Tennessee Republican Says He Wants to 'Honor the African-American Slave Experience'
Joel Ebert, Nashville
Tennessean
4:26 p.m. CT Feb. 26, 2019
A freshman Republican state lawmaker said Tuesday he is seeking to "honor the African-American slave experience" with a resolution he introduced related to the 14th Amendment.
During an informal gathering of the House Public Service and Employees Subcommittee, Rep. Bruce Griffey, R-Paris, explained that his resolution was aimed at having the country address birthright citizenship.
Birthright citizenship is the aspect of federal law under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that grants citizenship to anybody born on U.S. soil. Last year, President Donald Trump said he wanted to end birthright citizenship through an executive order.
Griffey's resolution seeks to commend the president for his "leadership and foresight" regarding the 14th Amendment.
"I want to honor the African-American slave experience," he said. "I don't want to take away from it."
Griffey's comments came after Rep. Harold Love, D-Nashville, explained the need for the 14th Amendment, which ensured equality for all people born or naturalized in the United States.
Prior to the amendment's adoption, Love said African-Americans were not deemed "full people."
"All because one part of the country didn't want another part of the country to have more votes in Congress," he said. "If you declare persons who were kidnapped from one continent and brought up here as full people, then the Southern states may have more votes in Congress in the House chamber."
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Love said he couldn't support Griffey's resolution because of the history behind getting the 14th Amendment in the U.S. Constitution.
He also pointed to landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions as evidence of the efforts for equal rights and push back made after slavery ended.
The nation adopted the 14th Amendment in 1868 in the aftermath of the Civil War. The amendment states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside."
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After listening to Love's remarks, Griffey said, "To me, the resolution in fact, in my opinion, honors more of the African American slave condition and the injustice that they were — had to suffer through before they got citizenship."
None of the lawmakers or staff members present for the informal meeting directly responded to Griffey's remarks.
After the meeting ended, in an interview with the USA TODAY NETWORK-Tennessee, Griffey denied making his comments about the "slave experience."
"I don't think that's what I said. I wasn't trying — my comment was, I don't want to take away from that. We certainly want to honor the African-American experience," he said.
Griffey, who earlier this year introduced a bill to help fund Trump's proposed wall along the Southern border, said his ultimate goal is to force a discussion in America about who should be a citizen.
Inside the informal committee meeting — also known as a pre-meeting or bill review — two Republicans and a Democrat expressed their concern about the resolution.
Rep. Johnny Shaw, D-Bolivar, said he could not support Griffey's resolution while Rep. Kelly Keisling, R-Byrdstown, said he was on the fence and didn't want his colleague to take it personally.
Rep. Bob Ramsey, R-Maryville, pointed to the final paragraph of the resolution as "very expansive."
The resolution "honors, commends and solutes the initiative of the President of the United States, the Honorable Donald J. Trump, to protect the citizens of the United States, to protect the borders of our great nation, and to end the illegitimate, unauthorized, and illegal practice of bestowing citizenship to those born within the boundaries of our great country whose presence constitutes a violation of United States law and breach of the sovereignty of this Nation."
Pre-meetings are a weekly occurrence for several House committees and are held prior to legislative meetings in effort to hear from lawmakers, staff members and other interested parties about bills.
Unlike committee meetings, pre-meetings are not recorded or livestreamed for the public, which can only find out about their location and time by accessing a page on the legislature's website.
Want to read more stories like this? A subscription to one of our Tennessee publications gets you unlimited access to all the latest politics news, podcasts like Grand Divisions, plus newsletters, a personalized mobile experience and the ability to tap into stories, photos and videos from throughout the USA TODAY Network's 109 local sites.
Reach Joel Ebert at jebert@tennessean.com or 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.
Tennessean
4:26 p.m. CT Feb. 26, 2019
A freshman Republican state lawmaker said Tuesday he is seeking to "honor the African-American slave experience" with a resolution he introduced related to the 14th Amendment.
During an informal gathering of the House Public Service and Employees Subcommittee, Rep. Bruce Griffey, R-Paris, explained that his resolution was aimed at having the country address birthright citizenship.
Birthright citizenship is the aspect of federal law under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that grants citizenship to anybody born on U.S. soil. Last year, President Donald Trump said he wanted to end birthright citizenship through an executive order.
Griffey's resolution seeks to commend the president for his "leadership and foresight" regarding the 14th Amendment.
"I want to honor the African-American slave experience," he said. "I don't want to take away from it."
Griffey's comments came after Rep. Harold Love, D-Nashville, explained the need for the 14th Amendment, which ensured equality for all people born or naturalized in the United States.
Prior to the amendment's adoption, Love said African-Americans were not deemed "full people."
"All because one part of the country didn't want another part of the country to have more votes in Congress," he said. "If you declare persons who were kidnapped from one continent and brought up here as full people, then the Southern states may have more votes in Congress in the House chamber."
The latest Tennessee legislature news, at your fingertips. Download our free app today.
Love said he couldn't support Griffey's resolution because of the history behind getting the 14th Amendment in the U.S. Constitution.
He also pointed to landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions as evidence of the efforts for equal rights and push back made after slavery ended.
The nation adopted the 14th Amendment in 1868 in the aftermath of the Civil War. The amendment states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside."
Help us power more journalism like this.Become a digital subscriber.
After listening to Love's remarks, Griffey said, "To me, the resolution in fact, in my opinion, honors more of the African American slave condition and the injustice that they were — had to suffer through before they got citizenship."
None of the lawmakers or staff members present for the informal meeting directly responded to Griffey's remarks.
After the meeting ended, in an interview with the USA TODAY NETWORK-Tennessee, Griffey denied making his comments about the "slave experience."
"I don't think that's what I said. I wasn't trying — my comment was, I don't want to take away from that. We certainly want to honor the African-American experience," he said.
Griffey, who earlier this year introduced a bill to help fund Trump's proposed wall along the Southern border, said his ultimate goal is to force a discussion in America about who should be a citizen.
Inside the informal committee meeting — also known as a pre-meeting or bill review — two Republicans and a Democrat expressed their concern about the resolution.
Rep. Johnny Shaw, D-Bolivar, said he could not support Griffey's resolution while Rep. Kelly Keisling, R-Byrdstown, said he was on the fence and didn't want his colleague to take it personally.
Rep. Bob Ramsey, R-Maryville, pointed to the final paragraph of the resolution as "very expansive."
The resolution "honors, commends and solutes the initiative of the President of the United States, the Honorable Donald J. Trump, to protect the citizens of the United States, to protect the borders of our great nation, and to end the illegitimate, unauthorized, and illegal practice of bestowing citizenship to those born within the boundaries of our great country whose presence constitutes a violation of United States law and breach of the sovereignty of this Nation."
Pre-meetings are a weekly occurrence for several House committees and are held prior to legislative meetings in effort to hear from lawmakers, staff members and other interested parties about bills.
Unlike committee meetings, pre-meetings are not recorded or livestreamed for the public, which can only find out about their location and time by accessing a page on the legislature's website.
Want to read more stories like this? A subscription to one of our Tennessee publications gets you unlimited access to all the latest politics news, podcasts like Grand Divisions, plus newsletters, a personalized mobile experience and the ability to tap into stories, photos and videos from throughout the USA TODAY Network's 109 local sites.
Reach Joel Ebert at jebert@tennessean.com or 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.
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