Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    • Home
    • About Us
    • Digital Subscription
    • Advertisement
    • Contact Us
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    The Tennessee TribuneThe Tennessee Tribune
    Advertise With Us
    • Home
      • COVID-19 Resource Center
        • Dr. Henry Louis Gates’ PSA Radio
      • Featured
    • News
      • State
      • Local
      • National/International News
      • Global
      • Business
        • Commentary
        • Finance
        • Local Business
      • Investigative Stories
        • Affordable Housing
        • DCS Investigation
        • Gentrification
    • Editorial
      • National Politics
      • Local News
      • Local Editorial
      • Political Editorial
      • Editorial Cartoons
      • Cycle of Shame
    • Community
      • History
      • Tennessee
        • Chattanooga
        • Clarksville
        • Knoxville
        • Memphis
      • Public Notices
      • Women
        • Let’s Talk with Ms. June
    • Education
      • College
        • American Baptist College
        • Belmont University
        • Fisk
        • HBCU
        • Meharry
        • MTSU
        • University of Tennessee
        • TSU
        • Vanderbilt
      • Elementary
      • High School
    • Lifestyle
      • Art
      • Auto
      • Tribune Travel
      • Entertainment
        • 5 Questions With
        • Books
        • Events
        • Film Review
        • Local Entertainment
      • Family
      • Food
        • Drinks
      • Health & Wellness
      • Home & Garden
      • Featured Books
    • Religion
      • National Religion
      • Local Religion
      • Obituaries
        • National Obituaries
        • Local Obituaries
      • Faith Commentary
    • Sports
      • MLB
        • Sounds
      • NBA
      • NCAA
      • NFL
        • Predators
        • Titans
      • NHL
      • Other Sports
      • Golf
      • Professional Sports
      • Sports Commentary
      • Metro Sports
    • Media
      • Video
      • Photo Galleries
      • Take 10
      • Trending With The Tribune
    • Classified
    • Obituaries
      • Local Obituaries
      • National Obituaries
    The Tennessee TribuneThe Tennessee Tribune
    Featured

    House Passes Bill to Remove Former Klansman’s Name from Memphis Federal Building 

    Article submittedBy Article submittedNovember 18, 2021Updated:November 20, 2021No Comments2 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Telegram Pinterest Tumblr Reddit Email
    Judge Odell Horton
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    MEMPHIS, TN — The U.S. House has passed a bill to remove the name of the late congressman and one-time klansman Clifford Davis from Memphis’ federal building.

    The bipartisan bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen of Memphis passed Thursday, Nov. 4, on a 422-2 vote and is now on its way to the U.S. Senate. The bill had been dormant for more than seven months amid Washington’s political gridlock following approval in March by the House’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

    If H.R. 390 passes there, President Joe Biden is expected to sign it, renaming the iconic 11-story courthouse and office building solely for Odell Horton, the first African American judge to sit on the federal bench in Memphis. Judge Horton’s name was added to the building alongside Davis’ name in 2007 following another bill by Cohen.

    “I had initially hoped to simply rename the building for Judge Horton, but the political will to do that was not present at that time,’’ Cohen said from the House floor before the vote. “And I call it the Clifford Davis, Odell Horton building. Now, here we are in 2021, and the political will is present.”

    The renewed effort follows an in-depth report last year by the Institute for Public Service Reporting exploring Davis’ career and his long-forgotten ties to the Ku Klux Klan.

    Davis successfully ran for Memphis city court judge on the official KKK ticket in 1923 and was active in the white supremacist terrorist group, giving fiery speeches to the growing throngs of klansmen that plagued the city at the time.

    He died in 1970 at age 72. He’d been a Memphis judge and police commissioner before serving 12 terms in Congress between 1940 and 1965.

    The Davis family called for his name to be removed from the federal building after the death of George Floyd in 2020 led to a wave of protests that swept across the country.

    “We are proud of Cliff Davis’ many contributions to Memphis, but his membership in the Klan and support for Jim Crow cannot be excused,’’ family members said then in a written statement issued through Davis’ great-grandson, Owen Hooks Davis.

    “The current reckoning with our nation’s enduring history of racism is long overdue, and we support renaming the Clifford Davis-Odell Horton Federal Building to bear Judge Horton’s name alone.”

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Article submitted

    Related Posts

    Tennessee Human Rights Commission Dissolved

    July 3, 2025

    Reverend Dr. Derrick Jackson Interim ABC President

    July 2, 2025

    ACLU-TN Files Lawsuit Challenging Criminalization of Local Officials’ Votes on Immigration Policies

    June 30, 2025

    Emmett Till National Monument May Be Removed Under Trump Admin

    June 28, 2025

    TSU, State, reach agreement to reallocate $96M to school

    June 26, 2025

    TSU student lands prestigious internship at Harvard Medical School

    June 25, 2025

    Comments are closed.

    Business

    Charlotte Knight Griffin Takes Office as TBA President-Elect

    June 30, 2025

    EXCLUSIVE OP-ED: President Joe Biden Commemorating Juneteenth

    June 19, 2025

    FUNdraising Good Times Report from Neighborhoods USA Conference in Jacksonville

    June 4, 2025
    1 2 3 … 384 Next
    Education
    Education

    Austin Peay’s MPH program receives $27K for childhood literacy initiative. Community LIFT Project to be implemented at Head Start centers this fall

    By Ethan SteinquestJune 30, 2025

    CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay State University’s Master of Public Health program is on a…

    TSU, State, reach agreement to reallocate $96M to school

    June 26, 2025

    TSU student lands prestigious internship at Harvard Medical School

    June 25, 2025

    FAMU stakeholders file lawsuit to prevent Marva Johnson’s confirmation as the university’s 13th President

    June 21, 2025
    The Tennessee Tribune
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    • About Us
    • Digital Subscription
    • Store
    • Advertise With Us
    • Contact
    © 2025 The Tennessee Tribune - Site Designed by No Regret Media.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Our Spring Sale Has Started

    You can see how this popup was set up in our step-by-step guide: https://wppopupmaker.com/guides/auto-opening-announcement-popups/