Briefs
Grassroots groups weigh in on Nashville Budget
The COVID-19 pandemic caused long-simmering socio-economic problems to surface for Nashvillians, and activists are asking Metro’s upcoming budget to reflect much needed infrastructure. On Friday, representatives from Workers Dignity, Black Nashville Assembly, Nashville People’s Budget Coalition and others offered grades on a wide variety of city services to show city officials what they want emphasized […]
Legislature has pattern of harassing Black Tennesseans, says Democratic leadership
Democratic legislative leaders said on Thursday the controversy that began when East Tennessee State University basketball players knelt during the playing the National Anthem is part of a pattern of harassment of Black Tennesseans. The remarks came during a weekly press conference held by the Democratic House and Senate Caucus leadership. Republican legislative leadership holds […]
Gov. Lee, Ultium Cells to announce $2.2B electric battery factory in Spring Hill
Ultium Cells is planning to invest approximately $2.2 billion for a new electric batteries factory in Spring Hill as part of a massive economic development project to be announced by Gov. Bill Lee’s administration in the coming weeks. The project will attract 1,300 jobs and put Tennessee firmly in the midst of General Motors’ ambitious […]
Alcoa City Schools joins lawsuit against e-cigarette makers
An East Tennessee small town school district has grown so frustrated with the growing epidemic of vaping among their students that officials decided to sue the e-cigarette manufacturers. Officials with Alcoa City School in Blount County said the vaping epidemic had reached their 2,095 students to the extent that they were now hiring monitors to […]
Shelby County Commission shoots down Byhalia land sale
In Memphis Monday, the Shelby County Commission shot down the sale of South Memphis two lots to the joint venture behind construction of the controversial Byhalia Pipeline. Shelby County acquired the two lots through delinquent taxes, and approval of the resolution would have allowed Texas-based Plains All American Pipeline and Valero Energy Corporation to purchase […]
NOAH calls out Metro Nashville Police for use of excessive force
This story has been updated. Members of a prominent Nashville community organization say that the Metro Nashville Police Department has continued to use excessive force and failed to comply with de-escalation tactics, leading to two recent shootings, one fatal. Nashville Organized For Action and Hope (NOAH) held a press conference on Thursday to protest what […]
Teens talk political polarization
Allie Bailey, called her home in Scott County on the Cumberland Plateau the “reddest part of the state” and said kids there are raised to be rooted in honoring their parents, community and the Bible. One of her high school classmates, Amelia Terry, added the many residents of the area don’t handle change well. Bailey […]
COVID-19 numbers plummet among disabled with vaccine rollout
The numbers of new COVID infections among people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and staff who care for them, decreased by more than 80 percent from December 2020 to February 2021, according to newly released data from the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Tennessee was the first state in the nation to prioritize people […]
Report: Tennessee rural jail expenses climbing
While Tennessee’s biggest cities have reduced their jail populations, suburban and rural counties increased incarceration rates —and local spending on jails — according to a new report by the Vera Institute of Justice which includes an online tool to examine trends in each of the state’s 94 local lockups. Expenditures fluctuated widely from county to […]
Nashville leaders and organizers call for changes to construction safety
Workers-rights advocates will file a bill to hold contractors accountable for incidents that have resulted in Nashville being named one of the most dangerous cities in the South for construction workers. On Tuesday, several Metro council members and community leaders held a press conference to address allegations of unsafe and unhygienic construction sites that have […]
Interstate section renamed for slain corrections officer
A section of Interstate 440 near Nashville has been renamed for a corrections officer killed in the line of duty. On Sunday, state Sen. Brenda Gilmore organized a car parade in honor of Debra K. Johnson on I-440, which will now be known as Debra K. Johnson Memorial Parkway. Friends and community members were invited […]
Nashville police say car thefts tied to warming vehicles
Police said Thursday an overwhelming majority of vehicles stolen in Davidson County recently have been from residential areas and likely a casualty of the winter storm. Over the past week, 79% of vehicles taken were cars with keys left inside and unattended, making them easy targets. Of the 47 vehicles stolen, 12 were left running […]