Phyllis Hildreth will lead Nashville’s new Office of Youth Safety. Mayor Freddie O’Connell announced the office’s first director last week.
Char Daston
Char Daston is a reporter and newscast writer for WPLN. Char got his start in public radio at WYSO public radio in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where he answered questions sent in by listeners for a program called WYSO Curious. He went on to work at St. Louis Public Radio and WBEZ Chicago, where he produced the daily talk show Reset and reported for the education desk. His work has appeared nationally on shows like Morning Edition and The World. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Char attended college and grad school at the University of Chicago, where he wrote his master’s thesis on the politics of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Unable to settle on one creative project, Char enjoys writing poetry, plays and video essays in his spare time. You’ll likely find him rushing to choir rehearsal or seeking out Nashville’s best Thai and Korean food.
Metro plans to clear a decades-old Nashville encampment
Nashville’s Office of Homeless Services plans to clear out Old Tent City. The encampment south of downtown near the Cumberland River and Interstate 24 has been a community for unhoused Nashvillians for over 40 years.
As Tennessee prisons phase out physical mail, prisoners weigh in
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The Tennessee Department of Correction is phasing out physical mail and deploying table-style computers to all people in prison.
If ICE tries to arrest immigrants at government offices, how will employees respond?
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State and Metro Nashville employees have received very different instructions on how to respond to this scenario.
High winds, hail and a few tornadoes: what to expect from Friday and Saturday’s storms
Middle Tennesseans should brace for severe thunderstorms Friday night and all day Saturday. The National Weather Service predicts 60 to 80 mph winds, golf-ball-size hail, and a few isolated tornadoes.
To combat isolation for local immigrants, this nonprofit recruits allies and volunteers
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Fear of deportation has led some immigrants to hide in their homes. TIRRC says it’s fighting that fear by selling yard signs that say “Immigrants Belong.”
After disruption, nonprofits will be able to send books to Tennessee prisoners again
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Last year, the Tennessee Department of Correction made it impossible for books-to-prisons nonprofits to mail books to prisoners in Tennessee.
Tennessee snow slows travel and closes schools, libraries, government offices
Much of Middle Tennessee woke up to about 2 to 3 inches of snow, prompting widespread closures and warnings of difficult travel conditions.
‘We don’t want people to stop calling.’ This police commander says immigrants’ trust is key to his work
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Carlos Lara leads Nashville’s Southeast Precinct, where he serves some of Nashville’s largest immigrant communities.
As this South Nashville health center practices for ICE raids, it still wants immigrant patients to feel ‘celebrated’
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ICE says it will now enter schools, churches and hospitals. Staff at one clinic is practicing what they’ll do if agents show up.
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