Atlanta

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/5593026

Atlanta, GA – On Monday morning, a bold and joyful procession of roughly 500 people marched along a public road to the proposed Cop City construction site. Holding banners and giant puppets, and accompanied by drummers and a brass band, Block Cop City activists reclaimed Atlanta’s rich civil rights legacy from politicians who continue to tarnish it with every voter disenfranchised and each tear gas canister thrown. Despite the violent response by police, activists minimized arrests and harm through careful planning, extensive preparation, and close attention to lessons learned from generations of revolutionary struggles against repression and authoritarianism.

The march began with a festive gathering in Gresham Park where participants adopted an explicit commitment to nonviolence and heard from Kamau Franklin (Executive Director of Atlanta-based Community Movement Builders) and Joel Paez (father of Tortuguita, a forest defender murdered by police in the forest in January).

“Now is not a time for cowardice. You are either with the oppressed or with the oppressors. You are either with the people or the pigs. You cannot stand in the middle. You cannot be on both sides. You cannot close your eyes to the terror of policing that happens in this world,” stated Kamau Franklin. “We are going to continue defending the forest. We are going to continue defending the legacy of Tortuguita. We are family. You are my family,” said Joel Paez.

Once the march was underway it took less than an hour for the police to declare it illegal, just as they did in 1965 during the March from Selma to Montgomery. Despite numerous stated commitments from religious leaders and city officials to honor the right to protest, armed riot police terrorized the crowd with tear gas grenades, attack dogs, clubs and ballistic shields.

“We just witnessed overt violations of our civil rights on a road named after the U.S. Constitution. Atlanta claims itself to be a civil rights hub, but it erases its own legacy when protests arise that confront the power of politicians and police. The police’s violence against protestors today affirms our belief that Cop City must never be built,” said Mary Hooks, field secretary for the Movement for Black Lives

As other protestors took to planting tree saplings in the Weelaunee Forest, journalists were forcibly separated from the crowd and threatened with arrest by police. We condemn this infringement of these journalists’ rights as well as the arrest of protestors including the Indigenous activists arrested while visiting Tortuguita’s altar in the Weelaunee Forest over the weekend.

The movement to Stop Cop City and Defend the Atlanta Forest is undeterred by today’s police aggression and is planning a press conference and vigil at the Dekalb County Jail at 8PM. Additional vigils were also held at the Atlanta City Detention Center and Rice Street Fulton County Jail where arraigned RICO defendants are expected to be released on Monday.

Sam Beard, Block Cop City spokesperson stated, “The City of Atlanta’s actions against this movement under the leadership of Andre Dickens have been draconian but we remain committed to the opposite: building a world free of police violence and repression where all of us can thrive.”

link: https://itsgoingdown.org/police-attack-protesters-as-hundreds-march-against-cop-city-in-atlanta-halt-construction/

There's a few different taxi apps out there. Any suggestions on which is the best? What do you all use?

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/4976666

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The ridiculousness of these charges is evident from a cursory review of the indictment. In fact, the vast majority of acts alleged by the state—reimbursing protestors for food and supplies, signing one’s name on a form as “ACAB” ("all cops are bastards," a common chant at protests)—would not constitute crimes on their own. This is why the prosecutors are utilizing RICO: The state is attempting to criminalize constitutionally protected activities by putting them under the same umbrella as alleged criminal acts. And yet even the alleged criminal acts are unlikely to be proven in court, as every warrant to date has contained a stunning lack of any evidence against individuals charged.

The indictment itself is not a surprise. In fact, the Atlanta Solidarity Fund and other organizations had warned it was coming as early as February of this year. And in June 2023, DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston made the high-profile decision to remove her office from the Cop City prosecutions, indicating her doubt in the evidence behind the charges. But the content of the indictment is nonetheless jarring in its clear purpose: to intimidate, silence, and disappear activists.

The indictment is first and foremost an attack on the 61 people currently charged. Prosecutors know that even if they cannot secure convictions, they can attempt to ruin people’s lives in the process. Charges do not have to stick in order for the state to inflict damage on someone’s life, whether through traumatic and potentially deadly time spent in pretrial detention, or the many collateral consequences of the prosecutions. Already, various #StopCopCity defendants have lost jobs, been banned from their campuses, had their bank accounts closed, faced discrimination at airports, and more. The mark of domestic terrorism is intended to hang over defendants’ heads for as long as possible.

For the past three years, a Dunwoody neighborhood has been home to a dinosaur display, inflating it into a popular attraction. However, someone complained about the display. Now, city officials say it has to come down because it violates the Dunwoody sign code.

Atlanta is a major city located in the southeastern United States. It serves as the capital of the state of Georgia. It hosts the headquarters of several Fortune 500 companies, including The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines, and Home Depot. However, like many major cities, it also faces the challenge of crime in certain neighborhoods making up the top 3 most dangerous neighborhoods in Atlanta.

Arnitra Hollman speaks at a press conference in August about the death of her father, 63-year-old Johnny Hollman, who died after a traffic stop with Atlanta police. The department now says it will make changes to its traffic citation procedure.

Atlanta police arrested five activists, including two clergy members, on Thursday after the activists chained themselves to a bulldozer at the construction site for “Cop City”, a huge police and fire department training center being built in a forest south-east of Atlanta.

Officials in Atlanta are working to identify a man they're calling a serial burglar who keeps targeting a local boutique. A reward of up to $2,000 is available for any information that leads to the man's arrest and indictment.

Hi, y’all! So I’m wondering if anyone has the inside scoop on how to get some movement on an issue.

The pedestrian signals on all four corners at 10th and Spring are totally dark and non-functional. It’s an area teeming with pedestrians, and it’s been broken for at least 4 weeks.

I’ve called 511 three times about it over the past month, and only on the last time did they actually bother to let me know I’d need to call 311 instead since it’s in the city. I called 311 and they issued me a case number but said it’d take 5 to 10 weeks to resolve.

I see people almost get hit there on a daily basis. If this was a traffic signal for cars, it’d be fixed same day and there might even be cop directing traffic.

Has anyone ever gotten something like this escalated before?

Police are looking for a “person of interest” in the case. Police said he might be driving what they believe to be a newer model Kia K5 with tinted windows. The man is to be considered armed and dangerous, police said.

Officers say Mitchell Wilson, 36, was reported missing on June 21. Family members told police they hadn’t seen him since June 1 and that Wilson hadn’t posted anything on his social media accounts.

Police said five people were shot and injured Sunday morning during a domestic dispute at a home in Atlanta before the suspected gunman killed himself. Deputy Chief Charles Hampton told reporters that the five victims include a 3-year-old and a 15-year-old. All five were taken to a hospital and are in stable condition, he said.

Atlanta fire officials say a crane fell through the first floor of the parking deck for the Publix Super Market at Summerhill on Hank Aaron Drive SE just after 7 a.m. Saturday morning. Atlanta police say a truck later fell through the top floor of the deck. The driver of the truck was taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.

https://www.11alive.com/article/weather/hurricane/idalia-hurricane-track-georgia-2023-severe-weather/85-c6101c05-61f1-49f6-9950-fd8392953c74

An Atlanta security guard is dead after police say he was shot while on duty by a pair of would-be car burglars early Monday morning. Atlanta police say the shooting happened around 2 a.m. near the intersection of 3rd Street and Spring Street.