A man was beaten to death in 1949 for “hogging the road,” and Mississippi just put his name on a wall the federal government doesn’t want you to see

Mississippi is standing firm on its decision to display the full, often brutal reality of its history, even as federal efforts push for a more sanitized version of the American story. The Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson are highlighting the names of hundreds of lynching victims, including Malcolm Wright, who was beaten to death in 1949 because his mule-drawn wagon was perceived as hogging the road. As reported by AP News, the museums are doing the opposite of what Washington is currently pushing.

The contrast with the current federal approach is direct. President Trump issued an executive order on his first day in office to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts across the federal government, followed in March 2025 by a directive titled Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History. Those orders have triggered the alteration or removal of exhibits at federal parks, the renaming of military bases, and pressure on institutions like the Smithsonian to shift away from exhibits covering racial violence and discrimination.

In Mississippi, the approach is different. Nan Prince, director of collections for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, said the instructions given to the teams building the museum complex were clear: don’t brush over anything, don’t whitewash the past, just tell the absolute truth. Former Governor Haley Barbour, who helped push for the museums, added that they were not going to try to justify what was done in the past, acknowledging the events even while admitting they weren’t something to be proud of.

Mississippi’s museums aren’t softening anything for the anniversary crowd

The Two Mississippi Museums opened in 2017 and sit in view of the state Capitol. They are currently a centerpiece of Mississippi’s America 250 celebration and include both the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the Museum of Mississippi History. The history museum begins with the removal of Native Americans, represented physically by a 500-year-old canoe at the entrance, forcing visitors to confront that the state’s cotton economy was built on land taken from its original inhabitants.

The Civil Rights Museum opens with a recording of a voice saying, “We don’t serve your kind,” and includes an unvarnished account of the 1955 murder of Emmett Till. The gallery ends with the .45-caliber pistol used in the crime on display. Amid broader federal reshaping of how military institutions are handling difficult history, Mississippi’s museums have moved in the opposite direction.

For the America 250 commemoration, the museums introduced a temporary exhibit called Mississippi Made, which celebrates the state’s contributions to industry, space exploration, and medical advancements. It also includes a quilt by Hystercine Rankin depicting the killing of her father in 1939. Curator Jessica Walzer said it was important to include such pieces as a reminder that the state’s history is complex and often painful.

Visitors have responded with emotion. Lindsay Ward, from Denver, said the events in the Civil Rights Museum feel uncomfortably recent and that while the history is hard to confront, it is vital to understand. Kiama Johnson, visiting from Monroe, Louisiana, spent time at the Lynching Victims Monolith, which lists more than 600 names and the motives behind their deaths, and fought back tears over how many other victims remain unknown.

Jackson Mayor John Horhn, who has acknowledged the state still faces significant challenges, said the museums demonstrate that real progress is possible when a state is willing to look at its own story without flinching.