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- Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton has been met with outrage after organizing a vote to expel two Democrat lawmakers from the house.
- Thousands of Christians are now demanding his resignation in an online petition.
- Tennessee Governor Bill Lee issued an executive order strengthening Tennessee gun laws this week, urging lawmakers to work together.
Thousands of Christians have signed an online petition by Faithful America demanding Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton's resignation.
The outrage comes as a response to Sexton organizing a vote last week that expelled two Democrat Tennessee lawmakers from the House. The lawmakers—Representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson—spoke out of turn when they supported a youth-led protest calling for gun control following the shooting at a Nashville elementary school last month that left three students and three adults dead.
Representative Gloria Johnson also spoke out of turn to participate in the protest. Tennessee Republican lawmakers have been accused of racism after they expelled Jones and Pearson, both Black men, but by one vote, Johnson, who is white, was able to keep her seat.
The "Tennessee Three" went viral for their actions. After the House voted to expel Jones and Pearson, dozens of faith officials in the community held a press conference, followed by a "nonviolent clergy sit-in" at Sexton's office, according to the petition.
A week later, both Jones and Pearson have been reappointed to their vacated seats, and the Faithful America petition is demanding Sexton's resignation. The petition, which was posted Wednesday, has received 9,741 signatures as of 10:30 a.m. ET on Friday. The number surpassed the petition's original goal of 5,000 signatures, which has since been amended to 10,000.
The petition alleges that Sexton acted with racist intentions when he called for the House vote to expel the lawmakers, considering that Johnson wasn't expelled, but Jones and Pearson were.
"House Republicans ultimately voted to expel Reps. Jones and Justin Pearson—but not Rep. Gloria Johnson, kicking out the two Black men but not their white compatriot," the petition said.
The petition alleges that Sexton accusing the lawmakers of "insurrection" was a lie to "undermine democracy, silence his Black and progressive opponents, and distract from demands for gun reform."
Newsweek reached out to a spokesperson for the Tennessee House of Representatives via email for comment.
Governor Bill Lee, a Republican, issued an executive order strengthening Tennessee gun laws earlier this week. The order sets a three-day deadline for law enforcement to report new criminal activity and court-related mental health information to the Tennessee Instant Check System, the state's background check system.
Lee announced the executive order on Tuesday, a week after the Tennessee House passed a statewide school safety package. The school safety package strengthens security at public and private schools throughout the state by providing funding for an armed security guard at each school.
During the press conference where Lee outlined the executive order's purpose, he also urged Tennessee's lawmakers to work together, which Sexton previously told Newsweek in a statement that he was willing to do.
About the writer
Anna Skinner is a Newsweek senior reporter based in Indianapolis. Her focus is reporting on the climate, environment and weather ... Read more