Heavily armed law enforcement units appeared in large numbers to clear off Georgia’s “cop city” encampment of anarchist agitators. A public safety training center is coming to Atlanta, whether tree hugging criminals like it or not.
Law enforcement digs in
Law enforcement “was out en masse,” local outlets are reporting on February 6, “at the site of Atlanta’s proposed public safety training center, clearing the woods in anticipation of construction on the controversial facility beginning in earnest.”
Tree hugging anarchists have been occupying the site in protest. That ended in gunfire which left one eco-terrorist dead and an officer seriously wounded. Protesters then stormed Atlanta, broke bank windows and torched a police car. Several more were arrested over that.
This week began with “SWAT teams from the Atlanta and DeKalb County police departments” swooping in to clear the disputed area.
The site of the planned Atlanta police training center called "Cop City" by opponents looks like a war zone right now. Heavily-armed members of law enforcement are clearing out the forest and have escorted in construction workers to make way for the facility. @FOX5Atlanta pic.twitter.com/jbGUtknKu2
— Rob DiRienzo (@RobDiRienzo) February 6, 2023
Georgia State Patrol troopers were also on hand, along with “representatives from other agencies.” Law enforcement was there as body guards for construction crews and their equipment.
Police didn’t get a chance to arrest anyone on Monday, because the protesters had all disappeared. The beeping of construction equipment moving back and forth filled the air, along with the clang of heavy equipment.
Construction workers “busily prepared the site with a backhoe and a bulldozer,” while law officers “in olive green uniforms patrolled the area atop all-terrain vehicles.”
Too much noise
Local resident Margaret Mason Tate preferred the anarchists. At least, they were quiet. She gave reporters an earful about the “frequent police presence” these days. The noise, she says, “makes it difficult for her to homeschool her young son.” A law enforcement chopper was loudly circling overhead like a vulture as she said it. “I don’t know a neighbor of mine who is excited about this project. And I know I am not.”
She definitely sides with Antifa. “I want to invest my tax dollars into the city of Atlanta and not cop city. There is absolutely no way I can adequately express how distressing it is to feel like I live in a war zone because it sounds like this all the time. And it is going to keep sounding like that.”
No matter what the out-of-state agitators had to say about the project, it’s moving forward full speed ahead. A few days ago “officials announced that initial land disturbance permits had been approved.”
The Stop Cop City movement should be seen as an example of rare staying power, thoughtful strategizing, and the crucial articulation of environmentalist politics situated in anti-racist, Indigenous, and abolitionist struggle, writes @natashalennard. https://t.co/c4CpSzYKw5
— The Intercept (@theintercept) February 2, 2023
The last time law enforcement showed up to clear the encampment was about three weeks ago. That clearing operation resulted in “the death of 26-year-old Manuel ‘Tortuguita’ Teran.” Police say the “little turtle” shot at them from inside a tent, wounding an officer. Other officers returned fire and it didn’t end well for Teran.
The $90 million dollar law enforcement training center will “include mock urban environments for militarized police training.” Privately financed, it’s also backed by the Atlanta Police Foundation.
Critics say “it harms the environment, wipes out valuable green space and desecrates Native American land.” Atlanta city council thinks it’s a good thing and desperately needed, “despite vigorous community disapproval during public comment sessions.” Most of the protesters are from other states.
