Memphis Flyer 4/13/2023

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Editor’s note: Flyer writers will occasionally share this space. “We are talking about nothing less than 75 people overruling the wishes of 78,000 people! And you’re gonna cut o debate? Give me a break! Is this a circus? If you can’t sit through a conversation or a debate on something no less than expelling a colleague … you don’t belong here!”

Democratic Representative John Ray Clemons of West Nashville spoke for thousands of Tennesseans last week as he watched his GOP colleagues turn the democratic process into meaningless procedural im am. It was a travesty, a mean-spirited exhibition of white men wielding power in the worst possible way.

ey did it because they’re used to doing it. ey did it because they’ve never paid a price for it, mostly because no one was ever watching before. It was just one of the many tricks the Republicans in the Tennessee House of Representatives used in the process of expelling three duly elected representatives. ese included cutting o Wi-Fi in the galleries, postponing action until late in the day a er thousands of demonstrators had arrived for the scheduled morning opening, not allowing the three lawmakers to know what would be expected of them in mounting their defense, showing unattributed video of their protests … and, well, I could go on.

It was an astonishing display of autocracy, ruthlessly leveraged by hypocritical ignoramuses — only this time, the entire world was watching — and instead of suppressing the voices of change, as they so clearly intended to do, the Tennessee GOP instead ampli ed them in ways they could have never imagined in their wildest fever dreams.

Prior to last week, Justin Pearson, Justin Jones, and Gloria Johnson were known only by their constituents, if that. Now they are household names, appearing on major television networks, here and abroad, meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris, and being invited to the White House. Tens of thousands of dollars are owing into their fundraising co ers.

To those Republicans responsible, I’d just like to take a moment to say: Nice job, you racist, gun-sucking assholes. You’ve embarrassed yourselves and your state, but mostly yourselves. And it couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch of clowns. ere. I feel better. Especially knowing these fools have helped spawn a new generation of activists, one that will stand strong against the only two arrows the Republican Party seems to have le in its pathetic quiver: a Taliban-esque, no-exceptions, anti-abortion platform and a no-permit, total open-carry, pro-assault-weapons agenda. Good luck running on those issues in 2024 and beyond.

And speaking of clowns … How about that Justice Clarence omas, amirite? Turns out that for the past couple of decades he’s been taking hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of luxury yacht cruises, resort vacations, and private jet rides courtesy of a rightwing Texas billionaire named Harlan Crow. Crow also founded a side-hustle PAC for omas’ wife, Ginni, and paid her a sweet $150,000 a year to run it.

But nope, no corruption to see here, said Clarence. He and Harlan were just friends, he said, adding that he would stop now that he knew it was wrong.

Never mind that Crow is embedded in the activist judicial group, the Federalist Society, and never mind that he has one of the world’s great collections of Hitler memorabilia. Because that’s normal. Right?

Listen, when I began my journalism career, one of the rst things I was told is “don’t accept anything from a potential source, not even a cup of co ee.” e reason being, of course, that any hint of impropriety could compromise a story by calling into question the journalist’s impartiality.

NEWS & OPINION

THE FLY-BY - 4

POLITICS - 6 MUSIC - 9

COVER STORY

“GOOD TROUBLE”

BY JACKSON BAKER - 10

WE RECOMMEND - 14

AFTER DARK - 15

CALENDAR - 16

NY TIMES CROSSWORD - 16

NEWS OF THE WEIRD - 17

ASTROLOGY - 18

FILM - 20

CLASSIFIEDS - 22

LAST WORD - 23

e omas case is the very de nition of compromising someone’s impartiality with favors. And, much as was the case in Nashville, it went on only because no one was watching. How is it remotely possible that the ethics code for a member of the United States Supreme Court is imsier than that of a newspaper reporter?

It isn’t, and omas knows it. Otherwise, he would have reported the largesse extended to him. It’s absurd on its face. If, however, Republicans are still intent on expelling a Black man from o ce, I do have a suggestion.

Bruce VanWyngarden brucev@memphis yer.com

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PHOTO: JOHN PARTIPILO | TENNESSEE LOOKOUT e Tennessee ree — Gloria Johnson, Justin Pearson, and Justin Jones

THE fly-by

MEM ernet

Memphis on the internet. THE TENNESSEE THREE

Questions, Answers + Attitude

Edited by Toby Sells

{WEEK THAT WAS

By Flyer staff

Protest and Expulsion

A turbulent week at the Tennessee General Assembly sends Memphis lawmaker back home.

MONDAY

Last week’s wild ride ended with the expulsion of two Black Tennessee House members, but one of the Tennessee ree (the white one) remained. It also yielded some quality memes about the rare moment of Memphis/Nashville solidarity like this one.

Rumblings of consequences for three Tennessee Democrats (on their House- oor protest the week before) began a er House Speaker Rep. Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) compared their actions to the January 6th insurrection, calling them “at least equivalent, maybe worse.”

A student-led protest outside the Capitol building had hundreds yelling, “Fuck Bill Lee.”

TUESDAY

ose rumblings became reality last Tuesday with resolutions led by House Republicans to expel Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis), Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville), and Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville).

Resolutions by the three Republican lawmakers point out the state constitution enables the House to punish members for “disorderly behavior.” House rules include “preserving order, adhering to decorum, speaking only with recognition, not crowding around the Clerk’s desk, avoiding personalities, and not using props or displaying political messages.”

e resolutions contend Jones, Johnson, and Pearson “did knowingly and intentionally bring disorder and dishonor to the House of Representatives through their individual and collective actions.”

moves erratically, and someone can be heard saying, “Hey, get your hand o of me!” Jones said La erty pushed him and grabbed his phone.

e GoFundMe helped solidify the “Tennessee ree” moniker for Pearson, Johnson, and Jones. Set to help defray legal costs, the campaign raised more than $53,000 of its $25,000 goal.

Pearson tweeted a letter he sent to House leaders taking responsibility for breaking decorum rules. However, “it was untenable to hear the chants, pleas, and cries of thousands of peaceful children outside our chambers and do nothing,” he wrote.

Rumors swirled all over the MEMernet that Memphis could lose its funding for sporting infrastructure improvements and other projects if Justin Pearson was sent back to the Tennessee General Assembly. For guidance, many sought a statement from Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, who they said was publicly silent on the topic.

It notes the trio moved to the well [two weeks ago] at 10:49 a.m. and started shouting and pounding on the podium, leading chants with a crowded gallery and “engaged in disorderly and disruptive conduct, including refusing to leave the well, sitting on the podium, and utilizing a sign displaying a political message.” Jones and Pearson both used a megaphone to rally the crowds.

Lawmakers approved votes on the resolutions along party lines. As they did, members of the public in the galleries above the House oor began chants of “fascists, fascists.”

ey were removed by Tennessee Highway Patrol o cers. Tennesseans immediately responded to the resolutions online with a GoFundMe and reactions to a viral video that some said constituted “assault” against Jones.

In the video, Jones lms Rep. Justin La erty (R-Knoxville). As he closes in on La erty to apparently lm what is on his phone, La erty turns, Jones’ phone camera

WEDNESDAY

News surfaced that Jones led a police report against Lafferty for the House- oor incident, categorized as “simple assault.” Metro Nashville Police said the case would be assigned to a detective.

THURSDAY

House members voted along party lines to expel Jones and Pearson but to keep Johnson.

FRIDAY

Reactions to the vote came from far and wide, from Memphis City Council members to President Joe Biden. Reports from Tennessee Lookout contributed to this story. Visit

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PHOTO: PRESTON SHIPP | TWITTER

Hundreds gathered at the Capitol building to protest the proposed expulsion of three Democratic representatives.

By Kailynn Johnson

Re-building Hollywood

New group aims to reinvigorate a North Memphis neighborhood.

Residents of a North Memphis community are coming together to ensure that their voices are being heard and that they are considered in decisionmaking processes.

e Hollywood Community Association was recently formed with the intention to “promote the reconstruction of our neighborhoods and bring communities together that are generally overlooked, especially North Memphis.”

Pamela “P.” Moses is managing executive director of Rise Up America, a historical neighborhood preservation organization geared towards “protecting and disseminating information to redlined communities.” Moses said they founded the Hollywood Community Association in hopes of stopping gentri cation in their neighborhood.

torical neighborhoods where people own the property and have had businesses and they basically disinvest in them. It’s not just Memphis; it’s all over,” said Moses, adding that communities such as North Memphis tend to be overlooked because “gatekeepers have a plan.”

e main concerns from residents were blight and crime, said Moses. e Blight Authority of Memphis calls blight “the physical conditions of vacant or derelict structures and vacant lots that have been abandoned, neglected,” or unmaintained and are causing harm to the surrounding properties and the owners and occupants of those properties.

Moses also said that community members held concerns over food deserts. An article from University of Memphis’ Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law’s Ryan Jones says that food deserts are “communities that have poor access to healthy and a ordable foods. … ey are usually concentrated in low-income and historically marginalized areas throughout the country, with issues of longtime systemic racism, racial residential segregation, poor access to transportation, and economic inequality woven into the history of these barren food landscapes.”

“In Hollywood there is not one grocery store,” said Moses. “You can get a beer, but you can’t get a banana. You can get a blunt, but you can’t get an orange.”

“A lot of things are happening, such as removing grocery stores, and a lack of businesses,” said Moses. “Most of the people in the community have been here 30 years-plus, but many of the elderly people are either dying or getting to the point where they can’t keep up their houses, so we’re trying to build community to help with everyday projects such as cleanup, cutting the grass — basically seeing what our community needs and providing those things and resources and information.”

e association started as an initiative from Rise Up North Memphis, which, according to its website, is a “grassroots collaborative initiative to take back the control and decision-making processes from the hands of our government.” As the initiative and campaign got bigger, Moses began to see that there was a pattern of “taking predominantly Black his-

Residents have also voiced complaints about the volume of dilapidated and vacant housing. According to Moses, residents want to x up these homes; however, they struggle to nd banks to lend them money to do so.

“ e majority of the people in my community are functionally illiterate,” said Moses. “How does a functionally illiterate community ll out an application to get businesses in their community?

ey can’t.”

Moses said they have a strategic proposal and plan they would like for the city to implement for redevelopment. “Our goal is to acquire properties that are either blighted or abandoned,” said Moses. “We are going to create a business redevelopment strip, which will also be a BID [business improvement district], where existing businesses and old businesses will pay for the cleanups daily and weekly so the place doesn’t look so bad.”

PHOTO: HOLLYWOOD COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION Hollywood Community Association hopes to address residents’ concerns.

POLITICS By Jackson Baker

Bottom Lines

Updates on deadlines regarding the mayor’s race; plus, Lowery and Chumney.

First-quarter deadline for Memphis mayoral candidates’ nancial disclosures was March 31st, with reports due at the state Registry of Election Finance by April 10th, Monday of this week. It will take a while for all of them to be collated and made public, but, when available, presumably this week, they will be a useful key to the competitive status of various candidates.

Likely leader in revenues raised and on hand will be Downtown Memphis Commission CEO Paul Young, who has been the bene ciary of several recent big-ticket fundraisers. Two of Young’s main competitors — NAACP president and former Commissioner Van Turner and Shelby County Sheri Floyd Bonner — will probably show lesser revenues than might ordinarily be expected.

e obvious reason for that is such

public doubt as has recently been raised by uncertainties regarding possible residency requirements for Memphis mayor — though the Shelby County Election Commission has, amid litigation by Turner and Bonner, removed a note from its website citing an opinion from former SCEC chair Robert Meyers proclaiming a requirement for a ve-year prior residency in the city. Meyers based his opinion on a city-charter provision dating back to 1895.

Turner, Bonner, and former Mayor Willie Herenton, who is not known to have launched a signi cant fundraising campaign, have all maintained residencies outside the city at some point in the past ve years. Herenton is not a party to the ongoing litigation, regarding which separate suits by Bonner and Turner challenging the Meyers opinion and seeking clari cation have been combined in the court of Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins.

During a status conference on the suits last week, Jenkins established May

1st as a date for ruling on the litigation. He had previously rejected a motion by attorneys for the SCEC to include the city of Memphis as a codefendant along with the Commission. Jenkins decided that the city had not o cially endorsed the Meyers opinion, though city attorney Jennifer Sink had forwarded it to the SCEC. For her part, Sink has said she has no intention of formally claiming the Meyers opinion as the city’s own.

• In calling a special meeting of the County Commission for this Wednesday on the issue of reappointing the expelled state Representative Justin J. Pearson to the House District 86 seat (see cover story, p. 10), Commission chair Mickell Lowery made his own sentiments evident.

A er noting that he was “required to make decisions as a leader,” Lowery said, inter alia, “I believe the expulsion of state Representative Justin Pearson was conducted in a hasty manner without consideration of other corrective action

At the invitation of Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, Circuit Court Judge Carol Chumney addressed a standingroom-only crowd last ursday in Vasco A. Smith Jr. Shelby County Administration Building. Chumney read from e Arena: One Woman’s Story, her recently published memoir of a life in local politics, including two runs for Memphis Mayor.

methods. I also believe that the ramications for our great state are still yet to be seen. … Coincidentally, this has directly a ected me as I too reside in state House District 86. I am amongst the over 68,000 citizens [actually, 78,000] who were stripped of having a representative at the state due to the unfortunate outcome of the state assembly’s vote.”

The Memphis Alumni Chapter of

Inc. has been fostering the development of young African American women of culture and honor and facilitating their formal introduction into society for 72 years. After more than seven decades, daughters, granddaughters and even great-granddaughters of past Debs dawn their white gowns and celebrate their matriculation into society and womanhood at the “Kappa Debutante Presentation.” The presentation is similar to graduation in that it is the last event of the “Debutante Experience.” For parents, the purpose of a debutante presentation is to show society how prepared, beautiful, poised, and confident their daughter has become. It allows them an opportunity to showcase her efforts up to this point in life and encourage her to take her rightful place in the world.

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity,

AMYAH ANDERSON SYDNEY BERRY

WHITNEY BERRY KAILEN COBBINS CALISE CONNER IRAIANNA CRISP CHASE ECHOLS

JASMINE MANNING

CHANDLER HARLEY PHAITH HARRIS TRINITY JENKINS

KENNEDY LARKIN MADISON LEE

DESTINY SULLIVAN MATTISEN TAYLOR

PEYTON SCOTT MATTAÈ STEVENSON

JAIDYN GREGORY

PHOTO: JACKSON BAKER

MUSIC By Alex Greene

On That Note

Memphis has produced its share of jazz legends, from Lil Hardin Armstrong to the famed graduates of Manassas High School like Hank Crawford, Charles Lloyd, and George Coleman. Now, an autobiography released last year reveals a new name to be added to that list: Michael Wol , a pianist who emerged from the Memphis Jewish community.

ough his name may not be as familiar as the others, readers may have unwittingly seen him perform more than all the rest put together, at least those who were fans of e Arsenio Hall Show back in the ’90s — Wol was the show’s musical director.

the Tourette’s syndrome that Wol has grappled with all his life. As Wol puts it, his experience with Tourette’s has chie y involved nervous tics, noisemaking, or eye rolls, but typically not “the tic that involves yelling out inappropriate words in public for no apparent reason. anks to television, this behavior is probably what most people think of when they hear the term Tourette’s.” Yet the other “habits,” as he and his family called his symptoms, still stirred up feelings of shame and alienation as the young Wol grew up in Memphis.

“I was lucky to have parents who allowed me to be myself,” he writes. “ ey accepted me and my Tourette’s, and both of them encouraged me to become a musician.” He needed no great encouragement. As he puts it, “ e piano was really my saving grace. Just touching the ivory keys on our old upright soothed me and deactivated my need to tic — to make noises, to shrug and blink and snort and cough and clear my throat and clench my anus.

e energy of the music swam up my arms, dove into my body, and protected me from the evil compulsions I was trying to conquer.”

Yet that achievement hardly does justice to Wol ’s musical accomplishments or the fascinating tale of his life.

at’s what makes his memoir, On at Note: A Memoir of Jazz, Tics and Survival (Redwood Publishing), so enlightening, as he details the highs and lows of one completely devoted to jazz. Indeed, it’s practically a how-to book for those who hope to rise above any obstacles to become lifers in the world of music.

“When I was four years old,” Wol writes, “my father had my maternal grandmother’s big upright piano shipped from Covington, Louisiana, to our little house in Memphis. He stuck it right in the living room and immediately taught me ‘St. Louis Blues.’ ‘I hate to see that evening sun go down,’ he’d sing as I accompanied him. I loved playing on that old piano, and it’s still in the family. It’s beat to shit but has a lot of the original ivory keys on it, though they’re pretty chipped up.”

at passage evokes the avor of Wol ’s prose, sprinkled as it is with the casual profanities of gigging musicians who call it like they see it. Such language, though, should not be con ated with

And music was everywhere, from his father’s collection of jazz records to the Black gospel and blues he’d hear in Memphis or when visiting family in Indianola, Mississippi. He was more open to such experiences than most kids his age, for, as he writes, “Jews in the South — and I’m including the big cities, like Memphis, now — were comfortable around Black people, but they didn’t view them as equals. My father and mother were ahead of their time in that way. In 1959, my parents held one of the rst civil rights meetings in their home, with a group of whites from their temple and a group of Blacks from a local Black church.”

From there, his parents moved to Berkeley, California, where his mother threw herself into progressive activism, and where young Michael was exposed to brilliant jazz players like Bill Evans. Ultimately, he went on to work with the likes of Cannonball Adderley, Cal Tjader, and Sonny Rollins, as well as leading his own groups and releasing 21 albums. rough it all, he never lost touch with the Blu City, and he counts Representative Steve Cohen as a close friend. “His father was a pediatrician when my dad was an intern in Memphis. Later, I met Steve through one of my best friends, Warren Zevon,” he tells the Memphis Flyer. “We have been friends for decades.”

April 20th-22nd, 2023

Thanks to partnerships with the Rosa Foundation and North Mississippi Roots & Wings, additional historic interpreters will illustrate the roles of an antebellum brick maker and laundress, all during the 10th year of the tour in Holly Springs, Mississippi.

Holly Springs, Mississippi

Michael Wol , raised in Memphis, recalls a life in jazz in his memoir.

PHOTO: COURTESY MICHAEL WOLFF Michael Wol

GOOD TROUBLE

Back in January, Justin J. Pearson, a lean, intense young Memphian with a throwback Afro, had easily beaten several opponents in a special primary election for state House District 86, earning thereby an appointment to the legislature from the Shelby County Commission. He would later be sworn in as a formally elected member of the Tennessee legislature a er the Shelby County General Election of March 14th made him o cial.

For the March swearing-in

ceremony, he wore a dashiki under a suit coat — surely a clue to the custodians of the Republican supermajority that, as the successor to the late venerable Democratic populist Barbara Cooper in House District 86, here was a sparkling new wine in an ufamiliar bottle.

At the age of 28, Pearson was already the winner of a Davidvs.-Goliath struggle, having led a successful yearlong e ort — with allies like former Vice President Al Gore, no less — against a proposed oil pipeline in South Memphis.

Now, his arena was the hidebound oligarchy of the state House of Representatives, managed monolithically by Republicans. He would be a member of that body for only a few more days, during which he continued to endure the rookie syndrome of being routinely denied speaking time and of having his mic turned o on the rare occasions when he happened to get the oor.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Nashville, a troubled young assassin with an assault ri e entered a local school one morning and, before being felled by

police, methodically shot to death six people, including three 9-year-olds.

Motivated by a sense of horror that pervaded all of Tennessee, Pearson insisted on addressing this issue and demanded that the House consider genuine, e ective gun-safety legislation to quell what had become a national epidemic of rearms crimes.

He was joined by the entire Democratic caucus in this e ort and, in particular, by two caucus colleagues — schoolteacher Gloria Johnson of Knoxville, a liberal’s liberal, and 27-year-old Justin Jones of Nashville, a

COVER STORY By Jackson Baker

PHOTO: JOHN PARTIPILO | TENNESSEE LOOKOUT Justin J. Pearson, Gloria Johnson, and Justin Jones, known as the “Tennessee ree,” faced expulsion from the state legislature.

silver-tongued exponent of justice and direct action like Pearson himself.

The Tennessee Three

What happened next became a worldwide cause célèbre. Denied speaking time once again, the three took to the well of the House out of order, rousing the people in the lledup gallery, who were spillovers from the thousands-strong crowds outside who had come to the Capitol from all over Tennessee to demand action on guns, including among their shouted slogans “Fuck Bill Lee!” — a rebuke to the GOP governor who, the year before, had steered the passage of “open-carry” legislation.

e three legislators in the well chanted their message in solidarity, and, a er House Speaker Cameron Sexton turned o their microphones, Pearson and Jones employed megaphones to address the galleries.

at session of the House would dissolve into a recess called by an enraged Sexton, who would shortly let it be known that the two Justins and Johnson would face an expulsion vote.

e three path nders, driven by their own inner sense of decorum, had found themselves in a circumstance that the great civil rights icon John Lewis at Selma had called “good trouble” — that of having to face a di cult test in the name of a good cause. In Lewis’ case in 1965, that had meant exposing oneself to police truncheons and being trampled by stallions in the pursuit of the right to vote.

Exalting in the iconic phrase, Justin Jones gave that name, “good trouble,” to the gathering predicament of the Tennessee ree, as the outside world was beginning to call them.

A vote on their survival as members of the legislative body was scheduled to take place last ursday before a greatly ampli ed worldwide audience attuned to various electronic media sources.

e outcome, which saw youthful rebrands Pearson and Jones convicted via the lockstep power of the GOP supermajority, became an instant scandal, made more so by the reprieve from expulsion of Johnson by a single vote. Fairly or not, a consensus emerged that quite possibly the jurors’ racism accounted for the narrow escape of Johnson, a self-described “60-year-old white schoolteacher.”

One participant in the expulsion drama, former state Representative John Mark Windle of Livingston, was a bridge of sorts between last week’s events and another era of tumult at the Capitol in 2001. at was the time of an anti-income-tax riot, and the crowds then were fully as numerous — and as furious — as last week’s but motivated more by naked self-interest than by righteous civic indignation.

en a young House member, Windle had been sitting in the rstoor o ce of then-Governor Don Sundquist, who had proposed the soon-to-be-doomed state income tax, when a brick Windle described as football-sized came smashing through one of the glass panels of the governor’s window. By contrast, the crowds last week were animated but conspicuously nonviolent.

Windle, a moderate and former Democrat, had been defeated by a conservative Republican in 2022, when he ran for reelection as an Independent. Last week, he returned to the Capitol as one of two permitted legal advisors on the oor for Johnson. e other was former House minority leader Mike Stewart of Nashville.

Perhaps their advice was useful and somewhat exculpatory. While keeping the faith with fellow crusaders Jones and Pearson, Johnson noted that she had not wielded a megaphone nor raised her voice unduly in speaking for gun-safety legislation. “What is my crime?” she demanded.

Raising Their Voices

Who, indeed, were the actual malefactors? e Tennessee ree, whose highly public moment in de ance of the House rules followed days in which they were not allowed to speak their convictions? Or the GOP supermajority, whose legislative response to the shooting tragedy at Nashville’s Covenant School had been

to turn a deaf ear to the pleading crowds and call instead for more guns, proposing to arm teachers and harden school security forces? Or, for that matter, Governor Lee, he of the open-carry law, whose concessions to the NRA and the Tennessee Firearms Association over the years had been numerous and notorious?

this movement.

“And I pray to God to be able to use my voice as a member of the state legislature to represent Memphis and Shelby County and Millington to continue to ght to pass reasonable, sensible legislation that the majority of people in Tennessee want. e reality is we have a supermajority Republican legislature that doesn’t want to see progress, that prefers to listen to the NRA, rather than the constituents.

“And in fact, the speaker had the audacity to call some of those children and some of those parents and grandparents insurrectionists, likening them to January 6th, because they’re demanding that their voices be heard in a democracy, which is what we have a responsibility to ensure [so that] every person feels that they have a voice in democracy and will not be silenced.”

Speaking on ABC’s is Week program this past Sunday, Justin Pearson took pains to characterize the parties to last week’s events right, starting with the protesters: “It is young people; it’s children and teenagers by the thousands, who continue to protest, who continue to march, who continue to raise their voices to say we need to do something to end gun violence, we need to make sure that we’re banning assault weapons, we need red ag laws, we need gun storage safety laws in our state that are going to help to propel

In the a ermath of it all, the world is about to change. Locally, there are complications. Rumors abound that a promised $350 million state outlay to Memphis for infrastructure improvements could be in jeopardy if the Shelby County Commission votes to reappoint Justin Pearson to the vacated District 86 House seat. A similar amount to bene t the Regional One medical center may also be on the line.

Interviewed on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Pearson acknowledged his willingness to return to the legislature via a Commission vote and warned,

continued on page 12

“The reality is we have a supermajority Republican legislature that doesn’t want to see progress.”

PHOTO: JOHN PARTIPILO | TENNESSEE LOOKOUT Jones, anked by Pearson and Johnson, speaks into a megaphone on the House oor during a March 30th session.

Plant Sale

Lichterman Nature Center

April 14-15 9am

continued from page 11

“I’ve already heard that people in the state legislature and in Nashville are actually threatening our Shelby County commissioners to not reappoint me or they’re going to take away funding that’s in the governor’s budget for projects that the mayor and others have asked for.”

The 13-member Commission, dominated by nine confident and assertive activist Democrats, will hold a special called meeting this week and is expected to reappoint Pearson anyhow, the torpedoes be damned. Nashville’s Metro Council will have already acted on Monday on Jones’ behalf. By some reckonings, the two could be reinstated as early as this week — though it is possible the GOP supermajority might find a way not to seat them.

“We will continue to resist.” Meanwhile, the Tennessee House has been effectively disgraced by its action in expelling Pearson and Jones when lesser sanctions, like censure, were available for the infraction of being out of parliamentary order.

It has been ceaselessly and correctly pointed out that previous House expellees had committed actual offenses — like Republican state Representative Jeremy Durham in 2016, who was adjudged by a Speakerappointed investigating committee to have been guilty of more than 20 separate acts of sexual harassment. (Sam Whitson of Franklin, Durham’s successor in District 65, would coincidentally — and perhaps ironically — be the only Republican who voted against expulsion for every one of the Tennessee Three last week.)

And there was the case of the House member — never quite precisely identified but widely assumed to be a certain flamboyant arch-conservative from rural West Tennessee — who, a few seasons back, urinated on the chair of fellow Republican Rick Tillis, a moderate who had been critical of the House leadership. No investigation, no calls for ouster, or even censure.

Meanwhile, each of the two Justins has become a media star and an incipient leader of a re-galvanized — and expanded — movement for justice and civil rights.

It is even possible that serious efforts to ban assault weapons and provide other remedies like red flag laws can be accelerated — though not likely in Tennessee, once known as a moderate bellwether state and now entombed in Trumpian, Deep South mediocrity.

This is a legislature — “the most mean-spirited and vindictive I can remember,” says state Representative Dwayne Thompson of Shelby’s suburban District 96 — whose idea of progress is to pass bans on drag shows, to humble

and block the state’s LGBTQ community at every turn, and to make sure that transgender youths receive no medical support, nor is it any kinder to the state’s straight population — conspiring to keep labor unions out of Tennessee’s new car plants and to reject the federal government’s proffered billion-dollar bounties to expand Medicaid in an age of increased need, with the state’s hospitals desperate and failing.

Numerous liberation movements now abound, like those involving gender identity. Others simply seek the age-old chimera of economic justice.

And it passes strange that commonsense legislative efforts to protect human beings from assault by gun-wielding murderers should be controversial at all and unworthy even of discussion by a state legislature.

Pearson and Jones are at a crossroads. They stand ready to return to the place of their expulsion and use their momentum, their zeal, their eloquence, and, let us face it, their celebrity, to move the entrenched mountains of indifference and privilege there to make room for new ideas, to meet new needs, and, by their example, to summon others to the cause.

Young Pearson’s celebrity, in particular, seems to have no bounds. In addition to his multiple national talk-show appearances on Sunday, he was a cynosure that day at First Unitarian Church of Memphis, where he preached from the pulpit.

The Old Order in the legislature may attempt once more to ostracize its two outcasts upon their return and to ignore their social gospel, a mix of up-to-the-minute secularism and old-fashioned spirituality. It will doubtless try to deny the two their seats on some technicality, and a new battle could commence.

But the Republican supermajority is now on notice. As Justin Jones told NBC’s Chuck Todd on Sunday, “We are in the midst of a third Reconstruction, beginning here in Nashville. And the message is that we will continue to resist.”

“We are in the midst of a third Reconstruction, beginning here in Nashville. And the message is that we will continue to resist.”

Live music at

steppin’ out

We Recommend: Culture, News + Reviews

Out on the Front Porch

By Abigail Morici

Rascal Flatts once sang of sitting on the front porch, drinking ice-cold cherry Coke, but this weekend nearly 40 front porches in Cooper-Young will be for more than those cherry Cokes — they’re going to be stages for nearly a hundred bands putting on free concerts at the third-ever Cooper-Young Porchfest.

Since the inaugural festival in the spring of 2021, Porchfest has clearly grown from the 40 bands volunteering to perform on 20 porches. Its inception is not an original idea, with more than a hundred cities holding porchfests of their own since 2007, says Amanda Yarbro-Dill, Cooper-Young Community Association’s executive director. For Memphis, though, its rst Porchfest came at just the right time when freshly Covidvaccinated people were buzzing to get out and about. “A lot of bands hadn’t really gotten back to playing a lot,” Yarbro-Dill says, “so I think there was a lot of enthusiasm because of that.” But she didn’t expect that the next year the number of volunteer bands would double and that it’d even increase for this year’s fest.

“It feels like Cooper-Young Festival Junior,” Yarbro-Dill says of the event. “But it’s an entirely music-focused day instead of an arts and cra s fest day.” e acts, each lasting around an hour, range in their genres from Americana to environmental crybaby punk. You can also catch some family-friendly drag performances, including a Disney-inspired show with Taco Belle at 3 p.m. and a show with Magical Miss Mothie & Friends at 5 p.m. Since all the performers are volunteers, tips are encouraged, with most accepting Venmo or Cash App.

“It’s like if you wanted to come and spend the whole day in Cooper-Young, you can,” Yarbro-Dill says, adding that before the fest begins, the Cooper-Young Community Association will host its annual Community Yard Sale. “You could start out in the morning, and go to yard sales. Go to lunch somewhere here in the neighborhood; patronize our businesses. Come by the gazebo, where we’ll be selling T-shirts and then we’ll also have the map for all the shows. en you can go to however many shows you want.”

Following the festival, for the rst time, there will also be an a er-party presented by Young Avenue Sound, Memphis Whistle, and Underground Art. “ ey’re gonna actually shut the street down there to have a street party and have bands play,” Yarbro-Dill says. Cyrena Wages, Jombi, Joybomb, and DJ Kaz will perform.

A full lineup of the day’s events and a map can be found at cooperyoung.org/porchfest. Porchfest is sponsored by Memphis Made Brewing Company and Steve Womack’s State Farm Insurance Agency.

COMMUNITY YARD SALE, COOPER-YOUNG HISTORIC DISTRICT, SATURDAY, APRIL 15, 9 A.M.-1 P.M., FREE.

COOPER-YOUNG PORCHFEST, COOPER-YOUNG HISTORIC DISTRICT, SATURDAY, APRIL 15, NOON-6 P.M., FREE. PORCHFEST AFTERPARTY, PARKING LOT AND GARAGE OF YOUNG AVENUE SOUND, SATURDAY, APRIL 15, 6 P.M., FREE.

Memphis International Auto Show

Renasant Convention Center, FridaySunday, April 14-16, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., free

e Memphis International Auto Show returns to Memphis with the latest cars, trucks, crossovers, SUVs, electric vehicles, exotics, and more. is is the place to sit behind wheels, inspect engines, experience new technologies, and even take a test drive of a plethora of 2023-model vehicles in a nonselling environment.

Drag Rocks

Evergreen eatre, Friday, April 14-22, $27-$60

Get ready for an unforgettable night lled with rock-inspired comedy and drag at Friends of George’s production of Drag Rocks. e original comedy/variety/drag show will have you laughing all night with sketches,

live entertainment, and fantastic performances from some of your favorite Memphis entertainers.

In addition to having a blast, you will also be supporting a great cause — proceeds from this event will go towards Choices: Memphis Center for Reproductive Health. Don’t miss this fun show — get your tickets at friendsofgeorges.org.

Performances are Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m. through April 22nd, with a 2 p.m. performance on Sunday, April 16th, and an 8 p.m. performance on ursday, April 20th.

Taste the Rarity

Wiseacre Brewing Company, Saturday, April 15, 3-7 p.m., $70-$115

Featuring breweries from all over the country, Taste the Rarity is a specially curated festival dedicated to beer, fun, and weirdness. Your

ticket gets you a wristband, taster glass, and four hours of unlimited drinking. ere will also be live music, food trucks, and other nonsense for you to enjoy.

To stay up to date on event details, follow Wiseacre on Instagram (@wiseacrebrewingcompany).

30th Annual Rajun Cajun Craw sh Festival

Riverside Dr., Sunday, April 16, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., free

is festival features live music from nationally known Louisiana zydeco bands and local award-winning artists in Memphis. Enjoy games including craw sh bobbing, eating, and racing; arts and cra s vendors; and the kids area for children ages 12 and under. Visit rajuncajunmemphis.org for more information.

VARIOUS DAYS & TIMES April 13th - 19th

PHOTO: BRANDON DILL

Time to get your porch on.

AFTER DARK: Live Music Schedule April 13 - 19

Amber McCain Band

Friday, April 14, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Donna Padgett Bowers

Presents

Variety show of Memphis talent.

Friday, April 14, 8:30 p.m.

WESTY’S

Easy Mo Bee

Friday, April 14, 9 p.m.

CENTRAL STATION HOTEL

Elevation Memphis

ursday, April 13, 6:30-9:30 p.m.

CENTRAL STATION HOTEL

Eric Hughes Band

ursday, April 13, 7-11 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Grassfire Bluegrass Band

Sunday, April 16, noon-3 p.m.

LOFLIN YARD

Hope MacGregor & Friends

Saturday, April 15, 8:30-10:30 a.m.

MEMPHIS FARMERS MARKET

John Easton

Saturday, April 15, 3:15 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Memphis Songwriters Series

Hosted by Mark Edgar Stuart. $5. ursday, April 13, 7 p.m.

THE HALLORAN CENTRE

Payton Smith

Friday, April 14, 8 p.m.

TIN ROOF

PC Band

Sunday, April 16, 4-8 p.m.

CAROLINA WATERSHED

Richard Wilson

Soulful blues and jazz. Saturday, April 15, 12:30-3:30 p.m.

RUM BOOGIE CAFE

Robbie Bletscher on Piano

Wednesday, April 19, 5:30-8 p.m.

WESTY’S

Rodell McCord

Saturday, April 15, 6:30 p.m.; Sunday, April 16, 7 p.m.; Wednesday, April 19, 8 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Sande Lollis, Dave Christen, AJ Fullerton, Hope MacGregor

Friday, April 14, 7-9 p.m.

SOUTH MAIN SOUNDS

Scratch and Snare

Every ursday night join Tin Roof for Scratch and Snare with DJ Stringbean and Matt the Drummer. ursday, April 13, 10 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Trevor Berryhill

Saturday, April 15, noon.

TIN ROOF

Wendell Wells & The Big Americans ursday, April 13, 8:30 p.m.; Saturday, April 15, 8:30 p.m.

WESTY’S

Willie Traywick

Friday, April 14, 10 p.m.; Saturday, April 15, 10 p.m.

TIN ROOF

Don Twan, Dudecalledrob, DJ Ben Murray, & More

Saturday, April 15, 9 p.m.-3 a.m.

MEMPHIS MUSIC ROOM

Hope MacGregor & Friends

Saturday, April 15, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

ELWOOD’S SHACK

John Williams and the A440 Band

$10. ursday, April 13, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Keepin It Memphis

Promoting Memphis culture and highlighting the works of the Memphis underground arts scene. $15.

Wednesday, April 19, 7-10:30 p.m.

MEMPHIS MUSIC ROOM

Natchez with Bob Nelson

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

Lipstick Stains, Little Baby Tendencies, Jadewick, Burn the Witch

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Lucky 7 Brass Band

Friday, April 14, 8 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

Memphis Knights Big Band

Monday, April 17, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Almost Elton John

With special guest performances by Mandi omas-Moore (from e Voice), Karen Brown, and many more. $35. Saturday, April 15, 7:30 p.m.

OVERTON PARK SHELL

Bluff City Bandits

Saturday, April 15, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

BMF Birdies Presents: High Volume With Shamothy, Starbunny, Lord Byron, Ash Leon, and Trees Tarantino. $5. Wednesday, April 19, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Bubby Galloway

Sunday, April 16, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Chained to the Bottom of the Ocean, Breaking/Entering, Mammoth Caravan

Tuesday, April 18, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Chris Franjola with Will King

ursday, April 13, 7 p.m.

GROWLERS

Clutch: No Stars Above Tour With special guests Amigo the Devil and Nate Bergman. Tuesday, April 18, 8 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

Cooper-Young Porchfest Afterparty!

Cyrene Wages, Jombi, Joy Bomb, DJ Kaz, and very special guests.

Saturday, April 15, 6 p.m.

YOUNG AVENUE SOUND

Dandelion Williams, Maddie

Caldwell, Graber Gryass

Friday, April 14, 8 p.m.

HI TONE

Franks and Deans

ursday, April 13, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

Joe Restivo 4

Saturday, April 15, 11 a.m.; Sunday, April 16, 11 a.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

8 Miles High

Sunday, April 16, 5-9 p.m.

NEIL’S MUSIC ROOM

John R. Miller

ursday, April 13, 8 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

Not Your Nails: A Tribute to Nine Inch Nails

Saturday, April 15, 9 p.m.

HI TONE

On & Ohn, Victory Fives, Johnny & The Seagulls

Saturday, April 15, 9 p.m.

B-SIDE

Orville Peck

Wednesday, April 19, 8 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

Ouija Macc

Wednesday, April 19, 7 p.m.

GROWLERS

Play Some Skynyrd

Friday, April 14, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Rock the Boat

Wednesday, April 19, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Runaway Grooms

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

School of Rock

Saturday, April 15, 2 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Seeing Red

Saturday, April 15, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Shell on Wheels: Ekpe and the African Jazz Ensemble Free. Saturday, April 15, 6:30 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

Shell on Wheels: Gritty City Bang Bang featuring Hope Clayburn & Gerald Stephens

Free. Friday, April 14, 6:30 p.m.

BENJAMIN L. HOOKS CENTRAL LIBRARY

Six Feet Thunder

Friday, April 14, 10 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Songwriters Night: Victoria Dowdy, Faith Evans Ruch, Jeff Pruitt

Set-break: Chris Hamlett and Curtis B. Scott. $5. Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

THE COVE

Southern Grind Sessions

Tuesday, April 18, 6 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Tape B, Okayjake (fka Kick), Raxx, Mado, Waweezy

$15-$18. Friday, April 14, 9 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

The Pinch

Sunday, April 16, 8 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band

ursday, April 13, 8 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

The Runaway Grooms

$10. Saturday, April 15, 8-11 p.m.

RAILGARTEN

The Well with Firebreather, Destroyer of Light and Temptress

Friday, April 14, 7 p.m.

GROWLERS

Tora Tora

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

Triple Annie

Sunday, April 16, 3:30 p.m.

LAFAYETTE’S MUSIC ROOM

Wagoneer EP Release/ Send-off Show

With Banales and e Fretx.

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

LAMPLIGHTER LOUNGE

Young Nudy

Friday, April 14, 8 p.m.

MINGLEWOOD HALL

A.J. Fullerton

Saturday, April 15, 3-6 p.m.

GRIND CITY BREWING CO.

Electrick Nobody with The Smokin’ Jays & Oliveria

$10. ursday, April 13, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDEAWAY

Finley Watkins

Finley will be paying tribute to legends such as Elvis, Johnny Cash, B.B. King, and many more.

Saturday, April 15, 6-8 p.m.

MARLOWE’S RIBS & RESTAURANT

Grassfire Bluegrass Band

Tuesday, April 18, 6-9 p.m.

RANCHO GRANDE MEXICAN RESTURATANT

The Cold Stares with Sunweight and Deaf Revival

$15. Friday, April 14, 7 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

Ween Tribute: Golden Country Greats

Performed by Memphis’ own Pure Guava. $10. Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

HERNANDO’S HIDE-A-WAY

901 Notes: Bailey Bigger and Star & Micey

Saturday, April 15, 7:30 p.m.

BARTLETT PERFORMING ARTS AND CONFERENCE CENTER

Marc Cohn & Shawn Colvin

$35. Saturday, April 15, 8-10 p.m.

GERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

PHOTO: JOHN CANON Young Nudy

CALENDAR of EVENTS: April 13 - 19

Send the date, time, place, cost, info, phone number, a brief description, and photos — two weeks in advance — to calendar@memphisflyer.com.

DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, ONGOING WEEKLY EVENTS WILL APPEAR IN THE FLYER’S ONLINE CALENDAR ONLY. FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, VISIT EVENTS. MEMPHISFLYER.COM/CAL.

ART AND SPECIAL EXHIBITS

“American Made”

Exhibition of more than 100 works, spanning 250 years of American history. Through April 16.

THE DIXON GALLERY & GARDENS

“Brick X Brick”

An interactive exhibition to bring about restoration to the folks in the community. Through May 7.

ART HAPPENINGS

Brunch & Crafts

Start your day with a brunch and market featuring local art-makers. Saturday, April 15, noon-6 p.m.

CAROLINA WATERSHED

Crosstown Arts Resident Artists Open

Studio Night

Artists in residence will have their studios open to the public. Free. Friday, April 14, 6 p.m.

CROSSTOWN ARTS AT THE CONCOURSE

Happy Hour with Easy Mo Bee

A special happy hour conversation and Q&A with legendary hip-hop, R&B, and jazz producer Easy Mo Bee. Friday, April 14, 6 p.m.

STAX MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL MUSIC

Narration in Culture and Books

Join local entrepreneur Jasmine Settles for an engaging tour of “Harmonia Rosales: Master Narrative,” focusing on the narrative aspect of the exhibition. Wednesday, April 19, 6 p.m.

MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART

Crossword

ACROSS

1 Athlete with the 1999 guide “Go for the Goal”

Role for Hugh O’Brian on TV and Kevin Costner in film 58 Tailgaters’ tote 59 Shade akin to cerulean 60 Enthusiast’s purchase 61 Wet cloud DOWN

1 Bandwidth unit

2 Maker of the MDX and RDX

3 1983 comedy/ drama about a stay-at-home dad

4 Remark of envy

5 Arguing with God, for example

6 One of several French kings

7 ___-approved

8 Sort who entices others to follow

COMMUNITY

Volunteer Odyssey: 10 Year

Celebration

This family-friendly event will feature food, Memphis Made beer, nonprofit tables, games, and more.

Saturday, April 15, noon-3 p.m.

CROSSTOWN ARTS AT THE CONCOURSE

FESTIVAL

30th Annual

Rajun Cajun

Crawfish Festival benefiting PorterLeath

Live music, contests, and a kids area. Free.

Sunday, April 16, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.

DOWNTOWN MEMPHIS ON RIVERSIDE DRIVE, BETWEEN

JEFFERSON AND MONROE

Art in The Loop

Featuring artworks in metal, glass, wood, clay, fiber, and more. Free. Friday, April 14-April 16.

RIDGEWAY LOOP

Cooper-Young Porchfest

Over 75 bands will perform on porches around Cooper-Young. Free. Saturday, April 15, noon.

COOPER-YOUNG HISTORIC DISTRICT

Edited by Will Shortz No. 1215

In “Brick X Brick” at TONE, Talibah Safiya and Bertram Williams Jr. present a communal gardening exhibition.

Taste the Rarity Beer, fun, and weirdness. Saturday, April 15, 3 p.m.

WISEACRE BREWERY

PERFORMING ARTS

Cinderella

The tale of a young woman who transcends her circumstances with the help of a little magic. Friday, April 14-April 16.

ORPHEUM THEATRE

Drag Rocks

An unforgettable night filled with rockinspired comedy and drag by Friends of George’s. Proceeds from this event will go towards Choices. Friday, April 14-April 22.

THE EVERGREEN THEATRE

Dungeons & Drags

A choose-your-own-adventure drag show.

Friday, April 14, 10 p.m.

DRU’S PLACE

Jose Limon Dance Company

This company is revered throughout the world for its dramatic expression, technical mastery, and expansive yet nuanced movement. Sunday, April 16, 7 p.m.

BUCKMAN ARTS CENTER AT ST. MARY’S SCHOOL

Rainbow Rumble: Weather Channel

A once-a-month drag and performer competition hosted by Moth Moth Moth. 18+. $15.

Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.

BLACK LODGE

SPECIAL EVENTS

Memphis International Auto Show

Featuring the latest cars, trucks, crossovers, SUVs, electric vehicles, test drives, and more. Free. Friday, April 14-April 16.

RENASANT CONVENTION CENTER

P(ART)ON: An Art Benefit

Celebrating the Life of Shea Grauer

A silent auction showcasing Dolly Parton-themed art, with live music and performances. Sunday, April 16, 1-7 p.m.

BRANTLEY ELLZEY’S SUMMER STUDIO

SPORTS

901 Wrestling

Experience live professional wrestling. Saturday, April 15, 11:30 a.m.

BLACK LODGE

Memphis 901 FC vs. Las Vegas Lights FC

Saturday, April 15, 7 p.m.

AUTOZONE PARK

Memphis Redbirds vs. Indianapolis Indians

Tuesday, April 18, 6:45 p.m.; Wednesday, April 19, 12:05 p.m.

AUTOZONE PARK

Memphis Showboats vs. Philadelphia

Saturday, April 15, 3:30 p.m.

LIBERTY BOWL STADIUM

THEATER

Ink

A team of underdog reporters and a rogue editor set out to beat the competition and change the way the world looks at news — all this under the watchful eye of Rupert Murdoch. Through April 16.

CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE

By the editors at Andrews McMeel Syndication

Awesome!

Kansans take their tornado sirens seriously, so it was no surprise that on March 4 in the Wichita suburb of Park City, a ribbon-cutting ceremony took place to mark the reinstallation of the city’s oldest Thunderbolt siren, KSNWTV reported. The sirens are remnants of the Cold War, and four of them are still in service in Sedgwick County. “About a year ago, we took them down, had them refurbished, and put them back up in our system,” explained Jonathan Marr, deputy director for Sedgwick County Emergency Management. The feted siren had been in use for 70 years. [KSNW, 3/6/2023]

It’s Come to This

Tattoo artist Dean Gunther of Manchester, United Kingdom, has made one man’s body goals come true: He’s inked a ripped six-pack on the man’s torso, freeing the man from eating right and exercising more, the Daily Mail reported on March 6. “He decided that by getting a six-pack tattoo, he will always look summer-ready while still being able to enjoy beer and good food,” Gunther said of his customer. The artistic tat took two days to complete. [Daily Mail, 3/6/2023]

Compelling Explanation

At a preliminary hearing in San Francisco Superior Court on March 6, police officers offered testimony about a Feb. 1 incident in which Dmitri Mishin fired a replica gun inside a synagogue, The San Francisco Standard reported. As officers interrogated Mishin, he explained that the shooting was an act of prayer he was giving for his neighbor’s bird. Mishin, who pleaded not guilty, told officers he lives on a submarine and talks with North Korean and Japanese leaders, and that weapons found in his home were movie props. After the shooting at the synagogue, he waved goodbye and left. Unsurprisingly, this isn’t Mishin’s first run-in with the law; his mother testified that he suffers from mental illness. The hearing was ongoing. [SF Standard, 3/6/2023]

Pick on Somebody Your Own Size

David Jimenez, 65, of Maui, Hawaii, was arrested on March 6 for “pursuing a humpback whale,” CBS News reported. Jimenez, who calls himself Dolphin Dave, was allegedly harassing

the whale and dolphins in Kealakekua Bay State Historical Park, where he was snorkeling. Jimenez was unrepentant, though: He told officers “he’s not going to stop swimming with whales and dolphins ‘because it’s magical and others do much worse things.’” Hump back whales are protected under the National Marine Sanctuaries Act. [CBS News, 3/7/2023]

Bright Idea

In China, women modeling lingerie for online retailers violates the coun try’s rules about spreading obscene material, Insider reported on March 1. Instead, underwear companies are hir ing men to model the clothing — and it’s working out better than you might think. “The guy wears it better than the girl,” one online commenter posted. Others argue that the restrictions are “depriving women of job opportunities.” “We don’t really have a choice,” said one business owner, Mr. Xu. “The designs can’t be modeled by our female colleagues, so we will use our male colleagues to model it.” [Insider, 3/1/2023]

It’s Good to Have a Hobby

You missed it again. Key West’s annual Conch Shell Blowing Contest took place on March 4, with Carol Whiteley of Ontario, Canada, winning the women’s division and Brian Cardis of Macon, Georgia, taking the men’s top prize. Entrants of all ages were judged on quality, novelty, duration, and loud ness, the Associated Press reported. Michael and Georgann Wachter from Avon Lake, Ohio, impressed the audience with a shell and vocal duet of Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog.” Whiteley said she toots her shell to celebrate sunsets at her riverside home. Time to start practicing for next year! [AP, 3/4/2023]

Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com. News of the Weird is now a podcast on all major platforms! Visit newsoftheweirdpodcast.com to find out more.

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40 tier points = 1 drawing entry.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): An old sadness is ripening into practical wisdom. A confusing loss is about to yield a clear revelation you can use to improve your life. In mysterious ways, a broken heart you suffered in the past may become a wild card that inspires you to deepen and expand your love. Wow and hallelujah, Taurus! I’m amazed at the turnarounds that are in the works for you. Sometime in the coming weeks, what wounded you once upon a time will lead to a vibrant healing. Wonderful surprise!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): What is the true and proper symbol for your sign, Gemini? Twins standing shoulder to shoulder as they gaze out on the world with curiosity? Or two lovers embracing each other with mischievous adoration in their eyes? Both scenarios can accurately represent your energy, depending on your mood and the phase you’re in. In the coming weeks, I advise you to draw on the potency of both. You will be wise to coordinate the different sides of your personality in pursuit of a goal that interests them all. And you will also place yourself in harmonious alignment with cosmic rhythms as you harness your passionate urge to merge in a good cause.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Some scientists speculate that more people suffer from allergies than ever before because civilization has over-sanitized the world. The fetish for scouring away germs and dirt means that our immune systems don’t get enough practice in fending off interlopers. In a sense, they are “bored” because they have too little to do. That’s why they fight stuff that’s not a threat, like tree pollens and animal dander. Hence, we develop allergies to harmless substances. I hope you will apply this lesson as a metaphor in the coming weeks, fellow Cancerian. Be sure the psychological component of your immune system isn’t warding off the wrong people and things. It’s healthy for you to be protective, but not hyper-overprotective in ways that shut out useful influences.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): One night in 1989, Leo evolutionary biologist Margie Profet went to sleep and had a dream that revealed to her new information about the nature of menstruation. The dream scene was a cartoon of a woman’s reproductive system. It showed little triangles being carried away by the shed menstrual blood. Eureka! As Profet lay in bed in the dark, she intuited a theory that no scientist had ever guessed: that the sloughed-off uterine lining had the key function of eliminating pathogens, represented by the triangles. In subsequent years, she did research to test her idea, supported by studies with electron microscopes. Now her theory is regarded as fact. I predict that many of you Leos will soon receive comparable ben-

efits. Practical guidance will be available in your dreams and twilight awareness and altered states. Pay close attention!

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You don’t know what is invisible to you. The truths that are out of your reach may as well be hiding. The secret agendas you are not aware of are indeed secret. That’s the notso-good news, Virgo. The excellent news is that you now have the power to uncover the rest of the story, at least some of it. You will be able to penetrate below the surface and find buried riches. You will dig up missing information whose absence has prevented you from understanding what has been transpiring. There may be a surprise or two ahead, but they will ultimately be agents of healing.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Visionary philosopher Buckminster Fuller referred to pollution as a potential resource we have not yet figured out how to harvest. A company called Algae Systems does exactly that. It uses wastewater to grow algae that scrub carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and yield carbon-negative biofuels. Can we invoke this approach as a metaphor that’s useful to you? Let’s dream up examples. Suppose you’re a creative artist. You could be inspired by your difficult emotions to compose a great song, story, painting, or dance. Or if you’re a lover who is in pain, you could harness your suffering to free yourself of a bad old habit or ensure that an unpleasant history doesn’t repeat itself. Your homework, Libra, is to figure out how to take advantage of a “pollutant” or two in your world.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Soon you will graduate from your bumpy lessons and enter a smoother, silkier phase. You will find refuge from the naysayers as you create a liberated new power spot for yourself. In anticipation of this welcome transition, I offer this motivational exhortation from poet Gwendolyn Brooks: “Say to them, say to the down-keepers, the sun-slappers, the self-soilers, the harmony-hushers, ‘Even if you are not ready for day, it cannot always be night.’” I believe you are finished with your worthwhile but ponderous struggles, Scorpio. Get ready for an excursion toward luminous grace.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I periodically seek the counsel of a Sagittarian psychic. She’s half-feral and sometimes speaks in riddles. She tells me she occasionally converses by phone with a person she calls “the ex-Prime Minister of Narnia.” I confided in her that lately it has been a challenge for me to keep up with you Sagittarians because you have been expanding beyond the reach of my concepts. She gave me a pronouncement that felt vaguely helpful, though it was also a bit over my head: “The Archer may be quite luxuriously curious and furiously

ARIES (March 21-April 19):

I hope that in the coming weeks, you will keep your mind bubbling with zesty mysteries. I hope you’ll exult in the thrill of riddles that are beyond your current power to solve. If you cultivate an appreciation of uncanny uncertainties, life will soon begin bringing you uncanny certainties. Do you understand the connection between open-hearted curiosity and fertile rewards? Don’t merely tolerate the enigmas you are immersed in — love them!

hilarious; studiously lascivious and victoriously delirious; salubriously industrious but never lugubriously laborious.” Here’s how I interpret that: Right now, pretty much anything is possible if you embrace unpredictability.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “I’m not insane,” says Capricorn actor Jared Leto. “I’m voluntarily indifferent to conventional rationality.” That attitude might serve you well in the coming weeks. You could wield it to break open opportunities that were previously closed due to excess caution. I suspect you’re beginning a fun phase of self-discovery when you will learn a lot about yourself. As you do, I hope you will experiment with being at least somewhat indifferent to conventional rationality. Be willing to be surprised. Be receptive to changing your mind about yourself.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): People of all genders feel urges to embellish their native beauty with cosmetic enhancements. I myself haven’t done so, but I cheer on those who use their flesh for artistic experiments. At the same time, I am also a big fan of us loving ourselves exactly as we are. And I’m hoping that in the coming weeks, you will emphasize the latter over the former. I urge you to indulge in an intense period of maximum self-appreciation. Tell yourself daily how gorgeous and brilliant you are. Tell others, too! Cultivate a glowing pride in the gifts you offer the world. If anyone complains, tell them you’re doing the homework your astrologer gave you.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I encourage you to amplify the message you have been trying to deliver. If there has been any shyness or timidity in your demeanor, purge it. If you have been less than forthright in speaking the whole truth and nothing but the truth, boost your clarity and frankness. Is there anything you could do to help your audience be more receptive? Any tenderness you could express to stimulate their willingness and ability to see you truly?

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY By Rob Brezsny

FILM By Izzy Wollfarth

The Making of a Legend

In Air, Ben A eck and Matt Damon reunite to tell the story of how Nike landed Michael Jordan.

It’s newsworthy that Ben A eck and Matt Damon are once again making movies together in 2023. e duo rst burst onto the scene in 1998, when their script for Good Will Hunting won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, and also saw Robin Williams earn a Best Supporting Actor trophy. Fast-forward 25 years, and the duo is back with their new lm, Air. Unlike Good Will Hunting’s coming-of-age plot, Air is a true story: the history of Nike footwear.

Air begins in 1984 when shoe companies Adidas, Nike, and Converse are battling for market share. e three rms are ghting, with varying levels of success, to catch famous athletes’ attention — especially in the NBA, where Michael Jordan is a rising star. Jordan has a clear interest in Adidas and a sponsorship from Converse; Nike, with its 17 percent market share, is an a erthought.

Basketball scout Sonny Vaccaro (Damon) sets out to make Nike a force to be reckoned with. Vaccaro goes way beyond his jurisdiction to create the Air Jordan, the now-legendary sneaker that catapulted

Nike to the top table. Although Vaccaro’s risks lead to eventual success, many of the hurdles he encounters threaten the company’s stability and reputation. But in the end, Vaccaro created a new paradigm for celebrity endorsement.

Damon is only one of many familiar faces in Air, along with Chris Tucker, Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, and Viola Davis. As a director, A eck uses each actor’s individual styles to evoke the very real people they’re portraying. One example is Viola Davis’ portrayal of Deloris Jordan, Michael Jordan’s mom. Making most of the decisions for him during that time, Michael Jordan’s parents were pivotal gures who negotiated contracts and dealt with the media. Davis’ rm motherly hand and emotional balance makes you believe Michael Jordan is her actual son. Similarly, Chris Tucker’s portrayal of Nike executive Howard White leverages Tucker’s comedic chops during tense scenarios, while also sincerely conveying the loyalty White had for Vaccaro and Nike.

From the start of the lm, A eck takes the viewer back to the ’80s, with clips of

Mr. T and popular infomercials; ’80s hits like Cyndi Lauper’s “Time A er Time” soundtrack long drives. Even Afeck’s camera shots look like they came from ’80s lms, like the repeated extreme closeups of Sonny’s face. e bright wardrobe colors worn by Damon made this Gen-Zer run to my grandfather’s closet to nd his Members Only jacket.

ere’s one thing about the cast list that stands out: Michael Jordan, the man himself, is not in the lm. Really? You had a $60-$70 million dollar budget, and you don’t even have a cameo of Michael Jordan? But Air is all the better without him. We get to know Vaccaro as a risk-taking go-getter, although he makes everyone around him anxious. Other minor characters like Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman) are given opportunities to shine, especially through Strasser’s arc about his daughter and the risks he wasn’t able to take. Add in

Michael Jordan and Air becomes all about him. e movie’s message about taking risks and the qualities that made it special would be overshadowed by the presence of the superstar.

e messages of this movie can be encompassed in one quote which keeps getting repeated: “A shoe is just a shoe until someone puts their foot in it.” is story was just an idea until A eck and Damon got their hands on it — and made it something special.

Air

Now playing Multiple locations

Matt Damon’s Sonny Vaccaro sits across from Viola Davis’ Deloris Jordan.

Our critic picks the best films in theaters. Renfield

Dracula’s faithful thrall has been with him since the beginning. But this relationship is starting to show its age, as Renfield slowly realizes he doesn’t have to live like this. This horror comedy features the casting coup of the decade with the great Nicolas Cage as freakin’ Dracula. Shut up and take my money!

The Pope’s Exorcist

Russell Crowe stars as Father Gabriele Amorth, the real-life priest and founder of the International Association of Exorcists, who claimed to have vanquished infernal hordes during his 24-year exorcism career.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Speaking of Italians, this humble plumber-turned-video-game-hero just launched a blue shell at the box office. $204 million domestic in three days means we’re going to be seeing a lot more Nintendo characters in IMAX. Get in on the ground floor of the critical backlash today!

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

It’s official: More people play Mario Kart than D&D. And that’s okay because this movie adaptation is actually good! Chris Pine, the superior of the Chrises, brings movie-star charisma to this inventive and fun fantasy heist romp that feels like a true campaign.

NOTICE TO ALL PROPERTY OWNERS

As required by Tennessee Code Annotated § 67-5-508, the property assessment records of Shelby County will be available for public inspection at 1075 Mullins Station Road. These records may be inspected Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Any person desiring to inspect these records may do so at the above times and places. Property assessment records may also be reviewed through the Assessor’s website at www.assessormelvinburgess.com

THE SHELBY COUNTY BOARD OF EQUALIZATION WILL BEGIN ITS ANNUAL SESSION TO EXAMINE AND EQUALIZE COUNTY ASSESSMENTS ON MAY 1, 2023. THE COUNTY BOARD WILL ACCEPT APPEALS FOR THE 2023 TAX YEAR UNTIL 4:30 P.M., JUNE 30, 2023, THE LAST DAY OF ITS REGULAR SESSION.

The Shelby County Board of Equalization (SCBoE) is open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 1075 Mullins Station Road, Suite C-142. Any property owner who wishes to appeal to the County Board of Equalization may file in person, online or by mail. Appeals may be filed online by 11:59 p.m. on June 30th . Mailed in appeals must be postmarked on or before June 30th . Failure to appeal may result in the assessment becoming final without further right of appeal. Please contact the SCBoE at 901-222-7300 for additional information or you may visit their website at boe.shelbycountytn.gov.

SHOP & SHIP

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Melvin Burgess Shelby County Assessor of Property

NOW PLAYING By Chris McCoy

Faith and Labor Justice

Economic justice is more urgent than ever.

As millions celebrated Holy Week and Passover last week, many clergy and lay activists delved into their own faith traditions to link these observances with ongoing struggles for economic justice.

An interfaith worker-justice Seder in Long Beach, California, retells the Passover story of liberation in contemporary terms, relating the ancient narrative to contemporary struggles for freedom and economic justice on the part of hospitality workers. An interfaith “stations of the worker’s cross” drew workers, clergy, and community activists to Downtown Los Angeles hotels last Friday, where they walked from hotel to hotel, calling attention to the denial of hotel workers’ rights and dignity.

Such observances call to mind the important role, particularly since the mid-20th century, that clergy and lay activists have played in American labor history. ese activists helped reframe workers’ struggles within the ethical language of scripture, calling on employers and the community at large to ful ll a collective responsibility to their fellow human beings, no matter their status or station in life.

When Dr. Martin Luther King took up the cause of Memphis’ striking sanitation workers in 1968, he supported their unionizing e orts in response to the dangerous working conditions and oppressive racism they faced every day — as well as to wage levels that le 40 percent of them living below the poverty level. In the speech he delivered to strikers and others on April 3, 1968, Dr. King called for what he labeled a “dangerous unsel shness,” citing Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan to frame the crisis at hand. He said, “ e question is not, ‘If I stop to help this man in need, what will happen to me?’ [but rather] ‘If I do not stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?’ at’s the question.” e following evening, Dr. King was felled by an assassin’s bullet. It took 11 days of rage and violence in 125 cities all over the country before Memphis’ mayor allowed an agreement between the city and the sanitation workers, honoring their right to form a union. e agreement provided signi cant improvements in working conditions and prohibited the use of race as a barrier to promotion. As one sanitation worker explained to a reporter several years later, “When he [Dr. King] was here in the strike, every man wanted to stand up and be a man. And that was the whole story. We wasn’t counted as men before then. Every man be counted as a man now. It’s no more ‘boy.’ … It’s no more of that Uncle Tom now. … You be treated as a man.”

Faith traditions provide a language that widens the horizons of self-awareness and collective identity. ey also motivate activists, clergy, and laity alike, to march and picket alongside workers, o ering pivotal community support that can help turn the tide in labor con icts. In 2008, Smith eld Foods, at the time the largest pork producer in the world, agreed to a union contract with the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) at its 5,000-worker plant in Tar Heel, North Carolina. As labor scholar and activist Jane McAlevey described the win, “It was the single largest private-sector union victory of the new millennium,” all the more signi cant for taking place in a state with a low union density and with a company that had fought o unionization for the preceding 14 years.

Religious leaders, including Reverend Nelson Johnson and Reverend Dr. William J. Barber, played a critical role in organizing pickets and in boycotting Smith eld products at a North Carolina grocery chain — as well as in leading a protest at an annual company shareholder meeting. Johnson framed these protests in terms of community: “By calling this a community struggle, we began to change the frame and break down the structural division and set it up so that if justice is the issue here, then everyone in the community is invited to be part of the campaign.”

ese bene ts of faith-based activism — ethical framing and on-the-ground community support — have helped energize struggles for economic justice throughout the nation.

When the Memphis sanitation workers struck, Dr. King’s close friend and associate, Reverend James M. Lawson, came to understand that event as a “threshold moment” which signi cantly broadened the struggle for human rights. When he moved to Los Angeles in the early 1970s a er teaching nonviolence and leading nonviolent campaigns throughout the South, Lawson began addressing more directly and forcefully what he called “the question of economic exploitation and rapaciousness.”

With other faith leaders, he cofounded in 1996 an organization called Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE), an organization that mobilized activists in support of janitors, security guards, hospitality workers, and other low-wage workers — winning signi cant union victories along the way. e interfaith Passover Seder and stations of the worker’s cross I mentioned above are sponsored and cosponsored, respectively, by CLUE.

At a time when increasing inequality has pushed millions of Americans into poverty or great economic insecurity, the need to rea rm genuine community within a framework of economic justice is more urgent than ever. is season of holiday observances is one in which these issues merit both deep re ection and action. Andrew Moss, syndicated by PeaceVoice, writes on labor and immigration from Los Angeles. He is an emeritus professor (nonviolence studies, English) from California State University.

PHOTO: JDPPHOTO12 | DREAMSTIME.COM

An exhibit of the Memphis sanitation strike at the NCRM

THE LAST WORD By Andrew Moss