We’re All Paying the Economic Price of Christian Nationalism
Michael “Gene” Scott
January 16, 2026
I live in Johnson City, Tennessee.
Our State Senator is Rusty Crowe.
Seventy-seven years old.
First elected in 1990.
One of the longest-serving legislators in Tennessee history.
If you’ve seen him lately, you can see the wear.
He shuffles down the street, head bent, eyes on his swollen feet.
Today, he — along with Marsha Blackburn and Governor Bill Lee — is waging war against immigrants.
The people who pick our vegetables.
Repair our roofs.
Mow our lawns for reasonable wages.
The people who quietly keep East Tennessee functioning.
When a White Man Committed Real Crimes, Rusty Crowe Said Nothing
Johnson City agreed to a $28 million settlement to resolve a federal lawsuit brought by multiple women who said city police repeatedly failed to properly investigate sexual assault reports involving the same white man — Sean Williams — allowing him to continue preying on victims for years.
When Williams was finally arrested in 2022, investigators found images of more than 50 women and children being sexually assaulted in his downtown Johnson City condo while they were unconscious.
The lawsuit alleged systemic negligence and dismissive treatment of victims by law enforcement — not isolated mistakes.
An independent consultant hired by the city concluded police failed to:
- Collect evidence
- Interview suspects and witnesses
- Make arrests
…in numerous sexual assault cases over a four-year period.
The city settled to avoid further legal and financial risk while denying wrongdoing.
Sean Williams is now serving a 95-year prison sentence.
Sources include Tennessee Lookout, WJHL, the Associated Press, and The New York Times (2024–2026).
So Where Is the Emergency?
Where is the crisis?
Where are the dangerous criminals Senator Crowe keeps warning us about?
I went looking.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office maintains a public arrest database. You can look for yourself:
👉 https://www.wcso.net/arrests/intake.php
What I see is the same pattern repeated in jails across America:
- Drug charges
- Domestic violence
- DUIs
- Theft
And the faces?
Overwhelmingly white.
This is East Tennessee.
We absolutely have crime problems.
Opioids.
Meth.
Poverty.
Desperation.
But immigrants aren’t causing them.
They’re keeping our economy afloat.
What Senator Crowe Voted For
In January 2025, Senator Crowe voted for Tennessee’s immigration enforcement bill, saying:
“Illegal means illegal, and the gross mismanagement of our borders by the previous administration has resulted in the need for this legislation.”
That bill:
- Creates a new state immigration enforcement division
- Makes it a Class E felony — up to six years in prison and a $3,000 fine — for local officials who vote for sanctuary city policies
- Requires distinctive markers on driver’s licenses for non-citizens
- Provides grants for local law enforcement to participate in federal immigration enforcement
In April 2025, Crowe voted for legislation allowing Tennessee school districts to charge tuition or ban students based solely on immigration status.
He called it fair.
This Is Where We Are
A 77-year-old State Senator who said nothing while Johnson City police ignored more than 50 sexual assault victims — allowing a white predator to operate freely for years — now considers immigrant children an emergency requiring legislation.
A city that paid $28 million because law enforcement failed to protect women and children from a serial rapist now targets immigrant families as threats to public safety.
Let’s be clear.
Sean Williams:
- White
- Businessman
- Documented predator
- Years of ignored complaints
- A $28 million settlement
Immigrant workers:
- Picking vegetables at Scott Farms
- Repairing roofs after storms
- Paying taxes
- Keeping their heads down
One required a $28 million settlement.
The other requires felony legislation.
You tell me which emergency is real.
This is where we are today, citizens of Tennessee.
What you do next is up to you.
Sources & Documentation
Johnson City $28 Million Settlement
Source: Tennessee Lookout
Date: February 2025
Notes: Class-action settlement involving failures by the Johnson City Police Department
Sean Williams Case Overview
Source: Tennessee Lookout
Date: January 2026
Notes: Years-long failure to investigate serial sexual assaults
Settlement Confirmation
Source: WJHL
Date: February 2025
Notes: Local reporting on $28 million payout tied to JCPD misconduct
Criminal Evidence and Sentencing
Source: Associated Press
Date: 2024–2025
Notes: Arrest details, evidence discovery, and 95-year prison sentence
Institutional Failure Analysis
Source: The New York Times
Date: 2025
Notes: National reporting on systemic law enforcement failures in the Johnson City case
Tennessee Immigration Enforcement Bill
Source: Nashville Banner
Date: January 2025
Notes: State Senate passage and legislative details
Tennessee Education and Immigration Bill
Source: Nashville Banner
Date: April 2025
Notes: Legislation allowing tuition charges or exclusion based on immigration status
Senator Rusty Crowe Voting Record
Source: Tennessee General Assembly
Date: 2024–2025
Notes: Official roll-call votes and bill sponsorships
Local Arrest Demographics
Source: Washington County Sheriff’s Office
Date: Ongoing
Notes: Public arrest intake database
✍️ About the Author
Gene Scott is an Appalachian-noir novelist, essayist, and songwriter. His work explores power, memory, faith, labor, and resistance — often through the lens of American history, immigrant experience, and cultural mythmaking. He is the author of The Testers: The Poison Remembers, Troublemaker, Names Like Prayers, and other works in The Resistance Suite. He lives in Tennessee and publishes at GeneScottBooks.com.
