By JR Robinson: The Broken CEO

I’m going to be real with you. I don’t fit in their boxes.

I am the Broken CEO. I have ADHD. I battle depression. I am the son of a Black single mom and a White dad from Orange Mound. I don’t speak in polished soundbites, and I don’t ask for permission to take up space. I have spent my life building JustMy to amplify the voices that the gatekeepers try to silence.

So when I see the Shelby County Democratic Party concocting a secret, last-minute rulebook to block Dr. Marie Feagins from the ballot, I don’t just see politics. I see the same "perfect" system that has been crushing "broken" people like us for decades.

The "Bona Fide" Lie

Let’s cut through the noise. Last night, in a move that reeks of fear, the local party elites voted to implement a "Bona Fide Democrat" test. They claim it’s about "standards."

Bull.

This isn’t about standards. This is a hit job. This is a velvet-rope VIP section being built around our democracy to keep out anyone who hasn’t kissed the ring.

They look at Dr. Feagins—a woman who was fired for disrupting the status quo at MSCS, a woman who has galvanized the parents, the students, and the forgotten neighborhoods of this county—and they are terrified. Why? Because she doesn't owe them anything. She didn't come up through their cocktail parties. She didn't wait her turn.

They Fear Disruption

The political class in Shelby County loves "order." They love "process." They love smooth transitions of power between their hand-picked favorites.

But look around Memphis. Look at our schools. Look at our crime stats. How is that "order" working out for us?

They call Dr. Feagins "controversial." I call her awake. You know who else is controversial? Anyone who tries to fix a system that is designed to stay broken.

I know what it’s like to be labeled "too much" or "too crazy." I’ve bet my whole career on "crazy." And let me tell you something: The people of Shelby County don’t want another safe, polished, "Bona Fide" robot. We are starving for someone real. We are starving for someone who has been knocked down, dragged through the mud, and stood back up.

The Gatekeepers Are Panicking

This new "framework"—judging candidates on their donation history and "internal party participation"—is a direct message to every outsider, every young person, and every struggling Memphian: “Unless you buy your way in, you don’t belong.”

They want to run out the clock. They want to delay their decision on Dr. Feagins until it’s too late for her to pivot. It is strategic cowardice.

But here is the reality check: You can write all the bylaws you want. You can hold all the secret meetings you want. But you cannot stop a movement.

If the Shelby County Democratic Party decides that Dr. Feagins isn't "Democrat enough" for them, they aren't hurting her. They are hurting themselves. They are proving that they would rather lose an election with a "safe" insider than win with a "dangerous" disruptor.

Amplify The Truth

I am the Broken CEO, and I am telling you: We are done with perfect. We are done with "Bona Fide." We want results.

Dr. Feagins has said she is a Democrat. She has said she is running. That should be the end of the conversation. Let the voters decide if she is worthy.

If the party persists with this blockade, they are lighting a fuse. They are telling every voter who sees themselves in Dr. Feagins—every person who has been fired, misunderstood, or marginalized—that the Democratic Party is a private club, and we aren't on the list.

Let them play their games. We will keep grinding. We will keep disrupting. And come 2026, we will make sure they hear us. Click to learn more about the Dr. Marie Feagins Campaign.