Editing Crystal Springs, Mississippi (section)

==Controversies==
On February 2, 1922, [[Lynching of Will Thrasher|Will Thrasher was lynched]], the first lynching in Copiah County in 20 years.{{sfn|''The Semi-Weekly Leader'', February 4,|1922|p=1}}

Civil rights-era violence related to passage of civil rights legislation in 1964 and 1965, led the armed [[Deacons for Defense and Justice]] to established centers in both Crystal Springs and nearby [[Hazlehurst, Mississippi|Hazlehurst]], in 1966 and 1967. They acted to provide physical protection for African-American protesters who were working with the [[NAACP]] on a commercial boycott of white merchants to force integration of stores and employment, to gain jobs for African Americans at places where they were patrons.<ref name="copiah">[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZPUaBwAAQBAJ&dq=Copiah+Co%2C+MS+during+the+civil+rights+movement&pg=PA223 Ted Ownby, ''The Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi''], Univ. Press of Mississippi, 2013, pp. 221-223</ref> Eventually the protesters won the removal of discriminatory practices at stores and African Americans gained some jobs in these local businesses.

In 2012, the First Baptist Church denied a black couple permission to be married there after objections from church members.  The pastor performed the wedding at a different church.<ref>{{cite news | last = Harish | first = Alon | date = July 28, 2012 | title = Mississippi Church Refuses to Marry Black Couple | url = https://abcnews.go.com/US/mississippi-church-rejects-black-wedding/story?id=16878536 | work = ABC News}}</ref>