GREENVILLE, Miss. (WJTV) - Those who live in the poorest region of the one of the poorest states in the country have been working overtime to flip the script and position the Mississippi Delta for an economic boom.

For years, the Delta has faced harsh realities when it comes to healthcare, education and economic opportunities. The region is still healing from the injustices of slavery and the generational poverty caused by sharecropping practices, leaving much room for improvement.

With some of the worst outcomes in the country, the perception of the Mississippi Delta has been largely based off of those realities. The data is something Justin Burch has had to combat when marketing the Delta to outside investments.

As executive director of the Washington County Economic Alliance, Burch said recognizing what the region has to offer in spite of its challenges is crucial in bringing back economic growth.

“We don’t let the data stigmatize us. We don't let education in the Delta be used as a proxy for skills. And when we're talking about skilled labor, we have some of the best in the country," he said.

The recent economic booms in other southern states, including Texas, Florida, George and the Carolinas, oftentimes leave the Deep South with leftovers. Smaller investments have made their way to less tech-centered economies in Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. Burch said this is changing.

“The thing that they're lacking is energy generation. They have been siphoned up. So now, we're seeing some of those tier two states in the south begin to get some of the economic wind. And I think Mississippi's really bared that out this last year with some major announcements," he said.

During the last Legislative Session, Governor Tate Reeves (R-Miss.) called two special sessions to allocate hundreds of millions of dollars of state funds into two projects - an electric battery plant in North Mississippi and Amazon Web Services in Madison County.

Delta lawmakers were quick to point out that the momentum Reeves touts would be felt much greater in the region.

Once home to an array of industry, Greenville was the third largest city in Mississippi for a time. Greenville's past successes have kept the city and its nearly 30,000 residents above water and secured some recent economic wins mainly due to federal investments, but the city has never returned to what it once was.

“You can see the dirt turning. You can see a number of economic development projects. Why not us? If we are creating or contributing to the money at the top to send these economic development projects out, why not the person in the Mississippi Delta?” questioned Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons.

“This has been a depressed area for quite some time, and the opportunities are here. This is a jewel that needs to be dusted off and put back in the ring," said State Rep. John Hines (D-District 50).

The exclusion that Delta lawmakers feel from the state and the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA) is not shared by all Delta players.

“Amazon happened on a mega site. You're unlikely to ever have a mega site in the Delta because we all share a labor shed. And could we meet the demands of an Amazon? No. We're more concentrated a little bit on micro manufacturing. I don't think it's necessarily the state of Mississippi or the utilities have anything against the Delta. I think it's just more or less we have not found that right size sector or industry that would be perfect here," stated Burch.

What lawmakers and Burch want is equity in Reeves' economic vision.

“The only way we really can rid this region of poverty is through equitable economic opportunities," said Simmons.

“Almost 20,000 acres out here that’s available, so economic development could happen here," said Hines.

“How are we going to love on everybody? How are we going to include everyone in workforce development systems, postsecondary systems, and livable wage economies?” questioned Burch.