone gets out of their comfort zone and goes about the hard work of making a difference in the world. It is so easy and comfortable to accept things as they are and not make the effort to change things for the best.
Your Clarksdale Press Register is proud to report there are a number of new and positive changes going on in Clarksdale. We are proud to say there are those in Coahoma County who have seen a better future and want change for this part of the world.
The question they ask is “What do you want Clarksdale to look like five years from now?”
As we move further into 2022 we want to point out there have been positive changes in our state, changes in our county and changes in our town.
If you will look at each of these changes, they are marked by people – leaders in our community – who are working to bring about change. And being the one who wants to bring about change in the Mississippi Delta can be dangerous in both politics and in business.
This newspaper hopes that mindset is slowly dying off around here.
While there are a lot of good things going on in Clarksdale, we are also faced with a number of problems that are gradually sucking the pleasure out of living here. Some people don’t want change and like you just where you are.
Crime, failing schools and a high truancy rate that is coupled with a high drop-out rate, hurt the young people in our county. A demanding job market makes it difficult to find gainful employment and keep the best and brightest living in our towns. A limited number of retail stores send shoppers to Batesville, Oxford and Memphis to spend their money. And decrepit buildings downtown and junk cars on the streets are an eyesore and shame to us all.
It’s time to take a hard look at what is going on around here. It is time to look at some cold, hard facts.
It’s time to demand real change and stop offering lip service and political crumbs to problems that touch us all and keep our community from being its very best.
Clarksdale needs to embrace the leaders and organizations in their community working to bring about positive change.
