'Everybody Was Just Astonished': Tenn. Republican's Comments on Slavery Leave His Colleagues Stunned [View all]

During a discussion on a resolution to remove a statue of a Confederate general and early leader of the KKK that stands inside the Tennessee State Capitol, Rep. Jerry Sexton (R) made some comments that sparked a backlash, News 4 Nashville reports.

A Tennessee House Committee voted down the resolution on Tuesday, which suggested replacing the bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest with a less controversial figure. During the lead up the vote, Sexton, who argued against the resolution, said that memorials to Confederate figures should get a pass because slavery was once the norm and people simply didn’t know any better.

“It was not against the law to own slaves back then,” Sexton said. “Who knows, maybe some of us will be slaves one of these days. Laws change.”

Unsurprisingly, Sexton was met with considerable pushback from his colleagues.

Read more: https://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/2020/06/everybody-was-just-astonished-tenn-republicans-comments-on-slavery-leave-his-colleagues-stunned/