Dr. Thomas J. Brooks III is running as an independent against incumbent state Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, D-Chattanooga, for the Tennessee House District 28 seat.
Brooks, 72, is from Nashville and has three children and seven grandchildren. He went to Pearl High School and then obtained a bachelor’s degree at Tennessee State University. Brooks received a medical degree from Meharry Medical College in 1978. Brooks is a doctor of obstetrics and gynecology and completed his internship and residency at the University of Tennessee Clinical Education Center at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga and Saint Louis University Hospital in Saint Louis, Missouri. He lives in Fort Wood.
Brooks opened a medical practice when he moved to Chattanooga in 1982. He was also the medical director at the Erlanger Community Health Center on Dodson Avenue until he filed a federal civil rights complaint against Erlanger. He is no longer affiliated with the hospital but said he keeps his medical license up to date to volunteer at clinics. Brooks has been involved in community efforts such as Operation Push, Chattanooga NAACP and the Hamilton County Human Rights Commission.
Brooks will face Hakeem in the polls as voters cast ballots in the general election Nov. 5. Early voting in Tennessee begins Wednesday. For more information, visit elect.hamiltontn.gov.
Office details
Duties: Representatives introduce bills and resolutions, offer amendments, serve on committees, vote on legislation and perform constituent services.
Area represented: Alton Park, Avondale, Bonny Oaks, Brainerd, Brainerd Hills, Bushtown, Courthouse, Dalewood, downtown, East Chattanooga, East Lake, Eastgate, Eastside, Glenwood, Harrison, Kingspoint, Lake Hills, part of Mountain Creek, Murray Hills, part of North Chattanooga, part of North Shore, Ridgedale, part of St. Elmo, Woodmore. Total population of 75,800
Staff: Each representative has one staffer, two if the representative is a committee chair,
Member salary: $28,000
Health benefits: Yes
Start date: Jan. 14
Source: National Conference of State Legislatures, Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury
POLICY Q&A
Brooks is campaigning on economic development, affordable housing, education, health care and crime.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press asked all candidates for their stances on abortion, guns and education legislation. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Q: Where do you stand on abortion? Are you satisfied with the current legislation in Tennessee regarding women’s reproductive rights, or would you look to make changes?
A: I think I and everyone else in the country respect a young lady’s right to make a choice, especially in the first trimester. I think the biggest challenge to us right now as a country is, are we going to have an honest conversation regarding early abortions as compared to these horrible procedures that are being done in the second trimester all the way up into term. I disagree with that totally. I totally support a young lady’s right to choice when it comes to the first trimester. I think it should be left to the states when it comes to termination from 12 to 20 weeks, that’s the second trimester. I think in the third trimester – I cannot imagine any reason that a person would need to abort a baby in the third trimester – we have the technology now that if the baby is a threat to the mother, the baby can be removed.
Q: Where do you stand on gun legislation? What changes if any would you make to Tennessee’s gun laws?
A: I thoroughly support the Second Amendment, and I think that all citizens should be responsible if they’re going to take advantage of that right. We have enough laws. We just kind of need to enforce the laws that are already there. People with medical and mental issues shouldn’t be getting guns.
One of the major issues that have come up during the campaign is whether or not there should be guns in schools, whether or not teachers should have guns. I need to talk with the teachers, and I need to talk with law enforcement. My position is that the kids should be able to go to school and have a safe environment – that’s from guns, that’s from bullying and that’s from any other intimidating behavior that they can encounter while they are there. Now, my position is, if somebody comes in with a gun, somebody with a gun has got to be able to deal with them. I would never force a gun on a teacher who wasn’t comfortable with it or didn’t have the proper training, but we have people now who have backgrounds that are very diverse. We have people who have been in law enforcement who are now teaching in schools.
If there are people who are duly trained and are capable and responsible, I have no problem with them being inside of a school prepared to deal with any situation that comes up.
(READ MORE: Hamilton County Schools won’t endorse armed teachers after bill passes)
Campaign money
Raised in 2023-24: $0
Spent in 2023-24: $9,000
Source: Tennessee Online Campaign Finance
Q: Where do you stand on school vouchers? Do you agree with Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s recent push to make education spending accounts available statewide?
A: I want to get more information on these vouchers and the potential impact. I don’t think any kid or family should be condemned to go to a school that isn’t producing the resources to get their kids ready for life. If it takes a voucher, I would never keep a kid in a school that is failing.
So whatever we got to do to get that kid out of that situation, whether it’s a voucher, building another school, firing all the teachers, getting rid of the school board, I don’t care.
We have to be result-oriented, and these kids need to be educated and prepared for life. One of my positions is that once a kid finishes high school, he should be prepared to support his family for the remainder of his life with a skill or some talent that he got while he was in high school, or he should be prepared to further his education in college or whatever it is that he wants to do.
Contact Sarah Dolgin at sdolgin@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6556.