Second Expelled Tennessee Dem Reinstated To State House

A Memphis commission has unanimously reappointed Justin Pearson, a Democrat from Tennessee, who was recently expelled from the state House for violating decorum rules when he joined a group of gun-control protesters in storming the state capitol. Pearson had been ejected from his position in a 69-26 vote. He had participated in the protest, demanding gun restrictions in response to the mass shooting that had occurred at the Covenant School in Nashville. His supporters, numbering in the hundreds, gathered in Memphis as the city officials voted 7-0 to return Pearson to his former position. “The message for all the people in Nashville who decided to expel us: You can’t expel hope. You can’t expel justice,” Pearson said at the meeting according to the Associated Press. After his reinstatement, Pearson vowed that this event was just the beginning and that “They’ve awakened a sleeping giant.”

During the hearing, Pearson was accused of using a fake Southern preacher voice, and a video was spread online displaying his shift from moderate politics during his college days to the more passionate, preacher-style delivery he used in the aftermath of his ejection from the statehouse.

Justin Jones, another Democrat, who had sneaked a bullhorn into the chamber and led chants while supporters sat in the balcony, was also expulsed but reinstated by the Nashville Metropolitan Council on Monday. During the expulsion vote, Democratic lawmakers on the floor and protesters were emotional, screaming that the Republicans were transforming Tennessee into a “fascist state.” Republicans, however, remained committed to the vote.

Together with Fellow Democrat Gloria Johnson, who was nearly suspended, the two lawmakers were joined by Vice President Kamala Harris to call on Tennessee to enact more gun control. While she showed solidarity with the expelled Democrats, the VP did not meet with any of the families of the Covenant School shootings while visiting Fisk University in Nashville.

Leif Le Mahieu contributed to this report.

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