Protesters in Atlanta are hoping to heighten awareness of their ongoing opposition to the construction of a multimillion-dollar police training compound known by activists as “Cop City.”
In the latest in a saga that’s been going on for nearly two years, Atlanta police charged 23 people Sunday with domestic terrorism, claiming that a “group of violent agitators used the cover of a peaceful protest” to attack police officers with projectiles.
The domestic terrorism charges — on which I caution you to withhold judgment until all the facts are known — are a sign of the tensions between local police and activists, and come after a “Cop City” protester was fatally shot by officers in January.
In September 2021, the Atlanta City Council’s approval of the training facility went against the wishes of many local residents, with critics expressing concerns about the potential social and environmental harms that a huge police compound could inflict — especially one that requires dozens of acres of forest to be cleared.
The facility — which was dubiously billed as necessary to institute police reforms after the 2020 protests against police brutality — is being built in Dekalb County, which is largely Black.
As NBC News recently explained:
After the anti-police violence protests of 2020, Atlanta officials promised that a sprawling police training center would be integral to the reforms residents had been demanding. The City Council voted 10-4 in favor of the project, with [then-Mayor Keisha Lance] Bottoms saying a new facility for police “is something that can’t wait.” But the site, dubbed ‘Cop City’ by opponents, has faced local opposition for its potential environmental impact and concerns that it will do little to address police violence. It has become the focus of protests in several cities across the country to ‘Stop Cop City.’
On Monday afternoon, Atlanta-area faith leaders gathered to denounce both the project and Sunday’s arrests.
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