“We need to build a cultural plan — a long-term strategy that guides how Memphis and Shelby County builds infrastructure for investment to integrate arts, culture and entertainment into its economic development, urban planning and community life.”

“The youngest members of this community did not ask to be born into a budget dispute. They arrived, as all children do, with the expectation that the adults around them would provide what they need to thrive.”

“Delays in handling cases, jail-intake processing delays, the “solve rate” for crimes, the repeat-offender rate — these are all worthy objects of emphasis ... . But they may not fit the right (so to speak) political agenda.”

This Sunday as churches fill with songs of resurrection and families gather around tables remembering freedom, may we also remember our unfinished work.

“If a company’s business model depends on the exploitation of a Black city and the enrichment of a few power brokers at the top, we don’t want them here.”

The performance of the criminal justice system can’t be assessed without knowing the full picture. We have regular and reliable reporting from law enforcement agencies, but why don’t we have the same expectation for the district attorney and court clerks?

“Amid the frustrating recruitment challenges facing the Memphis Police Department, I would like to turn our attention to a different critical element of our public safety architecture: the frontline civic organizations engaged in violence-reduction efforts.”

Before FESJC’s outgoing Executive Director Joe Tomek leaves for Australia, he has some advice for Memphians.

Both baseball and religion are often dismissed as boring, tedious, and unexciting by spectators. However, this perception usually stems from an unfamiliarity with the nuances of each.

“Consumers have been scammed out of tens of millions of dollars in recent get-rich-quick schemes.”

“We can take inspiration and hope from Lynda Lowery’s example. Every day, we see young people realize they have a voice and start to use it. As adults, we should be called to do the same.” 

“Someone will be forced to decide which biblical version to display and how to number the commandments. Any such choice would privilege one religious tradition over others.”

“One of the great gifts of public service is the ability to make an outsized difference for your fellow citizens. I would never have imagined earlier in my life I could help make Memphis safe and marketable.” 

“I hope that the citizens of Memphis will vote for the referendum granting civil service protection to library workers, and that library employees be re-hired for jobs they secured through a fair and competitive process.”

“Where your child goes to college will never be as important as what they do when they get there. Let your students take charge, take risks and know that they’re going to be OK. You are, too.”

“Memphis has never been defined by ease. We have always been defined by resilience, by staying when others leave, by believing when belief is irrational.”

“Rebuilding the electrical grid will be a central American industrial challenge. Memphis has a rare opportunity to be more than a pass-through point in that effort — it can become a place where the grid is built.”

“Supporting local charities and advocating for legislative reform are reasonable paths forward; interfering with active law enforcement is not.”

“Historian Kyle Harper is coming to the University of Memphis to ask a chilling question: are we, like the Romans, on the cusp of societal collapse — or even mass extinction?”

“You don’t have to be a president or famous to believe in freedom, dignity, character, honor, goodness, generosity or integrity.”

“The impact of colorectal cancer is exacerbated for Black Tennesseans and people in rural areas who face even more challenges to getting screened and treated.”

“For about 26,000 Memphis students, access to school transportation is the difference between showing up ready to learn and not showing up at all.”

“Checking out a company anywhere in the country on bbb.org is quick, easy and free.”

“We ask the Shelby County administration to find a path forward with First 8 Memphis so that our school system and all other operators are not expected to fill a sudden budgetary gap that we cannot afford.”

“Introducing immigration enforcement into our neighborhoods does not make us safer; it fractures trust, drives fear underground and harms families who are already contributing quietly and faithfully to the life of this city.”