In the pre-Civil War South, black people who were not slaves but didn’t carry papers stating they were free could be jailed or sold into slavery &045; and were often jailed as vagrants anyway.

They could not sell groceries or liquor or operate an entertainment or printing business, Jackson State professor Dr. Dernoral Davis wrote in the Mississippi Historical Society’s online journal.

Free black people were suspended between the white and enslaved black worlds and accepted in neither &045; and perhaps no one chronicled that story better than Natchez’s own William Johnson. The free black businessman for years reported the details of his life and Natchez society in his journal, eventually published as a 812-page book.

&uot;He was well-educated and kept his ear to the ground, and everything he wrote about can be verified through other sources,&uot; said Carolyn Vance Smith, founder and co-organizer of the Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebration. Smith likens the importance of Johnson’s work to that of 17th-century British diarist Samuel Pepys.

With Johnson’s house recently restored as part of the Natchez National Historical Park, organizers saw the lives and times of free black people in the antebellum South as the most fitting theme for this year’s NLCC. During the event, set for Feb. 23-27, everything from lectures to a journal entry contest to musical presentations to the grand opening of the William Johnson House will be tied to the theme.

Another highlight of the celebration will be presentation of the Richard Wright Literary Excellence Awards to Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist William Raspberry and Mildred D. Taylor, award-winning author of &uot;Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry.&uot;

The Horton Foote Award for Outstanding Screenplay Writing will be awarded to Callie Khouri, whose screenplays include &uot;Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood,&uot; &uot;Thelma & Louise&uot; and &uot;Something to Talk About.&uot; The awards will be presented in a ceremony the evening of Feb. 26.

Organizers of the event, first held in 1990, tie each theme to an event happening that year &045; for example, the 275th anniversary of Natchez in 1991 and the bicentennial of the Louisiana Purchase in 2003. &uot;We try to hook it to themes that are global and regional but also local,&uot; Smith said.

So when they found out two years ago the former house of William Johnson &045; free black Natchezian, diarist and businessman &045; would officially open in 2005, this year’s theme became &uot;Between Two Worlds: Free Blacks in the Antebellum South.&uot;

Highlights of the event, Smith said, will include:

4The presentation of winning journal entries by students from local high schools at 11 a.m. Feb. 23 at Copiah-Lincoln Community College and 9 a.m. Feb. 24 at Natchez High School.

4A Creole jazz concert and history presentation featuring Don Vappie and the Creole Jazz Serenaders the evening of Feb. 25. Tickets are $10 each.

4A gala benefit party at Bontura the night of Feb. 26 honoring award winners and speakers. Tickets are $125 each.

4A presentation of new research on the antebellum house Bontura, once owned by a free black man.

4Downtown walking tours tied to the Johnson House opening.

4A flower show Feb. 26 with categories linked to themes from Johnson’s diary. Flowers will be displayed in houses in the area of the William Johnson House.

As with previous celebrations, Smith said, there’s &uot;something for everyone.&uot;

For more information on NLCC, visit

http://www.colin.edu/nlcc

/default.htm.