Meme referencing hanging people sparks controversy for Wilson County Republican Party

Kendall Ashman
·2 min read

WILSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) – A meme referencing hanging people is sparking controversy both online and in Wilson County.

The meme was posted on the Wilson County Republican Party of Tennessee’s Facebook page.

“I think it sends a really terrible message about Wilson County in general,” said Brittany Orpurt-Hilton, President of Wilson County Democratic Women.

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The image includes the following words in large block letters: “THEY’RE DOING IT AGAIN, BECAUSE YOU DIDN’T HANG THEM LAST TIME.”

“It’s awful I cannot honestly understand why somebody with good conscience would post something like that,” Orpurt-Hilton said.

The post even grabbed the attention of state lawmaker Gloria Johnson. She posted on X, “I like to think most Republicans in Wilson County are embarrassed by this disgusting hate, I’ve heard from some who certainly are.”

“In any part of the Republican party, we reflect on 2020,” said Aaron Fulcher, a member of the Wilson County Republican Party of Tennessee.

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Fulcher said the meme is in reference to the 2020 election, which he claims was stolen, even though there’s still no evidence of enough fraud to overturn the election.

“When you steal a presidential election, that is treason against the country and in any other place that would be subject by hanging,” Fulcher said.

While he believes there is nothing wrong with the meme, he did say that context should have been given in the post.

“I know many people took it a different direction, they took it a racial way and that is not in any way, as a Black American I took no offense to it,” Fulcher said.

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However, this isn’t the first time a controversial meme has been posted online. On the same day, a meme was posted on the Wilson County Republican Party Facebook page referencing border control.

“It’s an ongoing theme…I would like to see the post removed, I would love to see an apology, I don’t know if we ever seen an apology after one of these posts,” Orpurt-Hilton said.

At the time of this article’s publication, both posts are still up on the Wilson County Republican Party Facebook page.

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