SR 120 Mississippi Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Commemorate Clinton Massacre on 150th Anniversary of the tragedy and remember the lives lost.

SR 120 is a symbolic resolution commemorating the 150th anniversary of the 1875 Clinton Massacre in Clinton, Mississippi. It formally recognizes and honors the lives lost - primarily African American voters and community members - when a political rally turned violent, leading to deaths and the end of Reconstruction in Mississippi. The resolution specifically references the events of September 4, 1875, when Black Republicans gathered to exercise voting rights, and the subsequent violence that followed. As a commemorative measure, it has no legal effect but serves to acknowledge this historical event on its 150th anniversary (2025), as adopted by the legislature on March 25, 2025.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Mar 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2025

Senate Passage

Mar 2025

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Mar 19, 2025 Last action Mar 25, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

As Introduced → Current version · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was substantially rewritten from a historical commemoration resolution into a more detailed narrative resolution that includes specific historical accounts, testimony from witnesses, and references to the Boutwell Report. The changes add significant historical context about the Clinton Massacre and Reconstruction era violence, while removing some original formatting and adding new substantive historical content that frames the event within broader Mississippi history.

SCOPE

Added detailed historical narrative including specific witness testimonies from Sarah Dickey, William P. Haffa, and Ann Hodge about the massacre events

Incorporated the Boutwell Report findings that attributed the violence to Democratic Party efforts to suppress Republican meetings

Expanded the resolution to include information about the Mississippi Plan and its connection to the Clinton Massacre

Added references to additional victims including William Clark and Jesse Furver to provide broader context about Reconstruction-era violence

Included historical context about the 140th anniversary symposium in 2015 and its connection to modern reconciliation efforts

TECHNICAL

Changed formatting from standard legislative markup to a more narrative style with different heading structure

Floor votes · Senate Mar 25, 2025

How they voted

50–0

Passed · 1 other

Total votes 51

Mar 25, 2025

D Democratic16

15 Yea 1

93% Yea

R Republican35

35 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 25, 2025

Upper · Passed

Adopted

upper

Mar 24, 2025

Upper · Passed

Title Suff Do Be Adopted

upper

Mar 19, 2025

Committee

Referred To Rules

upper

1 primary · 4 co-sponsors