Columnist
Otis Sanford is professor emeritus of Journalism and Strategic Media at the University of Memphis and political commentator for WATN-TV ABC24 News. Contact him at o.sanford@memphis.edu.
There are 248 articles by Otis Sanford :
The battles for district attorney and county mayor will get most of the headlines, but the race to determine who oversees judicial proceedings at Juvenile Court is the most important overall to the community.
“The internet is full of screeds and bellowing referencing the fringe theory that white Americans are slowly but surely becoming extinct.”
How did this group of Republicans, all of whom profess to being true conservatives, particularly on fiscal issues, get so out of step with one another?
Turnout for Tuesday’s primary was 10.7%, the lowest for a county primary since 2014.
“Welcome to the world of Tennessee Republican politics in 2022, where the long-held belief of party unity is just an illusion.”
The Democratic primary ballot has 55 candidates running in 22 of the 24 races. A dozen races have three or more candidates.
There are many ways to define Memphis, but violent crime is the one definition we cannot be willing to accept.
“In an ideal world, there should not be a Democratic or Republican way to enforce laws, ensure public safety, oversee our jails and juvenile detention facilities and hire capable deputies and support staff.”
“Despite the grousing and threats of a meaningless censure, Strickland is simply being Strickland. He’s also being pragmatic.”
Our society’s long-overdue reckoning with racial inequities is not a full-blown offensive to correct 246 years of racial disparities in America. It’s more like baby steps designed to start making our institutions more reflect the makeup of our population.
The bottom line is Mason’s elected leaders were right not to surrender the charter. They have a legitimate right to exist as an incorporated town.
A local race that already had the makings of an intense battle has gotten more interesting. All because of our polar opposite political views on voting rights. Let’s continue that debate.
The expansive discount chain – with seemingly a store on every corner in Memphis — is mired in a financial and public relations nightmare of its own making because it put corporate profits over public safety.
“ ... imagine my delight when I learned this week that Memphis-Shelby County Schools and one of its top schools academically — White Station High — intend to press ahead with an even deeper dive into the accurate history of the African American experience in this country.”
“Every time I step inside FedExForum for a Grizzlies game and make my way through the crowd to my seat, the anecdotal evidence about how people view COVID-19 differently is on clear display,” Sanford says.
Black women have contributed mightily to the growth of this country since its beginning. And it’s high time that one of them represent what should be a more diverse makeup of the nation’s highest court.
“I think more should be done to stop drag racing on city streets and interstates. That includes giving police the freedom to chase dangerous motorists – with the proper safeguards in place, of course, to prevent others from being hurt.”
Sen. Marsha Blackburn employed an unmistakably racist dog whistle in casting Andre Mathis as a criminal who cannot be trusted to sit as an appellate court judge.
The iconic actor played roles in the 1950s and 60s that depicted Black men as strong, educated and caring. But also ones willing to stare down racism with a steely-eyed resolve.
“It’s easy to draw comparisons between what happened on ‘Bloody Sunday’ at Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965 and the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. ... But there is one major difference between these two infamously historic events.”
For more than a decade, a poll conducted twice a year by the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions at Vanderbilt has been a reliable barometer of the mood of Tennesseans about the issues affecting the state and the politicians we elect to state and federal offices.
Horton was a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta and Howard University Law School in Washington. After an illustrious career in Memphis, the federal judiciary would be Horton’s final and most impactful calling.
News outlets continue to lend credence to Donald Trump’s flirtation with seeking a second term in 2024.
Lang Wiseman, 50, said his greatest satisfaction in his dual role was his work making the planned Ford truck assembly plant at the Megasite of West Tennessee in Haywood County a reality.
“The truth is, farm life historically for African Americans in the South was one of hardship and despair.”