Even as mayoral candidate and current Alderman Gabrielle Hanson has stood by welcoming white supremacists into Franklin's city hall, and even as her colleagues have rebuked her actions, Hanson has maintained the support of religious and political groups.
Hanson’s controversy-fraught run for mayor has brought national attention to Williamson County, particularly when she was joined by white supremacists who attempted to intimidate both the public and the press, both of whom the racists later threatened with violence. The current alderman has responded to criticism of her campaign by pointing the finger back at the city and the Franklin community, saying, "You reap what you sow."
"Those things are called spiritual repercussions, and they do come back to you, and it's easy to shift all the blame," Hanson said earlier this month. "I just happened to arrive when everything was starting to crumble."
All of Hanson’s colleagues on the Board of Mayor and Aldermen signed a public letter denouncing Hanson and the white supremacist group prior to an Oct. 10 meeting. At that meeting, the BOMA members chastised Hanson publicly. Two BOMA candidates — Greg Caesar and Bhavani "BK" Muvvala — also denounced Hanson and the white supremacists, but candidates Jeff Feldman, Gary Moore and Patrick George did not return requests for comment.
George did previously answer some questions from Scene sister publication The News, stopping short of directly denouncing Hanson and the group.
"Having outside influences from any side of the table or any groups that are harmful in a social or cultural way is never good," George told The News on Oct. 6. "It's never been good for society, so I just think that people have to refocus on what's important. It's our city, and what decisions we make are important for what we do; nobody else from outside is going to live with the consequences of our decision-making process."
Hanson, George, Feldman and Gary Moore are all endorsed by the Williamson Families PAC (which also endorsed incumbent Alderman Clyde Barnhill, who is running unopposed). Williamson Families Chair Robin Steenman previously told The News that she and the PAC "disavow any group supporting racial or ethnic supremacy/white nationalism/Nazism or any form of racism whatsoever," as well as disavowing violence.
Williamson Families, according to election finance filings, contributed $8,000 to Hanson's campaign before she stood with the hate group. The group continues to endorse her run for mayor.
Courting white supremacists is far from Hanson's only controversy. She previously falsely claimed having advance knowledge of the Covenant School shooting and alleged "unfounded" threats against her surrounding her opposition to the 2023 Franklin Pride Festival. She attempted to pressure the Nashville International Airport to pull sponsorship support of a Juneteenth event, which led to a city ethics violation. Hanson then sued the Franklin Ethics Commission, though she ultimately lost.
The local Nazi fight club went down to Franklin last week to act as bodyguards for mayoral candidate Gabrielle Hanson
In April, Hanson threatened to have this reporter arrested for asking for comment on a story, and she continues to evade questions about her criminal record, which includes a charge of promotion of prostitution from the 1990s. NewsChannel 5 has run a series of stories on Hanson's deceptive campaign posts featuring relative strangers as well as questions about her husband's residency and his participation in a Chicago Pride parade despite Hanson’s opposition to such celebrations.
On Oct. 14, Williamson County Republican Party Chair Tracy Miller sent out an email titled "Virtue Signaling," which details what Miller argues is the GOP's historic stance against and denouncement of "evil, oppression, racism, grooming, moral relativism, and the like," without specifically addressing or condemning any of Hanson's actions, statements or associations.
"We refuse to judge, lest we be judged,” reads the email. “We refuse to try anyone in the court of public opinion. We refuse to hate our enemies. We doubly refuse to be coerced into that hatred by groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center. We refuse to let a biased media dictate who we endorse and who we denounce, simply on the fear that they may well set their sights on us.”
NewsChannel 5 recently reported that the Westhaven Conservatives group has revoked its endorsement of Hanson and Feldman, both of whom live in the exclusive Franklin community. NC5 also reports that Hanson has been removed from the board of the Sister Cities of Franklin and Williamson County.
While the fallout of Hanson's statements and actions is still in motion, she has retained support from some community members, several of whom tell The News they "didn't believe" any of the criticism of Hanson — even after she admitted to her association with white supremacists. Some of that support was evident last week when Hanson attended a religious tent revival in Franklin's Park at Harlinsdale Farm. There she was prayed over by attendees who, according to the organizer, were "surrounding her with a shield right now with the spirit."
The three-day revival was organized by Amy Elizabeth Taylor Ministries and Revival Glory Tennessee — Tent of Encounters. The services, described as "taking back the land and releasing His Glory in our city,” were recorded and posted online. During Thursday night's revival, Taylor brought Hanson to the front of the crowd of worshippers, who then surrounded her and prayed over her for several minutes.
"The enemy has not been nice, and the enemy has been moving through people in our very community with deception, with lies, and that happens when we stand for truth," Taylor said. "Because when we bring the glory, demons have to leave, but they kick and scream on their way out, and these demons are on their way out."
Following the Oct. 10 BOMA meeting, Hanson refused to answer any questions from the press, including questions regarding whether she considers herself a white supremacist. Early voting in the Franklin mayoral and aldermen elections is open now, with Election Day to follow on Oct. 24.
