MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Norwood, Frazier, Jackson, Jordan, Butler (38th), Simmons (12th), Blount, Thomas, Turner-Ford, Butler (36th), Barnett, Horhn
A RESOLUTION EXTENDING THE CONDOLENCES OF THE MISSISSIPPI SENATE TO THE SURVIVING FAMILY OF JACKSON MINORITY BUSINESS PIONEER ROY L. DIXON, SR., WHO FOUNDED "DIXON'S FRIED PORK SKIN SHOP".
WHEREAS, it is with sadness that we note the passing of Jackson, Mississippi, businessman and community leader Roy L. Dixon, Sr., on February 18, 2023; and
WHEREAS, Roy L. Dixon, Sr., was born on October 17, 1942, in Georgetown, Mississippi, to Sebie Dixon and Louisa Mallard Dixon; and
WHEREAS, Dixon's son, Barry, said his father started the company bearing his name in 1974, selling fried pork skins, a favorite for many people in Mississippi and around the South. The skins are still sold at stores around Mississippi, and the package still bears Dixon's name, even though it merged with another company, Central Snack. Ten years later, the business grew from three to 24 employees and from a one-town operation to a business serving six states: Mississippi, Louisiana, Illinois, Texas, Tennessee and Missouri, according to a Clarion-Ledger profile; and
WHEREAS, in 1984, Dixon was named Mississippi "Small Business Person of the Year" by the Small Business Association and "Manufacturer of the Year" by the Jackson Minority Business Development Center; and
WHEREAS, Roy Dixon's family remembers the "Skin Man" as a barrier-breaking Mississippi businessman. His son says Dixon was one of the first African Americans to have a product manufactured and sold in stores across the state: those now-famous fried pork skins. His father first started selling skins he brought from Jackson to his record shop in Crystal Springs, and as time went on, he realized people were buying more skins than records. Soon he understood that the skin business could be something really profitable; and
WHEREAS, Dixon quickly outgrew the first location at his West Jackson home in the early 1970s. State Representative De'Keither Stamps stated "This is a true American icon with the track record and the self-determination that he put in place"; and
WHEREAS, Dixon's family reflects on Roy's long life and what really matters. His legacy will be one who really loved his family and his community, and a person who really loved God; and
WHEREAS, we fondly remember the legacy of Roy Dixon who was a most public-spirited citizen of Mississippi who will be missed: NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby extend the condolences of the Mississippi Senate to the surviving family of Jackson minority business pioneer Roy L. Dixon, Sr., who founded "Dixon's Fried Pork Skin Shop", and remember his legacy as a leading minority businessman in Central Mississippi.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to the surviving family of Roy Dixon, Sr., forwarded to the Jackson Minority Business Development Center and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.