Mississippi Native: L. Patri

"I am a Mississippian. It’s in my blood, my core."

What does it mean to call Mississippi home? Why do people choose to leave or live in this weird, wonderful, and sometimes infuriating place? Today’s featured contributor, cannot choose to leave or stay in Mississippi. L. Patri has been fighting his wrongful death row conviction for over three decades. Many of you know him from his monthly column “Chronicles from Parchman,” in which he details his life before and in prison. L. debated taking the Mississippi expat version of the questionnaire. Parchman, after all, is a sort of nightmarish purgatory, a place that those of us in the free world have the privilege of being able to forget exists. Nonetheless, L. Patri remains a Mississippian to his core. Born and raised in Natchez, he maintains deep family and ancestral ties there. Given the choice, he would stay in Mississippi. After all he’s experienced, “Leaving would feel too much like running away.”

L. Patri, aged sixteen, with his grandmother.

Where are you from?

Natchez, Mississippi

How l…