Before an earthquake, massive amounts of pressure build up over many years. When the pressure becomes too great, it overcomes the natural friction of the tectonic plates holding things in place. Sometimes the earthquake just jostles the furniture. Other times, it makes the Mississippi run backwards and permanently alters the landscape. 

Justin J. Pearson sworn back into Tennessee House of Representatives

Justin Pearson’s gun-violence protest on the state House floor, his expulsion from the House, and his reinstatement are moving the political tectonic plates of Tennessee and sending shockwaves across the country. 

Tennessee has been under GOP rule for more than 12 years now, which has held back progress on issues people care about. Tennessee remains one of only 10 states not to expand Medicaid (Tenncare). Our schools remain neglected. Our for-profit prisons are bursting at the seams. Very little is done by the state to push economic development in the most crime-affected areas. Tennessee remains a state where funding disproportionately comes from working folks (through sales and property taxes), which benefits our state’s wealthiest, who pay no income tax. 

Not happy with just maintaining the suffocating status quo, the Tennessee GOP has increasingly sought to make the state into some sort of testing ground for whatever reactionary agenda items are coming out of far-right think tanks. “Conservatism,” in the sense of holding on to traditions, no longer applies in Tennessee. Instead, the GOP zealots of today are pushing hard to change the state, making it more regressive and cruel. 

One of the areas most fetishized by the new GOP zealots are guns. To be sure, Tennessee has always had a culture of gun ownership for hunting and personal protection, but things have changed in the past decade. In the South, we used to talk about responsible gun ownership as a good thing. But somewhere along the way, the Tennessee GOP decided to just get rid of the responsible part. 

Steve Cohen sees the possible return of Democratic majority in US House

Don’t want to prove your competency at handling that concealed handgun? No problem. Want a weapon of war used repeatedly in mass shootings around the country — and want it without permitting or safety training? No problem. Feel threatened by the government being able to take guns away from the mentally unstable through red-flag laws? No problem. 

Law by law, the Tennessee GOP has taken us away from our traditions of personal responsibility. And the results have been horrific. Between 2011 and 2020, gun deaths skyrocketed 48% in Tennessee, homicides increased 103%, and suicides increased 20%. Tennessee now averages 1,273 gun deaths and 2,220 gun injuries annually. Guns have passed car wrecks as the leading cause of death among children and teenagers. 

Yet, quoting statistics minimizes the profound cultural impact, particularly on young folks. The average member of the Tennessee General Assembly went to school in a vastly different environment than today’s students. The average 60- and 70-year-old legislator never had to think about how to survive a school shooting.

But Tennessee children and Tennessee teachers must plan for this today. And parents are left powerless to help. So, since political progress to address this is not possible because of extremists, gerrymandered voting maps and big money donors, the pressure has continued to build. 

General Assembly kills red-flag bill days after Lee asked for one

The Covenant School shooting was horrific, but it was also grotesquely familiar. We have all watched these mass shootings play out and we all know people who have been the victims of gun crimes.

Much has been written about the leadership of the Tennessee Three: Representatives Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson and Justin Pearson. They deserve the praise they’re getting. We at Future901 are proud of our early endorsement of Justin Pearson in his recent election.

These three leaders effectively tapped into the political will of a demographic that had been held down, abused and ignored year after year. In the end, the mere sound of a megaphone was all that was needed to shatter Speaker Cameron Sexton’s fragile ego and trigger a political earthquake that was decades in the making. 

How did the political balance of power get so skewed? 

Conaway: Down the rabbit hole with the Tennessee legislature

For years, Sexton — and former Speaker Glenn Casada before him — kept progress at bay by ruthlessly gerrymandering voting maps to concentrate Democratic voters in a handful of districts. This gave Republicans district maps that helped them gain the most seats possible. When House Representative Tim Burchett declared, “We’re not gonna fix it,” he said it with the arrogance of someone who knew his party had a lock on the issue. All this as the majority of Tennesseans cried out for common-sense gun laws. 

The tough truth is that fighting this isn’t going to be easy. Returning Representatives Pearson and Jones to the legislature is fantastic, but we must understand that we’re only returning them to act as representatives in districts that the GOP has allowed to exist! 

To effect change, we’ll have to put more people into positions of power. This is why Future901 exists. We’re working to get strong candidates to step up and run in State House and Senate districts throughout Tennessee. We work to get those candidates the funding and support they need to run and win. 

Opinion: Can Tennessee get it together on guns?

What can you do? 

Stay engaged and informed about what’s happening in Tennessee. Share news on social media so that allies in other states can back our progressive candidates. 

Help find strong candidates and encourage them to run. 

Follow the lead of leaders like the Tennessee Three. We have a feeling this won’t be the last we hear from them.

Several hundred march to Shelby County Commission

Consider donating to political organizations or candidates. 

The political earthquake that has hit Tennessee has revealed a fragility of the gerrymandered power structure in Tennessee. Change is possible in Tennessee and Future901 looks forward to being part of moving us forward.