Racial and economic justice in Mississippi cannot be meaningfully furthered unless individuals and families have the ironclad right to determine whether they want to have children, and unless the children they have are provided with an excellent education that is not determined by their race, ethnicity, or zip code. In this fight, MCJ stands with SisterSong’s framing of reproductive justice as “the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities.” We fight for Mississippians’ right to reproductive freedom and equal access to education through litigation, policy, and program work.
Litigation: Selected Cases
JFT v. Fitch — MCJ and its partners filed a lawsuit in the summer of 2025 and won a temporary restraining order, followed by a preliminary injunction challenging various free speech restrictions contained in a recently enacted Mississippi law designed to eliminate DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) from the state’s public colleges, universities, and K-12 schools. These include a provision prohibiting schools from teaching about the history and present-day reality of “issues of race, sex, color, gender identity, sexual orientation, or national origin.” The lawsuit also alleges that other provisions of the law are so vague and contradictory that students and teachers often do not know what they can and cannot talk about at school. The preliminary injunction prohibits school officials from enforcing the challenged provisions and from punishing teachers and students for talking about forbidden subjects. The State has appealed the preliminary injunction but it remains in place while the appeal goes forward.
Parents for Public Schools v. MS Dept of Finance & Administration — MCJ and its partners won a lower court injunction prohibiting the spending of $10 million appropriated by the legislature in 2022 to support private schools in Mississippi. We argued that this violated the Mississippi Constitution’s prohibition on appropriations to any school that is not a “free school.” Unfortunately, the Mississippi Supreme Court reversed that decision on appeal and held that since the appropriation involved federal funds, it did not violate this provision of the state constitution.
Jackson Women’s Health Organization v. Dobbs — We assisted in the representation of Mississippi’s only abortion clinic for many years and obtained injunctions in multiple cases against draconian restrictions passed by Mississippi’s legislature in an effort to limit the rights of Mississippi women to make their own decisions in matters of childbirth. Unfortunately, in 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned our lower court victory in that case and overruled Roe v. Wade. As a result, abortion became illegal in Mississippi and many other states. In these cases, we were co-counsel with the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Student Rights — We have successfully represented students who were disciplined or expelled from public schools in violation of their constitutional rights.
Program/Advocacy/Policy
- Mississippi Abortion Access Coalition’s “The Abortion Patient Bill of Rights” provides information about Mississippians’ reproductive rights. Contact us if you have any legal questions about it.
- Ensuring every child receives a high-quality education. As part of our education equity campaign, we work to ensure every child receives the high-quality education they deserve. Read more about their work.
- Legal support for reproductive rights organizations in Mississippi. We provide ongoing legal advice and legal support for many of our community partners that work tirelessly and courageously to empower and defend the Mississippians they serve.
- Provide real-time legal tracking, advocacy tools, and legislative analysis: Provide legal analysis and policy tracking re: reproductive rights and education.
Resources
- How can we help you? Fill out an Impact Campaign Contact Form to let us know, including if you have questions about reproductive health and bodily autonomy.
- Support protesters for reproductive rights and education. Learn about becoming a Legal Observer or having MCJ’s Legal Observer program support your protest.
- Make your voice heard at the ballot box! Use our Civic Engagement tools to get you and your community involved in elections and in holding elected officials accountable.
- Have you are others been mistreated by police? Use and share the MS COP WATCH form to tell us about police misconduct, roadblocks, and local cops working with ICE.