We deserve elected leaders who value the lives of our children and families so that all of us, no matter where we live or the color of our skin, have the freedom to decide whether or when to have a child, and have the agency to do so.

The freedom to fully control our bodies, lives, and futures is vital to all of us. 

The freedom to decide whether or when to have a child has implications for an individual’s financial well-being, job security, workforce participation, and educational attainment.

We envision a world where Tennesseans are free to have and raise their children in safe, supportive, healthy, and loving communities free from government interference in their personal family decisions.

Tennessee's Supermajority Legislature may  try to distract us from their failure to protect our freedom to contraception, but we know our worth and are calling for legislation that protects our freedom to make our own healthcare decisions.

This is about our freedom to decide whether, when, and with whom to have a family. The TN Supermajority believes that politicians have the right to make our most personal decisions based on their faith and values. We believe in the freedom to make our own decisions based on our own faith and values.

Call me pro-life, pro-choice or pro-common sense, but I believe politicians must never tell a woman or a couple when to start or expand a family based on someone else’s interpretation of scripture.

Birth control pills have been around for 60+ years as well as barriers to access. These barriers are rooted in systematic discrimination and oppression. No more barriers – everyone should have access to the health care they need. 

 Shape the conversation around powerful values: Freedom vs. control The freedom to decide, especially as a direct contrast to controlling politicians, provides a powerful and uniquely effective framework for conversations around accessing the full range of reproductive healthcare in the United States. 

• When it comes to decisions around parenthood and pregnancy, I will always respect people’s freedom to make personal decisions and protect the freedom to decide. 
• I, like most Americans, believe that personal decisions about pregnancy should be made by the person who is pregnant, with the support of the people she loves and trusts — not by politicians trying to control us.
• I believe that the decision to have an abortion is not a political one, it is a deeply personal one. As a legislator, it’s not up to me to force someone to make one decision or another — we should be helping people, not trying to control them. 

 Go on the offense by describing the world we want to create 

• I am working toward a world where each of us would not only be free to dream our best life, we would have the freedom to live it as well. 
• I want to see a world where people respect personal decisions around parenthood and pregnancy, where people can get accurate, unbiased medical information and make the best healthcare decisions they can for themselves and those they love.
• Once someone has decided to seek abortion care, I want them to be able to have access to safe and affordable medical care. I want them to be supported, not restricted by laws that dictate their decision or place unnecessary barriers on the process. 

 Call out anti-choice politicians, and demonstrate the danger of their agenda and motivations 

• The out-of-touch [elected official] has stood with the radical-right as they jammed through a barrage of abortion restrictions and worked in overdrive to ban all abortion care, controlling people’s decisions and criminalizing doctors who provide care for their patients. 
• We are supposed to be passing laws that help people. Yet these abortion restrictions aren’t helping anyone—they’re about controlling and manipulating others for political gain, power, and self-interest.
• Abortion bans and restrictions are un-American. This country is supposed to be about having the freedom to make your own life.
• Have radical-right wing politicians ever thought about what abortion restrictions mean for people’s lives? Some of these laws force doctors to lie to their patients; others could have someone thrown in jail after having an abortion or miscarriage. These laws aren’t about protecting people, they’re about controlling them.
• The people passing abortion bans don’t care what happens to babies after they’re born. These are the same politicians who want to cut assistance programs like early childhood education and food assistance programs. 

Abortion Trafficking/Travel Bans

• Living in a Post-Roe Tennessee with a total ban on abortion, the only means to access life-saving abortion care is to travel outside of the state. HB 1895 / SB 1971 aims to prevent young people from traveling to access legal abortion care in other states. This bill targets trusted adults, family members, and helpers who assist minors in accessing legal abortion care.
• HB1895 / SB1971, sponsored by Rep. Jason Zachary and Senator Paul Rose, states that any trusted adult who helps a minor access legal abortion services outside of the state of Tennessee could be punished with up to 15 years in prison, and fined up to $10,000 simply for providing the minor with assistance. According to the bill, parents and legal guardians are exempt; however, this bill is blatant fear-mongering meant to make people too scared to offer support to a young person in need and to make pregnant people too scared to seek help from other trusted adults.
• Each of us should be able to make our own decisions with dignity and respect, including our young people. Respectfully, I ask that you do NOT support HB1895 / SB1971. Please protect Tennessee’s youth. 

Remember to put this in your own words. Introduce yourself, share why it matters to you, and make an ask like 'stop spreading misinformation, don't deny parent's their choice and freedom to provide their children life-saving vaccines, and why that matters to you, for example.

• Most of us want to do everything we can to keep our children safe, no matter our race, background, political beliefs or where we live in Tennessee.
  
  
• But,  Gov. Bill Lee, Reps. Jason Zachary, William Lamberth, Jeremy Faison and Speaker Cameron Sexton are endangering children by spreading misinformation about vaccines for children - and now they are threatening to deny parents even the option to vaccinate their children, and in doing so deny children of Tennessee even the access to a safe, effective, vaccine against a harmful disease.
  
  
• Parents - and their children - deserve every tool available to keep them them safe. Radical-right politicians like Gov. Bill Lee, Reps. Jason Zachary, William Lamberth, Jeremy Faison and Speaker Cameron Sexton shouldn't get to spread their anti-vaccine misinformation and impose their extreme views and beliefs on everyone else.
  
  
• Most of us who believe in the scientists, researchers and medical professionals who have saved countless lives throughout the COVID pandemic want at least the option to vaccinate our children and do everything we can to keep children safe. 

Remember to put messages into your own words. Here are some sample messages we know work:

• every child in our community should receive an honest and quality education, no matter the color of their skin, the amount of money their family has, the language they speak, their background, or where they call home.
  

• elected leaders should focus on fully funding every school, and ensuring every school has the resources they need to address root problems so that they can provide every student with a quality education, without exceptions.  This means addressing real challenges like ceilings that won't fall our kids, drinking water that doesn't have lead in it that threatens their long term health, addressing the teacher shortage, kids have the mental health support they need; it means ensuring teachers have what they need for individualized lesson plans; etc

• Instead of addressing the real issues our students face, some politicians [or name specific ones] rather turn our children's classrooms into their next political battleground, diverting public school funding to private charters, banning (or burning) books that deal with topics like Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington and the Civil Rights Movement, shaming LGBTQ kids and threatening to sue or fine teachers just for doing their job.

• We need leaders to know that being on the side of parents and students doesn't mean censoring accurate history lessons, withholding or diverting funding from our public schools, or suing teachers.   It means doing everything you can to support children in the classroom, like providing adequate funding to address the teacher shortage, individualized lesson plans, and mental health support for children.

• elected officials need to keep the culture wars out of our classrooms and instead focus on providing every student, and every school with the resources they need, and in doing so make our community one where we respect and support each other across our differences and our schools' places where every child belongs and can thrive.
  

Other Sample Messages

• Public schools are important to our democracy. They are where children of different backgrounds and beliefs come together to learn. To develop as good citizens, children need to understand our history, important issues and our differences. We should trust our librarians and teachers to decide what books are in libraries and classrooms and work together to make sure that every child has an excellent education.
  
  
• Those who want to ban books are censoring American history and showing they’re afraid of giving our children the freedom to learn and think critically for themselves. Our country was founded on the fundamental right of free speech that our service men and women have sacrificed everything to protect. Instead of censoring lessons and banning books, politicians should focus on fully funding and equipping every school with the resources they need to ensure every child a quality education.
  
  
• As any teacher or parent knows, school is a place where children develop their understanding of the world and their ability to make meaningful change in it. But certain politicians are trying to make our kids’ classrooms into battlegrounds, spreading lies about the lessons they teach so they can strip schools of the funding our kids deserve. By joining together we can reject this division and make schools a place where every child, Black, white and brown, can learn, grow, and thrive.
  
  
• “Regardless of race, where we call home or back, most of us want our kids to have an education that encourages them to dig deeper into who we are, where we came from and what we’re capable of being. But the same lawmakers who have blocked funding for our classrooms are now trying to turn us against our schools. They’re spreading lies about the lessons on our history, culture and politics that our teachers deliver as part of an accurate and honest education, hoping to divide us so we don’t join together to demand all that our schools need. As parents, we know that our children must have the tools and guidance to honestly face and understand our past and present in order to create a better future."

While Congress can't decide whether or not President Trump or others can be prosecuted for their role in the January 6th insurrection, they can take action to ensure that norms in our democracy are protected.

A recent Tennessee Democracy Forum poll found that an overwhelming majority of Tennessee voters backed common sense reforms like limited the president's power to issue pardons to themselves or family members, increasing protections to whistleblowers and requiring candidates for President to release their taxes so that the public can be the judge of whether a candidate may have a conflict of interest.

Given the solid majority of Tennesseans backing these measures, why aren' Senators Blackburn and Haggerty -- and every member of the Congressional delegation -- signed on as sponsors of the Protecting Our Democracy Act?  Are they for allowing a President to pardon himself? Are they against protecting whistle-blowers? Are they against transparency? Why won’t they commit to protecting our Democracy?

• Our children and teachers deserve to be safe in our schools
• Public schools should be one of the safest places for students and educators — but gunshots shattered the physical safety of the school community in Uvalde
• This tragedy once again underscores the very real dangers of a culture in which gun violence has become too much the norm and is too often the first way to resolve an argument or a grievance
• Governor Lee, Bill Hagerty, Marsha Blackburn and other federal policymakers must take action to keep firearms out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them, whether that requires enacting new laws or better enforcing our existing laws.
• But, Republicans "permitless carry' law eliminated background checks and training requirements for gun ownership in Tennessee, against the wishes of law enforcement experts and common sense.  Now police are crediting the rise in Tennessee shootings to Gov. Lee's elimination of common sense gun safety policy.
• Tennessee Republicans spent the 2022 legislative session trying to lower the age of gun ownership to 18 (the age of the shooter in Texas), while also blocking funding for gun safety.
• How many more mass shootings need to happen before these lawmakers finally take responsibility and address the gun safety issue?
• We owe it to our students and educators to make our schools safe and welcoming places where every student can thrive.
  
• the disgusting and shameful fact in America is that another shooting like this was just a matter of time because of our political leaders’ breathtaking disregard for our lives.
• Let’s be clear that this was a preventable tragedy. The regular mass murder of children like this is only “normal” in America.
• You can’t stop a bullet with thoughts and prayers. To honor those lost and save countless more lives, we need action. Children and families continue to die while we wait for your action.

Remember to put messages into your own words. Here are some sample messages we know work:

• Public schools are important to our democracy. They are where children of different backgrounds and beliefs come together to learn. To develop as good citizens, children need to understand our history, important issues and our differences. We should trust our librarians and teachers to decide what books are in libraries and classrooms and work together to make sure that every child has an excellent education.
  
  
• Those who want to ban books are censoring American history and showing they’re afraid of giving our children the freedom to learn and think critically for themselves. Our country was founded on the fundamental right of free speech that our service men and women have sacrificed everything to protect. Instead of censoring lessons and banning books, politicians should focus on fully funding and equipping every school with the resources they need to ensure every child a quality education.
  
  
• Quick response: "As any teacher or parent knows, school is a place where children develop their understanding of the world and their ability to make meaningful change in it. But certain politicians are trying to make our kids’ classrooms into battlegrounds, spreading lies about the lessons they teach so they can strip schools of the funding our kids deserve. By joining together we can reject this division and make schools a place where every child, Black, white and brown, can learn, grow, and thrive."
  
  
• Parents Message: “Regardless of race, where we call home or back, most of us want our kids to have an education that encourages them to dig deeper into who we are, where we came from and what we’re capable of being. But the same lawmakers who have blocked funding for our classrooms are now trying to turn us against our schools. They’re spreading lies about the lessons on our history, culture and politics that our teachers deliver as part of an accurate and honest education, hoping to divide us so we don’t join together to demand all that our schools need. As parents, we know that our children must have the tools and guidance to honestly face and understand our past and present in order to create a better future."
  
  
• Most people believe that every child should have an honest and quality education, regardless of their color, language they speak, background, how much money they have or the part of town they live in. That means we need to be fully funding every school, and ensuring every school has the resources they need to address root problems and provide every child a quality education. But, instead of addressing the real issues our students and schools are facing, some politicians are pushing their extreme political agenda into our public schools, even trying to ban books that deal with Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington and the Civil Rights Movement or threatening to sue or fine teachers just for doing their job. Our leaders need to know that being on the side of parents doesn’t mean censoring accurate history lessons, withholding and diverting funding from our public schools, or suing teachers. Most parents, educators, and students understand the real issues facing our kids.   That means working together to solve actual problems, like the teacher shortage with full-time, passionate teachers, like finding funding for mental health support for children, and ensuring teachers have what they need to provide every student with the individualized attention that they need to learn and do well in school.

Remember to put messages into your own words. Here are some sample messages we know work:

• every child in our community should receive an honest and quality education, no matter the color of their skin, the amount of money their family has, the language they speak, their background, or where they call home.
  

• elected leaders should focus on fully funding every school, and ensuring every school has the resources they need to address root problems so that they can provide every student with a quality education, without exceptions.  This means addressing real challenges like ceilings that won't fall our kids, drinking water that doesn't have lead in it that threatens their long term health, addressing the teacher shortage, kids have the mental health support they need; it means ensuring teachers have what they need for individualized lesson plans; etc

• Instead of addressing the real issues our students face, some politicians [or name specific ones] rather turn our children's classrooms into their next political battleground, diverting public school funding to private charters, banning (or burning) books that deal with topics like Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington and the Civil Rights Movement, shaming LGBTQ kids and threatening to sue or fine teachers just for doing their job.

• We need leaders to know that being on the side of parents and students doesn't mean censoring accurate history lessons, withholding or diverting funding from our public schools, or suing teachers.   It means doing everything you can to support children in the classroom, like providing adequate funding to address the teacher shortage, individualized lesson plans, and mental health support for children.

• elected officials need to keep the culture wars out of our classrooms and instead focus on providing every student, and every school with the resources they need, and in doing so make our community one where we respect and support each other across our differences and our schools' places where every child belongs and can thrive.
  

Other Sample Messages

• Public schools are important to our democracy. They are where children of different backgrounds and beliefs come together to learn. To develop as good citizens, children need to understand our history, important issues and our differences. We should trust our librarians and teachers to decide what books are in libraries and classrooms and work together to make sure that every child has an excellent education.
  
  
• Those who want to ban books are censoring American history and showing they’re afraid of giving our children the freedom to learn and think critically for themselves. Our country was founded on the fundamental right of free speech that our service men and women have sacrificed everything to protect. Instead of censoring lessons and banning books, politicians should focus on fully funding and equipping every school with the resources they need to ensure every child a quality education.
  
  
• As any teacher or parent knows, school is a place where children develop their understanding of the world and their ability to make meaningful change in it. But certain politicians are trying to make our kids’ classrooms into battlegrounds, spreading lies about the lessons they teach so they can strip schools of the funding our kids deserve. By joining together we can reject this division and make schools a place where every child, Black, white and brown, can learn, grow, and thrive.
  
  
• “Regardless of race, where we call home or back, most of us want our kids to have an education that encourages them to dig deeper into who we are, where we came from and what we’re capable of being. But the same lawmakers who have blocked funding for our classrooms are now trying to turn us against our schools. They’re spreading lies about the lessons on our history, culture and politics that our teachers deliver as part of an accurate and honest education, hoping to divide us so we don’t join together to demand all that our schools need. As parents, we know that our children must have the tools and guidance to honestly face and understand our past and present in order to create a better future."

Great News: Signing Up for a HealthCare.gov Plan Just Got More Affordable in Tennessee
Most people qualify for financial help and 88% can find a plan for under $75

On November 1, the Affordable Care Act marketplaces open for business across the country. The most important thing people need to know is that coverage is affordable and according to the latest analysis from Health and Human Services, people can find even more affordable plans this year than in years past.

That’s right. This year 88% of Tennesseans can find a plan for under $75 each month because of the financial assistance that is available that lowers someone’s monthly premiums. Last year, 81% of people in Tennessee were able to find a plan for less than $75 each month.

What does this mean? There are plans at HealthCare.gov this year that are more affordable than ever before. In fact, health experts at Oliver Wyman found that plans with premiums that are zero dollars each month “are more prevalent now than they were”.

Cheaper plans are available because of Trump’s decision to stop making cost sharing reduction payments which raised costs for certain plans but because of how the ACA marketplaces are structured people’s tax credits to lower their costs will increase dramatically. While the headlines of rate increases have caused a lot of anxiety for people, the facts are that most people will be able to find even more affordable plans.

Here are the key topline data points from the HHS report:

• People will pay less for coverage this year than ever before. 88% of people in Tennessee who look for plans at HealthCare.gov will be able to find plans for less than $75 each month. (page 37)
  
  
• Tax credits protect people from rate increases. A 27-year-old earning $25,000 a year will get a monthly tax credit of $472 each month, a 92% increase, from $245 each month. This increase is because tax credits are set against the second lowest cost silver plan and because of Trump’s decision to stop making cost sharing reduction payments the rates for these plans have increased which means tax credits have too. (page 31)