Yesterday, State Representatives in the Naming, Designating and Private Acts Committee failed to pass HJR0686, which recommended removing the bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest from the Tennessee State Capital. The bill was voted down with 5 in favor and 11 not in favor. The 11 State Representatives who are in favor of keeping Forrest's bust were:
Dale Carr - (615) 741-5981, rep.dale.carr@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Bill Dunn - (615) 741-1721, rep.bill.dunn@capitol.tn.gov
Rick Eldridge - (615) 741-6877, rep.rick.eldridge@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Bruce Griffey - (615) 741-6804, rep.bruce.griffey@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Andy Holt - (615) 741-7847, rep.andy.holt@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Susan Lynn - (615) 741-7462, rep.susan.lynn@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
John Ragan - (615) 741-4400, rep.john.ragan@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Tim Rudd - (615) 741-2804, rep.tim.rudd@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Jerry Sexton - (615) 741-2534, rep.jerry.sexton@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Paul Sherrell - (615) 741-1963, rep.paul.sherrell@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Mike Sparks - (615) 741-6829, rep.mike.sparks@capitol.tn.gov, Facebook Page
Personally, I plan to email and send a Facebook message to each and every member that voted to keep Forrest's bust in the State Capital. My message will go as follows, please feel free to copy, paste, and send yourself...
Dear valued member of the Tennessee State House,
My name is ______ and I am a concerned citizen. One of the highest honors a person in our great state of Tennessee can receive is having their bust displayed at the Tennessee State Capital. Yesterday, you voted to keep the bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest on display at the capital and I would like to know why.
Forrest was a slave trader, a Confederate General, war criminal, and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. As a Confederate General, Forrest famously slaughtered Union troops, most of whom were black, that had already surrendered at the Battle of Fort Pillow. Under his leadership, the KKK used violence and intimidation to suppress the black vote during the elections of 1868. While he did repent and promote racial harmony later in life, that does not undo all of the bad he did. Nathan Bedford Forrest has a lot of blood on his hands.
The honor of having a bust in the state capital should be reserved for people of the highest character. Please explain to me why you voted to keep Forrest's bust on display. Please do not tell me "history," as we use books to keep history, not busts. Do the hundreds, possibly thousands, of black lives enslaved, beaten, and slaughtered under Forrest not matter to you?
Sincerely,
_______
A concerned citizen
To make this even easier, if you would like to BCC all of the reps that voted to keep Forrest's bust at once, copy and paste all of the email addresses below:
rep.dale.carr@capitol.tn.gov, rep.bill.dunn@capitol.tn.gov, rep.rick.eldridge@capitol.tn.gov, rep.bruce.griffey@capitol.tn.gov, rep.andy.holt@capitol.tn.gov, rep.susan.lynn@capitol.tn.gov, rep.john.ragan@capitol.tn.gov, rep.tim.rudd@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jerry.sexton@capitol.tn.gov, rep.paul.sherrell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.mike.sparks@capitol.tn.gov