At a rally on Emory University’s quad earlier this week, Maresah Malcom, a senior from Decatur, joined just over 100 fellow students in protesting the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, also known as “Cop City.” Malcom said she came to the Stop Cop City demonstration because the facility is being built in the area where […]
Policing
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
How the Stop Cop City Movement Inspired Angela Davis
Add Angela Davis to the list of civil rights activists protesting the construction of a new law enforcement training facility in South River Forest known as “Cop City.” On March 24, while delivering the keynote address at the 20th Annual Walter Rodney Symposium at the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College, Davis […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Meet Some of the Black Voices on Dickens’ ‘Cop City’ Community Task Force
English Park resident Donna Stephens is one of 40 people who accepted Mayor Andre Dickens’ invitation to sit on the South River Forest and Public Safety Training Facility task force. Stephens accepted the invitation in large part because she is concerned about the environmental implications tied to the training center known as “Cop City.” Stephens […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
A Fight for Justice: Why the Family of Matthew Zadok Williams Is Suing DeKalb County
Chris Ann Lewis and her five daughters have spent almost two years trying to get justice for their son and little brother Matthew Zadok Williams, who was killed by a DeKalb County police officer. “This has to stop. The senseless killing of the mentally ill, it has to stop,” Lewis said. “They’re our brothers, our […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing, Public Safety
Yes, Black People Are Protesting Cop City, Too
For months, politicians including Mayor Andre Dickens and Gov. Brian Kemp have characterized the Stop Cop City movement as being composed of outside “agitators” coming to cause trouble in Atlanta. The 85-acre public safety training facility is set to be built in the South River Forest in south DeKalb County. Surrounded by majority Black neighborhoods, […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Yes, Black People Are Protesting ‘Cop City,’ Too
For months, politicians including Mayor Andre Dickens and Gov. Brian Kemp have characterized the Stop Cop City movement as being composed of outside “agitators” coming to cause trouble in Atlanta. The 85-acre public safety training facility is set to be built in the South River Forest in south DeKalb County. Surrounded by majority Black neighborhoods, […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Tale of the Tape: An Expert Weighs In on the ‘Cop City’ Bodycam Footage
Newly released body camera footage from a deadly encounter at “Cop City” has left locals with more questions than answers. Last week, speculation around the events that led to the Jan. 18 shooting in South River Forest has grown since the Atlanta Police Department released videos from officers in the vicinity of where environmental activist […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Are Relationships Between Black Residents and APD Improving? Mayor Dickens Thinks So.
Mayor Andre Dickens says the rapport between Atlanta police and the city’s Black residents is better now than it was before he took office more than a year ago, despite recent protests over the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols by Memphis, Tennessee, police. “I would say it has improved over the last year,” Dickens said […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Kemp Declares State of Emergency Over Stop ‘Cop City’ Movement
Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency Thursday as tension between police and ‘Cop City’ protesters has brought international attention to Atlanta. Kemp has ordered 1,000 Georgia National Guard troops to be ready to intervene after Saturday’s vigil turned into a protest where some activists “threw rocks, launched fireworks, and burned a police vehicle […]
Posted inCity Politics, Criminal Justice, Policing
Deadly ‘Cop City’ Shooting Divides Residents, Activists, and Law Enforcement
Marcus Hunter bought a home near South River Forest in 2013. The IT consultant said he and many of his neighbors have become numb to hearing about the conflicts between protesters and law enforcement officers at the future site of a massive public safety training facility, dubbed “Cop City” by activists. “Everybody kinda saw it […]
