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TN Politics: State Legislature Considers New Laws Promoting Guns and Stifling Speech in Universities

Some Republicans in the General Assembly hope to see gun owners given law enforcement powers, while others take aim at college professors teaching Black history.

Some new bills getting attention could mean more headaches for residents of Memphis as state Republicans look to overrule local residency requirements for local law enforcement, give gun owners the right to carry weapons into local businesses that have gun bans, and expand statewide prohibitions on teaching so-called Critical Race Theory into the state's colleges and universities.

Reporting from the gates of Graceland to the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, Christopher has covered Memphis news, arts, culture and politics for more than 20 years in print and on the radio. He is currently WKNO's News Director and Senior Producer at the University of Memphis' Institute for Public Service Reporting. Join his conversations about the Memphis arts scene on the WKNO Culture Desk Facebook page.