A biography for Mike Espyhasn’t been written yet.
“We are a state in need of uplift in a ubiquitous way.”
“I am an African American public official operating in an environment dominated by Caucasians. That is not too dissimilar from what I had to do in Mississippi to get elected and stay elected. I try to show them we are all in this together.”
“President Barack Obama governed with dignity and effectiveness.”
“It's no secret that Mississippians - especially Black Mississippians - are overlooked. We are overlooked by Washington, by the Democratic Party, by the media, by national political prognosticators.”
“I remember integrating the all-white Yazoo City High School after my Black school closed its doors. Teachers sprayed me with fire extinguishers, and I carried a stick to fend off attacks from fellow students.”
“I'm energized by the Black Lives Matter movement, just as many people are in the nation.”
“Health care is not equal. We have failed our rural hospitals and our rural communities because we can't guarantee affordable and accessible health care.”
“I will stand up for Mississippi like no one has done before. My voice will resonate most strongly in our struggling communities.”
“If it's good for Mississippi, I'll vote for it. If it comes from the Democratic side, fine. If it's good for us, I'll vote for it. But the converse is also true.”
“I am disappointed my grandchildren are growing up in a country still struggling to change. But it doesn't have to be this way. They don't have to live in a country infected with systemic racism.”
“It's not every day you see a bus with your own face on it.”
“The DNC says they want minorities to run for office but when they actually do, we don't get the support that we need and deserve.”
“I always said I wasn't guilty of any criminal activity.”
“You can't put me in a box.”
“I absolutely believe in the right to own and bear arms guaranteed by our forefathers.”
“We shouldn't try to turn policemen into social workers, but they should at least understand that not all offenders belong in jail.”
“Washington's incredible wastefulness of tax dollars is abhorrent to any sense of fairness or rational thinking.”
“It's hard to pick yourself up and go vote for a candidate if you don't have any sense that that candidate could have an impact on your life.”