Jackson, Miss., residents struggle with basic needs as the water crisis disrupts life

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Chronic disinvestment in Jackson’s infrastructure
For Bridges, fixing the water system won’t solve the root of the problem which she thinks is a mindset that the majority Black city of Jackson doesn’t deserve better.

"People hold on to the old days where Black people were seen as a commodity and so they can't let go of the myth that 'white is right, you Black, you get back,'" she says. "So they think they're the ones who should make the decisions and they should benefit from the poor."

Bridges says when state leaders block investment in the capital city, steer spending to majority white suburbs, and use federal welfare dollars to benefit football celebrities, it deprives resources from the places they're needed most.

"You can look at me all you want to about how I managed my house. But when you were deliberately taking bricks out, when I'm trying to build up, then something is wrong," Bridges says.

She says the powers that be need to understand people should have equitable resources because, she says, "We are all God's children."

And this continues when it should have been solved long ago.