Wikimedia Commons In The Arena It’s Time to End the Mississippi Bashing

Phil Bryant is governor of Mississippi.

Politico Magazine’s recent article “ The States of Our Union … Are Not All Strong” has Mississippi ranked as 51—the “worst” among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. As governor of Mississippi, I disagree. The author herself admits that the method behind assigning these rankings was neither scientific nor comprehensive, so I’ll provide the rest of the story, if you will, and reveal the truth about this great state.

There is no other state in the nation quite like Mississippi. We are, after all, a crossroads: There is no other place with such a rich, diverse tradition of art, music, literature and culture, and no other place that so routinely defies expectations.


Now, every state has room to improve, and Mississippi is working hard to overcome some of its obstacles. From 2011 to 2012 alone, we reduced our state’s teen pregnancy rate more than 10 percent, and we have enacted transformational public education reforms that will ensure that more Mississippi children have the opportunity to achieve success from a solid learning foundation.

Beyond tired “Mississippi is this” or “Mississippi is that” headlines, though, is a state that offers great rewards.

You may not know that Mississippi is a sought-after location for job creators. In fact, our state was recently ranked No. 9 among the top states for doing business by Area Development magazine; No. 2 for both competitive utility costs and permitting speed (also by Area Development); and among the top five for excellence in advanced manufacturing by Expansion Solutions magazine.

This competitive business climate has attracted some of the world’s premier companies to our state—Yokohama Tire Corporation, Nissan, Toyota, Lockheed Martin, GE Aviation, General Atomics, Winchester, Roxul … the list goes on.

Today, Mississippi is experiencing the strongest growth in our economy since 1999, our unemployment rate continues to fall and our GDP has reached $100 billion for the first time in state history.

Cutting-edge research abounds here. Mississippi physician Dr. Hannah Gay was named to the TIME 100 list for her groundbreaking functional cure of an infant with HIV, and Rolls Royce tests its state-of-the-art engines at NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County. Our creative economy continues to thrive as well, with renowned producer Tate Taylor already filming another movie in Mississippi on the heels of major success with The Help.We have a strong military tradition and build some of the nation’s finest warships and defense systems. National Guard installation Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg is advancing unmanned aerial technology, and Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi was named the top installation in the United States Air Force in 2013.

Beyond all of this, the quality of life in Mississippi is like none other. An analysis by the Chronicle of Philanthropy found Mississippi to be among the most charitable states in the nation, and two of Cond é Nast Traveler’s 10 friendliest cities in the United States are in Mississippi.

From the Delta Blues to the beaches of the Gulf Coast, from our growing automotive manufacturing corridor to our world-class research universities and thriving business climate, Mississippi has something for everyone. I invite you to visit and see for yourself.