FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 10, 2024
People’s Campaign to #StopCopCity Announces 9/11 Press Conference at Atlanta City Hall on One-Year Anniversary of Petition Submission
Press Conference: September 11, 2024, at 11:00 AM
Location: Atlanta City Hall, 55 Trinity Avenue SW
ATLANTA, GA – One year after 116,000 Atlanta residents signed a petition demanding a citywide referendum on the controversial Cop City project, the People’s Campaign to Stop Cop City is holding a press conference at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, September 11, 2024, at Atlanta City Hall. This press conference will feature activists at the heart of the referendum campaign as they address the ongoing obstruction of the democratic process by Mayor Andre Dickens and the Atlanta City Council. Speakers will also provide updates on the ongoing legal battle over the referendum.
The proposed “Atlanta Public Safety Training Center” has faced significant local and national opposition since its announcement to the public in early 2021. Dissent against the project has taken many forms including a 2023 referendum campaign to let Atlanta voters decide on the project’s future. Political leaders such as Bernice King and Stacey Abrams have also called for a vote on the project. As the referendum campaign progressed, Atlanta Mayor Dickens’ administration has consistently blocked efforts to bring the issue to a vote, prompting concerns from Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock. Activists from the People’s Campaign to Stop Cop City assert that this is not just an environmental or policing issue – it is a fundamental voting rights issue, according to Movement For Black Lives Field Secretary Mary Hooks:
“Corporations continue to spend millions of dollars to buy our local government, bulldozing Black community resources for their pet projects. 116,000 Atlantans demanded accountability and the chance to do what our city government is too weak to do – protect our children through preserving green space, honoring city commitments to legacy communities, and investing in people over power. One year after we turned those signatures in, despite the overwhelming support of Atlantans for a referendum on Cop City, Council President Doug Shipman refuses to be a leader and get this done to defend democracy.”
The People’s Campaign to Stop Cop City has also called for a September 16 mass mobilization at City Hall to demand that the referendum be placed on the ballot, allowing the people of Atlanta to decide the fate of the controversial Cop City project.
The People’s Campaign to Stop Cop City (@dickensvsdemocracy on Instagram) is a coalition of individuals, organizations, and allies united in the fight to prevent the construction of Cop City and to defend the democratic process in Atlanta. The campaign advocates for the protection of Atlanta’s green spaces, the demilitarization of police and the rights of the city’s residents to have a say in the future of their community.
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