How history, race and politics divide Tennessee on gun legislation

Representative Justin J. Pearson of Memphis prays after Tennessee House Republicans called for a vote to end a special session on public safety to discuss gun violence in the wake of the Covenant School shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., August

Representative Justin J. Pearson of Memphis prays after Tennessee House Republicans called for a vote to end a special session on public safety to discuss gun violence in the wake of the Covenant School shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., August 29, 2023. REUTERS/Seth Herald

Reporting and writing by Donna Bryson

“Photographs can say a lot without words. After a school shooting in Tennessee, they recorded the frustrations of parents and state legislators whose cries for gun control were silenced.

In one photo, it’s almost possible to hear Representative Justin J. Pearson’s measured tones as he stands in prayer with one hand raised at the Capitol following a legislative session that failed to change any gun laws.

In March, a former student at the Covenant School in Nashville killed three 9-year-old children and three staff members.”