On March 27, an armed assailant entered The Covenant School in Nashville and began to open fire. Three adult staff members and three children were murdered in the attack.
Three days later, hundreds of protesters gathered at the state capitol to protest for tighter gun control laws. Three Tennessee House of Representatives members allied with protesters to demand change. Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, and Gloria Johnson led the protest into the House chamber, disrupting proceedings.
Dubbed the Tennessee Three, Jones, Pearson and Johnson faced expulsion after Republican members filed a resolution to remove the members from their legislative seats. Their reasoning for expelling two of the three? “Disruptive behavior.”
Although it can be easy to see why Republicans may have been annoyed by the actions of the Tennessee Three, expulsion seems absurd and impulsive. The three were protesting for something they strongly believed in, which is their constitutional right. Just because they are House members does not take away their rights to opinions and freedom to protest.
It seems as though Republicans saw this as an opportunity to rid the House of Democratic members that did not match their viewpoints. It also looked like an attempt to silence Americans who believe in gun reform.
As far as the protest disrupting proceedings, how was this different from the insurrection that was led by the Republican majority in 2021?
The only difference with this protest is that no one was harmed or died. The protest led by the Tennessee Three was peaceful and contained. The worst it did was disrupt proceedings.
The resolution passed, and the House voted to expel two of the three members in question.
One of the most alarming things about this situation is that the two members expelled, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, are both black men. Gloria Johnson, a white woman, kept her seat by one vote. Many Americans, including Johnson, believe Jones and Pearson were expelled due to the color of their skin. Although Republican House members have assured that Jones and Pearson were not expelled because of their race, it does look as though racism played a part in the expulsion.
On April 10, the Metropolitan City Council held a meeting to appoint a new House member to fill Justin Jones’ position. During this meeting, Jones was nominated to fill his own seat. The council unanimously voted to reinstate Jones.
On Wednesday, April 12, Shelby County commissioners unanimously voted to reinstate Pearson. On Thursday, April 13, Pearson was sworn back into the Tennessee House.
Although I believe the two should have never been expelled in the first place, I am happy to see them back in their rightful seats.
The issues with this expulsion go far beyond your political beliefs. This has to do with human rights and the outright racism that surrounds our state.
As Americans, we have the right to protest and to voice our own opinions. We have the right to believe what we want to believe. No one should ever be silenced for their views.
No one should ever be silenced because of their race.
