The Tri-State Defender - February 12, 2026

Shelby County court blocks trimming of school board terms on 2026 ballot

By James Coleman TSD Contributing Writers

Five races have been trimmed from Shelby County’s 2026 election ballot after a court ruled the Shelby County Commission “exceeded” its authority by aligning school board elections with its own.

board members voted 6-3 to remove the former Detroit schools administrator in January 2025 for several alleged policy violations. She had only been on the job for nine months.

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As it stands, contests for Memphis-Shelby County Schools board districts 1, 6, 8 and 9 will appear on the August slate following Monday’s Feb. 9 ruling.

Shelby County Chancellor Melanie Taylor Jefferson pointed to language in the commission’s resolution adding the other five districts to the election that does not align with Tennessee state law. Signed into law last year, House Bill 1383 authorizes local governing bodies to align school board elections with their own cycles.

“We are pleased with today’s ruling by Shelby County Chancellor Melanie Taylor Jefferson, which affirmed that the Shelby County Commission exceeded its authority in attempting to place all nine Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) board seats on the 2026 ballot,” said MSCS in a statement.

School board members Natalie McK innie, Stephanie Love, Tamarques Por ter, Sable Otey and Towanna Murphy will be allowed to finish the remainder of their terms.

“The court’s decision upholds both the letter and spirit of the law and rein forces the principle that locally elected officials should serve the full terms to which they were duly elected. This out come reflects a measured and thought ful application of Tennessee law, and we appreciate the court’s careful consider ation of the legal issues before it,” said MSCS.

The commission’s decision to truncate the terms was a blowback from the school board’s decision to fire former superintendent Marie Feagins. MSCS

Following a public uproar, commissioners opted to add districts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 to the 2026 ballot. However, the resolution also truncated the four-year terms of the school board members for those districts by two years. Commissioners were warned of a potential lawsuit.

“One of the bases upon which we said they didn’t have authority was that they exceeded what (the new Tennessee law) authorized. That alone is enough to disqualify any election,” said Atty. Allan Wade, who represented MSCS.

A county attorney declined to comment on whether the Shelby County Commission would appeal the ruling. Wade’s prophecy came true. The board filed a lawsuit against the Shelby County Election Commission on Dec. 15. Last month, Taylor Jefferson granted a temporary restraining order halting the issuance of petitions for the five school board seats added to the ballot.

The Shelby County Commission was added to the lawsuit. The election commission, meanwhile, will be dropped from the suit if it follows Taylor Jefferson’s orders.

Candidates for office are required to submit petitions by Feb. 19 to qualify for the May 5 primary.

Offering a different love when bonds becomes unsafe

GROUNDWORKS:

Mission Critical

Nonprofit protects people when relationships, identities or places they call home put them at risk.

Judith Black Moore

February is the month when love is packaged in heart-shaped boxes, framed in red roses and measured in candlelit dinners. It is a season built on the idea that love feels warm, safe and affirming.

But for many people, love does not arrive wrapped in satin ribbons. It can show up as control, fear, isolation or quiet desperation. And in those moments, the most important kind of love may come not from a partner or a friend, but from supporters working quietly behind the scenes to protect them.

These are the nonprofits that build escape plans, safeguard digital footprints, provide confidential housing and create systems that allow people to ask for help without being detected. They are the nonprofits that understand love, safety and survival are often intertwined.

Phillis Lewis, founder and CEO of Love Doesn’t Hurt, knows this reality well. Her organization supports survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, with a focus on LGBTQ+ individuals, who often face additional barriers to getting help.

Lewis’ message during this month focused on love is simple and direct.

“Love isn’t supposed to cost you your safety, your peace or who you are,” she said. “If it hurts, if you’re constantly shrinking, explaining or surviving instead of living, that matters. You’re not weak for staying and you’re not wrong for wanting to leave. You deserve love

that feels safe, steady and affirming. And you don’t have to figure it out alone.”

That belief shapes everything about the organization, from its services to the very first thing a visitor sees on its website: a quick-exit button.

To someone outside the world of crisis services, that feature may seem minor. To someone in the midst of the crisis, it can be the difference between getting help and getting hurt.

“For a lot of survivors, someone may be watching their phone or computer. Just looking for help can put them at risk,” Lewis explained. “That quick-exit button isn’t just a feature. It’s a signal that we see them, we believe them and we’re thinking about their safety even before they say a word.”

Across Memphis and around the country, there are nonprofits built on similar principles of discretion and protection.

Some serve survivors of domestic violence. Others work with trafficking victims, runaway youth or people leaving abusive religious or family environments. What they share is a common mission to protect the people they serve physically, emotionally and digitally.

That often means designing services that are intentionally low-profile — no flashy signage, no public client lists and no social media posts showing faces. Sometimes it even means creating websites that look ordinary on the surface but contain hidden pathways to safety. The organizations operate with an awareness that if they are too visible, the people they serve may become more vulnerable.

One of the most striking realities of this work is that the crisis often starts

long before someone reaches out.

“Survivors are navigating fear, surveillance, shame and exhaustion,” Lewis said. “They’re often trying to keep the peace, protect their kids, maintain housing or avoid escalation, all while questioning themselves.”

By the time someone contacts a nonprofit like Love Doesn’t Hurt, they have often been living in survival mode for months or even years. That is why these organizations design every step of the process with security in mind.

“We move at their pace. We believe them. We don’t force decisions or push timelines. We focus on practical safety like housing, transportation, food and documentation while also holding space emotionally,” Lewis stated. “Safety isn’t just physical. It’s being treated with dignity and respect from the start,” she added.

The broader lesson is this: Protection is one of the purest forms of service and one of the most complex.

It requires confidentiality protocols, trauma-informed staff, secure data practices and safe digital access. And to make all that possible, organizations need flexible funding streams and partnerships with the legal community and housing and health providers.

Organizations that protect vulnerable populations must build systems where clients feel safe enough to say, “I need help,” often for the first time. For LGBTQ+ survivors in particular, that trust can be life-saving.

“Many systems weren’t built with us in mind,” Lewis said. “Affirming care isn’t extra. It’s necessary. People deserve support that honors their identity, relationships and lived experiences without judgment.”

It is easy to think of domestic violence, immigration crises or identity-based discrimination as someone else’s issue but Lewis offers a reminder that resonates far beyond her organization.

“Violence doesn’t exist in isolation. It impacts families, workplaces, schools and communities. When survivors are supported, entire communities are stronger,” she added. “This isn’t a ‘them’ issue. It’s an “us” issue.”

In other words, the nonprofits that safeguard the most vulnerable people are also protecting the health and stability of the broader community. They are part of the unseen infrastructure that keeps families intact, children safe and futures possible.

This February, as we celebrate love in its most visible forms, it may also be worth honoring the discreet expressions of love happening every day in nonprofit offices, safe houses, legal clinics and on crisis hotlines. These organizations are offering dignity when it has been stripped away.

Sometimes, the most loving thing they can give is this simple message, Lewis said:

“You’re not crazy. You’re not overreacting. And you’re not alone, even if it feels that way right now. Help exists and there are people who genuinely want to walk alongside you when you’re ready.”

Need help? Contact Love Doesn’t Hurt at (901) 213-7661 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at Domestic Violence Support | National Domestic Violence Hotline, or 1-800-799-7233.

— Judith Black Moore is a nonprofit consultant and the founder of Taking Back the Future, a youth-focused nonprofit. With decades of leadership experience at nationally recognized nonprofit organizations, she brings a strategic lens to the issues that matter most in the nonprofit sector.

Federal judge orders man to stop claims against COGIC

By Germany Kent TSD Contributing Writer

A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting Moses Tyson Jr. from continuing what the court described as a campaign of defamatory statements against the Church of God in Christ, Inc. (COGIC), its governing body and senior leadership.

The ruling, handed down by the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee following an evidentiary hearing, determined that Tyson’s statements were made with actual malice, caused reputational and financial harm, and were not protected by the First Amendment.

The injunction bars Tyson from publishing or disseminating allegations of criminal conduct — including claims of fraud, theft, and elder abuse — that the court found to be unsupported by evidence. The court clarified that the order does not limit legitimate dissent, theological debate, or criticism, but instead addresses the continued spread of demonstrably false allegations to a

national audience through social media, mass emails, and online broadcasts.

“I’m pleased with the outcome of the evidentiary hearing,” Bishop Drew J. Sheard, presiding bishop of COGIC, said Thursday. “This case has had a negative impact on our denomination, and I’m grateful that the judge saw the need to provide this injunction.”

The church filed a $500,000 defamation lawsuit against Tyson Nov. 2025, that alleges Tyson’s campaign caused confusion among congregants, eroded trust in church governance and contributed to a documented decline in charitable giving — harms the court determined could not be fully remedied by monetary damages alone.

The Memphis law firm Bailey & Bailey, PLLC represents the plaintiffs.

Atty. Walter Bailey emphasized that the case carefully balances free speech

with accountability.

“You have a right to be critical of the church, its policies or any public institution. But you cannot act maliciously and slander individuals or institutions without being held accountable,” said Bailey, who, for decades, has litigated high-profile civil rights and public interest cases.

Bailey described Tyson as a former parishioner without official rank, noting that “nothing entitled him to go around and make malicious accusations.” He added that the court found Tyson’s conduct potentially demonstrated actual malice, which is not protected under the First Amendment.

On the broader implications of the ruling, Bailey said: “Freedom of speech is among our most cherished liberties. But it is not a license to knowingly spread false accusations that destroy reputations and mislead the public.”

The allegations at the center of the lawsuit circulated widely online through social media platforms, podcasts, email campaigns, and YouTube.

Tyson, a California gospel musician

and producer, frequently discussed church governance and controversies within Black faith communities on YouTube programs such as the “Official King Jives Show.” He has hosted extensive discussions of the dispute, including interviews and commentary related to the case.

COGIC attorney Taurus Bailey, speaking with WMC Action News 5 on Thursday, explained that the statements were presented publicly as assertions of fact rather than opinion, despite what the church considered a lack of supporting evidence. He said COGIC leaders felt a responsibility to act to protect their reputation and their members from what they viewed as misleading accusations.

He said the judge found sufficient preliminary indications that Tyson may have acted without regard for the truth, leading the court to temporarily bar him from repeating the disputed statements while the case proceeds.

The preliminary injunction remains in effect as the case proceeds toward resolution.

‘The Crown’s Silence’ takes a deep look at slavery in British history

Book review

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

There’s a reason for everything.

That doesn’t mean an excuse or a guess made of ignorance, but an explanation for what was, a kind of thought process that says if this happens, then that. A reason is a why, and in the new book, “The Crown’s Silence: The Hidden History of the British Monarchy and Slavery” by Brooke N. Newman, you’ll see why the story of Black America didn’t start in 1619.

In late November 2021, the Caribbean nation of Barbados held a celebration to mark the fifty-fifth anniversary of the day they removed Queen Elizabeth II as head of state, and gained their political independence. The Queen wasn’t there, but Prince Charles was in attendance.

The Queen, in fact, didn’t even acknowledge the event.

Her silence resonated backward for more than 450 years.

On July 24, 1564, Diego Guzman de Silva, a representative of King Philip II of Spain, was granted audience with Queen Elizabeth I. He was there to petition the throne for reassurance that Captain John Hawkins, a merchant who’d been kidnapping Africans from Portuguese ships and selling them to Spanish colonists in the Caribbean, would not financially harm the Spanish kingdom. Elizabeth I promised de Silva that Hawkins was harmless but, says Newman, she knew what Hawkins was

doing, and encouraged it by purposefully loaning him one of her largest warships. The reason: Elizabeth I’s coffers were lacking and Hawkins brought gold back to England.

Gold was always the main thing, until the English were introduced to tobacco.

Tobacco, says Newman, was financially good for newly landed British colonists in what is now Virginia, but it takes a lot to grow and harvest the crop. African slaves did the work, as did the many indentured slaves in the New World. But by 1633, when contracts for the latter ended, workers were needed for those tobacco crops. More African slaves were brought up from the Caribbean to supplement the labor pool, until there were more African slaves in North America than there were Spanish and English colonists

With all the talk — and a recently updated version of the Nikole Hannah-Jones’ “The 1619 Project” story available — it’s easy to forget that enslavement of Africans in America didn’t just suddenly happen. “The Crown’s Silence” offers readers a wider, deeper look that lends even more understanding to the overall history.

And that should be your warning: There’s not one shred of fluff to this tale. Author Brooke N. Newman takes you into heavy-duty British history, in a book that flirts strongly with academia. That may make it daunting, but necessarily so. The story is complicated but once you’re aware, it’s pretty easy to follow the timeline Newman lays out.

Readers who think that America split with the U.K, centuries ago, in fact, will see that the ties lingered. So did the righteous resentment, as it turns out. While this is an excellent volume for any Black history collection, it’s not a breezy read by any means. Take your time, therefore, when reading “The Crown’s Silence.” Follow along carefully, and it’s a reasonably good book.

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Entrepreneurs call out hard truth: ‘We don’t support each other in Memphis’

‘

TSD In The Community’ forum examines highs, lows, grit

and grind of doing business

By Lee Eric Smith TSD Contributing Writer

It wasn’t the usual, feel-good entrepreneurship talk that drew the loudest reaction at the Tri-State Defender’s first “TSD In The Community” forum of 2026 on African American entrepreneurship.

It was a hard truth, said out loud.

“Black people do not support each other,” Alandas Dobbins told the room, pausing as the words landed. “We do not in the way that we need to.”

There was an audible exhale — the kind that signals people aren’t surprised, but are relieved somebody finally said it plainly.

Dobbins, CEO and owner of Oteka Technologies, made the comment during a wide-ranging discussion about what social media glamorizes about entrepreneurship — and what it hides.

But her point quickly became a through-line for the night: for Black entrepreneurs in Memphis and the surrounding region, success is rarely just about the idea. It’s about the ecosystem — who supports you, who hires you, who invests in you, who shares your name in rooms you’re not in yet.

The forum, held Wednesday, Feb. 4 at the Raleigh Branch Library, featured panelists Dobbins; Jozelle Booker, president and CEO of the MMBC Continuum; Kevin Kolhelm, owner of Groovy

Greyhound Coffee & Creamery in West Memphis; and Cheonshae Brown, owner of Little Scholars Academy in Horn Lake, Mississippi.

Grit and grind before glitz and glam

The panel was moderated by Lori Spicer Robertson, who asked the panel early on to address the glamorization of entrepreneurship in the era of Instagram, TikTok and “boss” culture.

Brown went first, acknowledging that if you only look at her social media, you might assume entrepreneurship is travel, freedom and lifestyle. But the grind comes before the glamour, she said.

“You glamorize the freedom, but you don’t know what it took to get there,” Brown told the audience, describing long nights working until early morning, running the business with only herself and family on payroll, and learning the hard way that a business can’t depend on one person forever.

Her answer turned into a mini masterclass on systems. The goal, she said, is to build a business that can run whether you are present or not — and to train staff to lead so the owner doesn’t burn out.

“If I train them on how to do it,” she said, “then it takes the burnout off of me.”

Dobbins: A unified Memphis ‘would change the

world’

Dobbins agreed but widened the lens.

Beyond the grind, she said, entrepreneurs need people around them who will hold them up — and Memphis has a gap there.

“The tears, the prayers, the calling on your network, your friends — that’s the part that people don’t see,” she said. Then she leaned into the point that drew the audible response: “Black people do not support each other. We do not in the way that we need to.”

Dobbins urged the audience to “love on those people” who do support them and to intentionally build unity in a majority-Black city.

“If this city, that’s 70% African American, would learn to be unified,” she said, “we would change the world.”

Build a support network

The panelists were also clear on one point that often gets overlooked in entrepreneurship narratives: No one builds a sustainable business alone.

Booker echoed that sentiment from a support-services perspective, noting that many entrepreneurs struggle not because they lack ideas, but because

they hesitate to reach out when challenges arise. “The most important thing that you can do is you have to ask for help,” Booker said. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”

Kolhelm dismissed the lone-wolf myth outright. “Entrepreneurship is not a one-man show,” he said. “You’ve got to lean on a lot of people, and a lot of people lean on you.”

And with multiple brick-and-mortar locations, Kolhelm gave an interesting perspective on the building he thinks of as an “employee.”

“The building is a breathing organism. It requires maintenance. It’s something you have to manage,” he said in the wake of the recent winter storm. “So yes, it’s another employee. It’s fun, it adds value, it adds color to the space — it adds everything. But it’s another employee.”

The ‘access to capital’ myth

Booker also challenged one of the most common and most misunderstood phrases in entrepreneurship circles — access to capital.

Too many first-time entrepreneurs, she said, believe grants are readily available to start a business, or assume “access to capital” is a single barrier

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that can be unlocked with the right connection. In reality, she said, capital is not a door — it’s a process.

“Capital is a word that … it’s broad,” Booker said. “If you’re starting a business, there are very few grants, if any. Banks are not going to loan you money to start a business. So people start businesses with retirement funds, credit cards, family contributions — their own money.”

What happens next, she said, is where many entrepreneurs stall.

When business owners do reach the point of seeking financing, lenders want proof — tax returns, income statements, balance sheets, and cashflow projections — and they want owners who can explain what those documents say about their business and their industry.

“If you go to the bank, they want to know that you understand the industry you’re in,” Booker said. “They want to know that you know what the challenges are.”

That’s why she urged entrepreneurs to invest early in financial literacy. Workshops, seminars and training can build what she called “financial intelligence.”

“It’s not just capital,” she said. “It’s understanding capital. You have to know what working capital means, how much you need and how to talk about it. And depending on where you are in your business lifecycle, there may be an order to what you need first.”

Booker: Buying a legacy business is ‘a way to skip the line’

Later in the forum, an audience question opened the door to a lesser-discussed pathway into entrepreneurship — acquiring an existing business instead of starting from scratch.

“There are businesses where the owner lives here, but their children live somewhere else and don’t want the business,” she said. “Those owners are looking for options.”

Through the MMBC Continuum, Booker said her organization has begun hosting educational sessions on mergers and acquisitions, including bringing in bankers and attorneys who

specialize in helping owners prepare businesses for sale.

In many cases, she said, buyers can avoid the riskiest startup phase by purchasing an operating business with customers, systems and cash flow already in place. Often, the seller remains on board for one to three years to help with the transition.

“It’s a way to skip the line,” Booker said, noting that acquisition, equity investment and even franchising can all be viable strategies, depending on the buyer’s experience and resources.

“If you’re going to buy a business, it helps if it’s something you know how to run,” Booker said. “And you still need legal and financial guidance so you’re protecting yourself.”

Support as strategy

As the conversation widened, panelists repeatedly returned to the same theme: success is rarely individual, even when ownership is. In Memphis, they argued, supporting Black-owned businesses is not charity — it is a strategy with tangible consequences for neighborhoods, employment and public safety.

Dobbins, who spoke candidly about burnout and the repeated fight for contracts and credibility, tied business outcomes directly to community outcomes — and to policy decisions that determine who gets access to government work. When small businesses are supported, she said, they hire locally, train locally and reinvest locally.

“If you take care of a business like mine, then we take care of the community,” Dobbins said. “If you grow Black businesses in these neighborhoods, those businesses create jobs, they create training opportunities, and they stabilize the area they’re in. But when government contracts and public dollars don’t reach us — even when we can do the work — that opportunity is taken away.

“If you want safer neighborhoods, stronger schools and more opportunity,” Dobbins said, “then you have to support the businesses that are already here doing the work. When we thrive, the community thrives. It’s really that simple.”

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Walter L. Bailey Jr.: A living bridge between Dr. King’s movement and today’s civil rights battles

By Germany Kent TSD Contributing Writer

The Shelby County Criminal Justice Center bears his name.

That alone tells you history lives here.

But long before his name was etched into stone, Walter L. Bailey Jr. was etching his mark into American law, American protest and American conscience.

Bailey is an attorney by trade, but his life’s work includes well beyond the courtroom. He is a civil-rights pioneer, a legal trailblazer, and a public servant who served more than four decades as a Shelby County Commissioner. He worked cases that helped desegregate public schools. He represented Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1968 sanitation workers’ strike. And he was the lead counsel in Tennessee v. Garner, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that changed the national standard governing police use of deadly force.

At 85, Bailey’s voice still carries the cadence of the movement. But his words move beyond historical recollections, signaling warnings and calls to action. And they are deeply personal.

“The parallels between then and now are striking,” said Bailey during a wide-ranging conversation with the Tri-State-Defender. “There is a determined effort to dismantle rights and freedoms minorities fought their whole lives to secure. And the effort now, in many ways, is even more pronounced than during the Civil Rights Movement.

Bailey spoke at length about the violent resistance Black Americans and their allies faced simply for trying to register to vote in the Deep South. He invoked the names of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner — the three civil-rights workers murdered in Mississippi during Freedom Summer.

“You have to get to the point where you say, ‘We are not going to stand for this.’ You have to be willing to be seen. You cannot peep through the blinds and talk about how bad things are.” — Walter L. Bailey Jr. (Photos: Gary S. Whitlow/Tri-State Defender)

“They were white and Black, and they gave their lives fighting for morality and justice,” Bailey said. “Evil does not depend on skin color. It depends on character.”

Those killings, and countless others, were not isolated tragedies. They became catalysts for federal action. They helped usher in the Voting Rights Act and Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“People died so others could vote,” Bailey said quietly. “That should never be forgotten.”

Bailey’s memories of marching alongside Dr. King are more than seemingly romanticized nostalgia. They are blueprints for confronting a present that echoes the past.

He views modern protests — from the George Floyd demonstrations to protests happening now against ICE occupation in Minneapolis — as spiritual descendants of the movement.

“You have to get to the point where you say, ‘We are not going to stand for this,’” he said. “You have to

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be willing to be seen. You cannot peep through the blinds and talk about how bad things are.”

He warns that silence is complicity.

Bailey did not hesitate when discussing current policy debates from policing to attacks on DEI or access to Black historical material in public spaces. He believes core civil-rights principles are at risk, particularly around immigration enforcement, due process, free speech and Fourth Amendment protections against unlawful search and seizure.

He sees troubling parallels in modern law enforcement practices and warns that constitutional guardrails are being weakened in the name of authority.

“You are not supposed to stop citizens on suspicion alone,” Bailey said. “Probable cause matters. Warrants matter. Due process matters.”

Bailey contextualized diversity, equity and inclusion not as a modern invention, but a logical extension of civil-rights era efforts to level an intentionally uneven playing field.

Drawing from his 44 years as a county commissioner, he explained how minority contractors could never compete with generational wealth unless policies created access. “You can’t pretend it’s a fair contest when history made it unfair,” he said.

Commenting about the removal or revision of Black history from national institutions and museums, Bailey was direct:

“It is a disgrace. It signals whose stories are valued and whose are not.”

To Bailey, revising history goes way beyond neutrality. It is erasure.

Bailey’s tenure on the national board of the ACLU shaped his belief that civil liberties must apply even to speech we dislike.

He recounted defending a man prosecuted for selling adult magazines and a Vietnam veteran silenced for distributing anti-war literature.

“I couldn’t pick and choose which rights I believed in,” Bailey said. “If his rights were violated, I had to defend him.”

Bailey’s most nationally consequential work came through Tennessee v. Garner

At the time, police across America could legally shoot fleeing felony suspects. Bailey took case after case involving unarmed Black men shot while running away. He lost twice. He did not stop.

The third time, the Supreme Court agreed to hear his case. He won — and that decision changed the legal standard nationwide.

“Suppose I had given up,” Bailey said. “Where were all the scholars? Where were all the professors? I had that movement in me. I was radicalized in pursuit of justice.”

Bailey insists no single organization can carry the fight.

He points to how the NAACP, SCLC, unions, churches, and lawyers united during King’s era.

“You have to join organizations. Attend meetings. Protest peacefully. Contribute financially. You cannot be afraid of being called a troublemaker.”

He believes grassroots action is essential in PTAs, civic meetings, campuses, and neighborhoods.

When asked what he wants future leaders to know,

Bailey widened the lens beyond race:

“This is for people who harbor morality and decency,” he said. “You must use your skills. You must be willing to stand out.”

The greatest danger, he said, is comfort.

“You go to work, go home, watch TV and say how bad things are. Unless you get that itching to say, ‘We are not going to stand for this,’ nothing changes.”

■■ SPORTS GAME ON! Alcorn State, UAPB headline 2026 Southern Heritage Classic

By Lee Eric Smith TSD Contributing Writer

The Southern Heritage Classic will return to Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium on Saturday, September 12, 2026, with a renewed matchup between Alcorn State University and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

Presented by FedEx, this year’s Classic marks the second consecutive showdown between the Braves and the Golden Lions after the two programs reignited the rivalry in 2025. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.

Originally launched in 1990, the Southern Heritage Classic continues to be one of Memphis’ signature cultural and sports events, blending HBCU football, marching band pageantry, and Black cultural celebration. Thousands are expected to travel to Memphis for a week of festivities leading up to the game, including concerts, tailgating, a college fair and the Classic Parade.

“We are very excited to have Arkansas–Pine Bluff and Alcorn State return to Memphis for a second straight year,” said Fred Jones Jr., Southern Heritage Classic founder, in a news release.

“It’s very pleasing to be able to present different schools while still maintaining a high standard of competition and entertainment at the same time,” he continued. “We look forward to the ever-present challenge of always improving our event, as it reflects on our great city, our unique culture, and the visibility of the competing institutions.”

It’s something of a return to stability for Jones and the Classic, which for

decades featured Tennessee State and Jackson State University. The Classic seemed poised to thrive in 2020 when those two programs were coached by NFL legends Eddie George and Deion Sanders.

But by 2023, both universities had withdrawn from the Southern Heritage Classic—and though Jones maintained a confident posture last January, he later acknowledged how close the 2025 Classic came to not happening.

“It got real close,” Jones told TSD in 2025. “Like, yes-or-no close. And I didn’t know what to tell people. I stayed out of sight for a few days, just trying to figure it out. … Folks. were looking to me for reassurance. And I didn’t have it.”

Ahead of last year’s clash between these two teams, Jones was confident that the Classic would bounce back.

“These schools — Alcorn and UAPB — they have strong alumni bases too,” Jones told TSD in September 2025. “And Memphis has a large HBCU presence overall. A lot of graduates from different schools live and work here.”

“Over time, the Classic itself became a tradition,” he added. ”People come home for it, like a second homecoming.”

The Southern Heritage Classic has long been a significant economic driver for Memphis. In past peak years, the Classic and its associated festivities generated roughly $20 million–$21 million in local economic activity through hotel stays, restaurants, retail and entertainment anchored by Classic weekend crowds.

While 2025 figures have not been publicly released, organizers and local

observers say the Classic continues to bring visitors and spending into the city even as its team lineup evolves.

The announcement comes just weeks after news that longtime SHC rivals Jackson State and Tennessee State will renew their rivalry this fall with the John A. Merritt Classic in Nashville, set for Aug. 29. A 2027 game between the two in Jackson, Miss., has also been announced.

And as it turns out, the schedule may

work in favor of “legacy fans” of the Southern Heritage Classic. While TSU will be facing Alabama A&M in Huntsville on Classic weekend, Jackson State fans take note: The JSU Tigers aren’t playing on Sept. 12.

So if you’re a Jackson State fan used to being in Memphis the second weekend of September … well, we’re just saying.

For more information, visit southernheritageclassic.com.

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Arlington native Kenneth Walker III makes rushes to victory in Super Bowl LX

By Brianna Smith-Herman TSD Contributing Writer

On the sport’s biggest stage, with the eyes of the football world watching, running back Kenneth Walker III delivered a moment that will live in NFL history. The Memphis-area native powered the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl LX victory Sunday night and walked away with the game’s Most Valuable Player trophy, capping a career-defining performance..

Walker, who is from Arlington, Tennessee, powered Seattle’s offense with a dominant rushing performance, helping the Seahawks to a 29-13 win over the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Walker, 25, ran for 135 yards on 27 carries and caught two passes for 26 yards. His impact on the game went beyond the stat sheet, as he consistently moved the chains and controlled the pace in the biggest moments of his career.

The 2018 Arlington High School

graduate became the first running back in 28 years to be named Super Bowl MVP, a feat last accomplished by Denver’s Terrell Davis in 1998.

Following the game, Walker reflected on the moment with gratitude — crediting God, his teammates, and the journey that brought him there — while acknowledging the support of his family and the people back home who helped shape him.

“It’s just a dream come true because a lot of people play their whole career and never make it this far. So, it’s a blessing. I thank Coach Macdonald and the team for sticking together,” Walker said after the game.

He emphasized that the championship was bigger than one player, representing the collective work and belief of the entire team.

“We went through adversity throughout the season, but we stayed together. You know that adversity showed who we were as a team. We got a brotherhood going on right now, and it’s special.”

PUBLIC NOTICES / CLASSIFIEDS

PUBLIC NOTICE THE MEMPHIS URBAN AREA METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION

In compliance with federal regulations under Title 23 CFR 450, the Memphis Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) will present the 2022-2026 Safety Performance Measure (PM1) Targets, Moving Together: 2055 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) Socio-Demographic Projections, and a functional classification amendment for Red Banks Road in Mississippi for approval. Additionally, the MPO will present updates on the 2025 State of the MPO Report, 2025 Safety Action Plan (SAP), the 2055 Moving Together RTP Goals and Objectives and the RTP development process, the Freight Stakeholder Survey, and share any relevant information from the MPO committee or board members and MPO staff.

These documents were made available for review and comment at the MPO’s office and online (memphismpo.org), and written public comments are being accepted through Monday, February 23, 2026. The TPB of the Memphis MPO will hold a public hearing to accept oral comments and take action on the proposed items.

The public hearing will take place on:

Date: Thursday, February 26, 2026

Time: 1:30 PM

Location: Double Tree by Hilton Hotel Memphis, 5069 Sanderlin Ave, Memphis, TN 38117

The full meeting agenda will be made available 10 days prior to the meeting on the Memphis MPO’s website: (memphismpo.org). If you need assistance in participating in the meeting,

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please contact the MPO Office at 901-6367190 and provide at least seven (7) days notice.

It is the policy of the Memphis MPO not to exclude, deny, or discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal or state law in its practices, or in its admission to, access to, or operations of its programs, services, or activities. For any and all inquiries regarding the application of this accessibility statement and related policies, or for persons that require aids or services to participate either in the review of these documents or during the hearing, please contact Kate Horton at 901636-7218 or Kate.Horton@memphistn.gov

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Determined optimism: How small and mid-sized businesses are growing in 2026

By Keith Jones Special to the Tri-State Defender

The 2025 Business Owner Report confirmed what we see every day from entrepreneurs across our communities: cautious yet determined optimism. Nearly three in four business owners expect revenue gains in the next 12 months, and many plan to expand (59%), hire (43%) and secure financing (83%).

Memphis has a mix of high-growth economic opportunities, especially in logistics, technology and tourism with FedEx, UPS, Blue Oval City, museums and cultural centers.

The report’s findings suggest four practical steps business owners can take now to position their business for success in the year ahead.

Invest in the right digital tools

Innovation remains a reliable path for efficiency and growth. Nearly all (91%) business owners plan to adopt digital tools over the next five years, with 52% aiming to accept more forms of digital payments and 50% planning to implement AI.

Many businesses have already made progress: 77% integrated AI over the past five years, using it for marketing (50%), content production (38%), customer service (37%) and inventory management (28%).

Building on that momentum, owners are modernizing payments to reduce friction at checkout and accelerate cash conversion, adding options such as Zelle, Venmo and Apple Pay to meet customer preferences. Others are testing focused AI use cases such as automating routine customer inquiries and drafting product descriptions.

New tools can also help business owners digitize repetitive workflows, such as scheduling, invoicing, and inventory alerts, freeing staff time for higher-value contributions. This can be particularly helpful for companies impacted by labor shortages (61%). As digital capabilities expand, businesses are also planning to increase cybersecurity measures (30%), strengthening authentication and data protection to preserve trust alongside growth.

Leverage community engagement around local events

Community engagement can help businesses grow and attract new customers. More than half of business owners (58%) have modified their operations around major events such as sports games, concerts and festivals by introducing targeted promotions, social content, themed campaigns and sponsorships. The approach has paid off: Approximately half reported increased sales (51%), and nearly half saw growth on social media (47%). Roughly four in five plan to repeat these efforts in the future. The wider halo effect from live events

is substantial. Last year’s St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend raised nearly $16 million and generated $45 million in economic impact for Memphis’ retail, transportation and hospitality industries. Smaller-scale events like street fairs, neighborhood theaters and regional festivals can also create meaningful ripple effects.

Manage cash flow with discipline

Disciplined cash flow management is critical for business owners, especially heading into 2026, when inflation (70%) and interest rates (58%) are top concerns. Most entrepreneurs (88%) report inflation impacting their businesses, prompting many to raise prices (64%) and scrutinize cash flow and spending plans (39%). Concurrently, 75% are facing supply chain pressures, leading to price adjustments (52%) and sourcing challenges (32%).

In response, business owners are proactively adjusting their financial strategies. This includes reevaluating cash flow projections, optimizing spending and exploring local sourcing options to build more resilient supply chains. Beyond

these operational adjustments, a disciplined focus on liquidity is key. Owners should also engage with their bankers to review existing loan structures, ensuring they align with current cash flow profiles and the interest rate environment.

Plan for financing and succession

Demand for capital continues to underpin long-term operational health. Among business owners, 83% intend to obtain financing within the next 12 months, with business credit cards (53%) playing a key role, alongside personal savings (41%), traditional bank loans (32%) and personal credit cards (29%). Financing plans are informed by factors including expected growth, hiring and retaining staff and ongoing investments in digital tools.

Succession planning also remains a critical component of long-term planning, yet 40% of business owners have yet to prepare one. They can begin by identifying potential successors, outlining governance and core processes and tracking value drivers, such as margins and recurring revenue. Advisory teams, including bankers, CPAs and attorneys, can help, especially when engaged early in the process.

Turning optimism into action

Findings from the 2025 report signal that business owners are entering 2026 focused on steady growth, practical decision making and a readiness to invest where it matters. They are embracing digital tools and AI to remove friction for customers and streamline operations, engaging strategically with local events, tightening cash flow disciplines amid persistent cost and supply pressures, and taking a longer view on capital and succession to protect hardwon value.

— Keith Jones is vice president of business banking for Bank of America Memphis.