ESTABLISHED 1879 | COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI CDISPATCH.COM 50 ¢ NEWSSTAND | 40 ¢ HOME DELIVERY MONDAY | MAY 7, 2018 MSMS students to bring local history to life for Eighth of May diately after slave emancipation before her Emancipation celebration husband went on to serve in the Mississippi House of Representatives. set for Tuesday evening Johnson, who is African-American, said she relates to Boulden’s story and is excited at Sandfield Cemetery to tell it as part of this year’s Eighth of May BY MARY POLLITZ Celebration.
[email protected] “She recognizes all the problems in the Dairian Bowles past,” Johnson said. “How far they’ve come performs as For about an and how far they have to go.” Dr. John Hand hour on Tues- Johnson will join six of her MSMS class- in Mississippi School for Math- day at Sand- mates at 6 p.m. at the historic cemetery to ematics and field Cemetery, commemorate the Eighth of May — a cel- Science’s Tales Mississippi ebration of Union soldiers freeing slaves from the Crypt School of Math- in Lowndes County on May 8, 1865. Each performance in ematics and student will dress the part to share stories Friendship Cem- Science senior of local African-American history from the etery. Bowles Johnson Yarborough Tija Johnson late 19th and early 20th centuries. will portray Sen. Robert Gleed will become Luisa Boulden. “There’s not really just white history during the Eighth Boulden moved to Columbus with her and black history.” said MSMS history in- of May perfor- husband, the Rev. Jesse Freeman in 1866, structor Chuck Yarborough who organizes mance at Sand- helping him charter several African-Ameri- the annual event.