Wilson Edward Reed PhD

Wilson Edward Reed is still known to family and friends in Mississippi as "June" or "JuneBug", an affectionate Southern-style nickname. Most of the story is true and most of the characters are based on real people. He worked on the farm picking cotton and pulling corn at an early age. The state sanctioned Jim Crow laws curtailed the boundaries of his and his family's life. These laws forbade social integration. The infamous 1955 case of Emmit Till in Drew, Mississippi, is a brutal example of how these laws were enforced. Reed attended segregated schools, a segregated movie theater, church, and public library, always with the understanding that he faced harsh consequences for disobeying any of the twenty-two laws.

Like JuneBug, family support and encouragement were central to his future success. His family provided the opportunity for him to move on from his Kentucky Fried Chicken job in Vicksburg to a new life in Seattle where experienced freedom and achieved academic success.

JuneBug draws on the wisdom of the Sankofa bird, a west African symbol often pictured as a bird looking backward with an egg in her beak, bringing the best of the past into the present. In writing this book, Dr. Reed reflected on his childhood. He looked backward to bring the best parts of his life into the present. In part, JuneBug is an homage to his family, especially his mother and the aunts in Seattle who provided him with the support and inspiration to move beyond his limited opportunities in Mississippi in order to follow his dreams. For more information about Dr. Reed check out his website: mississippijunebug.net.