We finally entered the Eastern Grand Division of Tennessee. We made it so far and I was completely humbled. It had definitely taken a village, with the camaraderie of Laura Button, and Anne Austen as our mother hen (gender-neutral: parent chicken), bringing me gardening gloves to keep my hands warm while on the road when the temperature quickly dropped.
It was an honor to hear so many stories of my fellow Tennesseans who are heart broken by the Supreme Court decision to roll back our rights. It was somewhat comforting to remember that this is a Supreme Court that was appointed by presidents that never won the popular vote. Everyday voters are on our side, and that is important to realize.
The day was slightly overcast and very windy. We had met a woman in Monterey who shared a gruesome historic abortion story from that area. A teenager had gotten pregnant by having an “affair” with a married man. He and his friends took her into a barn where they attempted an abortion, and she died. The woman who told this haunting story said that her body was found on her family property. The man was never prosecuted and the dead girl was vilified. This demonstrates how deep abortion stigma runs and how far we have to go to shift attitudes towards compassion.
In the evening, I went back to the Dekalb County candidate rally and shared my experiences thus far with Walk for Our Lives. Even though I had been instructed to keep abortion on the down-low, our message was well-received and several women came up to me before and afterwards thanking me for attending. They were distraught.
We made it into Crossville where we had dinner with the Cumberland County Democratic Party. We spoke with Anne Quillen who was running against Speaker Cameron Sexton. We were graciously hosted by Dennis and Pat McKean in their stunning home on a lake. The leaves changing around their home was captivating.
Julie Edwards, our Manager of Organizing and Advocacy, became our driver for the next few days. They joined Button and me as Pat and Dennis took us out on their boat. This is where the pilgrimage began to take deep hold, as I became aware of the passage of time and of seasons, and the connections with the people of Tennessee and the land calmed my soul. I knew that this was going to be a long-haul battle, and we were going to need to be leadership deep all across this state. I could see and feel it in my bones that this was possible.
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