Ms. Wamp,
In reply to your recent statements regarding the NAACP I’d like you to know that those for or against your candidacy would respect you more if you’d simply gone to your Republican forum and said, “I really don’t give a d--n about the African American vote. Thank you for your time.”
In my humble opinion what you and others of your persuasion fail to understand about ethnic communities is that family is, and always will be, Family. That even old Uncle Johnny is afforded respect at the Family reunion. That the DJ knows that in order to get the party started one is expected to play The Supremes before Destiny’s Child.
Oh Ms. Wamp, you claim to want my and my Family’s vote, but I’m writing to inform you that in our Family, around our dinner tables, in our churches, the NAACP is a Sacred institution. How could you imagine that maligning an organization whose “only death can keep me from it” membership rolls once included Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, Fannie Lou Hamer, and the little known heroine of Stantonsburg, N.C. Dora Mae Farmer, whose sons (my father included) had to extinguish a fiery cross on their small farm, lit by, no doubt, G0d-fearing hooded men; how could you think that your disparaging words would result in you receiving the coveted and hard fought for Black vote?
To be clear…in case you are still a bit confused…your statements about the NAACP at an election event for Republicans was about as fruitful at garnering African American votes as Eleanor Roosevelt was for her Democratic husband Franklin, from the Daughters of the American Revolution, after she invited Marian Anderson to sing on the steps of The Lincoln Memorial.
Gwendolyn Green
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Ms. Green, let me remind you that I am the only candidate in this race who has served as a public defender. In that position I served the entire county well, including so many criminal defendants in the urban community.
Per my opponent’s website there are 44 employees in his office. Three of them are black. I have committed to at least doubling that number because in an office that is supposed to serve all of this community, three out of 44 is unacceptable.
Also, how many times in the last eight years do you recall hearing from the district attorney when it comes to crimes that have affected the black community? Did you hear anything from him when the three children were shot in the West Village in 2020? Did you hear from him when the beautiful young black girl was shot outside of Southside Social in 2018? Did you hear from him after seven women were shot and two were killed on Grove Street last fall? No. You didn’t. He’s not interested in helping the black community, he’s had eight years to do that. He’s interested in votes.
As for law enforcement—the district attorney is part of law enforcement. The DA is the chief law enforcement officer in the judicial district per Tennessee state law. One of many reasons I am so adamant about supporting law enforcement is because the district attorney is law enforcement. I’m not running for judge. Judges are the neutral party. I will be fair and impartial, I will seek truth and justice, but I will not stand in front of a jury and remain neutral. I’ll fight for victims and I’ll enforce the law.
Don’t let a political candidate divide us any further. We agree on mostly everything. We all have the same goal. My goal is to make this city safer. My goal is to reduce the number of phone calls grandmothers have to get telling them their grandson has been shot. My goal is to reduce the number of pills sold to our young people with no regard to whether they live or die. My goal is to make sure that next year, unlike last year, we prosecute more than three of 91 child sex abuse cases that come through the system.
Let’s unite. Let’s rally around the issue of public safety. Let’s help each other. Let’s talk about solutions.
Coty Wamp
Candidate for District Attorney
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Ms. Wamp wants to shift attention away from her divisive comments. It is becoming increasingly clear that she lacks the necessary experience, maturity, and knowledge of both history and the law to hold any office in Hamilton County.
For the past several months I’ve largely ignored her lies and vitriol, choosing to take the high road and focus on the important work the people of Hamilton County elected me to perform. The media has not held her accountable for the misrepresentations and invented statistics she’s peddled.
The three cases Ms. Wamp mentions are unsolved. Under Tennessee law, a District Attorney General is prohibited from discussing pending criminal investigations. Ms. Wamp knows this because I explained the law when we made a joint appearance several weeks ago. Yet she deliberately continues to mislead the public about this and almost every other claim she’s made about my office.
Not only does she disregard the law, she doesn’t know basic facts about the DA’s Office. I have 57 employees, not 44, and as District Attorney General I’ve hired more minorities than all my predecessors combined. My office prosecuted far more than three child abuse cases within the last year.
I’ve heard from the NAACP, various African American pastors, and other key community leaders in recent days who know I am committed to safe communities, decreased crime, and equal treatment under the law for everyone in Hamilton County. They also know, as does everyone in Hamilton County, that I am the only candidate qualified to be the District Attorney.
I encourage everyone in Hamilton County to watch the upcoming DA debates scheduled for March 29, April 4 and April 5. These events will give voters a clear understanding of which candidate is the prosecutor, which is the politician, and which one has the maturity and experience to uphold the solemn duties of the office.
Neal Pinkston
District Attorney General