TOUGH DAY IN TENNESSEE It's been a rough day for all of us. I'm so proud of everyone who showed up. Get some sleep, and the work continues! Love y'all. 💞
Cheri Brown
@downtowncheribrown.bsky.social
Fighting. Always be fighting, even when you're so damn tired of fighting. On May 5th, the fight is to stop the gerrymandering of our Tennessee Congressional map to eliminate our only Democratic district.
“NO JIM CROW” “STOP THE TN STEAL” Senator Charlane Oliver stands on her desk with a banner to oppose the racist 9-0 map as republicans strip Memphis of congressional representation. @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn
“HANDS OFF MEMPHIS!” Protestors & Democratic legislators leave the scene of the crime arm in arm, after Tennessee Republicans broke the law to strip Memphis of representation with a racist 9-0 map, drowning out the majority Black city with white power. @GovBillLee
Just now — @TNRepParkinson: “LET MEMPHIS SECEDE FROM TENNESSEE. Let my people go.” #JimCrow @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn
⚡️ WATCH — JUST NOW — 99% white Tennessee House Republicans pass a racist 9-0 map stripping majority Black Memphis of congressional representation
🔥 @justinjpearson.bsky.social: “WE ARE STILL HERE.” #Memphis @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn #JimCrow
Rep. @brotherjones.bsky.social burns a confederate flag in the rotunda after the House passed 9-0 maps stripping Memphis of representation… #Memphis #JimCrow @MarshaBlackburn @GovBillLee
WATCH: “I’m proud of you. I love you.” Rep. @justinjpearson.bsky.social embraces his brother @keshaunpearson.bsky.social as Troopers arrest him for refusing to leave the balcony in a show of nonviolent resistance after Speaker Sexton cleared it
JUST NOW: Rep. Todd Warner walks into the house to strip majority Black Memphis or representation wearing a trump flag as a cape as Rep. Camper of Memphis looks on Video: www.instagram.com/reel/DYCuFmt...
WATCH: “No racial data was used in the drawing of this map.” 🤔 Speaker Sexton also pretends not to know if MEMPHIS is predominantly Black, insists with a straight face to @rep.jesse.chism race wasn’t a factor in carving the city into thirds- precisely splitting the Black vote
Rep. @rep.jesse.chism (D) : “Memphis is a predominantly African-American city, correct?” Rep. William Lamberth (R): “I’m not privy to those demographics. I don’t know.” 🤷🏼 *HUGE LAUGH FROM THE AUDIENCE* The Republican gaslighting as they carve up Memphis is so absurd you gotta laugh.
US: “Do you think they were listening in there, Stacey?” stacey abrams: “I believe they heard me. I don’t know that they’ll do what they know they should do.” Stacey was in Tennessee to testify against the racist redistricting of MEMPHIS. @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn
WALTER BAILEY: “Dr. King took a bullet in the neck. They were shot. Killed. Murdered. Advancing voting rights… it’s an insult to their legacy. To their deaths.” @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn SenJohnson BrentTaylorTN #Memphis
🔥 Sekou Franklin: “UNPRECEDENTED. The largest attack in Tennessee’s modern history on the rights of Black voters.” He blasts SenJohnson @GovBillLee @MarshaBlackburn’s plan to carve up Memphis, rejects @janicebowlingtn’s ridiculous idea 3 (Republican) reps is actually good for the city🙃
🔥 @staceyabrams.com : "The South is where over half of Black people live— You’re silencing citizens and telling them their voices don’t matter… We would never say ranchers can only be represented by vegans." (H/T @fairfightaction.bsky.social )
All you really need to know to understand how obscene what Republicans are doing to Memphis is this: They’re pretending not to know Memphis is a majority Black city🙃
UPDATE: Today Tennessee Republicans will strip representation from majority Black Memphis and dilute it with white power, stretching their districts to cherry red Williamson County, the richest in the state — making Tennessee 9-0 Republicans. While insisting it isn’t about race.
“BOOOOOOOO!” Republicans booed hard as they arrive to strip representation from MEMPHIS, Dems cheered
REP. @votegloriaj.bsky.social : “This is not a special session, this is a white power rally, and a white power grab.” #JimCrow #Memphis
REP. @justinjpearson.bsky.social on the new maps: “This is just wrong. And everyone knows why this is happening. This is an attack on our Black majority district… we’re changing laws to change statutes to make things that were illegal legal.”
⚡️ JUST NOW - “HANDS OFF OUR VOTE!” The Crowd disrupts senate committee as @GovBillLee & republicans move to strip memphis of representation for Trump, causing them to adjourn and flee
WATCH: “HANDS OFF MEMPHIS! HANDS OFF MEMPHIS! SHAME! SHAME!” senate committee disrupted and adjourned as Republicans and @GovBillLee move to strip Memphis of representation with absurd, racist 9-0 maps no matter if they changed these words no matter what they do we still coming out
JUST NOW — SENATOR @jeffyarbro.bsky.social to protestors on the @GovBillLee @marshablackburn push to strip majority-Black Memphis of representation after they shut down a senate committee: “I respect people who view this as arbitrary power worthy of being resisted.”