State Rep. Antonio Parkinson has become known as a fierce fighter for the people of Tennessee. He has been vocal in the protection of the citizens of Memphis when under attack from others across the state. 

State Rep. Antonio Parkinson has authored and passed laws that have protected working men and women, removed violent criminals from our communities along with laws that have opened the door for new businesses and careers to be started. 

He has been named Legislator of the Year four times by different organizations with one of the awards being Regional Legislator of the Year by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators. 

He has fought for women to receive equal pay, affordable health insurance for all Tennesseans, a livable wage for all and quality education for our children and adults. 

"I was considered the under dog growing up and now I fight for those that feel as if they don't have a voice."

"When I first ran, I ran on STRONG, DECISIVE LEADERSHIP". I still believe in that mantra and it is just that that has allowed us to get the wins we have received in a Republican controlled legislature".

LET'S GET ME BACK TO THE FIGHT! DONATE TODAY!

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    “He is a genuinely good person that has the citizens at heart always. He speaks his mind about the things that matter, and gets results.”

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    “He's fair and he cares about the children and the community people in general”

May 15, 2018

Thank you barbers and stylists for your support.

We recently kicked our campaign off with the barber and cosmetology professionals. I am truly grateful for their support. 

In 2013 we were successful in passing legislation that allowed for the opening of free standing schools for natural hair, manicurosts and estheticians. The passing of this law allowed for students to decide their path and focus solely on their chosen specialty. Additionally, as part of this legislation, we included apprenticeships which allows students to go to work in a salon while they are still under the direction of the school. The passing of this law has led to many new businesses opening and new professionals entering the market. 

However, this year, a fight that took place in Nashville over House Bill 1809.  HB 1809 would have gutted the beauty, barber and natural hair industry in Tennessee by removing the license requirement for professional natural hair stylist while combining the license for barbers and cosmetologists. 

Most of the professional world of beauty and barbering were adamantly opposed to HB 1809 which was brought forth by Governor Haslam's administration. We fought vigourously against the legislation and were victorious! To put this in perspective, while I was part of the victory, credit for the win belongs to the many professional barbers, stylists and owners who showed up to the capitol to have their voices heard...and they were vocal! If you can imagine a football team...while I was the quarterback calling the play in the huddle, we couldn't score the touchdown without great blocking, a fast running back, a receiver who could catch the ball and a well designed play or strategy. This is TEAMWORK at it's best. 

The fight continues. It is expected that legislation will be brought forth again in the next session. I want to be there to insure that the integrity of the cosmetology industry in Tennessee remains intact. Please make a donation to the campaign so that we can keep the Tennessee barber and beauty industry intact in Tennessee. 

Sincerely,

Rep. Antonio Parkinson

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