Mark Lee, Alleged Student-Harassing Overton County Teacher, Sues Accusers

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If you’ve been follering us for any amount of time you’ve likely seen us talk about OVERTON COUNTY teacher Mark Lee, who taught at Livingston Academy until his recent 90-day suspension without pay and eventual transfer – which was supposedly tied to years worth of sexual harassment allegations by multiple students stretching back to 2003. (He’s tenured, so he’s likely back on payroll now)

Here’s our interview with 2 of the girls and their mothers:

It was also discussed at an Overton County school board meeting, during which multiple parents expressed their disgust that the school board had done little to protect the girls, and in fact had plans to transfer Lee to an elementary school until people hollered about it – yes seriously.

There was also talk of him being placed at an Alternative School, which is almost worse because that’s often where the most vulnerable students end up.

The District Attorney Bryan Dunavant, who we spoke with, says he didn’t bring charges against Lee because he had no proof of physical touching (although one of the girls says he rubbed his head on her stomach). He also told us he “wouldn’t want his daughter in Lee’s class.

A mother of another one of the alleged sexual harassment victims of the LIVINGSTON ACADEMY teacher (Mark Lee) in OVERTON COUNTY Says she spoke up since 2017, nobody listened. Multiple girls signed sworn affidavits on that occasion, including a cop’s daughter.

Lee is now suing the families and those who have stood up for them for “damages arising out of the defendants’ pattern of intentional, malicious, tortious false and defamatory statements impugning the plaintiffs’ character and reputation and published to the world on social media” as well as “invasion of privacy”.

This guy has some nerve.

HERE IS THE LAWSUIT if you’d like to read it. It includes the posts below, which it cites as defamation.

As a reminder, the director of schools suspended him for 90 days related to all of this.

If you or anyone you know has stories about Lee, or witnessed any of his behavior, feel free to holler at us on social media or at [email protected] – and follow The Cookeville Holler for developments

INTERVIEW: D.A. BRYANT DUNAWAY (On the Overton County Teacher Sexual Harassment Allegations)

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If you follow our Facebook & Twitter pages you’ve probably seen us Hollerin’ about the situation in Overton County, where despite decades of allegations of sexual harassment of students, a teacher named Mark Lee is still allowed to be a teacher – even after a 90-day suspension (which already ended).

The Overton County School Board has been very slow to respond to the situation, and Livingston Academy, where Lee taught, was slow to bring in the authorities.

District Attorney Bryant Dunaway investigated, but wrote a letter to the TBI saying he couldn’t recommend any criminal charges because most of the allegations were about things Lee said, rather than what he did to the girls physically – although one of the brave girls who spoke out says he did rub his head on her stomach in the back of class one day while telling the rest of the class to look forward.

He also says the statute of limitations had run out because of how slow the school itself and the school board were in reporting it.

It’s worth noting that of the 3 girls who came forward, only one reported it during the time that Mark Lee’s cousin has been the principal.

Yes, you heard that right. Oh, and did we mention that director of schools, who has the power to fire him, is married to a former student of his?

Multiple allegations reaching back decades. Yet they let Mark Lee keep teaching, and were planning to send him to an elementary school until y’all hollered loud enough to help stop that.

But, he’s still a teacher. For now.

The case is closed, but the mothers and daughters are speaking up, the community is starting to push back, so we decided to reach out to District Attorney Bryant Dunaway to ask him about the way he handled the situation, and what can be done.

Below is that conversation.

If you agree Lee should be fired at the very least, contact the Overton County School Board HERE: 931-823-1287

—-

HOLLER:  We wanted to ask a few questions about the situation with The teacher Mark Lee. Can you tell us a little bit about what your process was in terms of looking into the allegations?

DUNAWAY:  Well that’s been publicly known already – I had the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation conduct an investigation. That was the process. With that in mind, I only deal with criminal matters… to see if any crime had been committed. So I asked that the investigation be done and it was.

HOLLER:  So did they interview the girls?

DUNAWAY:  They did talk with the girls, yes.

HOLLER:  And what was their finding? Did they make any sort of judgment on the believability of the allegations or accusations? 

DUNAWAY:  I can send you a copy of the letter… (he sent to TBI)

HOLLER:  We saw the letter.

DUNAWAY:  That’s really the conclusion there, the answers to those questions are in there.

HOLLER:  I guess what I’m trying to get at is he’s still teaching and people understandably have concerns.

DUNAWAY:  I tried to articulate in my letter (to the TBI) – see, I’m a criminal prosecutor. I looked at the situation to see if a crime had been committed or if there was a crime that could be prosecuted. It wouldn’t be proper for me to speak whether he’s violated any school policy or should be a teacher. I mean, I wouldn’t want my daughter in his classroom, that’s for sure. But the school board – it’s up to them to take disciplinary action or to decide whether to keep him employed or not. Really, the purpose of the TBI investigation was to determine whether there was a prosecutable crime, and that’s a very different inquiry than other types of things. 

HOLLER:  Is there anything that can be done to open it back up?

DUNAWAY:  Well it’s been investigated, why would it be opened back up? 

HOLLER:  If there were new accusations.

DUNAWAY:  I said that in my letter too, if there is new evidence or new information I always consider that. Of course I look at things through the lens of – is there a crime, or whether there’s a crime that’s been committed and is it able to be prosecuted. Whether or not he is a teacher or should be a teacher, you know there’s a lot of things about that whole situation that I’m disappointed with. It’s disappointing to me that the school administration as well as the local attorneys who brought this to light admitted they knew about these allegations since 2017 and didn’t report it to law enforcement or my office. It would have been nice to have had a timely report.

HOLLER:  So that was the principal or that was the school board?

DUNAWAY:  That was the school administration. I didn’t speak to the school board. But no complaints have been made to the school since 2017. The attorney says that he was receiving complaints as early as 2017, and nothing was reported to law enforcement or to my office.

HOLLER:  Do you think that could have anything to do with the fact that the principal is his cousin?

DUNAWAY:  I can’t speak to that, I can only speculate. He hasn’t always been the principal. He wasn’t the principal in 2017 when the initial reports from the one young lady were made. There was a different principal then.

HOLLER:  Is there any criminal recourse they could take to keep him out of the education system?

DUNAWAY:  Not criminally. I did do an investigation like I already said. I had to evaluate and see if a crime had been committed, and as I said in my letter. Based upon the evidence the primary complaint of all the girls was that he used inappropriate language toward them. There was only one allegation made that there was any physical touching at all, and that was claiming that he rubbed his head on her stomach over a desk and that’s it. There’s no allegation made by anybody of sexual contact or anything like that it’s all. He makes inappropriate comments, so that in and of itself is not a crime. It’s inappropriate, it shouldn’t be done. You see what I’m saying? In my personal opinion he shouldn’t be a teacher. But is that a crime? No. As I said in my letter, that the closest thing you could come to would maybe be harassment, which is a misdemeanor,  misdemeanor assault. Which you know, because of the delayed reporting, the statute of limitations has run on those.

HOLLER:  So the statute of limitations has run out on those crimes? That seems like a short period of time.

DUNAWAY:  It’s a year. One year on a misdemeanor. And so the complaints from 2017 have clearly run, and the 2019 ones were done early in the school year if I remember right.

HOLLER:  Even on a minor?

DUNAWAY:  Yes. There’s not much proof, the only proof you have of the head touching the stomach is the young lady’s statement. Do I believe her? Yes. He denies it, there are no witnesses to it. So the proof is not the strongest in the world, but that’s the best you got. Now everybody is up in arms about it, and I don’t blame them. It is very inappropriate talk with students like that.

HOLLER:  Which was corroborated by a lot of different people.

DUNAWAY:  Which I believe happened too, 100%. But it’s not a crime. It’s terrible, it’s inappropriate, but it’s not a crime that I can prosecute. Just making verbal sexual related jokes and off-color jokes like that. So that’s the situation. And I’m only speaking to the criminal aspect of it. Whether he’s inappropriate or not, the school board has got to make a decision on that.

HOLLER:  Hopefully they’re realizing they have to do more than they’ve done. A few days ago they were going to assign him to an elementary school but they’re reconsidering that from what we understand.

DUNAWAY:  So one of the things that you saw in my letter is that we uncovered and took a statement from a now adult who said she was a student back in 2003. Her complaint was that he made the same type of inappropriate comments. Still no allegation to physical or sexual contact, but just making inappropriate innuendos.

HOLLER:  Well it seems like everybody would feel a little bit better if they knew that he wasn’t going to be in the classroom anymore.

DUNAWAY:  I agree there, I don’t disagree with that at all.

HOLLER:  Appreciate you talking to us.

DUNAWAY:  Anytime, you’re welcome.

OP-ED: ‘TIL DEATH DO US PART – Being a Teacher in 2020

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‘TIL DEATH DO US PART

Being a Teacher in 2020

By Tiffany Crow

A Shelby County Schools teacher, parent, and a COVID survivor.

She wrote this letter to share her experience.

As schools across the nation prepare for the upcoming school year (whether it be in person, hybrid, or completely virtual) teachers and families are writhing in agony with a sense of impending doom. One minute, we hear from superintendents and elected officials that we will be following data and “science” in efforts to plan for the upcoming year, and the next, we are being threatened with reduced funding and told that we will be going back to school buildings, in person, regardless of climbing case numbers, increasing death rates, and individuals being left with lifelong residual health issues from a virus that we still know so little about.

The decision facing parents is certainly a difficult one, but I must ask you… What about the TEACHERS?

What about the teachers who have historically spent all of their own extra time and money to make up for deficits in funding and staffing capacity?

What about the teacher who has cancer, and will now be asked to enter into the world’s largest experimental petri-dish of infection?

What about the teacher who has a child at home awaiting an organ transplant, in a one income household?

What about all of the teachers who will get sick and experience lifelong health complications, financial ruin due to excessive absence, or death?

Have we really convinced ourselves that these people don’t matter?

What about teachers like myself, a Covid-19 “survivor?”

Did I survive Covid-19? Yes, I did survive, but I, a previously healthy 27 year old, am now faced with what could be lifelong and possibly debilitating health issues. I have been “well” for quite some time now, yet I am not “well.” Plagued with daily fatigue, muscle weakness, rashes, heart rate fluctuations, chronic head and neck pain, insomnia, PTSD, digestive issues, and cognitive/memory issues. I am still unsure just how extensive or lasting these issues will be, but now that I am two months out from having a “mild” case of Covid-19, I am STILL facing these health complications. I’ve read more about life insurance in the past two months than I ever have, which is something I never thought I would be doing at age 27.

But it’s not just me. Teachers across the nation are preparing for the worst. We are finalizing wills, upping our disability insurance, and maxing out on life insurance benefits. Those of us who don’t already have life insurance are trying to find more information on which policy is the best option for them. Many teachers are already purchasing PPE, cleaning products, plexiglass dividers, and other band-aid solutions to the astronomical catastrophe that awaits upon school re-entry. Of course, Covid-19 has made significant impacts on the way we used to live. Teachers are now having to purchase protective equipment to keep themselves, and the children, safe. Education is such an important sector though, so many teachers do understand that they are essential workers. More people are even looking to become teachers after this pandemic. People are contacting resume writers, such as those at https://www.arcresumes.com/local/michigan/, to help them create an engaging resume to increase their chances of getting hired.

Is virtual instruction anyone’s first choice, during normal circumstances? Most of us would say “NO!” I, too, believe there is no replacement for in person schooling, but I disagree with people who say virtual instruction cannot be valuable. I taught virtual summer school, and found it to be quite similar in strength and weakness to in person schooling. The advantages were great, however. My students were able to become true 21st century learners, and I was able to become a true 21st century teacher. I learned valuable tools that will work with virtual instruction, but will also be highly effective and enriching when we do return to “normal.” I was able to build community with students and parents, and my students were able to develop a sense of intrinsic motivation that I had not seen at large during the regular school year.

What began as a stressful virtual experience, ended with both student and teacher growth. I urge people to understand that planned virtual instruction is completely different from the patchwork crisis schooling that was offered last spring.

While I understand the need for schools to be open for working families, I respectfully ask that you remember that schools were never meant to serve as free childcare. Teachers are not trained or educated to serve as babysitters. We are also not trained or educated to serve as healthcare professionals or nurses. The bulk of our training and coursework centers around providing a service.

Although teachers and schools, for decades, have offered a variety of services outside of the realm of the service we actually offer (education), we have finally met our match with the coronavirus pandemic. This is a problem that may be beyond our efforts to “fix,” as teachers have done for so long. I certainly do not have the answers to solve the ills of a capitalist-obsessed society, but I want to be clear that the service we provide CAN and SHOULD be offered remotely until it is safe to physically enter school buildings.

The current state of our existence is filled with unrest, anxiety, sadness, and pain. It’s honestly not surprising to me that, according to this article looking at the target market of hemp products, Millenials like myself are spending more money on CBD solutions to help us manage our mental health during these uncertain times. Like the rest of the world, I wish that we could press a magic button and return to “normal,” but the reality is that we can’t, not for some time, anyway. What and who are we willing to risk in an effort to re-enter schools in person? How many deaths are acceptable? How many people, like me, who will live with health issues for the foreseeable future is acceptable? Does your fear of an educational setback outweigh my fear for my life?

For once, teachers are voicing hesitation, frustration, and fear, instead of just coming up with a self-sacrificing solution to the problem, and society is appalled. For once, we are begging to be able to put our own family and health first, and the backlash has been intense. Our passion is being weaponized, we are being accused of not caring about children, or not being flexible enough, or even being lazy and unwilling to work. How soon we forget the “backbone” of our society, along with all of the good work we have done. Teachers are strong, resilient, and creative, but this is one situation I don’t think we can “Donors Choose” our way out of.

TODAY’S HOLLER: TN GOP DISHONOR’S GAY BLACK TEEN’S MEMORY

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TODAY’S HOLLER:

TN GOP DISHONORS BLACK TEEN’S MEMORY: Talk about hypocrisy… TN Republicans have ignored the sins of confederate generals & KKK GRAND WIZARDS & CHILD SEX ABUSERS, protecting their legacy with statues and holidays — yet they tried to to define a gay black 17 year-old girl who was shot to death -Ashanti Posey – by one unproven accusation, and refused to back a resolution honoring her on the house floor. Non-Facebook Link


Rep. Mike Stewart called it “the most astonishing vote I’ve ever seen”.

Rep. London Lamar: “That was one of the most immoral votes I’ve seen in my short time as a legislator.” ‬

‬Senator Jeff Yarbro called it “INDECENT” on Channel 5.

Rep. Gloria Johnson: “If you think that they did this for any other reason [other than] because she is black and gay, you’re sadly mistaken. They are bigots.”

“THIS IS MY DAUGHTER! THIS IS A HUMAN BEING! NOT A DRUG DEALER!” Ashanti Posey’s mother Amber Posey showed up at the Capitol to show William Lamberth & the GOP the humanity behind the 17 year old girl they slandered and refused to honor. Non-Facebook Link

BLACK CAUCUS ASKS FOR “INCLUSION” (and gets called racist for it: “HOW MANY PEOPLE OF COLOR HAD INPUT THAT LANDED IN THE BUDGET?” – Rep. Parkinson & the black caucus ask for “INCLUSION” in TN’s budget, telling the 99% white TN GOP it “hurts” to be consistently ignored. Non-Facebook Link

Rep. Matthew Hill got triggered. Rep. Jeremy Faison called it racist to even ask, saying there’s “Nothing remotely racist” about the GOP caucus– so HERE’S A THREAD WE MADE OF THE GOP CAUCUS BEING SUPER RACIST, which comes from a list in a TENNESSEAN ARTICLE.

Faison is either blind, or a liar.

Worth remembering: WILLIAM LAMBERTH failed to mention he gets?from private prisons that oppose marijuana reform. ?‬ We see you, William. ‬


Here’s how they voted… “Present Not Voting” was as good as a “No”.

ALSO:

-Unlike Reps Hill & White who say they’d change their vote today, Rep. Brandon Ogles of FRANKLIN stands by his vote to help block the resolution honoring the death of 17yo Ashanti Posey… but is vague about why, other than following “his leader”. Such leadership! Non-Facebook Link

‪-IMAGES from the balcony, where protestors were arrested after Republicans rejected the resolution to honor Ashanti Posey. ‬
–

-Speaking of racism and statues, in NEW MEXICO a video shows Trump supporter Steven Baca shooting an anti-racist protester, Scott Williams, over one.

-Intentionally antagonistic Tennessee Republicans are being very clear that they have no use for free speech or the concerns of black people. ‬Believe them. ‬(Also: We’d bet many of these troopers have smoked weed. #AshantiPosey ‬)

-Some good news – Ohio police have issued a warrant for a Trump supporter who sucker-punched a protestor in Bethel, OHIO… Our CLIP of the incident was seen over 1 million times. Hopefully it helped.

-The State & The Feds dismiss the $25 Million medical fraud case against TN GOP Senator Steve Dickerson for an UNDISCLOSED SETTLEMENT”? ??- must be nice to benefit from the inequality in our justice system.‬ (His company was accused of DEFRAUDING HEALTH PROGRAMS for $25M using “liquid gold” urine tests.)

–We talked to the TEENS FOR EQUALITY, the impressive young girls who organized the biggest march in Nashville so far. Non-Facebook Link

-‪“GOVERNOR LEE, tear down this bust.” ‬Tennessee REPUBLICAN Jason Emert calls on Lee to do the right thing to help our state heal. ‬

–WATCH: “LET US IN!” After 3 days of peaceful protest, the People are kept out of the People’s Plaza (and legislature) at the Nashville Capitol by Speaker Sexton & Governor Lee, who are attempting to make this a felony. Non-Facebook Link

“You took off your sheets and put on suits but we know who you are.” –  Justin Jones — 21 were arrested.

-His first time back at the Capitol, activist Justin Jones rides up in the elevator with the TN GOP’s admitted child sex abuser Rep. David Byrd… and serenades him. ? ? ‬Non-Facebook Link

-A black security guard was killed during protests in Oakland and many said he was killed by “looters” — but the suspect is a vet with ties to the Alt-right “Boogaloo“ folks, who actually killed 2 cops. Related: Still 0 “ANTIFA”-connected arrests.
‪

-HOUSTON. ANOTHER black man found hanging. ‬That’s 5 across the country in recent days. ‬

–Good point.

-We also spoke with the lawyer for Sterling Higgins, who died in custody in UNION CITY 15 months ago. “Imagine if there was a #GeorgeFloyd grand jury and the prosecutor decided NOT TO SHOW THE VIDEO.” ?‬ — we’ve now seen video of Sterling being held by the neck for over 6 minutes. No charges were filed. PODCAST ON ITUNES.

–WATCH: TN SENATE REPUBLICANS KILL 4 AMENDMENTS TO HELP REGULAR FOLKS ?

-coverage for new moms
-Support for people with disabilities to live on their own
-$150M for schools about to lay off people
-cost of living adjustment EQUAL TO Gov. Bill Lee’s for EVERY state employee

Non-Facebook Link

-ICYMI — THE SUPREME COURT has ruled sexual orientation is protected under the Civil Rights Act. ?️‍? ‬(unfortunately many in Tennessee seem prepared to ignore it)

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REP. STEVE COHEN HAS ONE:

HOLLER PODCAST: THE DEFICIT MYTH with STEPHANIE KELTON

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Justin Kanew and Stephanie Kelton talk deficits, and about how many in politics have fooled us into thinking that spending money on people-centric policies is bad. Stephanie is an American economist, a professor at Stony Brook University, and she also served as an advisor to Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign.

FULL PODCAST available on Apple Podcasts here, and wherever else you like to listen here.

INTERVIEW: REP. LONDON LAMAR

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Rep. London Lamar (D-Memphis) joins to talk about the protests and her VOTE BY MAIL FOR ALL amendment, which led to accusations of “stealing elections” by Rep. William Lamberth.

PODCAST ON ITUNES

HERE’S A CLIP!

UT-Knoxville Student On Video Saying Vile, Violent Racist Slurs Claims “Catfish”

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In a video circulating online, UT-Knoxville Student Garrison Pike is seen saying vile, violent, ugly racial slurs, using the “N” Word repeatedly and threatening to “rape” black people who he says are “nothing”.

UT Knoxville acknowledged the video yesterday in a tweet and said they are looking into it.

Many UT students are outraged and say they’re afraid to be at school with Pike around, calling for his expulsion.

Friends of Pike’s have contacted the Holler to give what they say is “context”, sharing text messages in which Pike attempts to explain that he was drunk and essentially catfished by an African-American person he was exchanging messages with on a dating site who “said they were into slavemaster shit”.

TEXT FROM GARRISON PIKE

PIKE’S TEXT TO A FRIEND READS:

“So when I broke up with my ex I was really depressed and I was talking to this person on a dating site who said they were African-American and we talked for about a week and a half and they said they were into slave master shit and sent me a text of what to say to them and I waited a few days before I said it because I was drunk and just wanted to make someone happy and it turns out they were a catfish but they told me they wouldn’t share the video with anyone and now it’s blown up and I’m getting death threats and was suspended Ik what I said was shitty but it’s not me. Now i have the cops driving by my house every hour and my address in on twitter.

To be clear, the video is EXTREMELY nasty and disturbing, and no amount of context excuses ever saying ANYTHING like this, let alone recording yourself doing it and sending it to a stranger.

We will let y’all decide what you believe here.

Some on twitter have posted what they claim to be an exchange with an ex of Pike’s who says HE is the one with the slavemaster fetish, but we have been unable to confirm.

We’re told Pike is receiving death threats, has been suspended, and it seems likely his enrollment at UT is in jeopardy.

We’ve communicated with students who went to Ravenwood High School in Williamson County with Pike, who was class of 2018. They seemed surprised but not altogether shocked.

One said this kind of racism was not the norm in their experience, but another told us that on cultural heritage day the student body president brought a confederate flag to school, which many minority students were upset by, and felt black students in Williamson County are appreciated only for their athletic ability.

Not long, ago Williamson County parents were up in arms about the school system trying to introduce some racial sensitivity and “white privilege” training for teachers into the program.

It’s also worth pointing out that Williamson County still has a confederate flag on their county seal, which many residents would like to see changed (including Holler founder Justin Kanew)

It stands to reason that as long as things like that are allowed to exist, we should expect more incidents of this nature.

We will update the story surrounding Pike as it develops.

TODAY’S HOLLER: COWARDLY CURCIO, Minneosta’s Fury, Trump’s Tantrum

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TODAY’S HOLLER:

COWARDLY CURCIO: “ANOTHER BROKEN PROMISE TO THE VICTIMS.” ‬ — Despite promises on the house floor, Rep. Michael Curcio & the TN GOP killed Rep. Gloria Johnson’s bill to Expel admitted child sex abuser David Byrd. Curcio left the room when Rep. Bo Mitchell gave the bill a motion, but no second came. ‪Curcio is a liar & coward.??‬Here’s proof.??‬Pass it on.‬ Non-Facebook Link

Yesterday In education committee where admitted child sex abuser Rep. David Byrd is a member, Rep. Gloria Johnson wore a mask that says “support victims of sexual assault” ????‬

MINNESOTA’S FURY: After police murdered George Floyd in Minnesota, protests have turned into looting and vandalism. Violence is never encouraged, but these outbursts are not unmotivated, and as MLK said: “Riots are the language of the unheard”. The officer was fired but still walks free… meanwhile Minnesota State Police arrested CNN reporter Omar Jimenez on the air for reporting on the protests. Non-Facebook Link

Trump did his part to enflame things with this (racist) tweet, which was flagged by twitter for “glorifying violence”:

Don Lemon’s accurate take on Trump enflaming the situation: “No one wants to hear from the man who wanted the death penalty to come back for the Central Park Five… from the guy who says Obama wasn’t born here.. who says there were fine people on both sides…” ?? Non-Facebook Link

MLK’s daughter Bernice puts it very well:

ALSO:

–The president’s new fascist “online censorship” executive order (that will likely amount to nothing but betrays how sensitive and out of control he is, done in reaction to Twitter fact-checking his endless firehose of lies) reads in part: ‬‪“Increased scrutiny of users based on the other users they choose to follow, or their interactions with other users” ?‬

–PANDEMIC LESSON: ‬Fact-Checking IS NOT CENSORSHIP

-Pretty Much:

–While he cries about being fact-checked, he RT’s videos calling for Democrats to be murdered… Class act all the way. ‬But Obama is the divisive one, right?

–‪We asked TN GOP Rep. Bruce Griffey about his social media censorship bill here in TN and why he thinks protestors of the KKK Grand Wizard bust at the TN State Capitol should be “subject to arrest”.‬ Non-Facebook Link

-With 100,000 Americans dead, the TN HOUSE GOP Caucus chair Rep. Jeremy Faison is complaining the seating arrangements have changed. ?? ? ???‬‪Not a great speller either. ‬#SocialDistanacingSavesLives ‬

–Also:
-??????‬

-‪When the TN GOP wasn’t persecuting LGBTQ folks or blocking student-athlete’s ability to earn?from their name & Likeness — they were passing a permitless carry bill opposed by law enforcement that Gov. Lee was against as a candidate… but now supports. ????

–As Republicans spread the myth that vote-by-mail means fraud… they themselves have no problem doing it. What’s Trump’s press secretary has voted by mail 11 times since 2010.

–The Chattanooga Chief of Police speaking out about the murder of #GeorgeFloyd ????We need more police to be willing to speak out about things like this.

-‪MUST-READ from Frank Garrison on the horrible business decision Gov. Lee & the TN GOP make rejecting $1 BILLION in Medicaid Expansion?yearly while our rural hospitals close, our state budget suffers, and we lead ?? in medical bankruptcies. ‬

–State-Sponsored Travel to Tennessee has been BANNED By At Least One State Because of Anti-LGBTQ Policies ?️‍? ‪The cost of hate. ‬

-RHEA COUNTY Farm announces “entire workforce has tested positive… and are still working” ????

-‪WATCH the TN GOP Kill a bill to allow STUDENT-ATHLETES to earn?from their Name & Likeness ‬from Rep. Parkinson & Towns. Non-Facebook Link
https://twitter.com/TheTNHoller/status/1265624432166526977?s=20

–CARTOON OF THE DAY ‬By @deAdder ‬

-WATCH: “Delete the voucher program… it’s ILLEGAL… we’re wasting the courts’ time with something we know is wrong.” – Bo Mitchell’s bill to kill Lee’s UNCONSTITUTIONAL” private school vouchers fails for lack of a second. ‬(Left it hanging: Byrd, Moody, Dunn, White, Deberry, Cochran)‬ Non-Facebook Link

-??In the run-up to COVID TN GOP Rep. Phil Roe bought STOCK in ZOOM & VACCINE/DRUG companies, DUMPED stocks in cruise lines and other companies that would be harmed. ‬Tennessee, it seem we have our very own Senator Burr. ‬

–‪PANDEMIC LESSON: THE STOCK MARKET IS NOT THE ECONOMY???‬

REMINDER: JUNE 4TH WE’LL BE HOSTING A DEMOCRATIC SENATE PRIMARY ISSUES FORUM LIVE ON THE HOLLER!

Don’t forget to FOLLER the new MEMPHIS HOLLER  KNOXVILLE HOLLER & CHATTANOOGA HOLLER

And please consider CHIPPING IN MONTHLY to help us keep GROWING…  make it $10 and we’ll send you a holler hat! (note your address on PayPal and which color you want when you chip in)

We also now have CASH APP: $TNHoller

INTERVIEW: ROSANNE CASH!

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The Great Rosanne Cash joined us live on the holler… and it turns out she’s a holler follerer!

Check out the interview.

Listen to the podcast.

And watch this amazing clip where she says nice things about us!

The Case Against Rep. John Deberry Jr.

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For a long time Tennessee Democrats have been calling for Rep. John Deberry Jr. to have the “D” next to his name removed for consistently siding with Republicans against them on many key issues. This week the Tennessee Democratic Party Executive Committee finally took that action and voted 41-18 with 2 abstentions to do just that.

Many have expressed relief, saying Deberry’s longtime support for the Tennessee Republican agenda has warranted removal for some time. Some have expressed skepticism, saying it should be up to the voters to decide.

Republicans such as Speaker Cameron Sexton have seized on the opportunity to attack Democrats, saying this shows they’re inflexible in their beliefs and calling out TNDP chair Mary Mancini on Twitter.

It’s no surprise Republicans would rush to Deberry’s defense. They’ve regularly expressed gratitude to Deberry for standing with them on their anti-LGBT legislation, their anti-Reproductive rights bills, Governor Bill Lee’s public school-harming vouchers, and Secretary Tre Hargett’s voter registration criminalization bill to name a few.

They’ve even run ads in support of him. (“You tha man”, guys? Really?)

There are so many instances of Deberry standing with Republicans against progressive ideals that it’s hard to keep track – but that’s what we’re here for. Let’s take a trip down memory lane.

On Lee’s public school-harming vouchers, Deberry was the lone Democrat to vote for the bill, which passed 50-48 after a 49-49 tie was held open for 35 minutes while disgraced former speaker Glen Casada (and likely Governor Lee) handed out goodies to convince people to switch, including MILITARY PROMOTIONS.

Eventually, Rep. Jason Zachary flipped, the public school-harming vouchers passed, and the rollout has already been a lie and bribe-filled nightmare, causing even those who voted for it to regret it.

(Of course, that hasn’t stopped Lee from including $41 million for it in the “emergency budget”.)

On Reproductive freedom, Deberry has stood with Republicans repeatedly – even when their bills were unconstitutional, and even when they would force raped teenagers to carry their rapist’s baby to term. Deberry even went so far as to call abortion “BLACK GENOCIDE”, a phrase that will be hard to forget anytime soon.

Even on something as obviously oppressive as Secretary of State Tre Hargett’s voter registration criminalization bill, Deberry couldn’t bring himself to stand on the right side of history. He abstained, a decision which was promptly shown to be cowardly and wrongheaded when a federal judge blocked the law and ripped it apart in a scathing decision.

We spoke with Deberry at length after the fact, and he didn’t seem to understand what the law even did. Which is no excuse.

Then there are Deberry’s anti-LGBT beliefs, which have caused leading voices from the Tennessee LGBT community to speak out forcefully.

Eric Patton of the Human Rights campaign wrote to the TNDP committee before the vote, saying Deberry “consistently stood against women’s rights and LGBTQ rights”, “sponsored a bill to discriminate against LGBTQ youth and adults in matters of mental health”, and “verbally supported conversion therapy”.

Patton concluded:

“As a LGBTQ community leader, it is a clear decision to deny him the party’s support in his re-election. I strongly urge you to take appropriate action to deny his petition.
You have a say, as a party leader, who is allowed to run as a member. DeBerry has displayed time and time again that he has no regard for the party or its platform, let alone the marginalized people it stands to protect.
He shouldn’t get the help of the party. If he’s going to stand against the marginalized, he shouldn’t be standing with us.”

Republicans have been quick to knock Democrats for taking this action, but before you put any faith in the outcry, it’s important to keep in mind Republicans have done things like this before. Speaker Kent Williams was an incumbent removed by the state party. They’ve also kicked people off of ballots for not having the proper “Republican bona fides”.

(Meanwhile They’ve let admitted child sex abuser Rep. David Byrd stay in office, as well as Speaker Casada – who lied and who covered for his “N word”-using coke-snorting chief of staff, said ugly things about women, and may have framed a civil rights activist, and was removed as speaker for it… but those are stories for a different day).

Reproductive freedoms, voting rights, LGBT rights, public schools… these are not minor issues Deberry was standing with Republicans on. And as Mary Mancini said, the majority of Deberry’s campaign donations come from Republican PACs/groups/ individuals. He has a history of making large donations to Republican candidates.

The parties have the right to do these things for a reason. Deberry’s allegiance to the Republican agenda has been a useful political tool for Republicans for long enough.