Kemp Conrad Leads Racism

.Kemp Conrad: The Billion-Dollar Broker of Betrayal in New Chicago

Kemp Conrad is not just a developer—he is the architect of a racial land grab disguised as criminal justice reform. As Vice Chairman and Principal of **Cushman & Wakefield | Commercial Advisors LLC**, Kemp Conrad is leading the charge to build a **$1.26 billion Criminal Justice Complex** in the heart of **New Chicago**, a historic Black neighborhood in North Memphis. His actions represent a modern blueprint of **White Supremacy**, where profit, power, and political manipulation override the voices and lives of Black residents.

Business Interests and Power Base Kemp Conrad’s firm is headquartered at:

Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Advisors
5100 Poplar Avenue, Suite 2600
Memphis, TN 38137

This is the epicenter of the jail proposal—a plan that would lease land from private developers, build a sprawling detention complex, and allow Conrad’s firm to profit from adjacent commercial development. The proposal includes:
- Adult and juvenile jails
- Criminal and civil courts
- Federal corrections facilities
- Mixed-use retail and hospitality zones

This is not revitalization. It’s racial exploitation.

Political Roots and Republican Strategy

Kemp Conrad is a former **Memphis City Councilman** and a prominent figure in the Shelby County Republican Party. His political record reflects a consistent alignment with White conservative agendas that have historically marginalized Black communities.

Now, as a private developer, he’s using his influence to push a project that would never be considered in white neighborhoods like Germantown, Collierville, or East Memphis.

Instead, Kemp Conrad targets New Chicago—a community weakened by decades of disinvestment and institutional neglect—because it’s easier to override voices when the system has already silenced them. Kemp Conrad plan was to slam the weaken voices in New Chicago.

Black Faces, White Agenda
Kemp Conrad’s strategy hinged on Co-opting Black Memphis leaders to give his plan a veneer of legitimacy.

Among the Black Memphis Leaders Bishop Brandon Porter gives full and clear endorsement to this plan of White Supremacy and Black Betrayal. Bishop Porter's ministry does not make him a civil rights advocate like Dr.Martin luther King Jr. In fact his support for the jail proposal is a betrayal of Dr. King’s legacy.

Kemp Conrad’s strategy to push forward the jail proposal in New Chicago appears to rely heavily on co-opting prominent Black Memphis leaders to lend the project a veneer of legitimacy. Among those lending support is Bishop Brandon Porter, a high-ranking figure in the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) and a longtime presence in the New Chicago community. His endorsement of the jail proposal has sparked deep concern and outrage among residents and fellow Black leaders, many of whom view the project as a manifestation of systemic racism and a direct affront to Black agency.

The proposed jail’s proximity to Manassas High School is especially troubling, as it sends a demoralizing message to youth and reinforces negative stereotypes rather than uplifting the community. Bishop Porter’s support is seen by many as a betrayal—an alignment with profiteers and political figures like Kemp Conrad, whose record as head of the Republican Party has consistently run counter to the interests of Black empowerment.

Instead, it is perceived as a capitulation to institutional interests that prioritize control and incarceration over education, opportunity, and healing. The community’s rejection of the jail is not just about opposing a building—it’s about resisting a symbol of oppression and reclaiming the right to define their own future. Bishop Porter’s endorsement, in this light, is not just disappointing—it is a profound betrayal of the very principles that should guide spiritual and civic leadership.

The proposed jail’s proximity to Manassas High School is especially troubling, as it sends a demoralizing message to youth and reinforces negative stereotypes rather than uplifting the community. Bishop Porter’s support is seen by many as a betrayal—an alignment with profiteers and political figures like Kemp Conrad, whose record as head of the Republican Party has consistently run counter to the interests of Black empowerment.

Despite his extensive ministry and leadership roles, Bishop Porter is not regarded as a civil rights advocate in the mold of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His backing of the jail proposal stands in stark contrast to King’s legacy of justice, dignity, and community uplift. For many in New Chicago, Porter’s position does not reflect the will or welfare of the people he claims to serve. Instead, it is perceived as a capitulation to institutional interests that prioritize control and incarceration over education, opportunity, and healing.

The community’s rejection of the jail is not just about opposing a building—it’s about resisting a symbol of oppression and reclaiming the right to define their own future. Bishop Porter’s endorsement, in this light, is not just disappointing—it is a profound betrayal of the very principles that should guide spiritual and civic leadership.

Dr. Terrance Brown Principal of Manassas High School, whom Conrad publicly cited as a supporter of the jail plan. According to Kemp Conrad, Dr. Brown wants to create a criminal justice pipeline for students—an idea that dangerously normalizes incarceration as a career path for Black youth. If such is the vision of the Manassas High School Principal New Chicago residents should demand a new Principal at Manassas.

Rev. Kenneth Whalum, once a respected voice in Orange Mound moved his Church from Orange Mound to Cordova. Rev. Kenneth Whalum alleged support for the jail proposal raises serious questions about his commitment to the Black community he left behind for Cordova. Orange Mound, it seems, was not “upscale” enough for him—yet he now lends his voice to a project that would devastate nearby New Chicago Community..

Tennessee State Senator London Lamar, reportedly endorsing the jail proposal, despite her public image as a progressive Black leader. If true, this endorsement reveals a troubling contradiction: supporting a project that would never be proposed in a white neighborhood, yet is being pushed into a Black one. Her silence or complicity would mark her as a political sellout, aligning with developers over constituents.

These endorsements are not just misguided—they are **strategic betrayals**. These Black leaders Kemp Conrad cover to push a racist agenda while claiming “community support.”

The Racist Logic of the Jail Proposal

Let’s be clear: "Kemp Conrad" would never propose a jail in a white neighborhood. The very idea would be politically suicidal. But in New Chicago, Kemp Conrad sees opportunity—not for justice, but for profit and a lot of it.

Shelby County owns land near the penal farm, yet Kemp Conrad’s plan involves leasing land from private developers—benefiting his firm, not the public.

The jail would warehouse **men, women, and children**, further criminalizing Black families in a community already burdened by environmental blight and economic neglect.

The Kemp Conrad proposal includes **mixed-use commercial development**, meaning Conrad and his associates stand to make millions from adjacent retail and hospitality ventures.

This is not justice. It’s a plantation economy reborn—where Black land, labor, and lives are commodified for white profit.

Community Pushback: "Rubber to Racism"

What Kemp Conrad didn’t anticipate was the **Hornets’ Nest of resistance** led by Dr. Carnita Atwater, Norman Redwind, Attorney Linda Nettles Harris and others.
The movement—**Rubber to Racism**—exposes the historical and racial dimensions of this land grab. They are mobilizing residents, creating national media campaigns, and demanding accountability from elected officials.

This is not just about a jail. It’s about who gets to decide the future of Black communities. And Kemp Conrad does not get to decide that.”

Target the Power
To dismantle this racist proposal, the community must shine a light on **where the power lives and follow the money. Resident will take the Protest and boycott **Cushman & Wakefield Commercial Advisors** at their Poplar Avenue headquarters.
Demand accountability from Bishop Brandon Porter, Dr. Terrance Brown Rev. Kenneth Whalum, and Senator London Lamar.

This website Exposes the betrayal by Black leaders who support the plan—because their silence is complicity.

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Let's be clear Kemp Conrad is not a friend to Black Memphis. He is a developer of destruction, a broker of betrayal, and a profiteer of pain.

His jail proposal is a racial land grab, a moral catastrophe, and a direct assault on the legacy of Dr. King and the dignity of New Chicago.