(NewsNation) — Backlash is growing in Tennessee after the state legislature voted to expel two Black representatives who took part in a protest against gun violence.
There’s growing national attention over the incident, with many calling the vote racist and politically motivated.
A group now known as the “Tennessee Three” faced possible expulsion for what some Republican House members called “inappropriate” action on the chamber floor last week. The representatives used bullhorns to support crowds of protesters pushing for gun reform.
The protests came after a school shooting in Nashville killed three adults and three children. The protests included thousands of students who left class and went to the state capitol to protest for gun reform, and hundreds of people crowded into the legislature in an effort to get lawmakers to consider gun control laws. Three Democratic representatives joined in the protest from the House floor.
Two of the three, Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones, were expelled while Rep. Gloria Johnson was spared. Jones and Pearson are both young, Black lawmakers while Johnson is white.
Black lawmakers are criticizing the move as oppressive and racially motivated.
“It looked like a Jim Crow Era trial, where we saw two Black men fighting for their careers, fighting for their reputations, fighting for their lives,” said Rep. Jesse Chism, vice chair of the Tennessee Black Caucus. “And it was a shame to see some of the smirks, some of the smiles that some of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle had as they saw our tears.”
State Republicans say race had nothing to do with it and say the representatives’ actions, specifically using bullhorns and shouting in support of the protests calling for gun reforms, forced them to shut down legislative business, which they say violated rules of order and state law.
Some big names are joining in the criticism, including Vice President Kamala Harris, who made a surprise trip to meet with the Tennessee Three and push for gun reform measures in the wake of the Nashville school shooting.
President Joe Biden called the expulsions both shocking and undemocratic.
And former President Barack Obama tweeted, “no elected official should lose their job simply for raising their voice.”
As for what happens next, there are already talks underway in their counties to reappoint Jones and Pearson to their seats. County commissioners will pick who fills the vacated seats before a special election, in which Jones and Pearson could run again, this time with much higher profiles.
Under the Tennessee Constitution, lawmakers cannot be expelled for the same offense twice, so in the end, this could wind up being a slap on the wrist that catapults the three Democrats into the national spotlight.