Shelby County is more reliant on federal safety net programs — and more sensitive to cuts — than any other county in Tennessee, according to a new study by the Sycamore Institute.
In 2024, Shelby County residents received nearly $2 billion in funds from federal safety programs Medicaid, TNAF, WIC, and SNAP, according to the Sycamore Institute study.
President Donald Trump has promised deep cuts to these programs, meant to support low-income people and families. The federal budget bill enacting these cuts is now progressing through Congress.
In Memphis, the cuts could have an outsized effect on Black children, the largest collective group living here below the poverty line. The 2024 Poverty Fact Sheet from the University of Memphis says 27 percent of the city’s Black population lives below the federal poverty level. It says 36 percent of its impoverished population is under age 18.
The biggest of these safety net cuts are promised for Medicaid, a healthcare block grant to help states pay for health care benefits for low-income populations. It’s called TennCare in Tennessee.
The cuts could mean thousands of citizens of Memphis and Shelby County would lose their access to healthcare.
The Sycamore Institute, a Nashville-based policy think tank for Tennessee, said 26.6 percent of Shelby County’s population is enrolled in TennCare. As of March, that was 241,804 people, the highest number of enrollees of any Tennessee county. Shelby County also has the largest population of any Tennessee county, outpacing second-ranked Davidson County by about 200,000 people.
Credit: Sycamore Institute
Cuts to TennCare could also means hundreds of millions of dollars might leave the Shelby County economy. Last year, TennCare paid health care providers $1.4 billion for claims for these Shelby-County enrollees. It paid hospitals $175 million for uncompensated care for these patients and those without health insurance.
Cuts to TennCare could strain the budgets of Memphis and Shelby County hospitals and healthcare providers, forcing them to make tough choices. Tennessee’s refusal to expand the state’s Medicaid budget has brought the closure of several rural hospitals in the state.
That decision, made by the Tennessee General Assembly, was a political, Obama-era decision by the state GOP to oppose the Affordable Care Act. That decision leaves $1.4 billion on TennCare’s table each year even through the Trump presidency.
The Tennessee Justice Center says more than 300,000 Tennesseans are uninsured, with no access to healthcare. Medicaid expansion would cover this population, support 15,000 new jobs, lower uncompensated care costs for hospitals, and offer better long-term health outcomes.
Sycamore Institute’s report showed Shelby County also has the largest statewide enrollment in other federal safety net programs including SNAP, TANF, and WIC.
Here’s a look at each of those:
SNAP – Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
This program provides food benefits for low-income families.
March 2025 enrollment: 149,551 (16.4 percent of Shelby County population)
2024 federal expenditures: $370 million
TANF – Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
This program provides temporary cash assistance and other benefits for low-income families.
2024 enrollment: 66,017 (7.3 percent of Shelby County population)
2024 federal expenditure: $9.9 million
WIC: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children
This program provides food benefits and other nutrition support for low-income mothers and young children.
2024 enrollment: 26,266 (2.9 percent of Shelby County population)
Is Memphis the “homicide capital of America,” just as FBI Director Kash Patel said on Fox News this weekend?
Patel’s statement came during a Fox News show interview Sunday, on which he also promised a task force to clean up the city’s homicide problem.
But is it the homicide capital, really? Maybe, according to analysis by the Memphis Flyer.
But finding a clear answer to what appears to be a simple question is no clear-cut task. Law enforcement agencies slice and dice crime numbers differently. There’s no report from experts yet available for 2025. Also, while the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission (MSCC) would likely be the expert on Memphis’ place among the country’s highest homicide rate, a request for guidance for this story was not immediately answered.
So, to get the latest information, we calculated the current murder rates of some of the usually top-ranked cities. The formula we used took the number of murders, divided those by a city’s population, and multiplied that by 100,000 to get the per capita amount.
As for comparable cities, we started with St. Louis. It had the highest murder rate of any American city in 2024. St. Louis had a total homicide rate of around 69 per capita last year. Memphis’ rate was around 40 per capita.
For 2025 so far, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has reported 48 homicides. That gives its population of around 280,000 a homicide rate of 17 per capita. But the police department did not report homicides separately from murders.
Memphis, using the same formula, has a homicide rate of 17.8 per capita so far this year, slightly higher than St. Louis. But the Memphis Police Department (MPD) reports murders separately from homicides. And the Memphis murder rate so far in 2025 (on 97 total murders) is 15.8 per capita, just below that of St. Louis.
Other cities, usually high on annual homicide rate rankings, have fallen so far this year. Baltimore’s homicide rate is 6.8 per capita. New Orleans is 9.6 per capita this year.
Memphis Mayor Paul Young’s office offered no guidance on comparing homicide rates but issued this statement:
“MPD has always collaborated with federal agencies on addressing violent crime, and we’re encouraged by any effort that brings more resources to Memphis,” Young said in a statement. “We look forward to learning more from our federal law enforcement partners.
“Locally, we’re already seeing results. Through our recent Fugitive Task Force and other strategic operations, we’ve taken fugitives off the streets and disrupted gang activity across the city. With stronger collaboration and steady local leadership, we’ll keep pushing forward to make every Memphis neighborhood safer.”
Kash’s statement brought quick backlash from Memphians, figuring it could be just another Trump Administration official favoring hyperbole over accuracy. But, again, it may depend on where he got his information.
Patel said “homicide,” not murder. There is a difference. Homicide is an incident in which one person kills another. Killing in self defense, for example, is a justifiable homicide, not murder. Same with fatal car accidents. Murder is homicide with intent to kill. While it sounds like splitting hairs (maybe), the two things are different.
Also, there’s nothing uniform about crime statistics. Agencies collect and report this information differently.
“For example, the Memphis Police Department (MPD) may release figures for ‘homicides’ rather than ‘murders,’” reads an explainer from the MSCC. “Not every homicide is a murder …
“Also, for certain violent crimes such as aggravated assault, the MPD tracks incidents while the [Tennessee Bureau of Investigation — TBI] data is based on the number of victims … One incident can involve multiple victims.”
We’ll update this post with new information or clarifications.
Sales shot up nearly 430 percent year over year. Credit: Morningside Brands Inc.
A Memphis-based tequila brand is the fastest-growing in the country, its parent company announced last week.
Morningside Brands Inc. said sales of its Alma del Jaguar Tequila grew by almost 429 percent year over year from April 2024 to April 2025, according to retail data from Neilsen. The company said this expansion made it the fastest-growing premium tequila brand in the U.S.
”While many big tequila brands are losing ground, we have crafted something that resonates with consumers in today’s market, and we have the retail scan data to prove it,” said McCauley Williams, CEO of Morningside Brands.
Alma del Jaguar Tequila is now sold in 23 states, up from nine in 2023. The tequila brand is now in 4,500 retail stores, expanding at a rate of over 200 new accounts per month.
The tequila is made by the Vivanco tequila family at their distillery, Feliciano Vivanco y Asociados, in Arandas, Jalisco. Alma del Jaguar has been touted by Esquire, Rolling Stone, the Tasting Panel, Wine Enthusiast, and Robb Report.
Morningside’s portfolio also includes Waymar Gin House.
Flooding surrounds a house about a mile away from the Obion River in Ridgely, Tenn. on April 9, 2025 after 96 hours of torrential rain. (Photo: Cassandra Stephenson)
Under proposed new federal disaster aid thresholds designed to reduce the amount of funding distributed to states following natural disasters, Tennessee would have lost 37 percent of the assistance it received after disasters from 2008 to 2024, according to research from Urban Institute.
A memo sent from former Federal Emergency Management Agency acting administrator Cameron Hamilton to the White House Office of Management and Budget suggested quadrupling the damage threshold for federal aid, CNN reported in late April.
Nonprofit think tank Urban Institute analyzed 870 major disaster declarations that received public assistance grants from 2008 to 2024 using the proposed quadrupled threshold to “understand what these proposed changes could mean for federal disaster spending and state and local government budgets,” their report states.
At a House Appropriations Committee hearing on May 7, Hamilton said federal law is clear on the federal government’s role as a resource for overwhelmed states.
“The problem is we’ve created financial incentives for the continuation of that, and even expanded levels,” Hamilton said. “We’ve kind of lowered disaster thresholds. We’ve used other criteria that, to be honest, are a little bit too soft for my opinion, that have incentivized financially a lack of carrying insurance policies, as well as lower disaster thresholds, which are probably not the best use of my staff.” Hamilton said.
“This isn’t to say that states aren’t in need. We know they are, but we have to raise the threshold so that FEMA can truly prioritize efforts where the state is, in fact, overwhelmed,” he said.
Hamilton, who was appointed by Trump, was fired from his interim role one day after the hearing, where he contradicted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem by telling members of Congress that he believed eliminating FEMA entirely was “not in the best interest of the American people.”
After a disaster, states assess damage and can request a presidential disaster declaration to open eligibility for aid through FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund. The president has sole discretion over whether to approve a declaration, but FEMA uses internal thresholds to shape their recommendations to the president.
The minimum threshold for public assistance programs — which help state and local governments recoup the costs of debris clearing and infrastructure repairs — sits at a statewide cost-to-population ratio of $1.89 per capita impact (PCI). Quadrupling it would raise it to $7.56 PCI.
The nonprofit research group quadrupled the PCI threshold for each year between 2008 and 2024 and compared the costs from preliminary damage assessment reports for each disaster in that timeframe to determine if it would have met the threshold for federal aid.
The group found that 71 percent of major disasters from 2008 to 2024 would not have received a presidential disaster declaration under the higher threshold, meaning states would have lost out on roughly $15 billion in federal assistance.
Tennessee would have lost $468 million of aid if this higher threshold had been in place, the report states.
The Hamilton memo also recommended reducing the federal government’s share of recovery costs when disaster declarations are granted by capping the share at 75 percent.
Currently, the federal government covers at least 75 percent of costs. In Tennessee, the state and local governments typically split the remaining 25 percent share.
If the 75 percent cap had been in place from 2008 to 2024, Tennessee would have had to cover an additional $118 million in recovery costs — the most of any state or territory, according to the report.
Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.
Farm equipment is seen partially submerged on a flooded field in Ridgely, Tenn. on April 9, 2025. (Photo: Cassandra Stephenson)
The effects of climate change made severe flooding that inundated West Tennessee and parts of the Central Mississippi River Valley in early April about 9 percent more intense, according to an analysis published Thursday by an international team of environmental researchers.
From April 3rd through April 6th, thunderstorms and torrential downpours hovered over a broad swath of the Mississippi River Valley, leading to near-record breaking floods, widespread damage and at least 15 deaths.
Those four days of rainfall are the heaviest recorded for the region in spring since 1950, according to the report published by World Weather Attribution, an international collaboration that analyzes the potential influence of climate change on extreme weather events.
Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas were particularly hard-hit by severe storms from April 3 through April 6, 2025. (Photo: World Weather Attribution)
The study used observational data, historical records and climate models to examine how warming temperatures impact storm likelihood and intensity. Researchers also used nonprofit Climate Central’s Ocean Climate Shift Index tool — based on observations and climate model data — to analyze sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico where much of the moisture fueling the storm originated, said Ben Clarke, a researcher at the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College London.
Researchers compared how this type of weather event has changed between today’s climate — about 1.3 degrees Celsius hotter due to warming caused by use of fossil fuels and deforestation — compared to a cooler, pre-industrial climate (1850-1900).
“When we combine the evidence, we do find an overall increasing trend in such extremes,” Clarke said. “Similar events have become, we estimate, about 40 percent more likely, or, equivalently, about 9 percent more intense.”
Clarke noted that some climate models used in the study showed a more “mixed picture” of the effects of warmer temperatures, meaning the study’s results are “likely a conservative estimate.”
While the methods used in this study are peer-reviewed, the study itself was released in the immediate aftermath of the severe weather event and has not yet been peer-reviewed itself, Clarke said.
Early warnings likely saved lives, researchers say
Over four days in early April, eight states saw “relentless amounts of rain” ranging from six to 12 inches, with some locations exceeding 16 inches, Climate Central Weather and Climate Engagement Specialist Shel Winkley said.
The rain fell on soil that was already saturated from late-winter rain, particularly in the Ohio River Valley, he said.
In Northwest Tennessee, the small town of Rives suffered severe flooding in February, only to flood again a few weeks later.
Torrential rainfall from April 3 through April 6, 2025 is the heaviest ever recorded for the Central Mississippi River Valley in spring, according to World Weather Attribution. (Photo: World Weather Attribution)
Winkley said a ridge of high pressure over the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida blocked the low pressure system producing the storm from pushing forward, essentially stalling the storm front to dump rainfall over the already-saturated ground.
Early warnings from the National Weather Service very likely saved lives, Bernadette Woods-Placky, Climate Central’s chief meteorologist, said.
In Obion County, Tennessee, more than 100 families evacuated their homes during the event. Nearby Dyer County issued a mandatory evacuation for residents of Bogota on April 7th in anticipation of additional flooding.
Woods-Placky noted that layoffs and firings were beginning to roll out in National Weather Service offices across the U.S. as part of cost-cutting measures under the Trump administration around the time these floods were happening.
“This is an example of how critical these employees are and why recent workforce cuts risk undermining their ability to keep people safe and prepared,” she said.
Winkley said post-storm analyses like this are vital for protecting public safety in future events.
“It helps us really understand, is this going to be a place that’s livable in the future, and if it is, how do we make sure that it’s livable and safe?” he said.
Study: ‘Generational’ storms could become more likely
The 96-hour rain event was the second-highest on record for the Obion, Forked Deer and Loosahatchie Rivers (all Mississippi River tributaries), according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Dyersburg, Tennessee — the county seat of Dyer County — is prone to flooding from the North Fork of the Forked Deer River.
Early April’s flooding marked the third-highest flood in the town’s history, according to Mayor John Holden, who has held the position for 19 years.
The worst flood in Dyersburg’s history occurred in 2010, wiping out multiple homes and trailer parks. The second-highest flood record was set in 1937.
Bleachers and soccer goals protrude above flood water that completely covered the Dyersburg Soccer Complex in Dyersburg, Tenn. on April 10, 2025. (Photo: Cassandra Stephenson)
Historical data indicates downpours like this are “expected to occur, on average, about once a century in today’s climate with 1.3 degrees Celsius of warming,” the report states.
Before the storms rolled in, the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center warned the public of “generational” rainfall totals.
But the study’s authors caution that further warming could increase the likelihood that these events will no longer be expected just once in a generation.
“If warming reaches 2.6 degrees Celsius (4.7 degrees Fahrenheit), which is expected by 2100 under current policies, four-day spells of rainfall are expected to become a further 7 percent more intense and twice as likely,” according to a study summary.
“This is a good moment to remember that we are a water planet, and a warmer atmosphere forces more evaporation, so our atmosphere in general has more water to come down whenever there’s a trigger, wherever there’s a trigger,” Woods-Placky said. “So that’s why we’re seeing an overall increase in heavy rain events, even to places that may not be getting wetter. The distribution of how they’re getting rain is coming in these heavier buckets.”
What does higher intensity mean?
Tennessee, Kentucky, and Arkansas were hardest hit by the early April storms, and each state requested a major disaster declaration to access FEMA assistance.
Damage estimates for public property and recovery in West and Middle Tennessee exceed $26 million, according to post-storm assessments. State and local officials believe this will meet the eligibility threshold for federal public aid. Tennessee has yet to receive a decision from the Trump administration.
The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency estimates around 300 homes and 14 businesses or nonprofits were severely damaged. West Tennessee mayors report hundreds of acres of flooded farmland.
To illustrate the significance of the storm’s 9 percent higher intensity that the study attributes to climate change, Imperial College London Centre for Environmental Policy Senior Climate Science Lecturer Friederike Otto refers to a separate study on Hurricane Helene.
That study, published by the Grantham Institute of Climate Change and the Environment in 2024, estimated that a roughly 11 percent increase in wind speed due to climate change accounted for about 44 percent of the storm’s damage in coastal Florida.
Essentially, Otto said, the increase in intensity by 10 percent could nearly double the cost of damage.
“If that hits you (the region) once in a lifetime, I mean … that’s one thing,” Otto said. “But if that hits you twice, and it has the higher impact, that completely changes what … extreme weather can mean for a community.”
Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.
Tennessee’s plans for passenger rail — and similar plans around the country — are likely on hold during the Trump Administration but a group of Congressional Democrats are trying to get them back on track.
The Biden-era Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), a $1.2 trillion bipartisan law, provided $1.5 billion in 2021 to encourage intercity passenger rail projects, through planning grants and more. However, the portion of the law funding these projects is set to expire next year.
Hope seems dim for passenger rail planning as President Donald Trump slashes government funding for agencies across the federal government. For rail projects specifically, Trump pulled a $64 million planning grant in April for a Texas high-speed rail project that would connect Dallas and Houston. On Tuesday, Trump told reporters he pulled $4 billion from a California rail project, citing cost overruns.
However, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-9th District) and a two other transportation leaders in Congress filed a bill Wednesday to extend passenger rail funding to 2031.
The bill would reauthorize rail planning programs with $7.5 billion between Fiscal Years 2027 and 2031. It has the support of Rail Passengers Association, SMART Transportation Division, Southern Rail Commission, and Transportation for America, Cohen said.
“As a longtime advocate of passenger rail service, I urge my colleagues to support the federal-state partnership that is preparing the United States for a surge in rail travel,” Cohen said in a statement. “I am looking forward to one day taking Amtrak along the recently identified Memphis-Nashville-Chattanooga-Atlanta corridor that is being funded by a Corridor ID grant and, eventually, along a route linking Memphis to Little Rock and beyond. Passenger rail is the future, and this bill ensures its ongoing support.”
Cohen is a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He is joined in filing the legislation by U.S. Rep. Dina Titus (Nevada-1st District), a ranking member of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials; and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee member U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten (Michigan 3rd District).
While it may seem implausible in Tennessee that any issue has support from both sides of the aisle, passenger rail does. In a 2022 bipartisan effort, Tennessee lawmakers asked a group of government experts to study the potential of linking Tennessee’s biggest cities via passenger rail.
In March 2023, Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly submitted an application for federal funds in partnership with the mayors of Atlanta, Nashville, and Memphis to begin planning for a new Amtrak route through those cities.
Credit: State of Tennessee
In 2023, that group of state government experts — the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR) — reported that passenger rail lines here would increase connectivity and tourism here. In December 2023, the Atlanta-Chattanooga-Nashville-Memphis group of mayors announced they’d won a $500,000 planning grant from the feds to study possible routes here.
It was not immediately clear whether those funding efforts were still underway or still funded through the federal grant. We’ll update this story as we hear from state officials and/or other experts on the matter.
The 2023 TACIR report said the top priority for rail service in Tennessee should be a line that connects Nashville and Atlanta through Chattanooga. The line would connect the largest amount of people and create the biggest economic impact.
Credit: State of Tennessee
The report said the second priority for rail service here would be a route to connect Memphis and Nashville on population size.
“The route would connect Tennessee’s two largest cities, and connecting areas with large populations is often a key to success for passenger rail projects, although neither of these cities has as many people as Atlanta,” reads the report.
But the route would give Nashville (and other cities along the route) a connection to Memphis’ Amtrak service, which runs from Chicago to New Orleans, the report said. Freight volumes on existing lines from Memphis to Nashville are lower than other cities. Also, the route lacks “geographic barriers” of other proposed lines, apparently meaning the lack of hills and mountains would make it easier to build.
Would you let a company control your home thermostat to help Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) save energy at peak-demand times?
MLGW and TVA announced a new program Tuesday that would do just that. The Smart Thermostat Rewards program will pay residential customers to conserve electricity when demand spikes.
TVA will pay customers $65 to enroll in the program. If they participate in at least 65 percent of the energy savings events, they’ll get $65 annually.
“Customers who participate will allow their thermostat to be temporarily adjusted — by no more than four degrees for no more than four hours — on high-energy-demand days,” reads a statement from MLGW. “Thermostat companies, not MLGW or TVA, will make the temperature adjustment remotely.
“Participants will receive an in-app notification of each energy event from their thermostat company and may choose to opt-out of events at any time, maintaining full control of their thermostat.”
To enroll, participants must:
• Be an MLGW residential customer.
• Have an eligible Wi-Fi enabled smart thermostat in the home or purchase a smart thermostat through the program.
• Maintain an always-on and stable home Wi-Fi network connected to the internet.
• Have an HVAC unit connected to their smart thermostat.
“We are empowering customers to be smart energy consumers while helping them enjoy the financial benefits of energy conservation,” said MLGW president and CEO Doug McGowen. “Integrating the power grid with smart home technologies will help meet our region’s growing energy needs while saving consumers money on their power bills.”
Transgender story
Molly Quinn, executive director of OUTMemphis. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
For more than a year, state LGBTQ advocates spearheaded a campaign that helped hundreds of transgender individuals obtain U.S. passports that reflect their gender identity and physical appearance after Tennessee ended gender updates for state drivers’ licenses.
But an executive order issued on President Donald Trump’s first day in office — declaring U.S. policy is to “recognize two sexes, male and female” — ended the ability of transgender people to get passports that reflect their gender. A federal court temporarily blocked the order last month, but a final legal outcome has yet to be decided.
In Tennessee, where state officials in 2023 denied trans people the right to make gender changes on driver’s licenses, Trump’s executive order has jeopardized the only available form of government-issued ID available that accurately reflects the gender of transgender and nonbinary Tennesseans.
“Tennessee has the least amount of access to change gender markers,” said Molly Quinn, executive director of OUTMemphis. “A lot of transgender people here used passports as their primary gender marker.”
Trump’s order, she said, has created anxiety and uncertainty. On the day the president issued it, Quinn’s organization fielded 27 calls from individuals anxious to learn whether they could still begin the passport application process, she said.
Tennessee has long prevented trans people from amending their gender designation on birth certificates, the only state in the nation to explicitly do so.
The 1977 law was upheld last year by the United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, which found “there is no fundamental right to a birth certificate recording gender identity instead of biological sex.”
Tennessee has the least amount of access to change gender markers. A lot of transgender people here used passports as their primary gender marker.
– Molly Quinn, OUTMemphis
Gender, however, could be amended on Tennessee drivers’ licenses until Republican-backed legislation in 2023 defined “sex” in Tennessee law as “a person’s immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at time of birth.” Evidence of biological sex, the law said, is listed on a birth certificate.
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security then posted notice of new rules that it would not accept requests for gender marker changes that were inconsistent with an individuals’ birth certificate. A legal challenge to the department’s rules, filed last year by the ACLU of Tennessee in Davidson County Chancery Court, remains ongoing.
Immediately following the drivers license notice, OUTMemphis, ACLU of Tennessee and other advocacy organizations made a statewide push to help individuals secure U.S. passports.
Between the passage of the 2023 Tennessee legislation and Trump’s inauguration, the groups assisted more than 200 people in obtaining a U.S. passport to reflect their gender identity and physical presentation, Quinn said.
“I was thinking it was finally my time,” said Christian Mays, community center coordinator for OUTMemphis. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
Government issued documents that reflect accurate gender identity and appearance can be critically important, Quinn noted.
Interactions with police or Transportation Safety Agency officers at security checkpoints examining IDs that appear at odds with an individual’s physical appearance may subject individuals to interrogation, allegations of fraud or criminal behavior and harassment. IDs are also checked by employers, financial institutions and election officials.
Christian Mays, community center coordinator for OUTMemphis, said all his official identity documents identify him as female. Mays, a transgender man, said he was pulled over once by police who accused him of impersonating someone else, because he presented as a man but his ID listed him as a woman.
Mays recently got his name legally changed. He submitted his passport application to include his male gender identity the day before Trump’s executive order. His chief concern at the time was the ability to apply for a part time job at a pizza restaurant, which would require an ID.
He said he is now uncertain whether a passport reflecting his gender identity will come through.
“I was thinking it was finally my time,” Mays said.
Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.
West Virginia sculptor Jamie Lester will create the sculpture of West Tennessee frontiersman and statesman David Crockett for an iconic spot on the Tennessee State Capitol.
State lawmakers agreed to erect a statue of David Crockett on the capitol grounds in 2021. Efforts to do so go back to at least the creation of the David Crockett Commission in 2012. (Read our previous story on this here.)
Photo: Tennessee State Museum
Crockett’s statue will replace a statue of racist, segregationist newspaper editor and politician Edward Carmack. He was, among other things, the editor of the Memphis Commercial newspaper when he incited a mob against anti-lynching activist, journalist, editor, and business woman Ida B. Wells. The mob destroyed her newspaper office.
Carmack was shot and killed by political rivals in Nashville, near where his statue was erected in 1927. The statue was installed, however, by a prohibition group (Carmack was also a staunch prohibitionist) that thought his big-profile death could further their cause.
Protesters tore down Carmack’s statue in 2020 during the turmoil following the police killing of George Floyd. One of the 2021 bill’s sponsors, Sen. Steve Southerland (R-Morristown), even told The Chattanooga Times Free Press at the time, he “didn’t think it would be possible to remove Carmack.” The newspaper story said, Southerland “smiled and then added: ‘Someone removed it for us, so they did us a favor.’”
Lester and his company, Vandalia Bronze, were selected Tuesday by the State Capitol Commission (SCC). The vote came after several meetings of a group to find sculptors, receive proposals, and narrow down 28 proposals to the finalists for the SCC. That group of technical advisors included David Crockett experts, sculptors, legislators, state officials, Tennessee Arts Commission members, architects, and historians.
Photos credit: Jamie Lester/Vandalia Bronze
Lester and his team have produced projects for the World Golf Hall of Fame, the Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance, and he created a life-sized sculpture of actor Don Knotts for the city of Morgantown, West Virginia. His work also includes numerous sculptures of people in business, sports, politics, and religion.
Artists for the Crockett statue were scored in three categories. Lester scored highest of them all in each category. His proposal for Crockett shows the man as a “guardian of the frontier” standing atop a stone with his dogs Rattler and Tigger beside him. Crockett’s body for the statue will likely stand eight to nine feet tall, according to State Architect Ann McGauran.
Crockett’s dogs, it seemed, helped to win Lester’s design admiration and votes.
“I personally love the incorporation of the dogs,” said Tennessee Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson after the vote Tuesday. “I’m a dog person. I think the dogs make it really special.”
To this, McGauran said the dogs got plenty of discussion from the group of technical advisors working on the Crockett statue project.
The State Building Commission will soon vote on Lester’s contract. If approved, his team will deliver a one-third scale model of the final design. If the design is approved, the Crockett statue will be delivered and ready for installation on the south side of the capitol by 2026.
Shock, sadness, and a promise to persevere dominate reactions from community leaders and organizations Monday on the overnight fire which gutted Clayborn Temple in Downtown Memphis.
This morning, we woke up to heartbreaking news: a devastating fire has ravaged one of our city’s greatest treasures, Clayborn Temple.
Clayborn is more than a historic building. It is sacred ground. It is the beating heart of the civil rights movement, a symbol of struggle, hope, and triumph that belongs not just to Memphis but to the world.
Standing in the shadow of that steeple, generations of Memphians found their courage. Today, in the face of this tragedy, we must find ours once again.
We grieve deeply for what has been lost, but we also stand ready to honor Clayborn’s legacy the only way we know how: by coming together to restore, rebuild, and remember.
The spirit of Clayborn Temple cannot be burned away. It lives in every act of justice, every fight for equality, every dream of a better future that takes root in Memphis.
I want to personally thank the brave firefighters who responded so quickly this morning. And I pledge to the people of Memphis: our city will stand with the leaders, funders, and caregivers of Clayborn Temple to help ensure this sacred place rises again.
Clayborn Temple has seen struggle before, and it has always overcome. So will we.
Anasa Troutman
founder and executive director of Historic Clayborn Team; founder and CEO of The Big We
Credit: thebigwe.com
Early this morning, our beloved Historic Clayborn Temple — a sacred landmark in our city and our nation — suffered a devastating loss due to a fire.
Our hearts are heavy with grief. For decades, Clayborn and the iconic I AM A MAN signs born in its basement have stood as an international beacon of resilience, faith, and the work to build beloved communities. It is a living testament of our past sacrifices and our future hope. Clayborn’s true spirit was never in the walls alone. It lives in us.
Even as we mourn, we must remember: resilience is our birthright, but so is the space to grieve. Our ancestors endured, grieved, rebuilt, and transcended unimaginable losses. We will do the same.
To everyone who has loved, supported, and prayed for Historic Clayborn Temple, we are still committed to her restoration. The spirit of Clayborn is stronger than any fire. We are deeply grateful to the Memphis Fire Department and other authorities for their swift and courageous response.
For now, we ask for your prayers, your support, and your belief in the enduring power of this place. This is not the end, but a call to remember who we are, and to build again with faith, courage, and abundant love. If you can support, please visit Clayborn.org and give if you can.
Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy
Today, Memphis stands at a poignant crossroads, grappling with two profound events echoing the city’s complex history and enduring spirit.
Steve Mulroy via Facebook
I’m so saddened to hear that a fire ravaged Clayborn Temple, the site of Dr. King’s last address. Despite early reports, I’m hoping that this historic and sacred space can be restored. Without the brave efforts of the Memphis Fire Department, things could have been even worse.
Meanwhile, we start the trial of police officers accused of killing Tyre Nichols. I’m hoping for justice for Tyre and a renewed awareness of the need for policing reforms as we strive toward better realizing Dr. King’s vision.
We meet setbacks in our journey to the mountaintop, but the climb continues.
We Are Somebody
(nonprofit for the working class)
We Are Somebody stands on the shoulders of the movements that Clayborn Temple birthed, we are devastated by the news of the fire this morning. pic.twitter.com/uwbJVVDGzh
Clayborn Temple was influential in the Civil Rights movement and served as a launch pad for a march for sanitation workers’ rights in Memphis.
Without Clayborn Temple, We Are Somebody doesn’t exist as we know it. Our mission is rooted at the intersection of civil rights and labor rights, our logo calls back to the famous I Am A Man signs that came out of Clayborn Temple. We Are Somebody stands on the shoulders of the movements that Clayborn Temple birthed.
While the loss of the physical structure is devastating, the spirit of the civil and labor rights movement can never be burned down. We will continue to uplift the history of our movements, recognize the struggle those who came before us faced, and celebrate the accomplishments of their sacrifice and hard work.
Dr. Russ Wiggington, president
National Civil Rights Museum
Russ Wiggington via LinkedIn
The recent fire that consumed Clayborn Temple is a devastating blow, not only to Memphis but to the nation. This historic church, a nerve center of the Civil Rights Movement, was more than just bricks and stained glass; it was a beating heart of a community that chose unity over division, progress over fear, and community over chaos.
Clayborn Temple stood as a symbol of organized resistance and hope during the 1968 Sanitation Workers’ Strike. When marchers filled its sanctuary, it wasn’t just about better wages; it was about dignity, about declaring that Black lives and labor mattered in a city that often acted indifferent. In the years since, despite cycles of neglect and efforts at preservation, Clayborn Temple remained a powerful reminder that in the face of obstacles, violence, and hatred, collective action and faith can build something stronger.
Its destruction by fire is another somber chapter in a long story of devastated sacred spaces. But if history teaches us anything, it’s this: Clayborn Temple will rise again, because its foundation was never merely physical. It was spiritual. It was communal. And that foundation cannot be burned.
Make no mistake, the spirit of “Community Over Chaos” is stirring. Leaders, activists, stakeholders, and ordinary citizens should be rallying, just as they have for generations. Financial recovery efforts must be coordinated. Preservationists should be examining the remains to save what they can. Plans for rebuilding — not just restoring the past, but reimagining Clayborn Temple for future generations — must be underway.
We rebuild and protect. The protection strategies have now become mission-critical: fire-resistant construction materials, modern surveillance, integrated fire prevention systems, and stronger community engagement must anchor the rebuilding. But just as important will be reaffirming what Clayborn Temple always stood for: justice through unity, faith in action, and an unwavering refusal to yield to adversity.
Memphis has a choice: mourn in isolation or rebuild in solidarity. History — and Clayborn Temple’s own story — points clearly toward the second. Chaos may have been embedded in a fire, but the community will light the way forward.
Clayborn Temple was, and will continue to be, a house not just of gathering, but of movement, resilience, and rebirth. Fire can take down walls, but it cannot destroy the spirit that built them.
State Sen. Raumesh Akbari
Sen. Raumesh Akbari
Sen. Raumesh Akbari via Facebook
“Heartbroken to wake up to the news that Clayborn Temple — sacred ground for the Civil Rights Movement — has burned.
Clayborn was never just wood and stone; it was a beacon where Memphis sanitation workers demanded dignity, where faith carried hope, and where courage took root. To all who fought to restore it, and to all who believed in its future, this loss is devastating. On that historic stage, I was able to speak at the Women’s March in 2017, a surreal experience.
The spirit and living legacy of Clayborn will endure. It must. And from these ashes, we will rise. Memphis always has.
