Interview with Allie Phillips: Candidate for Tennessee House

Interview Conducted and Transcribed by Farrah Renfroe, TNHSD Chair and TPT Staff Writer

Trigger Warning: There are mentions of rape and child loss in this interview.

In the post-roe era of the country, we will be seeing many candidates run from the local to federal level on the issue of abortion. We can see this, especially in the South, where many states are conservative and Republican. 

On November 3, I had the honor of interviewing Allie Phillips, a Democrat running for Tennessee House District 75. Allie has had an experience like so many others in post-roe America. In February 2023, after a routine anatomy scan after getting pregnant in November 2022, she and her husband found out that their daughter was incompatible with life. Shocked by this devastating news, they decided that termination was the best option for them. However, Tennessee was one of the states that implemented a statewide abortion ban after the Dobbs decision. As a result of the abortion ban, Allie had to fly to New York to receive an abortion. Unfortunately, her daughter’s heart stopped beating within the week of flying up to New York and had passed before the scheduled abortion. 

This interview covers topics from improving Tennessee Public Schools to helping young people get involved in politics.  

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. 

Question: What caused you to run? 

Allie: It wasn’t just one thing. There has been a cake being baked. My cherry on top would’ve been my story, what I went through back in March. During my pregnancy, I found out that it was not compatible, and wasn’t able to get the healthcare I needed in Tennessee. So, I went up to New York and found out that my daughter had already passed. Since that, it has been my goal to get Miley’s Law into legislation. Miley’s law would be giving choice back to parents when diagnosed with a fetal anomaly. For me, I think abortion care should be available without exceptions. There should not be stipulations on who does or does not get healthcare. After meeting with my representative and other representatives in my county, I realized quickly that I wasn’t going to get the help I needed from them. 

Shortly after that, I got approached by the Center for Reproductive Rights and was asked if I wanted to sue the state of Tennessee. I found out that it was a multi-state lawsuit between Tennessee, Idaho, and Oklahoma. Shortly after that, I was approached by family members and friends and asked, “Have you ever thought about running for office?”

I think it was the 10-year-old in Ohio that got raped and traveled with her mother across state lines to get an abortion. My daughter is six, she is close to that age. She is autistic, she has sensory issues, she’s ADHD. There are so many things with her, would she ever understand what would happen to her? I couldn’t imagine the trauma that the little girl and her family went through. That burned a fire in me. 

Image credit: Allie Phillips for HD75/Facebook

Question: With receiving an early endorsement from the Tennessee High School Democrats, what is your plan to invest in the students of Montgomery County? 

Allie: First things first, I want to make sure our teachers are getting paid and treated accordingly. I think it is important for our students to have teachers who have the proper skills and the proper education. One thing that I would want to do to help the kids, aside from getting proper teachers, is more recess. I have attended a school board meeting where a group called Say Yes to Recess spoke and they talked about how, studies showed, when you give multiple breaks a day, about 20 minutes per day, improves focus and retainability. It is proven that in other counties and states with these recess guidelines, their students perform better on testing and schoolwork. 

Another thing is school lunches. Kids don’t need to be paying for school lunch, the state should be taking care of that. We have the money for it, we need to use it for that. I grew up on free and reduced lunch, my daughter is on free and reduced lunch, if I had to pay for it, she wouldn’t be eating. There are so many families who may have the money for it this week but may not have it next week. 

Question: How do you plan to fight for a more equitable TN for all? 

Allie: I do think there should be more strict laws when it comes to things like hate speech. Right now, I feel like there is a lot of slap on the back of your hand, and the fact that the Black community, Trans community, and LGBT community don’t feel safe when out in public, in school, in restaurants is unacceptable. Obviously, I support the LGBTQ community, and what [State Representative] Aftyn [Behn] was supporting is gender-affirming care for our trans youth and adults. So, letting them have access to the healthcare that they need, no matter how they look. 

I definitely think there should be a safe haven. Unfortunately, I don’t feel that every space can be made into a safe space, and I hate that and wish it wasn’t like that. But, at the same time, we can try and make more places accessible. We can try and make sure that these business owners and corporations are making sure that their employees and staff are taking care of everybody and not discriminating against anyone. 

Question: How do you want to use TikTok to help you win and use it as a tool when in office? 

Allie: I am a part of that generation when technology is advancing. Implement TikTok into my candidacy, and my representative era is something that I plan on doing. I will use it because TikTok has been a resource, not only for me but for others to get accurate news quickly. All these news medias, yes, they’ll get you news fast, but is it accurate? Is it biased? With TikTok, you can do so much research. Obviously, you can’t trust anything that you see on the internet. But there are verified, accredited creators who give us daily updates. So as a Representative, I would use my TikTok to keep constituents and others in the know about the session and what bills are being introduced.