by Jon King

Ann Arbor’s state representatives Carrie Rheingans (D) and Jason Morgan (D), along with Ypsilanti state representative Jimmie Wilson, Jr. (D), signed a letter along with 264 other legislators across 35 states, including 22 Michigan lawmakers, stood in solidarity with three Tennessee legislators facing expulsion for leading an April 3 protest against gun violence.

Despite that, Tennessee’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives on Thursday voted to expel two Black lawmakers, Rep. Justin Jones and Rep. Justin Pearson, while narrowly failing to oust a third Rep., Rep. Gloria Johnson, who is white. The contentious vote came a week after the three Democrats led a gun reform protest in the chamber following a mass shooting at a Nashville school.

The letter, sent by State Innovation Exchange (SiX), said it was “anti-democratic” to silence the lawmakers for exercising their constitutional right to protest.

“There is nothing ‘disorderly’ about courageously standing in solidarity with the people we are elected to serve, in opposition to the gun lobby that continues to profiteer off of an epidemic they have fueled,” stated the letter. “The Tennessee State Capitol is the people’s house, and Representatives Justin Jones, Justin Pearson, and Gloria Johnson exemplified leadership on the House floor this week by standing up for what’s right.”

The expulsions, the first-ever in Tennessee State House history for allegedly violating House rules, follow incidents in Florida and Oklahoma where lawmakers were arrested and stripped of their committees, respectively, for opposing attacks on their constituents’ fundamental freedoms. 

“Let’s be clear, the vote to expel Reps. Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones, and Justin Pearson is just another anti-democratic effort to silence the American people for speaking out against the devastating consequences of gun violence,” said Neha Patel, Co-Executive Director of the State Innovation Exchange (SiX). “Calling for gun safety within the people’s house is an example of our democracy in action, expelling lawmakers for standing for what they believe in is not.”

Regardless of Thursday’s expulsions, Patel says SiX will continue to fight for the rights of lawmakers to openly advocate for the rights of their constituents.

“Gun violence impacts all of us, especially the Black and brown communities many legislators in Tennessee represent,” said Patel. “Ultimately, these kinds of actions present clear and present danger to our country and our democracy, and we must not allow it.”

The Michigan Legislative Black Caucus (MLBC) on Friday issued a statement calling the expulsions of two Black Tennessee lawmakers “unconstitutional” and “yet another example of the systemic racism that still exists in this country—even in the halls of legislative power.”

“The General Assembly narrowly voting to preserve the seat of the only white woman of the ‘Tennessee Three’ was a blatantly racist action, rooted in Jim Crow tactics,” said Rep. Amos O’Neal (D–Saginaw),  MLBC executive vice chair.

Here are all of the Michigan legislators who signed the letter:

Rep. Noah Arbit (D-West Bloomfield)

Rep. Erin Byrnes (D–Dearborn)

Rep. Tyrone Carter (D-Detroit)

Rep. Betsy Coffia (D-Traverse City)

Rep. Emily Dievendorf (D-Lansing)

Rep. Kimberly Edwards (D- Eastpointe)

Rep. Jenn Hill (D-Marquette)

Rep. Jason Hoskins (D-Southfield)

Rep. Sharon MacDonell. (D-Troy)

Rep. Donavan McKinney (D-Detroit)

Rep. Veronica Paiz (D-Harper Woods)

Rep. Natalie Price (D-Berkley)

Rep. Ranjeev Puri (D-Canton)

Rep. Phil Skaggs (D-East Grand Rapids)

Rep. Lori Stone (D-Warren)

Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou (D-East Lansing)

Rep. Dylan Wegela (D-Garden City)

Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit)

Sen. Erika Geiss (D-Taylor)