Public resistance has not been enough to change the political reality in Atlanta, as the city council has backed funding for the facility
tlanta’s city council voted early Tuesday morning to provide public funding for a controversial law enforcement training facility, cementing an unusual alliance that has formed between local Democrats and state Republicans. Withbacking millions of dollars in taxpayer funds for the private non-profit that is building the center, the facility dubbed “Cop City” by opponents is set to take the next step towards construction, local political observers say.
Atlanta’s city council voted 11-4 in favor of allocating public funding to the facility after protesters packed the building and gave hours of heated public comment. In 2021, council membersto lease land to the Atlanta Police Foundation but not to provide money. The session began early Monday afternoon and members voted around 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.
More than 200 people spoke against the facility, saying it would militarize police and cost too much. “What you’re voting on today is a military facility to propose a compound to make a mock city for training in urban warfare tactics,” said Gary Spencer, senior counsel at the NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund. “The policing promoted by this facility will not make Atlanta safer; in fact, it will put our communities—particularly our Black and brown communities—in significant danger.
The approval of local funding for the center is a blow to progressive protesters who have argued that it would empower police violence. Atlanta City Councilwoman Keisha Sean Waites voted no, even though she believes the state needs a new public safety training facility and supports law enforcement. She says the facility lacks community support and has a higher price tag than was initially stated.
The months leading up to the funding vote have been tense. In January, police shot protester Manuel “Tortuguita” Terán 57 times, according to an official autopsy.
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