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Tennessee’s Afghan residents rally for support
On Sunday, about a hundred protesters crowded in front of the Estes Kefauver Federal Building and Courthouse in Nashville to advocate for their friends and family currently living under Taliban rule. Zahra Rasuli, 23, stood among several women wearing hijabs, pondering on the nature of Afghanistan’s conflict ridden history. She is a product of immigrant […]
Shelby County committee recommends DOJ oversight of juvenile courts
The Shelby County Law Enforcement, Corrections and Courts Committee voted to recommend the U.S. Department of Justice resume oversight of the county’s juvenile court system after concerns that current policies have failed to address racial disparities. On Wednesday the Countywide Juvenile Justice Consortium (CJJC), a citizen-led board created to hold the juvenile justice system accountable, […]
Memphis Council bridges regulatory gaps that have threatened water
The Memphis City Council approved an ordinance to bridge regulatory gaps that have left the city’s drinking water vulnerable and added protections for residents living near toxic materials. On Tuesday, council members debated three ordinances created as a result of protests against a pipeline set to be built near a historic Black neighborhood. In late […]
Tennessee immigration advocates head to DC to urge pathway to citizenship
On Sunday, immigrant-rights advocates were disheartened to learn that a pathway to citizenship for thousands of immigrants in Tennessee was excluded from the congressional Democrats $3.5 trillion social policy budget. Earlier this month, the Democratic Party began the push to expand the nation’s social safety net focused on health care, child and elder care, education […]
Memphis aquifer gains protection from Shelby Commission
Nearly a year of protests and political debates culminated in the Shelby County Commission passing a one-of-a-kind ordinance to protect the county’s sole source of drinking water. The Shelby County Commissions voted 10-0—Commissioners David Bradford and Amber Mills abstained—in support of an ordinance to prevent pipelines from being built within 1,500 feet of most residential […]
Nashville Muslims mark 9-11 anniversary by aiding new refugees to U.S.
Sept. 11 holds special significance for all Americans, including the Muslim community. Among the crowded sidewalks of 12th Avenue South, the Islamic Center of Nashville stands seemingly in contemplation of how life drastically changed the 2001 day radical terrorists flew two commercial planes onto the World Trade Center, killing nearly 3,000 people. Behind the mosque, […]
Shelby committee approves pipeline setbacks
The Shelby County Commission Land Use Planning, Transportation & Codes Enforcement committee members voted in favor of an ordinance to create distance between all future pipeline developments and residential areas, leading the way for an anti-pipeline ordinance to pass in the full commission meeting next week. On Wednesday, an ordinance to create 1,500-foot setbacks for […]
Low Latino vaccination rates in Shelby County prompt concern
Low vaccination rates in Shelby County’s Latino community drew a plea from a representative of the Mexican Consulate at Thursday’s media briefing by the Shelby County COVID-19 Task Force. “The [COVID] vaccines are safe, ethical, convenient, save lives and are safe, said Rodolfo Qulantan Arenas of the Little Rock, Arkansas consulate. “You don’t have to […]
Activist groups ask Metro Nashville to slow East Bank development
A coalition of immigrant, labor and civil rights groups are once again asking Metro Nashville officials to slow down development projects, including the massive Oracle headquarters, along the east bank of the Cumberland River. Representatives from Stand Up Nashville, the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition and the Equity Alliance want surveys conducted of residents […]
Tennessee’s colleges and universities prepare for COVID among students
William Braeden Clark, a sophomore at Middle Tennessee State University, has a backup plan in case he gets infected with COVID-19. Most Tennessee colleges have started fall semester at full capacity with COVID-19 policies, but policies change depending on the pandemic. Clark lives on campus but will have to quarantine off campus at his parent’s […]
Nashville transportation board shoots down new party bus permits
The Metro Nashville Transportation Licensing Commission denied 27 permit applications for “transportainment” vehicles after city officials spoke out against dangerous conditions in downtown Nashville. At Thursday’s meeting, several city officials warned that downtown Nashville has become an increasingly dangerous city for its inhabitants due to increased volume caused by entertainment vehicles. Downtown Nashville’s popularity with […]
Nashville’s COVID task force recommends funds for rental assistance
On Wednesday, members of Nashville’s COVID-19 Financial Oversight Committee voted to recommend to Mayor John Cooper a plan spending $3 million to provide rent and utility assistance to Davidson County residents impacted by the pandemic. The committee, which is tasked with recommending uses for American Recovery Plan funds, also voted to change eligibility criteria to […]