Good morning
I can hardly believe it, but yesterday was my 83rd birthday. How did that happen?? It occurred to me that maybe to mark this milestone you might want to make a donation of $83 (or any multiple) to TN Eagle Forum to help us with our ongoing expenses as we represent you in public policy and political arena. You can click on the number above or send your check to 3216 Bluewater Trace, Nashville, 37217. We would be very grateful.
Arlington National Cemetery Wants to Know What You Think About Removing Its Confederate Memorial
In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson unveiled the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. Created by Confederate veteran Moses Jacob Ezekiel, the 32-foot-tall monument features a large bronze statue of a woman holding a laurel wreath, a plow stock and a pruning hook, representing "the South," atop a granite base.
On that base is the Biblical verse," And they shall beat their swords into plough-shares and their spears into pruning hooks." It also features images from both mythology and those of Southern soldiers and civilians. These include a Black slave woman holding a white soldier's baby, along with a life-size image of an enslaved man following his owner off to war, among others.
"The elaborately designed monument offers a nostalgic, mythologized vision of the Confederacy, including highly sanitized depictions of slavery," according to the Arlington National Cemetery website.
In 2021, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, which included a provision for the creation of the Naming Commission, which directs the defense secretary to "remove all names, symbols, displays, monuments and paraphernalia that honor or commemorate the Confederate States of America ... or any person who served voluntarily with the Confederate States of America from all assets of the Department of Defense."
As part of that provision, Arlington National Cemetery is preparing to remove the Confederate Memorial, which sits at the center of the cemetery's Confederate section.
SPECIAL SESSION LIMITED SCHEDULE TODAY:
Teacher assigns kids 'creative writing' project about accidentally killing a female
Prompt to 8th-grade students: 'I didn't mean to kill her. I only wanted to hurt her'
By Peter LaBarbera
Published August 24, 2023 at 9:50pm
Parents and citizens in Sparta, Tennessee were outraged after learning that a teacher in the local middle school gave her 8th-grade students a "creative writing" assignment with the following shocking sentence as a prompt: "I didn't mean to kill her. I only wanted to hurt her, but now her ghost follows me everywhere."
WND has learned that the teacher at White County Middle School (WCMS) who gave the bizarre assignment is Jessica Griffith, listed as an 8th-grade English Language Arts teacher on the WCMS website. Her baffling writing assignment occurred during the week of Aug. 7.
Griffith told one concerned parent of a White County Middle School student that she "was trying to rush to get a prompt up at the end of class," according to Nashville NBC affiliate WMV4, which broke the story Tuesday. The news station interviewed parents and a family member who expressed their shock and disappointment at the twisted prompt.
Shelly Davis, mother a student in Griffith's class, is shown at the White County School Board's August Board meeting confronting the board over the assignment. According to WMV4, Davis' son "approached her with the assignment because he was uncomfortable writing it. That is the only reason she would have known about it, she said."
"He said, 'Mom, I sat there the rest of the class period, and all I thought was my mind is going to dark places,'" Davis told the school board, according to the broadcast.
Teacher sends apology letter to parents, students
Griffith ultimately met with a group of concerned parents and then wrote an apology letter in which she said: "I have come to realize that the nature of the [writing] prompt was wholly inappropriate and insensitive."
"Please allow me to express my deepest apologies for my lapse in judgment and the distress it may have caused," said her apology letter to "my students and their parents."
The letter was linked to the WMVA story but without Griffith's name, which was blacked out. WND is the first media to report the instructor's identity, confirmed by multiple sources, including a parent whose son was in the class and received the perverse writing assignment. That parent spoke to Griffith after the incident, along with other concerned parents.
Holly Miller, a receptionist at the middle school, would not confirm to WND Thursday that Griffith was the teacher in question, and instead referred this reporter to the White Country Board of Education. The Director of White County Schools, Kurt Dronebarger, did not respond to two WND messages by press time.
However, Jennifer Hamblin, a former elected member of the Tennessee State School Board who currently sits on a Tennessee Standards curriculum committee, told WND that she was told directly by a parent whose child was in the class that the teacher was Jessica Griffith.
DON SUNDQUIST, 47TH GOVERNOR OF TENNESSEE, PASSES AWAY
Sundquist served as Governor from 1995 to 2003
Sunday, August 27, 2023 | 11:00am
COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. – Today, at the Sundquist family’s request, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s office shared that Governor Don Sundquist passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, following surgery and a short illness. He was 87 years old.
Born in Moline, Illinois on March 15, 1936, Sundquist was a graduate of Augustana College. He went on to serve in the United States Navy. After years in the printing and advertising industry in Shelbyville and Memphis, he was elected to Congress, representing Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District. Sundquist served six terms in Congress, and was on the Ways and Means Committee, where he earned the reputation as a staunch fiscal conservative.
He was elected Governor of Tennessee in 1994, and overwhelmingly re-elected to a second term in 1998. Under his leadership, Tennessee implemented a ground-breaking welfare reform program, comprehensive crime legislation focusing on victims’ rights, and set record levels of economic development. His administration was instrumental in bringing two national sports franchises, the Tennessee Titans and the Nashville Predators, to the state.
“We are comforted by our faith and friends, and know he is with our Lord and loved ones in heaven,” said former First Lady Martha Sundquist.
“Governor Sundquist was an impactful leader and principled statesman who devoted his life to public service,” said Gov. Bill Lee. “As Tennessee’s governor for two terms, he contributed to our state’s legacy of fiscal responsibility and expanded opportunity for Tennesseans through historic economic development. Maria and I join all Tennesseans in honoring Governor Sundquist’s remarkable life, and we pray God’s comfort over Martha and their family in the days ahead.”
Governor Sundquist was guided by a profound faith in God’s providence and dogged belief in the promise of America and the greatness of Tennessee. He took great pride in bringing people together, regardless of differences, to work together for the common good. He is survived by former First Lady Martha Sundquist, his wife of 64 years, and their children: Andrea, Tania (David), and Deke; and beloved granddaughters: Gabby (Markos), and Alex.
Funeral arrangements are pending. The family’s point of contact is Elizabeth Phillips, efcphillips@gmail.com.
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