Activists to gather in Atlanta for 'Block Cop City' weekend of action
Demonstration to release 'Stop Cop City' protesters
Protesters are rallying at the DeKalb County Jail calling for the release of four activists arrested at the planned training center for Atlanta police and first responders. All of those activists are over the age of 60. This happened just a day after dozens of other activists went before a judge on RICO charges in connection with other protests at the site they call "cop city."
ATLANTA - Starting Friday, thousands of activists from 80 cities plan to gather in Atlanta to protest the controversial planned public safety training center with an event they're calling "Block Cop City."
Protests against the proposed training center — dubbed "Cop City by opponents — have been going on for more than two years. From Friday to Sunday, activists plan to hold meetings, concerts, dinners, and direct action to rally support for their cause.
The event is happening the same week officials arrested four women and charged them with criminal trespassing after police say they blocked the entrance to the site.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and other supporters say the 85-acre, $90 million facility would replace inadequate training facilities and would help address difficulties in hiring and retaining police officers. Opponents have expressed concern that it could lead to greater police militarization and that its construction in the South River Forest will worsen environmental damage in a poor, majority-Black area.
Protests against the project, which have at times resulted in violence and vandalism, escalated after the fatal shooting in January of 26-year-old protester Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, known as Tortuguita. A prosecutor last month said he would not pursue charges against the state troopers who shot Paez Terán, saying he found that their use of deadly force was "objectively reasonable."
In August, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr indicted 61 protesters using the state's anti-racketeering law, characterizing them as "militant anarchists."
Monday, 57 of the protesters appeared at the Fulton County Courthouse as activists gathered to show their support. A Fulton County judge said the final plea hearing will happen sometime in May or June 2024 due to the amount of data attorneys says they have to go through connected to the case.
Debate over putting Atlanta training facility on ballot
There are renewed calls for Atlanta to put the planned controversial public safety training center to a vote. Dozens of opponents faced off against those who support the project at Atlanta City Hall today. An Atlanta City Council member says she will push for the issue to be put to a vote.
Prosecutors have alleged a conspiracy that includes a wide variety of underlying crimes that range from possessing fire accelerant and throwing Molotov cocktails at police officers to being reimbursed for glue and food for activists who spent months camping in the woods near the construction site.
Demonstrators and civil rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have condemned the indictment and accused Carr, a Republican, of levying heavy-handed charges to try to silence a movement that has galvanized environmentalists and anti-police protesters across the country.
Currently, a petition signed by more than 116,000 Atlanta residents attempting to put the training center up for a vote remains in limbo after officials say it was submitted past the deadline.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.