The East Tennessee Catholic
Tennessee cemented its stature as a leading right-to-life state on June 24 when lawmakers and dignitaries dedicated the Monument to Unborn Children in Nashville on the Capitol grounds.
The privately funded monument, eight years in the making, is reportedly the first one dedicated to victims of abortion that is on state capitol grounds in the United States.
Nearly 200 people from across Tennessee gathered on the southeast side of the Capitol for the ceremony, which was led by state Sens. Tom Hatcher of Maryville and Janice Bowling of Tullahoma.
Also on hand was former state Rep. Bill Dunn of Knoxville, whose initial idea for the monument was shared by former state Rep. Jerry Sexton of Grainger County years ago when the two served together in the General Assembly.
Mr. Dunn recalls broaching the idea with his wife, Stacy, who then was executive director of the Knox County Chapter of Tennessee Right to Life and now serves as the state president of the nonprofit pro-life organization.
Mr. and Mrs. Dunn, longtime Diocese of Knoxville parishioners who are members of Holy Ghost Parish, agreed the monument would be a fitting tribute to all victims of abortion and a testament to the sanctity of life, which is a foundational teaching of Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church.
Stacy and Bill Dunn stand next to the Monument to Unborn Children on the state Capitol grounds in Nashville on June 24. The memorial was dedicated on the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning “Roe v. Wade.” (Photo courtesy of Ginger Treece/Tennessee Right to Life)
The Dunns took part in a rosary for life in front of the Planned Parenthood clinic in Knoxville on the morning of June 24, which was the four-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling that overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, before attending the monument dedication.
Roe v. Wade established women’s right to an abortion, making it a federal law and overriding each state’s authority to regulate abortion.
The Dunns pointed out that the monument dedication day was intentional.
“The date is very significant because so many victims of abortion who are memorialized are the direct result of Roe v. Wade. So, the day Roe v. Wade was ended was the day to look back. … At least in Tennessee, this monument was dedicated on the anniversary when Tennesseans were once again allowed to protect every life in this state,” Mr. Dunn said.
“The Dobbs anniversary was part of the celebratory mood of the day. In Tennessee, we’re protecting unborn children and their mothers from the tragedy of abortion. This is a day to be remembered not only for the memorial but for Dobbs day. And we still give thanks to God for the miracle of Roe being overturned. There were people at the monument dedication who thought that day would never come. We were recognizing the lives lost but we also were recognizing the miracle that God has given us,” Mrs. Dunn added.
Inscribed on the Capitol monument are the words,
“In Memory of the Unborn
The Baby Whose Life Was Lost
The Mother Who Regrets
The Father Who Couldn’t Protect
The Child Who Lost a Sibling
& Society, Which is Coarsened
By Every Deliberate Attack
On Innocent Human Life
Dedicated
June 24, 2026”
Inspiration for the monument arose from the Capitol grounds itself years ago. And two existing monuments gave then-Rep. Dunn the idea.
“At the state Capitol, there are two previous markers: one for the victims of slavery and one for the victims of the (World War II) Holocaust. Personally, when I would go to the Capitol and walk the grounds, I noticed those two memorials. Being a member of Tennessee Right to Life and the whole life issue being important to me as a representative, I thought there should be a monument to the victims of abortion,” Mr. Dunn said.
He served in the state legislature from 1994 to 2020, during which time he was Speaker Pro Tempore and acting House Speaker.
“I had been thinking about it, but I never really acted on it. Then, Rep. Jerry Sexton actually filed a bill to do something very similar. When he did, I went to him and said, ‘Wow; I have thought about this, and did you realize there are two other markers on the Capitol grounds? This would be perfect.’ It would deal with the same subject of what happens when you don’t treat other humans as human,” the former state legislator added.
“On the markers for the victims of slavery and the Holocaust, both of them have inscribed near the end, ‘so this may never happen again’ or ‘so we don’t forget.’ Yet, here we are in America, where we have forgotten and we are repeating the mistakes of other generations. So, Jerry Sexton actually had the bill and carried it, and Sen. Steve Southerland carried it in the Senate,” he continued.
In explaining the legislative process, Mr. Dunn said efforts were made to “water down” the legislation, instead directing the Capitol Commission that manages the Capitol grounds to only “consider” putting up a monument. However, the supporting lawmakers held their ground and insisted that the legislation require that a monument to the victims of abortion be erected.
The monument legislation was approved by the General Assembly in 2018. Then, the Capitol Commission was called on to carry out the project, which took time.
In the meantime, Mr. Dunn and Mr. Sexton decided not to run for re-election and then the COVID-19 outbreak occurred in late 2019 into 2020, which sidetracked the project.
Mrs. Dunn explained that as the Capitol Commission added the monument to its list of projects to complete, the General Assembly passed the Human Life Protection Act in 2019, giving Tennessee the strongest pro-life law in the country. Subsequently, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24, 2022.
A move was made to get the monument project back on track and completed before the end of Gov. Bill Lee’s second term in office. He was first elected in November 2018 and concludes his last term this year.
“Bill went to Sen. Janice Bowling and said can you help get this project spearheaded again. And she really did take it and run with it at that point,” Mrs. Dunn shared.
Mr. Dunn noted that the law establishing the Monument to Unborn Children specified that the project would be completed with private funding and that no public money would be used. He pointed out that money couldn’t be raised until the project cost was known.
The Dunns said initial estimates for the project were put at $150,000, but it was actually completed for less than $10,000.
According to the couple, Sen. Hatcher is familiar with the monument business and secured an affordable price for the marker, which was the only significant cost involved in the project.
“It was way less than what was originally said, which had been problematic,” Mr. Dunn said.
The Dunns were excited to be a part of the monument dedication.
“I thought it was amazing. It was so good to see it finally happen. There were so many state legislators there who were part of the process. That was great to see. People came from Knoxville and Chattanooga. People came from Memphis,” Mrs. Dunn said. “We had a great crowd, and the atmosphere was so celebratory. It was a great day.”
She described a solemn point in the ceremony when each person in attendance was given a rose to place at the foot of the monument in remembrance of each life lost to abortion.
Mr. Dunn emphasized that the Monument to Unborn Children is “very appropriate” and complements the other two monuments on the Capitol grounds.
The Dunns are grateful the monument finally is in place.
“I always knew that there could be hurdles placed in front of us in making this happen. But Sen. Janice Bowling made a huge difference in staying after it,” Mr. Dunn said.
Mrs. Dunn said she never doubted that the monument would be placed and dedicated once the legislation was approved.
“It was just a matter of determining what it was going to take to make it a reality. I think it was in God’s perfect time when it happened. It was all Him orchestrating the whole thing,” she said.
Mrs. Dunn shared that one woman who attended the ceremony lost a baby to abortion and expressed that she needed to be at the monument dedication because it was so important to her.
“It really made a difference that she was there. And I think we had some other folks like that,” Mrs. Dunn said. “The dedication was held on a weekday when the legislature was not in session. And it was during the heat of the day. But many people attended, and they stayed for the reception. They wanted to be there. It was such a celebration for them.”
She noted that for a number of people, like her husband, who supported life early in his time in the legislature when the General Assembly “wasn’t so friendly to life,” the dedication ceremony was “monumental” to them.
“It was a huge thing, especially for those who had been in the fight before there was more support,” Mrs. Dunn said.
Mr. Dunn, who joined Gov. Lee’s staff as an adviser after he left the legislature and served there until retiring late last year, told how he wrote the words inscribed on the monument following his experience shepherding pro-life legislation through the General Assembly and his support for the work done by Tennessee Right to Life.
While Tennessee Right to Life supported the Monument to Unborn Children project, Mrs. Dunn said the memorial belongs to all in the state who support and defend the sanctity of life.
“Tennessee Right to Life played a part in this coming to fruition. I don’t see that it is a Tennessee Right to Life monument. It is a monument for everyone in the state who supports life,” she said.
The dedication ceremony wasn’t without its detractors. A group of pro-abortion protesters tried to disrupt the event, but their impact was kept in check by Tennessee state troopers.
“It was such a grand occasion that I don’t think the protesters took away much of the spirit from the crowd. For the most part, they were quiet. There were a couple of protesters who made noise. Otherwise, they held their signs and made their way among the crowd. There did seem to be some agitation when it was time to take pictures and they were holding their signs in front of the monument. But the state troopers helped,” Mrs. Dunn said.
Despite any opposition, the Dunns believe the monument and its dedication exemplified how people always find a way to make something work.
“A lot of people did something. We always say we’re all in this together. This is a perfect example of that,” Mrs. Dunn said.
Paul Simoneau, vice chancellor of the Diocese of Knoxville and director of its Office of Justice and Peace, praised the monument and those who made it happen.
“Standing on the grounds of our state Capitol, this monument proclaims a truth that neither time nor circumstance can erase: every human life is sacred from conception to natural death. It serves as both a memorial to the unborn and a call to future generations to defend and cherish the gift of human life,” Mr. Simoneau said.
“The Tennessee Monument to Unborn Children is a testament not only to the dignity of every human life but also to the perseverance of those who refused to grow weary in defending that dignity. We give thanks in a particular way for retired Rep. Bill Dunn as well as Tennessee Right to Life and Stacy Dunn and Angel Brewer (Knox County chapter executive director), whose decades of faithful service helped bring stronger protections for the unborn and this sacred memorial into being,” Mr. Simoneau added.
Mr. Simoneau also credited other pro-life organizations that serve communities in Tennessee in exemplary ways, such as Catholic Charities of East Tennessee and its pregnancy help centers and adoption services.
“It’s a reminder that the ‘first environment,’ the womb, is the most important environment,” he said. “While we give thanks for the end of Roe v. Wade, we must remain vigilant, for a culture of life is built not only by past victories but by the courage to resist every effort that would once again place innocent life in jeopardy, particularly against efforts to water down the Human Life Protection Act by those who profess to be pro-life.”