Tag: Indya Kincannon

Knoxville City Council Rejects Far-Left Councilwoman’s Anti-Israel Resolution

Kaitlin Housler

Knoxville City Council did not pass a resolution condemning Israel and calling for a ceasefire between Israeli and Hamas forces during its Tuesday council meeting.

The resolution, according to its broad text, “calls on the U.S. Federal Government to urge an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Israel and occupied Palestine and to express the Council of the City of Knoxville’s support and solidarity with the people of Palestine facing genocidal levels of violence at the hands of the state of Israel.”

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Knoxville Mayor Urges General Assembly to Pass Red Flag Laws During Special Session

Kaitlin Housler

Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon released a statement on Thursday in support of Governor Bill Lee’s call for a special session in the General Assembly, set to convene on Monday.

“As Mayor of Knoxville, public safety is my top priority. I support the Governor’s call for a Special Session to consider legislative measures to make our communities safer,” Kincannon’s statement said. “While there are many perspectives on how to accomplish these goals, the conversation must continue to include all parts of our state and all communities.”

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KUB Fiber Internet Expands in Knoxville

Kaitlin Housler

Knoxville’s utility company, Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB),  announced this week that its fiber internet has expanded to more than 4,100 South Knoxville homes and businesses.

KUB Fiber, a municipally-run broadband network, is the largest municipal fiber network in the nation, approved unanimously by the Knoxville City Council in 2021. The project, worth over $700 million, is expected to expand over the next seven years and install approximately 5,000 miles of fiber.

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Knoxville City Council Considering Zero-Tolerance Policy on Racism and Sexism by Any City Employee

Corinne Murdock

Knoxville City Council will be considering a zero-tolerance policy on racism and sexism displayed by any city employee.

Council member Amelia Parker announced that she is drafting the policy. This latest initiative follows a similar policy proposed in the wake of George Floyd’s death last year by community activists, and agreed upon by Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon. That initiative never came to fruition. Concerning last year’s similar proposal, Parker said in an email that the lack of follow-through from Kincannon was disappointing.

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Knoxville City Council Considering $50K Funding for ‘Violence Interruption’ from Nonprofits

Corinne Murdock

Knoxville City Council is considering whether to grant $50,000 to community nonprofits for their “violence interruption” services. The resolution would award the funds to United Way of Greater Knoxville (UWGK). According to the resolution, UWGK would appoint a committee of community leaders to determine how the $50,000 would be spent.

Violence interruption is a community-based mechanism for preventing violence by intervening in conflicts through violence interrupters. The idea is that individuals encountered by violence interrupters have greater needs that the community can meet through services and programs, therefore eliminating that individual’s need for violent crime. Last month, the Biden Administration released a statement extolling the value of community violence intervention, under which falls violence interruption mechanisms. 

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Knoxville to Fund Up to $25,000 for COVID-19 Memorial Mural

Corinne Murdock

Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon pledged up to $25,000 for a mural dedicated to memorializing COVID-19 deaths. The mural will be a permanent memorial for over 600 Knox County residents who reportedly died from COVID-19. The commissioned artist, Kelsey Montague, is best known for “What Lifts You” – the popularized angel wings mural located in the Nashville Gulch.

The pandemic memorial mural will be located on one of the Clinch Avenue Viaduct underpasses at the World’s Fair Park; it will depict brightly-colored birds flying upward into a blue archway toward the base of the historical Sunsphere. Kincannon announced this development in a press release on Thursday. 

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Knoxville Appoints ‘Youth Council’ of 12 to 20-Year-Olds to Help Address City Issues

Corinne Murdock

On Wednesday, Knoxville announced the appointment of 17 youths to a council dedicated to addressing city issues through “strategic planning.” The “Mayor’s Youth Council” will work alongside the Knoxville City Council and other city officials as they focus on community organizing, leadership, and advocacy. The council has a total of four eighth-graders, three high school freshmen, four sophomores, four juniors, and two seniors representing eight schools.

The council will begin meeting over the summer. They will be tasked with learning municipal services, collaborating with their peers and youth-serving nonprofits, and “strategic planning.”

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Knoxville Mayor Allots $100k for African American Equity Restoration Task Force

Corinne Murdock

Knoxville’s newly-established African American Equity Restoration Task Force was allotted $100,000 in the latest city budget. Mayor Indya Kincannon highlighted this task force as one of their biggest diversity initiatives. 

That is one tenth of a percent of what Kincannon projected the task force may receive. At the end of January,  The Tennessee Star reported projections that the task force may receive $100 million in government grants over the next seven years.

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Mayor of Knoxville Latest Politician to Have Home Vandalized

Peter D'Abrosca

The Mayor of Knoxville is the latest politician to have her home vandalized, in a trend that has become commonplace since last summer’s Antifa and Black Lives Matter riots. 

“The Knoxville Police Department is investigating after a vandalism report at Mayor Indya Kincannon’s home Sunday night,” according to a Monday report by WBIR. “When officers arrived on the scene, they observed the word ‘Death’ spray-painted in black on the backside of a detached garage at Mayor Kincannon’s house.”

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Knoxville Opts Out of Controversial Practice of Sharing Personal Data of COVID-19 Patients with Police

Admin

The City of Knoxville said Tuesday it will opt-out of sharing the names and addresses of COVID-19 patients with law enforcement following a statewide controversy over the practice.

Mayor Indya Kincannon and Police Chief Eve Thomas said that the Knoxville Police Department will leave a state program that allows law-enforcement officers across Tennessee to access a database of persons who have tested positive for COVID-19.

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