1 00:00:05,559 --> 00:00:08,800 Speaker 1: Welcome back to it could happen here. This is part 2 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:11,880 Speaker 1: two of my mini series detailing the March Week of 3 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:15,040 Speaker 1: Action to defend the Atlanta Forest and stop Coop City. 4 00:00:15,840 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 1: Last episode, we covered the Week of Action kickoff rally 5 00:00:18,920 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 1: at Gresham Park and Day one of the South River 6 00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:25,599 Speaker 1: Music Festival. Will be picking up basically right where we 7 00:00:25,680 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: left off, starting with my conversation with Matt from the 8 00:00:28,880 --> 00:00:32,400 Speaker 1: Atlanta Community Press Collective. Saturday night, there was music going 9 00:00:32,400 --> 00:00:35,040 Speaker 1: on to like four am. It was a long night, 10 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,120 Speaker 1: but like a really good night. What was your Sunday? 11 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:42,559 Speaker 2: Like Sunday? You know, Sunday started off really great, Like 12 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:45,320 Speaker 2: walking in the first thing you see when you walked 13 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:49,120 Speaker 2: back onto the festival grounds was this amazing bouncy house 14 00:00:49,159 --> 00:00:52,879 Speaker 2: that they had written some guidelines up there that it 15 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 2: did seem like everyone followed. You could fit six adults, 16 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:59,640 Speaker 2: which is like for a bouncy house, that's pretty large. 17 00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:01,120 Speaker 1: It was a big bouncy house. 18 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 2: It was like six of dollars through twelve kids or 19 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:07,200 Speaker 2: something like that. So, yeah, you see this bouncy house, 20 00:01:07,240 --> 00:01:09,760 Speaker 2: and like when you see that, the first thing, but 21 00:01:09,959 --> 00:01:15,080 Speaker 2: I think that visually sets the entire expectation, like that 22 00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:17,480 Speaker 2: is a statement in and of itself of like what 23 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:19,880 Speaker 2: they were going for that first day. 24 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 1: Day two of the music festival started around noon. Right 25 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:26,319 Speaker 1: in the middle of the rc field was this large 26 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:29,959 Speaker 1: rainbow colored bouncy castle adorned with a stop cop City banner. 27 00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:33,520 Speaker 1: People slowly trickled in all over the course of the afternoon, 28 00:01:33,800 --> 00:01:36,639 Speaker 1: culminating in about a thousand people scattered across the field 29 00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:40,279 Speaker 1: by four pm. Just like the night before, people enjoyed 30 00:01:40,360 --> 00:01:44,200 Speaker 1: free food, Defend the Forest related literature, and a bustling 31 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,960 Speaker 1: refreshment booth while listening to live music. People played a 32 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,240 Speaker 1: soccer and frisbee in the open field, while others were 33 00:01:51,280 --> 00:01:54,400 Speaker 1: continuing to build camp infrastructure in the forest. 34 00:01:55,040 --> 00:01:58,000 Speaker 2: So I think the bouncy castle set the tone and 35 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:01,160 Speaker 2: everything was really lighthearted for the first few hours. I 36 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 2: spent most of that day walking around watching this like 37 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:10,160 Speaker 2: autonomous infrastructure in the forest kind of pop up on 38 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:13,440 Speaker 2: its own. It's like everywhere I went, you know, to 39 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:17,400 Speaker 2: the parking lot, you saw trains of people carrying like 40 00:02:18,000 --> 00:02:22,800 Speaker 2: water and supplies deep into the forest. Everyone seemed to 41 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:24,799 Speaker 2: just be trying to find a place to fit in 42 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:28,200 Speaker 2: and to work and to really participate in the week 43 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:28,600 Speaker 2: of action. 44 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 1: As the day went on, rumors started to circulate about 45 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:37,200 Speaker 1: inaction happening later that afternoon. Word quickly spread that people 46 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:40,440 Speaker 1: would meet up in the RC field at five pm. 47 00:02:41,120 --> 00:02:44,760 Speaker 1: Eventually a flyer was posted to social media, and sure enough, 48 00:02:44,880 --> 00:02:47,760 Speaker 1: come five o'clock, a group of a few hundred people 49 00:02:47,919 --> 00:02:51,680 Speaker 1: made up of individuals and affinity groups, gathered behind the 50 00:02:51,720 --> 00:02:54,959 Speaker 1: bouncy castle, most of whom were masked up and a 51 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:58,960 Speaker 1: donning some form of black block or camo block. A 52 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: communicating post later on the website scenes dot no blogs 53 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,720 Speaker 1: dot org described the feeling on the ground quote the 54 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:10,760 Speaker 1: air was tense, no visible rage, just a stealed determination. 55 00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:13,880 Speaker 1: No one knew what was coming next, but we knew 56 00:03:13,919 --> 00:03:14,960 Speaker 1: it was something big. 57 00:03:15,840 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 2: That that was quite the visual like this, this this 58 00:03:18,400 --> 00:03:21,440 Speaker 2: crowd of camo and black block, and like some people 59 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:24,360 Speaker 2: wearing normal clothes who I don't think quite knew what 60 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:29,079 Speaker 2: they were about to do next to this massive bouncy castle. 61 00:03:29,880 --> 00:03:33,919 Speaker 2: And I think that that the visual of it kind 62 00:03:33,919 --> 00:03:38,240 Speaker 2: of represents like two aspects of the movement, right like 63 00:03:38,640 --> 00:03:42,000 Speaker 2: the militant aspect and the joyful aspect, and I think 64 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:47,080 Speaker 2: they're both very central to what you know, the movement is. 65 00:03:47,280 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's a pretty good encapsulation of the diversity present 66 00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:54,200 Speaker 1: around the Defend the Forest and Stop cup City movement. 67 00:03:54,880 --> 00:03:58,720 Speaker 1: There's a few hundred people in Camo Block walking down 68 00:03:58,760 --> 00:04:02,320 Speaker 1: I believe is a constitution, a lot of people addressed 69 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: in black block, mix of legal observers here, police shoppers 70 00:04:11,280 --> 00:04:20,120 Speaker 1: overhead are Currently people are marching west in the direction 71 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:25,080 Speaker 1: of the old Atlanta Prison Farm, the slate of the 72 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:29,279 Speaker 1: forest that copp City is planned to be built on. 73 00:04:29,839 --> 00:04:32,760 Speaker 1: There has not really been a mass convergence of people 74 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:37,400 Speaker 1: like this in the forest in a long long time. 75 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: I cannot remember the last time there was anything quite 76 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: like this. This is definitely the biggest group of people 77 00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:46,760 Speaker 1: who's ever like converged on marching on the old Atlanta 78 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:51,680 Speaker 1: Prison Farm area. Last year, people were occupying and living 79 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 1: in the forest in that side. Since the repression has intensified, 80 00:04:55,080 --> 00:04:58,360 Speaker 1: more people have moved over across on the other side 81 00:04:58,360 --> 00:05:00,960 Speaker 1: of the Churchman Creek Park, on a slate of land 82 00:05:01,480 --> 00:05:05,440 Speaker 1: closer to Willane People's Park and the section that Ryan 83 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:09,520 Speaker 1: Milsap is wanting to develop. Definitely never seen this many 84 00:05:09,520 --> 00:05:15,240 Speaker 1: people marching like this near the forest in a much 85 00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:18,919 Speaker 1: more militant seeming group of the crowd. As opposed to 86 00:05:18,920 --> 00:05:23,440 Speaker 1: Saturday's first march, which was like a thousand people of 87 00:05:23,800 --> 00:05:28,040 Speaker 1: various types, everyone here looks much more willing to throw down. 88 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:33,040 Speaker 1: As the group, around three hundred strong, left the RC Field, 89 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:37,359 Speaker 1: they calmly marched west down Constitution Road toward the power 90 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:41,599 Speaker 1: line cut, accompanied overhead by a police chopper equipped with 91 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: a thermal camera. Poppter are still overhead. I'm sure you 92 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:48,840 Speaker 1: can hear it. To get a clear picture of what 93 00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: actually happened that day, It's useful to understand the geography 94 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:56,360 Speaker 1: of the Wulawni Forest, especially since the police have tried 95 00:05:56,440 --> 00:05:58,840 Speaker 1: to make it sound like the individuals who were arrested 96 00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:02,080 Speaker 1: later that night were apprehended at the scene of the crime, 97 00:06:02,279 --> 00:06:04,119 Speaker 1: which is not actually the case. 98 00:06:04,560 --> 00:06:07,520 Speaker 2: The entire area that the defenders are trying to defend, 99 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:12,080 Speaker 2: the entire Weilani Forest, the contiguous part of it is 100 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:16,280 Speaker 2: surrounded in sort of a triangle by three different roads, 101 00:06:16,279 --> 00:06:20,640 Speaker 2: Constitution Key and Bouldercrest. All the way to the east 102 00:06:20,720 --> 00:06:24,719 Speaker 2: is Wilani People's Park, and like just to the west 103 00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:27,680 Speaker 2: of that is the RC Field where the music festival 104 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:31,360 Speaker 2: was happening, where the Bouncy Castle is and where our 105 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,920 Speaker 2: group that we're following here starts to gather and then 106 00:06:35,480 --> 00:06:40,720 Speaker 2: all the way to the west is the proposed site 107 00:06:40,720 --> 00:06:44,760 Speaker 2: of copp City along Key Road. So to get there 108 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:49,679 Speaker 2: through the forest takes a good thirty forty five minutes 109 00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:52,320 Speaker 2: to get there, you know, if you're on the road, 110 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:55,279 Speaker 2: is still like a twenty five thirty minute walk. It 111 00:06:55,360 --> 00:07:01,000 Speaker 2: is not like anywhere close on foot. Uh No, it's 112 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:02,000 Speaker 2: from point A to point B. 113 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:03,960 Speaker 1: If you're crossing through those you also have to like 114 00:07:04,080 --> 00:07:07,760 Speaker 1: jump over Entrenchment Creek, which is not the easiest creek 115 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:08,520 Speaker 1: to cross over. 116 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:11,400 Speaker 2: It's not the easiest and it's not the cleanest. It's 117 00:07:11,400 --> 00:07:12,240 Speaker 2: something you want to step in. 118 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:15,120 Speaker 1: I'm at the back of the march now. Everyone's kind 119 00:07:15,160 --> 00:07:18,520 Speaker 1: of tightened up into one larger, larger group. They've paused 120 00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:22,400 Speaker 1: briefly and are retrieving some tires that have been found 121 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:28,280 Speaker 1: near the ditch on on the road here. Dozens and 122 00:07:28,280 --> 00:07:33,240 Speaker 1: dozens of tires are blocking are blocking the road. They're 123 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:35,400 Speaker 1: getting moved out pretty quick and the march is moving on. 124 00:07:36,280 --> 00:07:38,680 Speaker 1: Oh and looks like people arrived at the power line cut. 125 00:07:39,760 --> 00:07:43,440 Speaker 1: This massive clearing for power lines to run north south 126 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:48,360 Speaker 1: people are now marching on the green grass underneath the 127 00:07:48,400 --> 00:07:52,000 Speaker 1: power lines. The thin clear cut for power lines has 128 00:07:52,040 --> 00:07:55,360 Speaker 1: been there for years and directly leads to where cop 129 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:58,840 Speaker 1: City pre construction work is taking place near the North Gate. 130 00:07:59,640 --> 00:08:02,240 Speaker 1: The open area makes it easy to traverse, but on 131 00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:04,600 Speaker 1: the flip side that also makes it easy to surveil. 132 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:08,120 Speaker 1: There were only a little over a dozen cops stationed 133 00:08:08,160 --> 00:08:10,520 Speaker 1: at the north gate, as well as the police chopper 134 00:08:10,600 --> 00:08:14,679 Speaker 1: circling overhead. The group of block is slowly slowly moving 135 00:08:14,720 --> 00:08:18,480 Speaker 1: north along the power line cut. I'm keeping my distance 136 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:21,400 Speaker 1: for now so that I can continue doing stuff without 137 00:08:21,800 --> 00:08:25,680 Speaker 1: being extremely jeopardized. The block approached the North gate in 138 00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:29,280 Speaker 1: broad daylight, with shields in hand and people behind throwing 139 00:08:29,320 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 1: projectiles in the direction of police. A barrage of fireworks, rocks, 140 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:37,160 Speaker 1: and just the sheer size of the crowd overwhelmed police, 141 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:40,520 Speaker 1: causing officers to retreat as a swarm of hundreds of 142 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:44,680 Speaker 1: people overtook the proposed cop City construction site and current 143 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:48,160 Speaker 1: police security uppost within the Wolani forest. All right, the 144 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:50,880 Speaker 1: group has marched a decent ways up. There's now fireworks 145 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:55,120 Speaker 1: in the distance. Police helicopter is still overhead. Looks like. 146 00:08:55,160 --> 00:08:56,719 Speaker 1: Most of the crowd is still in the area of 147 00:08:56,760 --> 00:09:00,840 Speaker 1: the power line cut. Pretty condensed, large of people up there, 148 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:05,160 Speaker 1: lots of fireworks. Like I said, some individuals chose to 149 00:09:05,200 --> 00:09:08,800 Speaker 1: focus their efforts on repelling the nearby police, giving the 150 00:09:08,840 --> 00:09:12,120 Speaker 1: opportunity for others to set their sights on various targets. 151 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:15,959 Speaker 1: The large number of people in the block together allowed 152 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:19,480 Speaker 1: for individuals to feel more safe and capable of taking action. 153 00:09:20,240 --> 00:09:22,199 Speaker 1: The APDs put a call out to get any available 154 00:09:22,280 --> 00:09:24,080 Speaker 1: units down here by the older line of prison farm 155 00:09:24,080 --> 00:09:27,720 Speaker 1: property and a quote from the scanner audios get here 156 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:31,760 Speaker 1: now assholes. Forest defenders smashed up and set ablaze and 157 00:09:31,880 --> 00:09:36,800 Speaker 1: office trailer, two UTVs, a surveillance tower and a front 158 00:09:36,880 --> 00:09:39,400 Speaker 1: end loader as the police ran for cover behind a 159 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:44,000 Speaker 1: fenced off secondary, smaller outpost across from Key Road. Despite 160 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:47,959 Speaker 1: the police helicopter circling overhead the gathering spot for a 161 00:09:48,000 --> 00:09:51,240 Speaker 1: good thirty minutes, it seems APD was not fully prepared 162 00:09:51,760 --> 00:09:54,120 Speaker 1: in their response or just did not know what was 163 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:57,240 Speaker 1: going on, because they made a decent way without any 164 00:09:57,480 --> 00:10:02,080 Speaker 1: visible resistance so far. A communic posted online reads quote 165 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:05,160 Speaker 1: when we approached the gate. Finally it was not chaos 166 00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:08,680 Speaker 1: but it was something like it. Our crowd unleashed a 167 00:10:08,720 --> 00:10:11,719 Speaker 1: wild burst of energy. It was incredible and I will 168 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:15,800 Speaker 1: never forget it. It was rhythmic almost We devastated all 169 00:10:15,840 --> 00:10:19,320 Speaker 1: of their work, their vehicles, the trailer, everything. But it 170 00:10:19,320 --> 00:10:22,760 Speaker 1: looks like Atlanta Place is now trying to converge. Lots 171 00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: of fireworks are still. I see smoke. Oh, a lot 172 00:10:26,040 --> 00:10:29,440 Speaker 1: of smoke. WHOA a lot of smoke very fast is 173 00:10:29,559 --> 00:10:33,680 Speaker 1: filling up, filling up the area around the little It 174 00:10:33,679 --> 00:10:35,800 Speaker 1: looks like it's by the little control tower in the 175 00:10:35,840 --> 00:10:39,640 Speaker 1: middle of the power line. Cut. Wow, that smoke is thick. 176 00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:42,560 Speaker 1: That's a fire. That is a decent fire. You can 177 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:45,200 Speaker 1: I can see the orange flame now. As the few 178 00:10:45,240 --> 00:10:47,800 Speaker 1: police officers stationed at the North Gate were forced to 179 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:51,800 Speaker 1: fall back under pressure, force defenders leveled months of their 180 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:55,240 Speaker 1: work within a few minutes. To quote the scenes dot 181 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:59,400 Speaker 1: No blogs communicate quote. This act of mass collective sabotage 182 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:03,920 Speaker 1: was done methodically and without anxiety. The crowd destroyed all 183 00:11:03,960 --> 00:11:06,480 Speaker 1: of their equipment with ease and confidence. 184 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:12,520 Speaker 2: So the excavator there was a utility train vehicle, which 185 00:11:12,559 --> 00:11:15,080 Speaker 2: is what the police have been using to sort of 186 00:11:15,640 --> 00:11:19,360 Speaker 2: move in and around the woods and sort of motorized 187 00:11:19,400 --> 00:11:24,800 Speaker 2: move in and around the woods, and then the office 188 00:11:24,840 --> 00:11:30,200 Speaker 2: space and the storage space. We're all torched. I think 189 00:11:30,240 --> 00:11:32,840 Speaker 2: that that comprised like everything that was over there. 190 00:11:32,960 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 1: And then the police surveillance tower which has been taken 191 00:11:36,800 --> 00:11:37,679 Speaker 1: down a few times. 192 00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:40,000 Speaker 2: Surveillance towers in that area, they have this tendency to 193 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:40,439 Speaker 2: fall over. 194 00:11:41,200 --> 00:11:44,280 Speaker 1: The fire has gotten a lot lot bigger. Police scanner 195 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:48,160 Speaker 1: audio is saying officer needs help, calling for all available 196 00:11:48,240 --> 00:11:51,040 Speaker 1: units to converge on the spot. Wow, the fire is 197 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:54,560 Speaker 1: getting so much brighter. Smoke is incredibly thick. It looks 198 00:11:54,559 --> 00:11:56,640 Speaker 1: like some people are starting to move out of the 199 00:11:56,679 --> 00:12:01,160 Speaker 1: area back into the woods. But wow, that is a 200 00:12:00,280 --> 00:12:04,240 Speaker 1: huge fire. There was at least two separate things lit 201 00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:07,080 Speaker 1: on fire. There were, in fact more than two things 202 00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:09,920 Speaker 1: on fire. Looks like crowd is going to be starting 203 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:12,280 Speaker 1: to move because a lot of police is about to 204 00:12:12,280 --> 00:12:14,920 Speaker 1: show up. Unsure what the response will be for people 205 00:12:14,920 --> 00:12:17,920 Speaker 1: at the music festival or at a Woollane people's park 206 00:12:17,920 --> 00:12:20,320 Speaker 1: who are camping out for the Week of Action. But 207 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:23,840 Speaker 1: this is a pretty pretty big action for Week of 208 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:39,520 Speaker 1: Action Day two. Wow, this smoke plume is massive. While 209 00:12:39,559 --> 00:12:42,880 Speaker 1: the action itself was a success, the notion of an 210 00:12:42,920 --> 00:12:46,760 Speaker 1: overall one sided victory was about to come crashing down. 211 00:12:47,160 --> 00:12:50,199 Speaker 1: A whole bunch of sirens just flew by about a 212 00:12:50,200 --> 00:12:53,480 Speaker 1: dozen cop cars, Lots of cop cars by the music 213 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:56,760 Speaker 1: festival entrances as well by the RC field. Looks like 214 00:12:56,760 --> 00:13:01,000 Speaker 1: the cop cars are converging at the festival, not at 215 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:05,120 Speaker 1: the fire. Okay, back at the music festival. As you 216 00:13:05,160 --> 00:13:10,880 Speaker 1: can hear, it is still ongoing. There's still hundreds of people, 217 00:13:11,360 --> 00:13:13,800 Speaker 1: probably like five hundred people gathered here at the music Festival. 218 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:18,199 Speaker 1: You can see smoke in the air from this vantage point, 219 00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:22,160 Speaker 1: from the spot by the power line cut where those 220 00:13:22,559 --> 00:13:26,440 Speaker 1: two fires took place. One indication that this night was 221 00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:29,560 Speaker 1: far from over was that the police helicopter seemed to 222 00:13:29,600 --> 00:13:33,120 Speaker 1: be moving toward the festival. The chopper has moved from 223 00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:35,600 Speaker 1: being near the power line cut to the Music Festival 224 00:13:35,640 --> 00:13:39,040 Speaker 1: and Wilani People's Park. Vibe seems to be pretty chill 225 00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:40,680 Speaker 1: on the ground here. I'm not sure how many people 226 00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:44,160 Speaker 1: that are present know what's going on, but the chopper 227 00:13:44,200 --> 00:13:47,880 Speaker 1: is still stationed above the entrance to the festival, so 228 00:13:47,920 --> 00:13:51,040 Speaker 1: I think they're looking to see if the group that 229 00:13:51,120 --> 00:13:53,440 Speaker 1: march is going to march back the same direction, which 230 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:57,240 Speaker 1: I don't think they will, but that is what's currently 231 00:13:57,280 --> 00:14:00,520 Speaker 1: going on. People still still seem to become like to 232 00:14:00,640 --> 00:14:05,360 Speaker 1: and from the festival. Sure Enough, within minutes, an increasingly 233 00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:09,040 Speaker 1: large number of police started to stage by the entrance 234 00:14:09,120 --> 00:14:12,200 Speaker 1: to the RC Field. Doesn't the police cars are now 235 00:14:12,200 --> 00:14:14,120 Speaker 1: stationed outside the entrance to the RC Field where the 236 00:14:14,200 --> 00:14:17,360 Speaker 1: music festival is taking place. There's a lot of police here, 237 00:14:17,400 --> 00:14:20,800 Speaker 1: some with rifles. They're getting their zip ti cuffs ready. 238 00:14:21,640 --> 00:14:24,320 Speaker 1: They've not entered the festival area yet, but I got 239 00:14:24,320 --> 00:14:27,120 Speaker 1: word from somebody that they have entered the Wolani People's 240 00:14:27,160 --> 00:14:32,560 Speaker 1: Park parking lot and it looks like movement is is 241 00:14:32,600 --> 00:14:36,280 Speaker 1: to be expected very soon. At around six thirty pm, 242 00:14:36,280 --> 00:14:39,120 Speaker 1: police began to raid the South River Music Festival and 243 00:14:39,200 --> 00:14:42,560 Speaker 1: started what I think is accurately described as the police's 244 00:14:42,680 --> 00:14:46,320 Speaker 1: own counter protest to the events that transpired the past hour. 245 00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:50,920 Speaker 2: So when the police came running up onto the tarmac 246 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:52,920 Speaker 2: at RC Field where the bouncy castle was, of course 247 00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:56,880 Speaker 2: they had to point a rifle at the bouncy castle. 248 00:14:57,360 --> 00:14:59,200 Speaker 2: And if that doesn't show that police are not here 249 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:01,160 Speaker 2: to have fun and have joy, I don't know what 250 00:15:01,840 --> 00:15:04,360 Speaker 2: is I don't know if anyone was in it at 251 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:06,880 Speaker 2: the time, I don't think so. I think they were 252 00:15:06,920 --> 00:15:11,160 Speaker 2: literally just pointing a gun at an empty bouncy castle, 253 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:16,600 Speaker 2: which they destroyed, And I think we have to take 254 00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:18,080 Speaker 2: a moment to mourn that. 255 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,960 Speaker 1: Lots of police running into the music festival. They're running 256 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:27,320 Speaker 1: someone down, chasing down a few people, Cops approaching for 257 00:15:27,400 --> 00:15:31,880 Speaker 1: multiple sides. Instead of immediately trying to confront the hundreds 258 00:15:31,920 --> 00:15:35,880 Speaker 1: of music festival attendees head on, the still extremely outnumbered 259 00:15:35,920 --> 00:15:39,160 Speaker 1: cops ran to the opposite side of the music festival 260 00:15:39,200 --> 00:15:44,480 Speaker 1: and started to indiscriminately go after isolated stragglers. People running 261 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:52,720 Speaker 1: into the woods, chase by police. Someone's tackled, no one 262 00:15:52,720 --> 00:16:01,160 Speaker 1: early around it to arrest someone else being arrested. One, two, three, 263 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:06,800 Speaker 1: four or five six people currently arrested that I can see, 264 00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:11,480 Speaker 1: or at least being detained. Looks like an NLG person's 265 00:16:11,520 --> 00:16:15,720 Speaker 1: on the ground. Eventually, the concert goers realized what was happening, 266 00:16:15,960 --> 00:16:18,840 Speaker 1: and a little over one hundred people mobilized to pressure 267 00:16:18,880 --> 00:16:22,000 Speaker 1: the cops out of the field. People from the music 268 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:27,200 Speaker 1: festival are now running behind the police that have rushed 269 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:32,560 Speaker 1: into the rc field. Cops being flanked by hundreds of people. 270 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:37,240 Speaker 2: So the first thing that happened was a few officers 271 00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:41,000 Speaker 2: entered the RC field, which is where the music festival 272 00:16:41,080 --> 00:16:43,840 Speaker 2: was happening, and made a few quick arrests. 273 00:16:43,920 --> 00:16:45,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, like five or six, I would say. 274 00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:49,720 Speaker 2: And I would assume, seeing like the crowd and realizing 275 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:53,280 Speaker 2: that a small force of officers is easily overwhelmed, kind 276 00:16:53,280 --> 00:16:56,680 Speaker 2: of pulled back with their arrestees. And then just after 277 00:16:56,720 --> 00:16:59,400 Speaker 2: that over in wheel On People's Park, that's when DECAB 278 00:16:59,480 --> 00:17:02,160 Speaker 2: came in with their SWAT teams. There was a group 279 00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:05,960 Speaker 2: that was meeting in the gazebo and they report like 280 00:17:06,080 --> 00:17:10,480 Speaker 2: dozens of police officers running by. One of them stood 281 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 2: up to record, and an officer with an ar fifteen 282 00:17:14,119 --> 00:17:16,480 Speaker 2: yelled at them and told them to sit the fuck 283 00:17:16,560 --> 00:17:19,720 Speaker 2: back down, and they did. They were allowed to finish 284 00:17:19,800 --> 00:17:23,680 Speaker 2: their meeting, but they report this very surreal experience of 285 00:17:23,960 --> 00:17:27,920 Speaker 2: just officers like flying by and also making arrest of 286 00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:32,240 Speaker 2: individuals who were running. And then the third wave, I 287 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:36,240 Speaker 2: would say, came in on the back of a armored 288 00:17:36,240 --> 00:17:41,040 Speaker 2: police vehicle with an L RAD. Good old dj L rad. 289 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:44,560 Speaker 1: It brings it brings back all the memories. 290 00:17:44,200 --> 00:17:46,520 Speaker 2: And so from there they sort of launched into the forest. 291 00:17:46,640 --> 00:17:51,600 Speaker 1: Launching tear gas again also brings back all of the memories. 292 00:17:54,840 --> 00:17:56,960 Speaker 1: Police are starting to come back into the music festival. 293 00:17:57,480 --> 00:18:00,720 Speaker 1: Fireworks are happening in the woods there the living room. 294 00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:05,160 Speaker 1: It looks like the police that entered via the RCA 295 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:08,240 Speaker 1: field advanced up to join another group of cops who 296 00:18:08,280 --> 00:18:11,240 Speaker 1: came in from Wallani People's Park and were already in 297 00:18:11,240 --> 00:18:15,040 Speaker 1: the woods. What I first assumed were just fireworks were 298 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:18,880 Speaker 1: actually in exchange of munitions, with cops firing explosive tear 299 00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:21,840 Speaker 1: gas canisters into the forest and people trying to hold 300 00:18:21,840 --> 00:18:27,359 Speaker 1: the cops off with fireworks. Tear gas is in the woods. Fuck, 301 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:31,280 Speaker 1: it's hard. I can't get any clue. I didn't I 302 00:18:31,280 --> 00:18:34,360 Speaker 1: didn't bring my gas masks because this was a music festival. 303 00:18:34,600 --> 00:18:37,400 Speaker 1: It's just the woods are completely caked and gas. Everyone 304 00:18:37,400 --> 00:18:39,880 Speaker 1: who's inside. I don't know how they're gonna get out. 305 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:43,160 Speaker 1: Cops have the place surrounded. It's so gassed up in there. 306 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 1: Police raided. They tear gased a section of the woods 307 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:50,800 Speaker 1: close to the RCA field, kind of blocking off the 308 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:55,120 Speaker 1: RCA field from from the Wallani People's Park parking lot 309 00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:57,720 Speaker 1: and the Campsit's nearby, so you couldn't like really get 310 00:18:57,760 --> 00:19:00,360 Speaker 1: away or run through that area, because you're thing would 311 00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:04,119 Speaker 1: stop as mine temporarily did as I tried, as I 312 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:08,560 Speaker 1: tried to run through there, And then policers took over 313 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:12,879 Speaker 1: this entire section of southeast Atlanta, just this entire section 314 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:16,439 Speaker 1: of the woods, all the intersections in this area. 315 00:19:16,440 --> 00:19:20,840 Speaker 2: Except for the very small space that the music festival 316 00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:23,840 Speaker 2: was still going on during this entire time. 317 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:26,240 Speaker 1: The section like right in front of the stage where 318 00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:29,000 Speaker 1: people continued to have the music festival for the next 319 00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:32,240 Speaker 1: few hours. As police were as like I can'd do not, 320 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:36,240 Speaker 1: Like over five hundred police officers were in this surrounding area. 321 00:19:36,359 --> 00:19:39,000 Speaker 1: There was the most amount of police I've ever seen 322 00:19:39,160 --> 00:19:44,560 Speaker 1: respond to anything ever. It was wild. I am currently 323 00:19:45,040 --> 00:19:46,960 Speaker 1: heading out. I will try to loop back around to 324 00:19:47,040 --> 00:19:48,680 Speaker 1: Blann of People's Park because there's just no way through 325 00:19:48,680 --> 00:19:51,840 Speaker 1: it right now with all the tear gas. But a 326 00:19:51,880 --> 00:19:55,159 Speaker 1: cop van has pulled into the rc Field music customal 327 00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:56,800 Speaker 1: of people. Some of them are studyed by the stage, 328 00:19:56,880 --> 00:20:02,040 Speaker 1: others are kind of dispersing. Night's getting pretty hectic. Cops 329 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:06,080 Speaker 1: fully surrounding a lot of People's Park and the music 330 00:20:06,119 --> 00:20:09,040 Speaker 1: festival on all sides. There was at least one individual 331 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:11,000 Speaker 1: of note who was witnessed to be at the music 332 00:20:11,119 --> 00:20:14,560 Speaker 1: festival the entire time during the direct action, and they 333 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:17,679 Speaker 1: were one of the very first arrests. Police chased this 334 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:21,560 Speaker 1: person down, tased and violently tackled them. Were your on 335 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:23,000 Speaker 1: the festival at that time. 336 00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:27,399 Speaker 3: I was around the festival at that time. I even 337 00:20:27,520 --> 00:20:33,119 Speaker 3: saw the police tackle someone at the festival and tackle 338 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:37,959 Speaker 3: and tase an Indigenous person at the festival. And initially 339 00:20:38,160 --> 00:20:41,439 Speaker 3: the police officer Georgia State Patrol, and these are the 340 00:20:41,440 --> 00:20:45,000 Speaker 3: folks that were responsible for killing Tortighita and making up 341 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:48,880 Speaker 3: a lie about it. They started running and there were 342 00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:51,360 Speaker 3: three people in front of them. All three of those 343 00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:55,240 Speaker 3: people started running, and then there were two white folks 344 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:58,359 Speaker 3: that veered off to the left and one Indigenous person 345 00:20:58,359 --> 00:21:02,399 Speaker 3: that veered off to the right. Go figure, the Georgia 346 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:05,560 Speaker 3: State Patrol veered to the right and then tased and 347 00:21:05,600 --> 00:21:10,520 Speaker 3: tackled the Indigenous person. And then and there's the footage 348 00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:15,000 Speaker 3: of this that may may not be released, where I 349 00:21:15,040 --> 00:21:18,760 Speaker 3: was trying to de escalate the situation because this police officer, 350 00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:23,040 Speaker 3: with no grounds to attack this person, is choking them 351 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,360 Speaker 3: on the ground and then really just asking you like literally, 352 00:21:26,720 --> 00:21:30,760 Speaker 3: what are you doing? Like why are you doing it? 353 00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:33,560 Speaker 3: And then the persons that I didn't do anything, and 354 00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:39,520 Speaker 3: then the Jeordgia State Patrol officer responded, well, you ran right, 355 00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:43,639 Speaker 3: as if running when somebody with a gun chasing you 356 00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:50,160 Speaker 3: is an admission of guilt of something. So the response 357 00:21:50,680 --> 00:21:52,840 Speaker 3: was nonsensical and stupid. 358 00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:57,159 Speaker 2: So they're tear gassing the forest and again, you know, uh, 359 00:21:57,320 --> 00:22:03,480 Speaker 2: grabbing from reports anyone who's who's running, anyone who who 360 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:07,719 Speaker 2: you know rightfully runs from a police officer running at 361 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:10,880 Speaker 2: them with an A or fifteen, which you know, we've 362 00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:14,200 Speaker 2: been around police all week, and like the instinct to run, 363 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:18,280 Speaker 2: you know, even even now is still pretty high. 364 00:22:18,320 --> 00:22:18,439 Speaker 4: No. 365 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:22,520 Speaker 1: Absolutely, And if you've never been chased by police before, 366 00:22:23,240 --> 00:22:26,400 Speaker 1: your first instinct isn't to like let them get you, 367 00:22:27,440 --> 00:22:30,720 Speaker 1: like I've had police just charge at me for filming 368 00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:34,560 Speaker 1: police brutality before. And yeah, you generally want to move away. 369 00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:36,320 Speaker 1: It is your immediate reaction. 370 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:40,240 Speaker 2: Yeah, anyone running at you with a gun is caused 371 00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:42,359 Speaker 2: for fear, and a police officer even more so. 372 00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:46,320 Speaker 1: Okay, I am out of the area. Police have surrounded 373 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:49,080 Speaker 1: on basically every side of a lone people's park. The 374 00:22:49,280 --> 00:22:51,560 Speaker 1: section of the force. People are camping out of the 375 00:22:51,640 --> 00:22:54,800 Speaker 1: music festival. All entrances and exits are stage, a whole 376 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:58,199 Speaker 1: bunch of intersections, this police stage. They're letting some people go, 377 00:22:58,359 --> 00:23:00,680 Speaker 1: obviously they're arresting a whole bunch of other people. No 378 00:23:00,800 --> 00:23:05,160 Speaker 1: clear indication on who they're arresting or why. It's pretty 379 00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:05,960 Speaker 1: chaotic right now. 380 00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:09,880 Speaker 2: They put out this officer needs help call that expanded 381 00:23:09,920 --> 00:23:12,760 Speaker 2: beyond just APD. But the first thing they did was 382 00:23:12,760 --> 00:23:17,800 Speaker 2: was call in every available APD officer. Fulton County Sheriff's 383 00:23:17,800 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 2: Office joint to Cab County started to mount up, and 384 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:23,520 Speaker 2: then of course the Georgia State Patrol definitely had to 385 00:23:23,520 --> 00:23:27,840 Speaker 2: get in on this action. So jurisdictionally wide or this 386 00:23:27,920 --> 00:23:32,880 Speaker 2: multi jurisdiction wide force of police amassed on Key Road 387 00:23:33,720 --> 00:23:36,440 Speaker 2: with the Cab kind of coming in on the other side. 388 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:40,120 Speaker 1: I passed through at least five hundred individual police officers. Yeah, 389 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:43,399 Speaker 1: that like that would check out, because I walked a 390 00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:47,840 Speaker 1: decent a decent, decent ways. I passed by many an 391 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,159 Speaker 1: intersection with at least fifty to one hundred cops was 392 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:52,400 Speaker 1: stationed at like each intersection. 393 00:23:52,760 --> 00:23:56,040 Speaker 2: Oh and we can't forget the Sandy Springs Police Department 394 00:23:56,080 --> 00:23:58,960 Speaker 2: also and its way down from outside the premier. 395 00:23:58,840 --> 00:24:02,440 Speaker 1: Multiple swat teams was like, I think three different bear cats. 396 00:24:02,680 --> 00:24:05,560 Speaker 1: After I evacuated the area, I was still in shock 397 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:09,200 Speaker 1: about how many police officers mobilized to raid the festival. 398 00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:12,480 Speaker 1: This is the biggest police response I've seen to anything 399 00:24:13,240 --> 00:24:16,399 Speaker 1: in Atlanta in the time that I've been here. This 400 00:24:16,440 --> 00:24:18,280 Speaker 1: is bigger than the police responses to most of like 401 00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:22,240 Speaker 1: Portland actions compared to Like twenty twenty. Massive, massive amount 402 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:26,399 Speaker 1: of cops from multiple agencies taking over a huge area 403 00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:41,840 Speaker 1: of South Atlanta and Dekeab County. As the second wave 404 00:24:41,880 --> 00:24:45,520 Speaker 1: of police charged in and detained several music festival attendees, 405 00:24:46,040 --> 00:24:49,720 Speaker 1: panic spread throughout the crowd. Hundreds of people rushed to 406 00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:53,400 Speaker 1: the exits in an attempt to evacuate. Police blocked exits 407 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:57,760 Speaker 1: and arrested, detained, or harassed and threatened those trying to leave. 408 00:24:58,480 --> 00:25:02,400 Speaker 1: One concertgoer reported that they received death threats from an 409 00:25:02,400 --> 00:25:12,560 Speaker 1: intruding officer quote you're going to get shot. I don't 410 00:25:12,560 --> 00:25:14,600 Speaker 1: know how to put it, but you're gonna get shot 411 00:25:14,600 --> 00:25:18,199 Speaker 1: with a bullet unquote. That same person who recorded that 412 00:25:18,240 --> 00:25:21,760 Speaker 1: interaction also reported that she heard an officer with his 413 00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:24,639 Speaker 1: side arm drawn in the living room say quote, I 414 00:25:24,680 --> 00:25:28,520 Speaker 1: swear to God, I will fucking kill you unquote. Some 415 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:31,760 Speaker 1: people opted for safety in numbers and decided they'd rather 416 00:25:31,840 --> 00:25:34,639 Speaker 1: stay together as a group as opposed to the risk 417 00:25:34,720 --> 00:25:37,560 Speaker 1: of trying to escape through the woods alone. That night, 418 00:25:38,359 --> 00:25:41,199 Speaker 1: about one hundred and fifty people congregated in front of 419 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:45,000 Speaker 1: the festival stage, and musicians that stuck around continued to 420 00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:45,719 Speaker 1: play music. 421 00:25:46,160 --> 00:25:51,600 Speaker 2: So the music festival continues unhindered until dusk, and about 422 00:25:51,640 --> 00:25:59,000 Speaker 2: then is when DJ l Rad comes up and officers 423 00:25:59,040 --> 00:26:02,919 Speaker 2: get out and call over like five people from the crowd. 424 00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:05,080 Speaker 2: And so at this point I think there's like somewhere 425 00:26:05,080 --> 00:26:09,520 Speaker 2: between one hundred seventy five to one hundred people still 426 00:26:09,520 --> 00:26:13,640 Speaker 2: at the music past watching the music, and people are 427 00:26:13,840 --> 00:26:16,280 Speaker 2: calling out from the stage like we have a legal 428 00:26:16,359 --> 00:26:19,520 Speaker 2: right to be here, this is public property. 429 00:26:19,880 --> 00:26:24,960 Speaker 1: We had We had dueling, dueling loud speakers trying to 430 00:26:25,520 --> 00:26:29,200 Speaker 1: two people having a regular conversation across a field via 431 00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:30,720 Speaker 1: opposing loud speakers. 432 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:32,720 Speaker 2: Very Scott Pilgrim versus the world right like. 433 00:26:34,320 --> 00:26:36,120 Speaker 1: You know, as the police are trying to shut down 434 00:26:36,160 --> 00:26:39,560 Speaker 1: a concert, and there's like folks screaming into the bike 435 00:26:40,320 --> 00:26:43,080 Speaker 1: and police officers using the all read to scream back, 436 00:26:43,640 --> 00:26:44,440 Speaker 1: It's just amazing. 437 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:47,320 Speaker 2: I mean, the visuals of this whole day I think 438 00:26:47,600 --> 00:26:50,640 Speaker 2: are kind of really easy to imagine, even if you're 439 00:26:50,640 --> 00:26:51,040 Speaker 2: not there. 440 00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:54,880 Speaker 1: Yeah. Roughly after two hours of hunting down and detaining 441 00:26:54,880 --> 00:26:58,600 Speaker 1: stragglers from the festival, dozens of swat in riot gear 442 00:26:58,680 --> 00:27:02,280 Speaker 1: with high end rifles and armored vehicles slowly moved in 443 00:27:02,440 --> 00:27:06,720 Speaker 1: towards the stage. Police told festivalgoers that they had three 444 00:27:06,720 --> 00:27:09,720 Speaker 1: minutes to leave the festival under threat of arrest for 445 00:27:09,920 --> 00:27:16,320 Speaker 1: domestic terrorism, to which festivalgoers responded by shouting no. In 446 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:19,120 Speaker 1: front of the stage. The crowd linked arms and enchanted 447 00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:30,760 Speaker 1: let us go home and we have children. Apparently unable 448 00:27:30,840 --> 00:27:33,720 Speaker 1: to mass arrest one hundred and fifty people for whatever reason, 449 00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:37,560 Speaker 1: police called for five individuals from the festival to engage 450 00:27:37,600 --> 00:27:41,560 Speaker 1: in a brief discussion. After this odd negotiation with a 451 00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:45,920 Speaker 1: handful of random concertgoers, festival attendees were told they had 452 00:27:46,000 --> 00:27:48,320 Speaker 1: ten minutes to walk to their cars and go home 453 00:27:48,840 --> 00:27:51,240 Speaker 1: or else be charged with domestic terrorism. 454 00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:54,960 Speaker 2: About half the crowd has cars parked in the rc field, 455 00:27:55,920 --> 00:27:58,479 Speaker 2: and the police allow them to go to their cars 456 00:27:58,560 --> 00:28:02,679 Speaker 2: and leave leaving like somewhere between you know, three dozen 457 00:28:03,800 --> 00:28:07,440 Speaker 2: somewhere around three dozen people without cars still remaining at 458 00:28:07,440 --> 00:28:12,280 Speaker 2: the festival, and this whole time, they're also chanting, we 459 00:28:12,359 --> 00:28:15,480 Speaker 2: have kids, let us go, and like, it's this very 460 00:28:15,480 --> 00:28:19,080 Speaker 2: big moment of solidarity that I've been told from like 461 00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:22,280 Speaker 2: people who were there that you could tell that everybody 462 00:28:22,320 --> 00:28:24,840 Speaker 2: was like really interested in keeping each other safe. 463 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:26,920 Speaker 1: Yeah, it was. It was. It was weird because police 464 00:28:26,920 --> 00:28:29,240 Speaker 1: were definitely they were letting some people walk away and 465 00:28:29,359 --> 00:28:32,760 Speaker 1: leave a place, some people drive away, arresting others not 466 00:28:32,840 --> 00:28:35,199 Speaker 1: really with no clear indication for why they're letting some 467 00:28:35,320 --> 00:28:39,280 Speaker 1: go and not not letting others go. But then this 468 00:28:39,280 --> 00:28:41,840 Speaker 1: this crowd of people around the stage were eventually allowed 469 00:28:42,160 --> 00:28:45,160 Speaker 1: to leave the music festival in big rent of vans. 470 00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:48,680 Speaker 1: The police then id'd the people who rented the vans 471 00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:52,640 Speaker 1: and we were driving the vans, but everyone was able 472 00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:57,280 Speaker 1: to exit who stayed by the music festival. Around midnight, 473 00:28:57,400 --> 00:29:00,720 Speaker 1: the Atlanta Police Department posted a press release saying that 474 00:29:01,080 --> 00:29:04,720 Speaker 1: thirty five people have been detained, which was kind of 475 00:29:04,800 --> 00:29:07,880 Speaker 1: weird language because everyone assumed that those who had been 476 00:29:07,920 --> 00:29:10,680 Speaker 1: taken by police were all going to be arrested and charged, 477 00:29:11,120 --> 00:29:14,360 Speaker 1: but then less than an hour later, twelve individuals were 478 00:29:14,400 --> 00:29:19,240 Speaker 1: suddenly released from police custody back to Gresham Park. Since then, 479 00:29:19,520 --> 00:29:23,200 Speaker 1: witnesses and lawyers have claimed that police separated out people 480 00:29:23,240 --> 00:29:27,760 Speaker 1: with Atlanta addresses on their IDs and released those individuals, 481 00:29:28,280 --> 00:29:31,000 Speaker 1: and then the remaining twenty three people, mostly with out 482 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:34,640 Speaker 1: of state IDs or a non Atlanta address, were arrested 483 00:29:34,680 --> 00:29:39,800 Speaker 1: and charged with domestic terrorism to continue the outside agitator narrative, 484 00:29:40,280 --> 00:29:43,120 Speaker 1: bringing the total number of people charged with domestic terrorism 485 00:29:43,320 --> 00:29:47,280 Speaker 1: to forty two. Ever, since Sunday night, there's been this 486 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:50,920 Speaker 1: effort from a police and their media allies to frame 487 00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:53,600 Speaker 1: these arrests as if they happened at the scene of 488 00:29:53,600 --> 00:29:56,640 Speaker 1: the crime, alleging that the twenty three people arrested were 489 00:29:56,720 --> 00:30:01,960 Speaker 1: themselves torching equipment or actively engaged in domestic terrorism. Yet 490 00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:04,720 Speaker 1: all of the arrests took place almost a mile away 491 00:30:04,760 --> 00:30:07,640 Speaker 1: at the music festival, and even further away in some cases, 492 00:30:07,800 --> 00:30:10,400 Speaker 1: like in the parking lot which is on the other 493 00:30:10,560 --> 00:30:13,320 Speaker 1: side of the forest from the north gate. To quote 494 00:30:13,320 --> 00:30:16,160 Speaker 1: an article in Truth Out by Candice Burned, quote, law 495 00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:20,120 Speaker 1: enforcement failing to apprehend specific individuals at the site itself 496 00:30:20,560 --> 00:30:25,080 Speaker 1: indiscriminately targeted the music festival, pouring into the field, campgrounds 497 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:29,200 Speaker 1: and parking lot with weapons drawn. They issued commands, chased 498 00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:34,440 Speaker 1: people down, and threatened to shoot an arrest festival attendees unquote. Still, 499 00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:37,840 Speaker 1: major news outlets all but ignored the fact that all 500 00:30:37,920 --> 00:30:41,640 Speaker 1: arrests occurred seemingly at random. During a police raid of 501 00:30:41,680 --> 00:30:44,880 Speaker 1: the nearby South River Music Festival, where people gathered to 502 00:30:44,880 --> 00:30:48,000 Speaker 1: see Zack Fox Live, to jump in a bouncy castle 503 00:30:48,320 --> 00:30:51,680 Speaker 1: and enjoy the outdoors. Many attendees had little to no 504 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:55,360 Speaker 1: idea of what had occurred at the cop City construction site. 505 00:30:55,400 --> 00:30:57,800 Speaker 1: Those who got lucky were forced to walk through tear 506 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:00,800 Speaker 1: gas to get to their cars, while others were assaulted 507 00:31:00,840 --> 00:31:04,240 Speaker 1: by police and charged with domestic terrorism, risking thirty five 508 00:31:04,320 --> 00:31:08,400 Speaker 1: years in prison. Here's a clip from NBC's Today show. 509 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:10,880 Speaker 5: We got breaking news out of Atlanta. Over night, Dozens 510 00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:14,240 Speaker 5: arrested after what's being described as a coordinated criminal attack. 511 00:31:14,760 --> 00:31:17,400 Speaker 5: It happened at the future site of a police training center. 512 00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:19,719 Speaker 5: And this is Blaine Alexander's on the story for US 513 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:20,600 Speaker 5: Blaine Good Morning. 514 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:25,239 Speaker 4: Officials say protesters burned construction vehicles and a trailer and 515 00:31:25,280 --> 00:31:28,160 Speaker 4: set off fireworks toward officers stationed nearby. 516 00:31:28,680 --> 00:31:30,520 Speaker 1: This wasn't about a public safety training center. 517 00:31:30,560 --> 00:31:32,920 Speaker 3: This was about anarchy, and this was about the attempt 518 00:31:32,960 --> 00:31:33,760 Speaker 3: to destabilize. 519 00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:37,320 Speaker 4: Police point to a group of what they call outside agitators, 520 00:31:37,440 --> 00:31:40,600 Speaker 4: saying they left an event nearby, changed into black clothing, 521 00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:45,760 Speaker 4: and mounted a coordinated attack on construction equipment and police officers. 522 00:31:46,080 --> 00:31:49,040 Speaker 1: To quote a statement from the Sonic Defense Committee. Quote. 523 00:31:49,360 --> 00:31:53,480 Speaker 1: The indiscriminate brutalization and arrest of festivalgoers suggests that law 524 00:31:53,560 --> 00:31:55,960 Speaker 1: enforcement agencies will go to great lengths to paint the 525 00:31:56,000 --> 00:31:58,280 Speaker 1: movement to stop Coop City and defend the Atlanta Forest 526 00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:02,520 Speaker 1: as a criminal organization. It is in fact a broad, 527 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:08,000 Speaker 1: decentralized movement with no ideological or organizational unity, only of 528 00:32:08,200 --> 00:32:11,360 Speaker 1: shared goal. They believe that the movement is made up 529 00:32:11,360 --> 00:32:16,160 Speaker 1: of bad actors who betray otherwise peaceful protesters, but the 530 00:32:16,240 --> 00:32:20,240 Speaker 1: movement is not committed to any particular tactic, instead accepting 531 00:32:20,240 --> 00:32:23,560 Speaker 1: the diversity of approaches to stop the project. The police 532 00:32:23,560 --> 00:32:26,400 Speaker 1: claim that the movement is not made up of any Atlantis, 533 00:32:26,600 --> 00:32:31,720 Speaker 1: while Atlanta University Center students, local clergy, faith leaders, small businesses, 534 00:32:31,720 --> 00:32:36,280 Speaker 1: and dozens of locally famous artists and musicians, organize themselves 535 00:32:36,280 --> 00:32:40,400 Speaker 1: within the movement. The police's false narrative and heavy handed 536 00:32:40,400 --> 00:32:43,440 Speaker 1: approach to dealing with the opposition to the Copacity project 537 00:32:43,880 --> 00:32:47,400 Speaker 1: is slowly starting to enclose them in. As the movement 538 00:32:47,520 --> 00:32:50,680 Speaker 1: grows and city and state officials refuse to see the 539 00:32:50,720 --> 00:32:53,720 Speaker 1: reality of what they are dealing with, their own authority 540 00:32:53,800 --> 00:32:56,840 Speaker 1: is being brought into question. If they are not careful, 541 00:32:56,960 --> 00:32:59,680 Speaker 1: the stakes of the movement will soon exceed the bounds 542 00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:03,720 Speaker 1: of the forest and cop City. In fact, that process 543 00:33:03,960 --> 00:33:05,400 Speaker 1: may already have begun. 544 00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:09,360 Speaker 2: I think to talk about what happened, we we kind 545 00:33:09,360 --> 00:33:12,360 Speaker 2: of do have to go back to put it in context, 546 00:33:13,360 --> 00:33:18,120 Speaker 2: and going back to January, that was the end of 547 00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:22,760 Speaker 2: the occupation or the you know, continuous encampments in Wilani 548 00:33:25,120 --> 00:33:29,280 Speaker 2: and then flash, uh fast forward to to late January. 549 00:33:29,320 --> 00:33:32,640 Speaker 2: They get the LDP and so all of these people 550 00:33:32,720 --> 00:33:36,440 Speaker 2: who have been protecting the forest for so long are 551 00:33:36,520 --> 00:33:40,480 Speaker 2: now watching construction equipment roll in and they're watching clear 552 00:33:40,520 --> 00:33:45,920 Speaker 2: cutting and they can't do anything about it. And you 553 00:33:46,040 --> 00:33:49,880 Speaker 2: had that action, uh just after Tortigita's death in January, 554 00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:54,680 Speaker 2: which was a very targeted you know, only two funders 555 00:33:54,720 --> 00:33:58,000 Speaker 2: and other supporters of cop City, and you know, maybe 556 00:33:58,040 --> 00:34:01,720 Speaker 2: a random police vehicle, but it wasn't really like this 557 00:34:02,080 --> 00:34:06,000 Speaker 2: letting of energy. It was a very like specific sort 558 00:34:06,040 --> 00:34:08,560 Speaker 2: of purpose. And so you have this like build up 559 00:34:08,600 --> 00:34:12,640 Speaker 2: of energy that I think is really important to keep 560 00:34:12,680 --> 00:34:16,560 Speaker 2: in mind with what is about to happen in this story. 561 00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:20,080 Speaker 2: And they so they can't do anything, and then you 562 00:34:20,200 --> 00:34:25,880 Speaker 2: have Saturday where you see this massive people return to 563 00:34:25,880 --> 00:34:31,560 Speaker 2: the forest, and I think it's almost unavoidable in retrospect 564 00:34:32,120 --> 00:34:34,839 Speaker 2: to look at that and for them not to have said, 565 00:34:35,400 --> 00:34:38,240 Speaker 2: what can we do now that we couldn't do before? 566 00:34:39,840 --> 00:34:43,799 Speaker 2: So they gather and they do what they couldn't do 567 00:34:43,840 --> 00:34:47,360 Speaker 2: before they head over to the construction site. 568 00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:49,840 Speaker 1: There had not been an action like this in the 569 00:34:49,840 --> 00:34:53,880 Speaker 1: woods for a long time. Bulldozers and equipment had not 570 00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:56,840 Speaker 1: been damaged in quite a while. But on Sunday people 571 00:34:56,840 --> 00:34:59,320 Speaker 1: were able to use the safety in numbers that comes 572 00:34:59,320 --> 00:35:02,000 Speaker 1: with a week of action to feel more empowered to 573 00:35:02,120 --> 00:35:05,880 Speaker 1: take direct action against the actual machinery that is destroying 574 00:35:05,920 --> 00:35:09,440 Speaker 1: the forest and building cop City. Sunday's action can be 575 00:35:09,480 --> 00:35:12,320 Speaker 1: seen as a demonstration of the pent up righteous anger 576 00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:16,879 Speaker 1: from watching the slow destruction of the forest. Participants view 577 00:35:16,920 --> 00:35:20,560 Speaker 1: what happened as a justified strike against the active destruction 578 00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:23,800 Speaker 1: of the forest, a strike back made an anger after 579 00:35:23,880 --> 00:35:26,840 Speaker 1: watching the Atlanta Police Foundation make steady progress over the 580 00:35:26,880 --> 00:35:28,560 Speaker 1: course of the past few months. 581 00:35:28,960 --> 00:35:32,440 Speaker 2: The day before, there was this chant that was taken 582 00:35:32,520 --> 00:35:34,040 Speaker 2: up by the entire crowd, and I think we talked 583 00:35:34,040 --> 00:35:34,600 Speaker 2: about this and. 584 00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:37,040 Speaker 1: Earlier. 585 00:35:38,560 --> 00:35:41,040 Speaker 2: If you build it, we will burn it. And that 586 00:35:41,280 --> 00:35:43,960 Speaker 2: was something that if you looked all throughout the crowd, 587 00:35:44,080 --> 00:35:49,000 Speaker 2: like they were chanting everybody, everybody, like not just people 588 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:50,480 Speaker 2: wearing camera or black block, like. 589 00:35:50,920 --> 00:35:53,600 Speaker 1: A thousand people, everybody. Yeah, a thousand people watching from 590 00:35:53,680 --> 00:35:54,359 Speaker 1: Gresham Park. 591 00:35:54,520 --> 00:35:58,680 Speaker 2: And I think that this is that promise come true. 592 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:02,160 Speaker 1: Sunday's action was itself a pretty unique moment in the 593 00:36:02,200 --> 00:36:06,800 Speaker 1: recent history of environmental and anti police struggles. Watching hundreds 594 00:36:06,840 --> 00:36:09,560 Speaker 1: of people go on the offensive to participate in a 595 00:36:09,680 --> 00:36:13,080 Speaker 1: mass coordinated sabotage in defense of both the forest and 596 00:36:13,239 --> 00:36:17,040 Speaker 1: targets of police of isolence felt like an unprecedented moment 597 00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:20,240 Speaker 1: in our modern paradigm of resistance in the United States. 598 00:36:21,280 --> 00:36:23,840 Speaker 1: But the raid on the music festival on March fifth 599 00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:26,960 Speaker 1: was also just the start of an unparalleled wave of 600 00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:30,520 Speaker 1: police repression during this week of action, which we will 601 00:36:30,560 --> 00:36:34,240 Speaker 1: cover in the next episode, but throughout the whole week, 602 00:36:34,480 --> 00:36:38,400 Speaker 1: the assurance that copcity will never be built never faltered, 603 00:36:38,960 --> 00:36:42,319 Speaker 1: as demonstrated by common chance such as I believe that 604 00:36:42,400 --> 00:36:46,000 Speaker 1: we will win. So I'm going to end this episode 605 00:36:46,280 --> 00:36:49,520 Speaker 1: with the final chant from the Saturday Gresham Park rally, 606 00:36:49,920 --> 00:36:53,200 Speaker 1: right before a thousand people marched to the Wallani Forest 607 00:36:54,120 --> 00:36:54,800 Speaker 1: in Atlanta. 608 00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:58,520 Speaker 6: We always in with the asologiant we are with the 609 00:36:58,560 --> 00:37:05,440 Speaker 6: words of a spur because we have a duty. There's 610 00:37:05,520 --> 00:37:07,880 Speaker 6: been so much blood spilled here. 611 00:37:08,920 --> 00:37:12,200 Speaker 4: Repeat that to meet. It is our duty to flight 612 00:37:12,280 --> 00:37:20,520 Speaker 4: for our Freedom's. 613 00:37:16,680 --> 00:37:27,000 Speaker 6: Not judy to wed, not each other, project each other. 614 00:37:27,360 --> 00:37:30,760 Speaker 1: I'm not gonna lose but a change nothing. 615 00:37:32,480 --> 00:37:38,719 Speaker 2: I'm not gonna lose but a chaine. I'm nothing to 616 00:37:38,880 --> 00:37:42,920 Speaker 2: knowse but our chainey. 617 00:37:45,360 --> 00:37:59,319 Speaker 1: H Music Festival audio courtesy of Unicorn Riot. It Could 618 00:37:59,320 --> 00:38:01,719 Speaker 1: Happen Here as a production of cool Zone Media. For 619 00:38:01,800 --> 00:38:05,080 Speaker 1: more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website coolzonemedia 620 00:38:05,120 --> 00:38:07,439 Speaker 1: dot com, or check us out on the iHeartRadio app, 621 00:38:07,480 --> 00:38:10,839 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. You can 622 00:38:10,840 --> 00:38:13,560 Speaker 1: find sources for It Could Happen Here, updated monthly at 623 00:38:13,600 --> 00:38:16,840 Speaker 1: Coolzonmedia dot com slash sources. Thanks for listening,