The Knoxville Beloved Community Circle (KBCC) is located in Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.A. Our circle celebrated its one-year anniversary in June 2025 by marching once more in Knoxville’s Juneteenth/MLK celebratory parade. The 2024 Juneteenth parade was our BCC’s very first action as a community circle, and we once again honored our commitment to justice and to one another by marching joyfully alongside our BCC brothers and sisters and other organizations from the local community. Again, our presence was warmly received and openly appreciated. The children along the parade route were thrilled with our candy favors! Below is a photo from the 2025 Juneteenth parade, our joy and passion writ all across our faces. 

On June 14th, several members of our circle participated in various No Kings/Billionaires protests across the state of Tennessee and beyond! These actions fostered a deep sense of solidarity with the thousands of like-minded and like-hearted individuals in attendance, and our spirits were strengthened by the courageous presence of other concerned and compassionate citizens. 

Since our inception in June 2024, we have become involved with Ridgeline Voices, a grassroots organization in Eastern Tennessee that is dedicated to stopping the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) gas buildout and the proposed Enbridge Ridgeline gas pipeline which will pollute officially designated wild and scenic rivers. To this end, our BCC will attend a July 2025 strategy meeting sponsored by Appalachian Voices to oppose the methane-powered power plant and its associated pipeline. 

We continue to nurture resilience, friendship, and solidarity in Knoxville, and have recently expanded our circle to include 3 new members. Together, we support one another in struggles within our lives, our communities, and our world.  In June 2024, five of our members participated in our first mindful action, securing a place in our community’s combined Juneteenth/MLK celebratory parade along with many other community organizations of action. It was a joyful time and we felt well received in our community as our first entry action as a newly formed BCC. Below you will find some photos from this action. it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Our contact people are:

Lynn Billingham, e-mail: yogalala57 [at] gmail [dot] com

Elizabeth Rowland e-mail: elizabeth-kbcc [at] posteo [dot] net