Several hundred march to Shelby County Commission
From left to right, Justin J. Pearson, Gloria Johnson and Justin Jones raise their fists in solidarity at a rally to support the reinstatement of Pearson by the Shelby County Commission April 12, 2023. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)
Hundreds of marchers meander down Main Street in Downtown Memphis in support of the reinstatement of Tennessee State Rep. Justin Pearson April 12, 2023. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)
A line of marchers three blocks long began a trek from the National Civil Rights Museum courtyard to the Vasco A. Smith Jr. County Administration building Wednesday, April 12, at noon.
Marchers were headed to a 1:30 p.m. special county commission meeting to vote on appointing Justin J. Pearson to the state House seat he was expelled from last week.
“This is a democracy that can lift up the victims of gun violence,” Pearson said. “This is a democracy that changes the status quo.”
"We need to let them know that you're on notice, that the world is watching... something is changing in Tennessee." At the "We Deserve Representation" rally in support of reappointing Justin J. Pearson to the State House District 86 seat.
— The Daily Memphian (@DailyMemphian) April 12, 2023
📽️: @holly_sayshello pic.twitter.com/ykhm5Ee5x5
Joining Pearson at the front of the march was Nashville state Rep. Justin Jones, who was appointed Monday to the seat he was expelled from, and Knoxville state Rep. Gloria Johnson, whose proposed expulsion was voted down by the state House.
“We need to lift up these amazing voices of these young people. … these young voices are critical,” Johnson said to the crowd. “We need to welcome these young voices and not keep them down.”
Pearson and other speakers at the Wednesday rally said the expulsions by the Republican super majorities in the House have given rise to a new movement among the Democratic minority in the capitol.
Jones called for the resignation of state House speaker Cameron Sexton who led the expulsion moves.
Jones said: “Speaker Sexton represents an enemy to democracy, a multi-racial democracy… He’s trying to bring us back to a Tennessee where the Klan was founded. … It’s time to rise up.”
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Justin J. Pearson Justin Jones Gloria Johnson Shelby County CommissionBill Dries on demand
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Bill Dries
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.
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