Sen. Akbari cheers vote to remove Nathan Bedford Forrest from Capitol

‘Our mission is not finished, but our resolve for justice is stronger than ever’

MEMPHIS — Sen. Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) applauded the state Capitol Commission’s vote Thursday to move the bust of Ku Klux Klan grand wizard and Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest out of the Capitol.

Sen. Akbari’s full statement is included below:

“Our nation is in a moment for racial healing and justice, but healing and justice requires a reckoning. Just as Nathan Bedford Forrest is a symbol for white supremacy, removing his bust from our Capitol is a symbolic beginning for a renewed justice movement in Tennessee.

“This movement did not start today and does not end today. We are building on the decades worth of protest by people black, white and brown who never gave up, the young people outside the Capitol today who only want to be heard, the lawmakers who have relentlessly championed this cause and, today, for Gov. Lee’s prayerful journey.

“Our mission is not finished, but our resolve for justice is stronger than ever.”