A majority of councilmembers told NBCNews they would vote to reinstate Democrat Justin Jones to his seat in the Tennessee state legislature, opening up an avenue for him to be sent back as early as Monday.
"He's a duly elected representative of his constituents. They voted him in. They chose him. They want him to speak for them," Councilmember Zulfat Suara said."We cannot stop the voices of the masses or what the voters wanted, that would not be good for our democracy. What the state did [Thursday] is that: kill democracy."
The Shelby County Board of Commissioners, the body charged with choosing Pearson's successor, will meet Wednesday to consider action to reappoint Pearson to his seat, Chairman Mickell Lowery announced Sunday. “I believe the expulsion of State Representative Justin Pearson was conducted in a hasty manner without consideration of other corrective action methods,” Lowery said in a statement. “I also believe that the ramifications for our great state are still yet to be seen.”since their expulsion, Jones and Pearson said they have felt tensions among their fellow lawmakers since starting in the majority-white Legislature.
Pearson added, “When you have people who make comments about hanging you on a tree and hanging Black people on a tree as a form of capital punishment, when you wear a dashiki on the House floor and a member gets up and they talk about your dashiki saying it’s unprofessional, they’re really sending signals that you don’t belong here.”
Democrats in Washington have rallied around Jones and Pearson since their expulsion. Vice President Kamala Harris
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Easter service tinged with frustration for some in Justin Jones' Nashville districtChurch attendees say the ousted state legislator was clear about his positions and accurately represented their wishes regarding gun laws.
Read more »
Nashville council to vote on restoring expelled Tennessee lawmaker Rep. Justin JonesNashville’s metro council has called the meeting to address the vacancy left by the expulsion on Thursday of former Rep. Justin Jones.
Read more »
Tennessee Republican denies Justin Jones, Justin Pearson expelled over raceRepublican state Rep. Brian Richey claims one of the expelled black legislators “wanted to be kicked out.”
Read more »
Justin Pearson and Justin Jones Have a History of Breaking the Status-Quo, Even With ClothingJustin Pearson and Justin Jones illustrated the subtle power of political garb that pushes against norms.
Read more »
Justin Jones Talks Tennessee House Expulsion and What's NextLess than 48 hours after his expulsion, Teen Vogue speaks to Justin Jones (brotherjones_) about what's next and the youth movement that he's advocating for: 'Young people are so much more powerful than anybody with a title.'
Read more »