Click Here To Listen Nashville Business 100 Leading African Americans Gicola Lane
Gicola Lane is a Nashville native who began organizing in her community at the early age of 14. She was taught at this young age to change the odds of her own community. In April of 2017, Gicola proudly begin to serve as the Nashville Bail Reform Advocate for the first community bail fund of the South, the Nashville Community Bail Fund. Her primary responsibility is to free people from jail who are presumed innocent and cannot afford to pay their bail. In this role, she is able to bring immediate relief to some of Nashville’s most vulnerable community members, and fight against incarceration based on poverty.
Starting in 2015, Gicola served as the Family Resource Center Director at the Martha O’Bryan Center, where she actually attended as a youth growing up. It was one of many full circle moments in her life. She worked tirelessly to build on the strengths of neighbors in James A. Cayce Homes. She was driven to address the needs of the neighborhood through a coordinated holistic approach to provide services and support in order to build community.
Prior to joining the Martha O’Bryan Center, Gicola spent majority of her career in banking. She began as an intern with INROADS in 2008, and she held several positions from personal banker to junior mortgage consultant with SunTrust Bank until 2014. During her time in banking, she was still devoted to serving her community. She served on the board of Explore Community School, and volunteered for TN Economic Council on Women and Bank on Music City.
Gicola actively uses her voice to speak out about injustice, and she partners with other local and national social justice organizations to propel others into activism and leadership. Gicola has also co-led Participatory Defense’s Nashville hub since January of 2016, where she regularly meets with families and community members who are facing incarceration in order to transform the landscape of power in the court system. From this organizing model, Gicola was instrumental in forming the Justice for Jocques Coalition in February of 2017, after Jocques Clemmons was killed running from a Metro Nashville police officer. Gicola and many other long-term community leaders have been influential with the renewed push for police accountability and injustice reform in Nashville. The coalition’s work has resulted in the creation of Community Oversight Now. and the metro council proposed legislation for a Community Oversight Board in Nashville. Gicola drew her passion for Jocques and his family from her own family’s experience. Gicola’s uncle, Timothy Lane, was killed by a Metro Nashville Police officer on December 17, 2000.
Gicola continues to carry all the vulnerable and unheard stories of injustice with her daily to fight for change.
In addition to criminal justice reform, Gicola is also very passionate about financial literacy and education. Gicola holds an insurance license with the state of TN.
Gicola is a proud honors graduate of Stratford High School and Clark Atlanta University.
Gicola is currently a 2018 participant in Emerge Tennessee, Nashville Emerging Leaders, and New Leaders Council Nashville.
In her self-care time, Gicola loves to make laughter and memories with her family and friends, spend time with her mentee, basketball, travel, dance, and HBCU Marching Bands.