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STANFORD FINE ART
AUGUST 24, 2023 | VOLUME 35 | NUMBER 33
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After summer of transition, Lawson High School wins debut in thrilling fashion BY LOGAN BUTTS
Williamson County residents protest for stricter gun reform measures outside of the Franklin library on Aug. 15, 2023. PHOTO BY MATT MASTERS
Middle Tennesseans push for gun reform ahead of special session BY MATT MASTERS
Editor’s Note: This story was written prior to the start of the special session. Check back next week for coverage of the special session. As the Tennessee General Assembly’s special session prepares to convene on Monday evening, gun reform advocates have been working to rally supporters across Tennessee, even in the state’s most staunch Republican enclaves like Williamson County. Nearly a week after the March 27 Covenant School shooting in Green Hills shocked Middle Tennessee and the nation, dozens of protesters gathered on Franklin’s square to mourn the six shooting victims and call for change in Tennessee’s loosening gun laws. The shooting just across the county line resulted in the deaths of not just Nashville residents, but Williamson County residents as well. Another protest took place on the square
in June, with the most recent demonstration seeing dozens of residents protesting an Aug. 15 conservative event at the Franklin Library where Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District Rep. Andy Ogles and state Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson appeared together. Johnson, a Franklin resident, said that he won’t support any form of an extreme risk protection order (ERPO) during the special session, and with many GOP elected officials in tow, public faith in any meaningful gun reform is low. Johnson was challenged by some of his constituents during the Aug. 15 event, including by Williamson County resident Rod Berger who told The News that the current social environment around guns has led to new and challenging conversations with his son who is in fifth grade. “His role is not to funnel his opinion into the legislative process, but to represent
and legislate around the opinions of his constituents,” Berger said of Johnson. “Fixed opinions rob us of the opportunity to meet real-time needs within and throughout communities across Tennessee, and we really run the risk of marginalizing an expanding electorate in a state of great growth.” Two fixtures of the Williamson County protests have been Franklin High School graduates Jared and Caroline Sullivan, who are parents to two daughters. “I believe that a new day is coming to Tennessee and that a new generation is coming up, and that we can either demand that our current elected officials behave well and act in our interests or we can vote them out,” Jared Sullivan told The News. Another local activist and 2020 Renaissance High School graduate, Brynn Jones, serves as a legal associate for March For Our Lives, a group that was >> PAGE 2
On Friday night in Bellevue, the stars seemed to align for a night that James Lawson High School will not soon forget. The weather was perfect, the stands were packed with parents and community members, and the location of the brand new campus reflected the town’s namesake. In French, Bellevue means beautiful view. The meaning inspired the school’s standout colors - midnight navy blue, Columbia sky blue, and sunny yellow - all of which can be seen from campus in the surrounding hills. The atmosphere was appropriate for the historic occasion - the inaugural football game in James Lawson history. But all of the excitement would be diminished if the Lightning were to lose on opening night. After transitioning from Hillwood High School to Lawson over the summer, there was a nervous energy prior to kickoff. The team had been on campus for less than a week, and now it was time to take on Cheatham County in the group’s first game. “I think every opening game is special, but this is something that I’ve been dreaming about since I started playing football,” Lawson Head Coach Brian Lilly said in the leadup to opening night. “I think is is very special. It’s an honor that I’m extremely grateful to have.” Lilly, formerly the defensive coordinator at Brentwood Academy, was tasked with guiding the team through the transition from Hillwood to Lawson. Lilly cited former Hillwood head coach Tom Moore, who still teaches at Lawson, Lawson athletic director Pete Froedden, and the school’s principal Stephen Sheaffer as instrumental in the process. “I’m always going to be grateful for them because a lot of people thought maybe I’d be too young being 33,” Lilly said. >> PAGE 6
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