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☆ Progressive Allies Rally With Pittsburgh Congresswoman as Primary Looms
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Anjali Huynh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A high-energy crowd rallied on Sunday in Pittsburgh to support Representative Summer Lee, a left-leaning congresswoman whose primary on Tuesday is a high-profile test whether she can stave off a challenge aimed in part at her stance over the war in Gaza. Headlining the event were Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, the progressive lawmaker, and Justin Jones, the Tennessee state representative who rose to stardom when he was briefly ousted for protesting inaction on state gun legislation. Speakers framed Ms. Lee’s race, in Pennsylvania’s 12th District, as crucial to building a movement for working people and to fighting what they cast as billionaire influence in the race. The rally with several hundred supporters drew a small group of protesters who held signs outside the headquarters of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers to criticize Ms. Lee and Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s stances on the war in Israel and Gaza. Ms. Lee’s primary is one of the first down-ballot electoral tests of the Israel-Gaza conflict this year.

Persons: Summer Lee, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Justin Jones, Ms, Lee Organizations: Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers Locations: Pittsburgh, Gaza, Cortez of New York, Tennessee, Pennsylvania’s 12th, Israel, Lee’s

☆ I planned on confronting my absent father about his parenting. But when I asked to hear his side, I learned a powerful lesson.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-17 | by ( Justin Jones-Fosu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

My father was absent throughout most of my life, so I went to Ghana to confront him about it. AdvertisementA few years ago, I visited my father in Ghana and asked to hear his story about why he was an absent parent. My father told me about his journey with his dad, his custody struggles, and the interpersonal conflicts between him and my mother. I also asked my father to share his experiences growing upMy father grew up in Ghana, and his own father was only a kid at the time. We hugged, and my father told me he was proud of me, which I never heard growing up.

Persons: —, I'd, Justin Organizations: Service, Finland —, quicken Locations: Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Finland, defensiveness

☆ Van Jones: There’s hope and despair in what happened to my home state
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Van Jones | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Many were shocked last year when the Tennessee legislature dramatically expelled state representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson. When I was a legislative intern, the state of Tennessee was controlled by the Democrats and my boss was a man named Jimmy Naifeh. But even in my Southern home state, no opponent tried to score cheap political points based on his Arab background. Left-leaning or moderate Tennesseeans have virtually no say in their state legislature on the political matters that govern their lives. Van Jones, with Justin Pearson and Justin Jones CNNSo even on issues like gun violence — on which a large majority of Tennesseans in both parties would like “red flag” laws — nothing gets done.

Persons: Anderson Cooper ”, Van Jones, Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, Gloria Johnson, Pearson, Jones, —, Jimmy Naifeh, I’m, won’t, Odessa Kelly, Kelly, Matthew Shoaf, Shoaf Organizations: CNN, GOP, Tennessee House, Tennessee Capitol, Tennessee, Democrats, Democratic Party, Tea Party, Republican, Justin Jones CNN, Odessa, Democratic, Congressional District, The, The Tennessee General Assembly Locations: Tennessee, Nashville, Lebanese, American, . Tennessee, Democratic, Tennessee’s, The Tennessee, Odessa, Sumner County

Johnson isn't buying arguments from the bill's Republican backers that she didn't inspire the proposed change to a longstanding law. Republican state lawmakers who favor the ban have argued that winning twice often means abandoning the lower office, creating a costly special election. Johnson narrowly escaped expulsion last year for her role in a pro-gun control protest inside the Tennessee House chamber. Republican lawmakers are considering changes that target Jones and Pearson, too. In California, a judge ruled Republican state Assemblymember Vince Fong could run for Congress and reelection to his state seat at the same time.

Persons: Johnson, David Hawk, Republican Sen, Marsha Blackburn, “ That’s, Ron DeSantis, Rand Paul, Paul, Sen, Cory Booker, Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's, Joe Lieberman, Al Gore's, Blackburn, Gloria Johnson, ”, Abigail Sigler, Blackburn's, she’s, Randy McNally, Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, Pearson, Jones, Vince Fong, State Shirley Weber, Marc Levy, Adam Beam, Sean Murphy, Amy Beth Hanson, John Hanna Organizations: Republican, National Conference of State Legislatures, Republican Gov, Republican U.S, Sen, Kentucky GOP, Democratic, Former U.S . Rep, statehouse, Covenant, Tennessee, Congress, State, Democrats, Associated Press Locations: Tennessee, Knoxville, Kentucky, Montana , Kansas, Oklahoma, Arizona , Florida, Hawaii, Georgia, Texas, Florida, New Jersey, Wisconsin, U.S, Connecticut, Washington, California, Pennsylvania, Harrisburg , Pennsylvania, Sacramento , California, Oklahoma City, Helena , Montana, Topeka , Kansas

☆ Tennessee’s Legislature Can’t Move Past the Bitter Clashes of 2023
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Emily Cochrane | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When the Tennessee legislature convened on Thursday, custom dictated that Representative Justin Jones, the Nashville Democrat who was expelled last year, take his turn to lead the House in the Pledge of Allegiance. He quietly declined, and once again drew the ire of Republicans. Saying that Mr. Jones’s behavior was a “disgrace,” State Representative Jeremy Faison, a member of the Republican leadership, went so far as to call for his resignation. Mr. Jones, who has risen in national prominence by sparring with the state’s Republican supermajority, later responded that he “couldn’t bring myself to join their performative patriotism,” given the party’s support for former President Donald J. Trump and what Mr. Jones described as an effort to “undermine liberty and justice for all.”It was one of the clearest signs yet that the animosity from 2023, when Republicans expelled Mr. Jones and State Representative Justin Pearson of Memphis for leading a gun control protest on the House floor, had spilled into the new year.

Persons: Justin Jones, Jeremy Faison, Jones, couldn’t, ”, Donald J, Mr, Justin Pearson Organizations: Nashville Democrat, Republican, Trump, State Locations: Tennessee, Memphis

Additionally, the lawsuit by the Nashville member of the “Tennessee Three” contends his constitutional due process rights were infringed upon by the expulsion proceedings. Jones, Pearson and Johnson were propelled into the national spotlight. They said the new House rules promote civility, respect and accountability. On the day the House voted to silence Jones, Sexton had warned Jones about calling a Republican's bills “reprehensible,” “asinine,” and “insulting." In addition to the limits on debate, House Republicans also instituted a ban on the public holding signs during floor and committee proceedings.

Persons: Justin Jones, Jones, Cameron Sexton, ”, Justin Pearson, Gloria Johnson, Pearson, Johnson, Amy Wilhite, hadn't, Sexton, Bill Lee, “, Jerry Martin, Eric Holder, Holder Organizations: — Tennessee Democratic, Nashville, Tennessee, Black Democrat, Republicans, Democratic Rep, Republican Gov, Covenant School, Glock, Republican, U.S Locations: Tenn, Nashville, Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee state Rep. Gloria Johnson, a Democrat who shot to national fame after surviving a Republican-led expulsion effort for participating in a pro-gun control demonstration, on Tuesday formally announced that she's running for U.S. Senate. Shortly after the expulsion vote, Johnson quickly noted that likely she avoided expulsion because she was white. Blackburn first won the Tennessee Senate seat in 2018, defeating Democratic former Gov. In the Democratic primary for the Senate seat, Johnson will face off against community activist and organizer Marquita Bradshaw. Bradshaw won the Democratic Senate nomination in 2020, and lost the general election to Republican Bill Hagerty by 27 percentage points.

Persons: Gloria Johnson, Johnson, Sen, Marsha Blackburn, “ Gloria, ”, Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, ” Pearson, Jones, Pearson, Phil Bredesen, Blackburn, Donald Trump, Trump, Marquita Bradshaw, Bradshaw, Bill Hagerty, “ It’s, Abigail Sigler, Joe Biden, Chuck Schumer, ” Blackburn Organizations: Republican, Tuesday, U.S . Senate, Republican U.S, Democratic, Tennessee, Republicans, Blackburn, Tennessee Senate, Gov, Tennessee voters, Senate, “, Democrat Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, Washington

☆ Tennessee governor's push for gun laws fails as lawmakers scuffle
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Brad Brooks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Tennessee State Senators on the chamber floor and advocates for gun law reform in the gallery pray during a special session on public safety to discuss gun violence in the wake of the Covenant School shooting, in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., August 29, 2023. REUTERS/Cheney Orr Acquire Licensing RightsAug 29 (Reuters) - A special legislative session in Tennessee called by the state's Republican governor in response to a deadly school shooting ended on Tuesday with no progress on gun safety laws, capped by a brief scuffle between opposing lawmakers. Jones and Pearson, both of whom are Black members of the predominantly white House, have been outspoken proponents of new gun laws to help ease violence in the urban areas they represent. That sentiment was not shared by Sarah Shoop Neuman, the parent of a Covenant student who lobbied lawmakers for new gun laws. After the session ended, she told reporters it was difficult for her to comprehend that children were murdered at school, yet lawmakers "took no meaningful action."

Persons: Cheney Orr, Bill Lee, Cameron Sexton, Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, Jones, Pearson, Lee, Sarah Shoop Neuman, Brad Brooks, Donna Bryson, Leslie Adler Organizations: Tennessee State Senators, Covenant School, REUTERS, Republican, The Covenant School, U.S, U.S . Constitution, Democratic, Covenant, Thomson Locations: Nashville , Tennessee, U.S, Tennessee, Nashville, U.S ., Longmont , Colorado

☆ Tennessee legislature holds gun safety special session
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[10/17]Read moreDemocratic Tennessee State Representative Justin Pearson chants with protesters after he and other Democratic representatives walked out of the house chamber after Democratic State Representative Justin Jones was silenced by a procedural move during a special session on public safety to discuss gun violence in the wake of the Covenant School shooting, in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., August 28....NASHVILLE, TN, UNITED STATES

Persons: Justin Pearson, Justin Jones Organizations: Read, Democratic Tennessee State, Democratic, Covenant School, UNITED STATES Locations: Nashville , Tennessee, U.S, NASHVILLE , TN

☆ Tennessee G.O.P. Again Silences Democratic Lawmaker Justin Jones
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Emily Cochrane | More About Emily Cochrane | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Tennessee’s House Republicans on Monday again silenced Representative Justin Jones, a Black Democrat who was expelled earlier this year in a gun control protest, after he was deemed to have violated new stringent rules of decorum. Democrats left the House chamber in protest after Mr. Jones was barred from speaking on the floor for the remainder of the day, while chants of “fascists” and “racists” broke out in the gallery overhead. Republicans ordered state troopers to clear the galleries. The uproar came when Speaker Cameron Sexton and chamber leaders decided that Mr. Jones, for the second time in the day, had breached the rules of the House by speaking out of turn. This time, Mr. Jones had suggested, during a debate about increasing the number of police officers in schools, that the state’s resources should be focused instead on mental health professionals and teacher pay — comments Mr. Sexton said were off-topic.

Persons: Justin Jones, Jones, ”, Cameron Sexton, Sexton Organizations: Tennessee’s, Republicans, Monday, Black Democrat

☆ Opinion | I Can’t Believe I’m Saying This, but I Have Hope for Gun Reform in My State
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Margaret Renkl | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In the context of a Republican supermajority state, these efforts reflect genuine political courage. Tennessee legislators aren’t obliged to do their governor’s bidding, or even work with him to reach a compromise, because they have the numbers to override his veto. They are not accustomed to being called on their pious declamations of thoughts and prayers, and the unusual way the aftermath of this particular mass shooting unfolded — with great swaths of Tennesseans ceaselessly demanding gun reform, week after week after week — apparently caught them off guard. Republican legislators seemed genuinely shocked at finding themselves the targets of overwhelming national opprobrium after they ejected Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, two Black members of the Tennessee House, for joining protesters in demanding gun reform. State Republican leaders called for the governor to drop his plans for a special legislative session.

Persons: aren’t, Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, Dudley Brown, Bill Lee, Governor Lee, He’s Organizations: Tennessee, Republican, Tennessee Firearms Association, National Association for Gun Rights Locations: Nashville

☆ Two expelled Democratic reclaim seats in Tennessee special election
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Kevin... Read moreAug 3 (Reuters) - Two Democratic lawmakers who were expelled from the Tennessee legislature earlier this year after angering the Republican majority with a protest against gun violence won a special election on Thursday to serve out the remainder of their terms. Justin Nelson and Justin Jones both beat Republican challengers to reclaim their seats, the Associated Press reported. Both men won their primary elections in June with over 90% of the votes, and both are in districts that heavily favor the Democratic Party. Republicans who expelled the two men said their conduct disrupted the work of the House and that it was a severe breach of decorum rules. Democrats, including U.S. President Joe Biden who hosted the two men and Johnson at the White House in April, said the expulsion was undemocratic and disempowered their constituents in Tennessee's two largest cities.

Persons: Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson, Joe Biden, Kevin, Read, Justin Nelson, Jones, Pearson, Jeff Johnston, Republican Laura Nelson, Johnson, Jonathan Allen, Dan Whitcomb, Bill Berkrot, Michael Perry Organizations: Tennessee Democratic, U.S, White, REUTERS, Democratic, Republican, Associated Press, Republicans, Democratic Party, White House, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Tennessee, state's, Nashville, Pearson's, Memphis, New York

☆ Two expelled Democratic lawmakers face Tennessee special election
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Kevin... Read moreAug 3 (Reuters) - The two Democratic lawmakers who were expelled from the Tennessee legislature earlier this year after angering the Republican majority with a protest against gun violence are expected to win a special election on Thursday to serve out the remainder of their original terms. A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, a white woman, joined the protest but narrowly escaped expulsion. Both men won their primary elections in June with over 90% of the votes, and both are in districts that heavily favor the Democratic Party. Republicans who expelled the two men said their conduct disrupted the work of the House and that it was a severe breach of decorum rules. Democrats, including U.S. President Joe Biden who hosted the two men and Johnson at the White House in April, said the expulsion was undemocratic and disempowered their constituents in Tennessee's two largest cities.

Persons: Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson, Joe Biden, Kevin, Read, Jones, Pearson, Jeff Johnston, Republican Laura Nelson, Johnson, Jonathan Allen, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Tennessee Democratic, U.S, White, REUTERS, Democratic, Republicans, Democratic Party, Republican, White House, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Tennessee, state's, Nashville, Pearson's, Memphis, New York

☆ Two expelled Democrat lawmakers face Tennessee special election
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Kevin... Read moreAug 3 (Reuters) - The two Democrat lawmakers who were expelled from the Tennessee legislature earlier this year after angering the Republican majority with a protest against gun violence are expected to win a special election on Thursday to serve out the remainder of their original terms. A third Democrat, Gloria Johnson, a white woman, joined the protest but narrowly escaped expulsion. Republicans who expelled the two men said their conduct disrupted the work of the House and that it was a severe breach of decorum rules. Democrats, including U.S. President Joe Biden who hosted the two men and Johnson at the White House in April, said the expulsion was undemocratic and disempowered their constituents in Tennessee's two largest cities. Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson, Joe Biden, Kevin, Read, Jones, Pearson, Jeff Johnston, Republican Laura Nelson, Johnson, Jonathan Allen, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Tennessee Democratic, U.S, White, REUTERS, Republicans, Democratic Party, Republican, White House, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Tennessee, state's, Nashville, Pearson's, Memphis, New York

☆ Opinion | Is Red State Gun Reform in Sight? Tennessee Is About to Find Out.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Margaret Renkl | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The mailbox that most breaks my heart is the one where the red and black bow is hanging just behind a new pink bow. In the weeks since the shooting, that family has welcomed a new baby girl. The belief in the possibility of new life even as reminders of the ceaseless, senseless loss of life are everywhere around us? I wish you could have seen the crowds demanding sensible gun legislation and supporting the Democratic representatives Justin Jones, Gloria Johnson and Justin J. Pearson, who weeks ago defied Republicans to demand gun reform from the House floor. Day upon day during the final weeks of the legislative session, the crowds were there, filling the statehouse halls and grounds.

☆ Opinion | A Sinister New Page in the Republican Playbook
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Jamelle Bouie | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On Tuesday, I wrote about the Republican effort to limit the reach and scope of initiatives and referendums as another instance of the party’s war on majority rule. One thing I wanted to include, but couldn’t quite integrate into the structure of the column, was a point about the recent use of legislative expulsion to punish Democratic lawmakers who dissent from or challenge Republican majorities. We saw another example this week, in Montana, after State Representative Zooey Zephyr, a transgender woman, spoke out against a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors. In Nebraska, a Democratic lawmaker is being investigated by an ethics panel for a conflict of interest regarding her filibuster of another bill to ban gender-affirming health care for minors. She has a transgender child.

☆ Montana's House just voted to censure its first openly transgender lawmaker after protests and days of not letting her speak
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Montana House of Representatives voted to censure its first transgender legislator. State Rep. Zooey Zephyr was censured days after protestors interrupted the legislature because the House speaker wouldn't recognize her on the floor. In doing so, Zephyr will not be allowed on the House floor or gallery for the remainder of the legislative session. State Rep. SJ Howell, a Democratic legislator who is nonbinary, spoke in support of Zephyr on Wednesday and said the protests on Monday were unsurprising. Now, after Zephyr's censure, a similar problem could occur for Montana Republicans as Zephyr increasingly gets placed into the spotlight.

☆ The Woman Shaping a Generation of Black Thought
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Jenna Wortham | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

In her first book, “Monstrous Intimacies,” Sharpe writes extensively on Walker’s work to reveal how society is programmed to default to racist narratives. The work in Sharpe’s office, like many of Walker’s famous prints and sculptures, is devoid of color. The more time I spend with Sharpe’s work, the more it inflects my ways of seeing the world. According to Sharpe, Blackness is anagrammatical, meaning that the structures that order language, thought and society become disordered — if not destroyed entirely — when they encounter Blackness. “Her work has shown that we, as Black people, are the foils of humanity,” Frank B. Wilderson III, author of “Afropessimism,” told me.

☆ The Tennessee Bullhorn Isn’t Democracy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Addressing the NYSE, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy rejected President Biden's push for further debt, outlining a 3-point fiscal path that 'limits, saves and grows.' Images: Bloomberg News Composite: Mark KellyDemocrats are free to argue that the Tennessee House went too far this month when it expelled Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson for disrupting the chamber’s business. Yet it’s astounding to see prominent Democrats now justifying and outright endorsing the pair’s tactic of derailing legislative proceedings with a bullhorn to demand gun control. Next week President Biden will roll out the White House red carpet for Messrs. Jones and Pearson, along with Rep. Gloria Johnson , who participated in the disruption to a lesser extent, and who was narrowly spared expulsion.

“Based on the completed staff investigation, the Ethics Subcommittee finds that Representative Campbell violated the Policy” against workplace discrimination and harassment, the memorandum from the workplace discrimination and harassment subcommittee states. Reps. Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, and Gloria Johnson leave the Tennessee State Capitol after a vote at the Tennessee House of Representatives to expel the three Democratic members for their roles in a gun control demonstration. Cheney Orr/ReutersReps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, both young, Black Democrats who represent Districts 52 and 86 respectively, were ousted from the GOP-dominated chamber. Jones and Pearson returned to the Tennessee House after they were reappointed through unanimous votes by local officials in their respective districts. The subcommittee said in its memo that it “is committed to protecting members, employees, and visitors by providing an environment free of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.

☆ Three Democratic Tennessee lawmakers to visit White House on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, April 19 (Reuters) - Three Democrats in the Tennessee legislature who faced expulsion for participating in protests will visit the White House on Monday, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters in a briefing on Wednesday. Two state lawmakers - Justin Jones and Justin Pearson - were expelled but later returned by their localities while a third representative, Gloria Johnson, narrowly survived an expulsion vote earlier this month. read moreReporting by Andrea Shalal and Doina Chiacu; writing by Susan HeaveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A Christian group has amassed more than 12,000 signatures to oust the Tennessee Republican leader who expelled two Black lawmakers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Christians are calling for Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton's resignation. A petition gained more than 12,500 signatures after Sexton led a vote that expelled two Black lawmakers. A lone white lawmaker, who stood with the two expelled members, was spared in the expulsion vote. Thousands of Christians are calling for the resignation of Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, a Republican, who sparked national outrage for heading a vote that expelled two Black lawmakers earlier this month. Audio leaked by The Tennessee Holler last week appeared to reveal infighting among Tennessee Republican lawmakers, some of whom complained that they had been labeled racists following the expulsion vote.

☆ Top photos of the week
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Representative Justin Jones joins in prayer for the victims of the Covenant School shooting ahead the vote for his reinstatement, days after the Republican majority Tennessee House of Representatives voted to expel two Democratic members,...moreRepresentative Justin Jones joins in prayer for the victims of the Covenant School shooting ahead the vote for his reinstatement, days after the Republican majority Tennessee House of Representatives voted to expel two Democratic members, representatives Justin Pearson and him, for their roles in a gun control demonstration on the statehouse floor, in the Historic Metro Courthouse in Nashville, Tennessee, April 10, 2023. REUTERS/Cheney OrrClose

☆ Fighting in trenches at Ukraine's front line
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Jillian Kumagai | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Tennessee state Representative Justin Jones returned to the state House on Monday, pumping his fist and declaring "power to the people" as a Nashville-area council restored him to office following his expulsion over a gun protest. Republican lawmakers ousted Jones and another young, Black legislator last week over their gun control protest on the House floor.

☆ Justin Pearson sworn back in to Tennessee House
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Omar Younis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Democratic Tennessee state Representative Justin Pearson who was ousted from the Tennessee House of Representatives along with another young Black colleague for breaking decorum with a gun control demonstration on the House floor, is sworn in before returning to the state legislature after being reinstated in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. April 13, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin WurmNASHVILLE, Tennessee, April 13 (Reuters) - Tennessee state Representative Justin Pearson was sworn in on Thursday morning after he was reappointed to the legislature from which he and another Democratic colleague were expelled for leading a gun protest on the House of Representatives floor. "We've just been expelled, but we're back," Pearson told the crowd. We're going to keep fighting to end environmental racism and injustice," Pearson told reporters after his reappointment. Tennessee House Republicans, who have a supermajority, have said in a statement they will welcome back any expelled state lawmakers returned by county-level governments, so long as those members follow the legislature's rules.

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