Dear [Your Elected Official],

<p>I urge you to vote NO on SB7001/HB7001, SB7002/HB7002, SB7003/HB7004, SB7004/HB7003, SB7005/HB7005, and any other bills that may be introduced that would alter congressional district lines before the next Census. </p> <p><strong>Inappropriate call: </strong>The call for redistricting came from a U.S. Senator and the President, not the people of Tennessee. The Governor should not have reconvened the General Assembly for this purpose. There has been no outreach to and dialogue with the people of this state. Legislators should resist this inappropriate use of a special session.</p> <p><strong>Let the Census be the guide: </strong>Redistricting, as our current statute wisely requires, should follow population updates. That process keeps redistricting focused on the people and is a check against the whims of political opportunism. We want the people choosing their elected officials, not officials choosing their voters.</p> <p><strong>Low public information and input: </strong>The rush to convene this special session means that the public is still catching up to the information. There are few opportunities through testimony and other means for the public to weigh in. The Legislature is not only not educating the public about the redistricting bills, but the House rules specifically are making it hard for people to participate, observe the proceedings, and know how their legislators are voting on bills. </p> <p><strong>Confusion for voters and candidates:  </strong>Candidates have already qualified for the existing congressional districts. Voters have started to get to know them. Rushed new maps cause chaos for both voters and candidates.</p> <p><strong>Ignoring history is no way to govern: </strong>We cannot ignore the historical importance of Tennessee's ninth congressional district, Tennessee's only majority Black district. To dilute that district would be to pretend that racial injustices never happened or don't matter. They do matter and passing a hastily assembled package of redistricting bills that the people didn't ask for will result in lawsuits, delays, and chaos.  More than that, it will be a massive moral failure.</p> <p>Thank you for considering my views.</p> <p> </p>