Published on : Friday, June 13, 2014
It has been quite some time that tourism has become a major source of revenue in many parts of the United States and the Mississippi Delta is no different. According to Mayor Darryl Johnson, Mound Bayou is a Mecca for tourism and he, along with authorities of the Historic Black Town and Settlements Alliance, conducted a meeting to discuss the importance of tourism in incorporated historical African American municipalities.
“It is important to highlight the significance of tourism in the Mississippi Delta. Mound Bayou is one of the key places for tourism and often our resources are left untapped. We are one of the most important cities in Mississippi as far as African American history is concerned,” said Johnson.
He went on to say that during the conference, the alliance explored various means of helping Mound Bayou to become an African American tourist destination, not just for Mississippians but for everyone in the United States.
The purpose of the Alliance is to allow five towns to jointly begin to benefit from their common heritage and seek funding and programmes which will benefit its citizens. The five towns are Tuskegee, Ala.; Grambling, La.; Hobson City, Ala.; Eatonville, Fla., and Mound Bayou,
“Booker T. Washington had an impact on these five municipalities. He either influenced them or helped to incorporate them. We call all five of these towns ‘Booker T’s towns,”’ said Johnny Ford, mayor of Tuskegee, Ala.
Mayors of the five African American towns formed the Alliance to protect and preserve future generations.
According N.Y. Nathiri, secretary for the Alliance and director of Multidisciplinary Programs in Eatonville, Fla., the Alliance is historically significant because the towns were formed during the post reconstruction era.
aThe five African American towns all have a connection with Booker T. Washington, According to Nathiri.
Tags: Blog News, Tourism News
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