The late John Lewis talked about making “Good Trouble.” For society to move forward, people have to have the courage to make the kind of trouble that gets the powers that be upset. That is what Torrey Harris has been doing in his bid to unseat Rep. John DeBerry. Well, he has gotten the attention of the folks in power.
Read MoreWhen a crisis occurs, it becomes clear who stands with you. In the wake of recordings revealing Lauderdale County Sheriff, Steve Sanders casually using the “N word” to describe Lauderdale residents, the public has a crisis of trust in its top law enforcement. Unfortunately, Sheriff Sanders is not stepping down. Even more disappointingly, this incident has revealed how folks who have talked a good game on equality are absent when the community needs them to step up. This is particularly the case for State Representative Chris Hurt.
Read MoreAndrea’s vision for Tennessee is focused on improving Tennesseans’ quality of life: providing access to healthcare and saving our rural hospitals by expanding Medicaid, improving infrastructure for our rural communities through increased broadband services and safer roads and bridges, creating good jobs with fair wages, investing in public education for our children’s success, and using data and science to inform public health policy decisions. Andrea is running because loving our neighbors means advocating for them—even, and especially, the most vulnerable populations.
Read MoreIn 1970, when my oldest daughter was three, nearly 50 years ago, she participated in a pilot effort at the Institute for Human Potential in Philadelphia, which usually worked with brain injured children. They emphasized the “crawling before you walk” perspective to help children develop, and discovered that brain-injured children could learn to read before they were five – sometimes as young as two or three years old. The Institute wanted to see if the techniques they had developed would help “normal” children to read. It worked! So, they taught us how to continue sharing the process.
Read MoreEvery resident, every taxpayer in Shelby County, would benefit from having accessible transportation for all. Before COVID 19, and hopefully again in the near future, those of us with the good fortune to own one or more vehicles, could freely move about going to work, keeping a doctor appointment, picking up essential prescriptions, buying groceries, or attending some form of entertainment. For those without a vehicle, up to 40% of households in some parts of the county (see attached map for areas that are 10%+), such activities are more challenging, if not totally inaccessible, with our current MATA public transit system.
Read MoreIf we want to see Tennessee change directions, we need to flip TN State House seats. If you were to make a list of TN House seats vulnerable to flipping, State House 97 will be one of the top three on your list. This includes Berclair, parts of Bartlett and a little of Cordova. Over the past few years, demographic changes and sweat equity have made a once solidly “red” seat purple. Moreover, with the recent retirement of the district’s long-time incumbent, a focused Democrat candidate can win this seat. After watching this district for years, the Future901 Steering Committee unanimously agrees that Allan Creasy is the ideal candidate to make this happen.
Read MorePeople ask me, why I vote” liberal.”
I vote blue because of my grandmother. Universal Healthcare would have kept her from spending every dime she had trying to make sure my grandfather was well, and she wouldn’t have had to work on a towboat, cooking 3 square meals a day, for 30 men for 30 days straight to make ends meet. And my mother wouldn’t have had to raise herself because of it.
Read MoreThe Pulitzer Prize Board awarded the posthumous special citation for Wells’ “outstanding and courageous reporting on the horrific and vicious violence against African Americans during the era of lynching.” The honor, announced Monday, by the board of the Pulitzer Prizes, is a testament to Wells’ long-standing work and contributions to the country,” said Michelle Duster, the great-granddaughter of Wells. As a journalist, Wells, also known by Wells-Barnett, reported on the racist lynchings of black men, sorting through statistics and uncovering fabrications.
Read MoreTorrey first caught the attention of Future901 during his first run against State Rep John DeBerry in 2018. At that time, he as was able to run an unexpectedly competitive contest against the 24-year incumbent. Then, as now, DeBerry was heavily funded by interest groups from outside the state. It was clear, at that time, that Rep. DeBerry was out of step with his district and needed to be held accountable for his voting record and lack of community engagement.
Read More“They’re coming for our water.” Thus began a rallying cry for the founding members of Protect Our Aquifer (POA) in December 2016. It was a commonsense recognition that TVA’s five new wells—predicted to extract 4-10 million gallons/day to cool their new gas plant—were a waste of drinking water.
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