🏛️ Mayor Freddie O’Connell is in the house!

🎉 The Actual Mayor Chats with City Cast Nashville

Mayor Freddie O’Connell joins City Cast Nashville on our podcast’s launch day! What a start. Our wonderful host, Grace Fuisz, chats with O’Connell about his transportation plan, hot chicken, somersaults (yes, that’s right), and much more. He also answered a couple of questions exclusively for this newsletter — check those out below. [🎧 City Cast Nashville]

• O’Connell recently submitted the Choose How You Move Plan ordinance to Metro Council for approval on the November ballot. [NewsChannel 5]

😞 Civil Rights Hero Rev. James Lawson Has Died

Rev. James Lawson Jr. died Sunday at the age of 95, leaving behind a legacy of nonviolent activism and lessons on the importance of challenging racist practices. A follower of Gandhi, he was expelled from Vanderbilt after leading workshops in Nashville church basements, where he trained activists like Diane Nash and John Lewis to stage sit-ins and other boycotts that led then-Mayor Ben West to desegregate Nashville’s lunch counters in 1960. His influence was pivotal in making our town a centerpoint in the Civil Rights Movement, and our hearts go out to his family and friends. [AP News]

🚨 MNPD’s Fraught Relationship with Community Oversight

Nashville overwhelmingly voted to create a Community Oversight Board in 2020, with newly-appointed MNPD Chief John Drake pledging his support. Three years later, the state legislature abolished the C.O.B., and former Lieutenant Garet Davidson recently filed a 61-page complaint detailing how Drake and other departmental leaders intentionally sought to dismantle it. WPLN details the fascinating history of Nashville’s ongoing fight for police accountability. [WPLN]

♿ There’s Gotta be a Better Solution to the Foster Care Crisis

Disabled adults living in Tennessee community homes might be forced out to make room for children in state custody. After the 2016 closure of Clover Bottom in Nashville, disabled residents were provided cottages where they could live in a home-like setting while receiving care. Lee’s “Tennessee Strong Homes” initiative now threatens to push them out. [Tennessee Lookout]