Updated on April 9, 2023
Students are afraid of dying in their schools!
After the March 27 Nashville school shooting, the 17th school shooting this year in the U.S,. students walked out of classes nationwide in protest, demanding a ban on assault weapons. As an organizer for Students Demand Action stated, “We’re determined to be the last school shooting generation.”
Holding signs saying, “Do your Job,” and “Kids > Guns,” protesters filled the Tennessee State Capitol March 30 where they were joined by three representatives —Justin Jones (D)-Nashville, Justin J. Pearson (D)-Memphis, and Gloria Johnson (D)-Knoxville, who took to the podium in the chamber, leading protesters in chants.
Now in a racist attack on democracy, the two Black representatives were expelled by the majority corporate funded legislative gang, claiming that the legislators led a disruption in the legislature by joining the school kids protests for gun control.
One of the expelled, former Rep. Justin Jones, told reporters, “I was voted out for being ‘an uppity Negro’ . . . what we did was act in our responsibility as legislators to serve and give voice to the grievances of people who have been silenced . . . This is a very hostile environment, but more importantly, it’s hostile to democracy.” The expelled former Rep. Justin Pearson said, “We are losing our democracy to white supremacy. . . to patriarchy . . .to people who want to keep a status quo that is damning to the rest of us.” The third legislator that was threatened with explulsion, Rep. Gloria Johnson, was censored but not expelled. She said, “They’re going with the NRA and Tennessee Firearms Association instead of listening to the people of Tennessee. They are allowing children to die while doing nothing.” She also said she was spoken to in a different manner than how the two Black representatives were spoken to, though as a woman and talked down to. She called on her constituents” to do everything they can to fight for those two young men.”
People are fully aware that this is NOT what democracy looks like! In a state where the radical right is banning books, drag shows, abortion, even in cases of child rape, and the teaching of Black history in schools, more people are standing up and saying, “Enough is Enough!”
We all need to stand up to these fascist attacks on democracy. If they can expel elected representatives over a minor violation, what else can they do? Void our elections if their “side” loses? This is what happened in Michigan when the people voted in a referendum to repeal the corporate-led Emergency Manager Law which allowed non-elected governor-appointed “officials” to take over public resources and bypass the will of the people.
We cannot allow one more attack on our fragile democracy. Stand with the students. Stand with the officials who support them.
Cathy Talbott is a former telephone operator, a job lost to automation. She was a homeless mother of two and fights for welfare rights. A former co-host of a weekly community radio program out of Carbondale, IL, “Occupy the Airwaves,” Cathy is the Environmental Desk for the People’s Tribune.
