The recent “not guilty” verdict in the trial of Ted DiBiase Jr. concludes a legal proceeding, but it does not resolve the ugly reality of the $77 million welfare scandal that continues to haunt Mississippi. While the court has reached its decision regarding individual criminal liability, the facts of this case reveal a systemic betrayal of the state’s most vulnerable citizens. 

DiBiase’s embezzlement of over $3 million highlights two different Americas right here in Mississippi. In one America, well-connected athletes and insiders were accused of treating federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds as a personal slush fund to support luxury lifestyles, including a boat, a vehicle, and a down payment on a house. In the other America, Mississippi families who rely on these funds for childcare and job training were left with nothing but “empty promises”. This disparity is personified by the millions diverted to fund a $5 million volleyball stadium while local communities, such as Forrest County, maintain a poverty rate of approximately 19.0%. 

One Voice remains committed to demanding accountability, not just in a courtroom, but in our legislature. The acquittal of one individual does not absolve the state of the conditions it created, conditions where $77 million could be stolen from our most vulnerable while leaders criticized federal safety net programs as “handouts”. This systemic betrayal was made possible by a lack of integrity and oversight that allowed public funds to be treated as a private resource. 

We demand immediate, transparent oversight of all federal funds and a legislature that is held accountable for the policies that allow these resources to be diverted. Mississippi’s resources must be used to build up our communities and our people, not as a “private playground for the powerful”. We call on Mississippians to demand a budget and a government that reflects the dignity and needs of every citizen, rather than one that continues to bankrupt our communities and dismantle our public institutions.