NATCHEZ, Miss. — Paula C. Johnson, professor at Syracuse University College of Law and director of the Cold Case Justice Initiative (CCJI), will talk about racial justice at the Tuesday, February 25 meeting of the Natchez Historical Society. The program will be held at the Historic Natchez Foundation at 108 S. Commerce St. It will begin with a social at 5:30 p.m., followed by Johnson’s presentation at 6 p.m. It is free and open to the public.
Johnson’s topic is, “Memory Lessons: Meeting the Imperative for Racial Justice through Memory, Memorials, Knowledge, and Empowerment.” She will discuss her organization’s efforts to seek justice for unsolved civil rights-era crimes while preserving the victims’ legacy.
The program is funded in part by a grant from the Mississippi Humanities Council through funding by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Johnson said her presentation will emphasize the importance of working for justice in all the forms it may take.
“In this regard, the Cold Case Justice Initiative (CCJI) works on behalf of families of victims of racial violence — homicides and disappearances — whose perpetrators have not been held accountable for their crimes,” she said. “The imperative for justice includes remembering the victims of such horrendous crimes and their families, and their sacrifices and contributions to American society for the ideals we profess to espouse.
“For example, collaborating with the family of Wharlest Jackson, Sr., of Natchez, MS, who was murdered by truck bomb in February 1967, is a key example of this meeting this imperative.”
Johnson said these memory lessons must be in the national consciousness, the classroom, and in the physical form of historical landmarks. “We must be dedicated to telling the complete story of American history and the continuing struggle for freedom, justice, and democracy,” she said.
Johnson is a co-founder of the Cold Case Justice Initiative which investigates racially-motivated murders that occurred during the civil rights era and in contemporary times.
She is also a widely respected teacher, author, and scholar in her fields of study. Her distinguished teaching posts include the Haywood Burns Chair in Civil Rights at CUNY Law School and the Sparks Chair at the University of Alabama School of Law, among other universities.
In addition to criminal law and criminal procedure, Johnson teaches courses on race and law, multicultural lawyering, and voting rights. She has also led seminars on women in the criminal justice system.
Johnson holds a Master of Laws degree from Georgetown University Law Center and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Temple University School of Law. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Maryland.
Her books include “Interrupted Life: Experiences of Incarcerated Women in the United States” (University of California Press, 2010) and “Inner Lives: Voices of African American Women in Prison” (NYU Press, 2003).
Johnson has received many honors and awards for her work. In 2025, she was recognized as one of the 57 Most Influential Black Attorneys by the Northeast Black Law Students Association. Her honors include the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation Woman of Courage Award in Honor of Mamie Till Mobley (2015); the National Civil Rights Social Justice Award (Philadelphia, MS 2014); and the Unsung Heroine Award from the Syracuse University Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards Committee.
For more information on Johnson’s lecture, send email to info@natchezhistoricalsociety.org.
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