Tennessee

Tennessee Lawmakers Pass Bill Making Some Acts Of Protest Felonies

August 14, 2020 Nick Visser, Huffington Post. Educate! Criminal justice abuse, First Amerndment, Right to Protest, Tennessee

The Tennessee legislature passed a sweeping proposal on Wednesday that would increase penalties against some protesters who have camped outside the statehouse in Nashville for months demanding racial justice and an end to police brutality. State lawmakers in the majority-white Tennessee General Assembly passed the measure in a nearly party-line vote in both chambers. The bill, which is now headed to Republican Gov. Bill Lee’s desk, would punish those who illegally camp on state property — as protesters have outside the state Capitol for months — with a Class E felony rather than a misdemeanor. Class E felonies are punishable by up to six years in prison in Tennessee.

Striking GM Workers Arrested In Spring Hill, Tennessee For Blocking Scab Truck

September 19, 2019 Tom Hall, Wsws.org Resist! Class Struggle, General Motors, Strikes, Tennessee, Workers

At least five GM workers were arrested on the picket line this morning in Spring Hill, Tennessee for attempting to block a car-hauling truck from leaving the plant with new GM vehicles, presumably built before the strike started. Eyewitness video posted to Facebook shows two pickets, one male and one female, being cuffed by police on the picket line, while several other workers stand in front of a stopped semi-truck at the entrance to GM’s Spring Hill Assembly plant near Nashville. The male was later identified to the WSWS Autoworker Newsletter as Tim Stannard, president of UAW Local 1853.

ICE Agent Opens Fire on Immigrants Outside a South Nashville Grocery Store

September 7, 2019 Staff, Latinorebels.com Educate! ICE, Immigration, Repression, Tennessee, Undocumented

NASHVILLE — On Thursday September 5, 2019, an Immigration Customs and Enforcement agent approached three men in a white work van parked in the Food Lion located in Antioch, TN. The Food Lion parking lot is used as an informal rideshare parking. Neighbors have expressed fear and anxiety over the fact that ICE has escalated a civil matter into the use of deadly force. The MIX denounces terrorizing of community members, using lethal force against our neighbors, and calls on our local elected officials to end cooperation with ICE.

Tennessee Antifascists Boldly Disrupt, Infiltrate And Expose Annual White Supremacist Gatherings

July 31, 2019 Beth Foster, Wagingnonviolence.org Resist! Racism, Tennessee, White Nationalism

Despite mounting challenges from a state keen on welcoming white supremacists, antifascist activists are learning that deep organizing is the way they win. A wooden bridge guarded by two well-armed park rangers was all that separated us from more than 60 of the most infamous national and international white supremacists. It was the last weekend of June, and they had come to Montgomery Bell State Park in Burns, Tennessee for the National Solutions Conference, a gathering of “race realism” organizations from around the world.

Third Time’s The Charm? UAW Announces New Election At Volkswagen

April 15, 2019 Chris Brooks, Labornotes.org Organize! Labor Unions, Tennessee, Workers

For the third time in five years, auto workers will vote on whether to form a union at the country’s sole Volkswagen plant, located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. On Tuesday, the United Auto Workers (UAW) filed for an election to represent all 1,709 of the plant’s hourly employees, requesting that the election be held on April 29 and 30. The union’s first attempt in 2014 failed after a slim majority of workers voted no, following a barrage of threats by politicians and business-backed anti-union groups. In the second attempt, a group of 160 skilled-trades workers in the plant in 2015 voted to join UAW Local 42.

Teachers Are ‘Ready To Fight,’ Says New Tennessee Coalition Inspired By Strikes In Other States

March 14, 2019 By Marta W. Aldrich and Laura Faith Kebede, Chalkbeat.org Resist! Class Struggle, Education, Strikes, Teachers, Tennessee

Weary of standardized testing and underfunded schools, and alarmed by the prospect of education vouchers and charter expansion in Tennessee, a group of teacher leaders have organized a new statewide coalition and say they are “ready to fight for the schools our students deserve.” The coalition, called TN Teachers United, launched last week after meeting with two teachers who helped organize statewide walkouts last year in Arizona and West Virginia.

Fighting Climate Change With A Green TVA

January 25, 2019 By Matt Bruenig, Peoplespolicyproject.org Educate! Climate Change, Reform, Tennessee

In addition to these reforms to the TVA Act, the paper also proposes that the federal government authorize and appropriate money to the TVA so that it can subsidize the price of its carbon-free electricity in order to ensure that it is competitive with carbon-based energy sources. This would ensure that electricity ratepayers do not directly shoulder the costs of the proposed clean energy build out. The TVA, which was originally established during FDR’s New Deal, is the largest public power company in the country. In the last fiscal year, it produced and sold 160 billion kWh of electricity, which generated $11.2 billion of revenue and $1.1 billion of profit.

Confronted By Black Lives Matter Activist, Tennessee Governor Says He’s Considering Clemency For Cyntoia Brown

December 13, 2018 By Michael Harriot, Theroot.com Resist! Activists, Black Lives Matter (BLM), Electoral Politics, Tennessee

Questioned by a Black Lives Matter activist during a recent speaking engagement, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam announced that his office is considering offering clemency to Cyntoia Brown, a sex trafficking victim currently serving a life sentence for first-degree murder. Tennessee’s outgoing governor gave a speech on Monday at the Nashville Public Library on the importance of education. During the question-and-answer part of the event, Justin Lang, described as “a higher-education professional and member of Black Lives Matter Nashville,” stepped up to the mic and asked the governor about Cyntoia Brown’s plight...

Tension Mounts; Stun Gun, Police Dogs Used At Sandisfield Pipeline Protest

November 7, 2017 Heather Bellow, berkshireeagle.com Resist! Pipelines, Protests, Tennessee

By Heather Bellow for The Berkshire Eagle - SANDISFIELD — On the very day the pipeline company got permission to put its new third line in service here, three anti-pipeline activists were arrested for blocking a road, and witnesses say Massachusetts State Police used a stun gun on one man when he tried to run during an arrest. For the first time since the protests began nearly six months ago, Massachusetts State Police K-9 units were leashed and at the ready, and so was an ambulance as activists formed blockades on either side of Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. headquarters on Beech Plain Road. The man, whom The Eagle has not yet been able to identify, was transferred from a state police cruiser to the ambulance for a medical check roughly 30 minutes after the episode. Though the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Tuesday gave Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. permission to flow gas on Wednesday, the political atmosphere of friendly protests and arrests here is increasingly curdling into one of barely concealed hostility. A group of water protectors, many who had been previously entrenched at Standing Rock, N.D. to fight the Dakota Access Pipeline, are using a more unpredictable and aggressive approach to pipeline resistance than their much-older fellow activists from the Sugar Shack Alliance.

Lessons From Tennessee: Confront Hate And Win

October 31, 2017 Zach D. Roberts, nationofchange.org Resist! Racism, Tennessee, White Nationalism

By Zach D. Roberts for Nation of Change - Outnumbered by more than three to one and late for their own event, the White Lives Matter demonstrators left. If we should learn anything from this weekend in Shelbyville and Murfreesboro it’s confronting hate works. Saturday in Shelbyville, anti-fascists confronted the planned “White Lives Matter” rally with larger numbers and a peaceful, if not mocking tone. Hundreds of counterprotesters outnumbered at least 3 to 1 the mixed bag of white supremacists, Nazi’s and League of the South members. Clearly learning from the mistakes of Charlottesville, Shelbyville Police made certain to keep the two opposing sides far away from each other. Four lanes of road, a divider, metal gates and a line of riot-prepared police prevented the two sides from meeting. The security didn’t stop there though – the laundry list of items that were not allowed into the ‘free speech zones’ was long and included water bottles, backpacks.

Neo-Nazi Coalition Rallies In Tennessee Amid Pushback

October 30, 2017 Patrick Strickland, www.aljazeera.com Resist! Nationalism, Racism, Tennessee, White Nationalism

By Patrick Strickland for Aljazeera - Predicting a "strong turnout" in advance of Saturday's rallies, Schoep told Al Jazeera that the events marked the far right's "first major street action" since a deadly rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, just over two months ago. On August 12, hundreds of neo-Nazis and white supremacists travelled from across the country to Charlottesville to protest the city's decision to tear down a Confederate monument. Participants clashed with community members, anti-racist activists and anti-fascists throughout the city. By the end of the day, James Alex Fields, a 20-year-old Ohio resident, had allegedly rammed his car into an anti-racist march and killed 32-year-old activist Heather Heyer. The incident also left at least 19 people injured. "The media is claiming we started or brought violence to Charlottesville and anyone, with even half of a brain who was actually there knows the truth the Antifa violently attacked anyone who was deemed pro-white or pro-American even," Schoep, who refers to himself as the NSM's commander, said by email. He went on to allege that anti-fascists "viciously attacked us with mace, bricks, bottles, bats, chemicals, and countless urine-filled balloons and bottles" in Charlottesville.

Tennessee Cops Sued For Three Hour Torture Of Suspect

August 2, 2017 Amy K Nixon, www.tennessean.com Educate! Cops, Lawsuit, police brutality, Tennessee

By Amy K Nixon for The Tennessean - Three Cheatham County Sheriff's deputies have been placed on administrative leave after a Pegram teen filed suit in federal court accusing them of using excessive force while he was being held at Cheatham County Jail. Jordan Elias Norris, 19, has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court accusing the deputies of deprivation of civil rights, citing the use of excessive force and failure to protect after he was repeatedly stunned with Tasers in the jail in November 2016. He suffered more than 40 pairs of Taser burns, many of which are unaccounted for by authorities, the lawsuit states. Norris was arrested Nov. 3, 2016 and charged with felony manufacturing/possession of marijuana for resale, possession of drug paraphernalia, theft under $500 and five counts of possession of a prohibited weapon. He was later charged with felony vandalism of over $1,000 and simple assault Nov. 7 while still incarcerated. Norris was originally suspected of stealing a semi-automatic rifle, and Sheriff's deputies received information he was going to use the weapon on any law enforcement who tried to arrest him, according to Cheatham County Sheriff Mike Breedlove.

Nashville Police Training Includes Lessons In Civil Rights History

November 25, 2015 Lucas L. Johnson II, www.csmonitor.com Resist! Police, Tennessee

By Lucas L. Johnson II for The Christian Science Monitor - NASHVILLE, TENN. — On the same downtown block where Nashville police officers carried a young John Lewis by his hands and feet to a paddy wagon for daring to take a seat at a whites-only lunch counter decades ago, today's fresh-faced police recruits are learning lessons about the fraught history between law enforcement and black Americans. About 60 police hopefuls, many around the same age Lewis was when he emerged as a leader of the civil rights movement, gathered recently in the "Civil Rights Room" at Nashville's main library.

Inmate Claims He Escaped Jail To Get Surgery

July 6, 2015 CNN Wire, www.kdvr.com Educate! health, Mass Incarceration, Tennessee, Torture

By CNN Wire in KDVR - A Tennessee prisoner claims he was so desperate and in so much pain that his only choice was to escape from jail, acording to WSMV-TV. Don Robin White Jr. said he escaped from jail to get surgery. White has previous drug and theft charges and was put in jail last month for violating probation. “I should never have done it, but I got two kids, and I wasn’t gonna lie back there and die,” he said. White said he was suffering from a hernia before he was even booked into the Trousdale County jail. “When I walked in, I had my papers showing I had to have surgery, and nobody ever helped me,” he said. As days went on, White said it kept getting worse, and he kept asking for help. He claims he submitted three or four medical requests and that the guards also submitted a couple.

Obama May Privatize New Deal Gem, Tennessee Valley Authority

June 9, 2015 Joel Yudken, www.epi.org Educate! Electricity, Energy, Finance and the Economy, Obama, Tennessee

By Joel Yudken in The Economic Policy Institute - The Obama administration is considering whether to divest all or part of the federally owned Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) as a means to pay down the U.S. debt. The selling off of all or part of the TVA to private ownership would have far-reaching consequences, especially for the 9 million people in the 80,000-square-mile region—encompassing parts of Tennessee, northern Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia—to whom the TVA provides electricity and other services. The proposal has sparked a debate about the benefits and problems that divestiture might bring. Conservatives have long opposed the TVA on the grounds that it is an illegitimate government intrusion into the marketplace.

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