Emily SinerLike so many other news events in America, the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota has been interpreted different ways, depending on whose information you trust.
The Trump administration says it’s an example of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer acting in self-defense at a protest.
Several Minnesota officials dismissed that as political spin and instead say it’s a harrowing example of ICE’s abuse of power. (The mayor of Minneapolis called the self-defense explanation “bull****,” according to NPR.)
In Nashville yesterday, hundreds of people gathered outside the local ICE Field Office holding signs, candles and flowers for a vigil for Good.
Organizers claim they’ve seen ICE agents getting more confrontational with protesters, including here in Nashville.
WHAT TO KNOW
Mourners held signs with Renee Nicole Good’s photo and name. Credit: Rose Gilbert / WPLN NewsThe vigil was organized by Music City Migra Watch, a volunteer organization dedicated to monitoring ICE activity in Middle Tennessee. Mourners sang, prayed and played the trumpet in between speeches, led by Ashley Warbington with Music City Migra Watch.
“They don’t want to be watched. They don’t like accountability. They don’t like us documenting what they’re doing. But today, just like every other day, we still show up and we say no,” she said.
WPLN’s Rose Gilbert reports demonstrators stood in the street, just outside the property line for the Tennessee Department of Homeland Security, which houses the ICE Field Office.
That property line was marked by “No Trespassing” signs, and a pair of Homeland Security officers stood nearby and kept an eye on the vigil. Warbington said those signs are new, and part of a bigger trend: She and other observers are no longer allowed to accompany people to their immigration check-ins.
She also claims that ICE agents have become increasingly aggressive towards observers. On two occasions, she claimed, agents drew their weapons on Music City Migra Watch volunteers.
The Tennessee Department of Homeland Security has not yet responded to requests for comment or confirmation.
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- Tennessee schools’ curricula will soon cover social media and internet safety. The “Teen Social Media and Internet Safety Act” has already banned students from accessing social media over school internet except for educational purposes. WPLN’s Camellia Burris says the new state guidelines on social media safety tell schools to cover how information is distributed on social media, how social media manipulates behavior, the permanence of sharing materials online, spotting online predators, cyber bullying and recognizing potential misinformation when using AI, among other lessons. This legislation comes on the heels of Tennessee banning the use of cell phones during classroom instruction.
- Johnson City has agreed to pay out more than $30 million in a class action settlement to survivors of sexual assault. The bulk of the money will go to victims of Sean Williams, who is been convicted of child sex abuse and accused of drugging and raping more than 50 women and children. Plaintiffs said the police department allowed the man to continue abusing in exchange for bribes, which the department has denied. However, a 2023 audit found the department did fail to properly investigate sexual assault cases, collect evidence, and interview and arrest suspects. (That full story was detailed in The New Yorker last year.) The city still faces two additional lawsuits. [The Tennessean]
- Trash and recycling pickup may soon become cleaner and safer, thanks to a company that will manufacture fully electric refuse trucks in Murfreesboro. WPLN’s Caroline Eggers reportswaste collection is a hazardous occupation: In 2023, the industry ranked fourth in the nation for the most fatalities annually, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The new truck by McNeilus Truck and Manufacturing includes collision avoidance, automatic braking and 360-degree cameras, as well as occupation-specific gear to help navigate cul-de-sacs and narrow alleys.
FROM WNXP
Buchanan Arts Centerwas established in 2021 by two co-founders, Alex Lockwood and John Donovan, as an open-access visual arts center in North Nashville.
Their core mission is providing free after-school programs to kids in the neighborhood and adult pottery classes to use art to build community.
Virginia Griswold, executive director of the Buchanan Arts Center, said people are looking for outlet spaces to work and spaces to grow. “Pottery is something that’s hard to do without access to a potter’s wheel or kiln,” she said. “We provide a place where that activity can happen.”Read more
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