1 00:00:01,720 --> 00:00:08,440 Speaker 1: Cool zone media, get ready for anarchy in Atlanta. 2 00:00:09,039 --> 00:00:12,879 Speaker 2: Visit you got me first, or you won't be a 3 00:00:12,960 --> 00:00:17,080 Speaker 2: rend anarchist start work. They struck again this week. 4 00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:25,840 Speaker 3: Cops are approaching now obviously. 5 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:28,680 Speaker 4: Got a flashbuyn there. This is it could Happen Here. 6 00:00:28,800 --> 00:00:33,120 Speaker 4: I'm Garrison Davis. For the past three years, a wide 7 00:00:33,200 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 4: range of people in Atlanta, Georgia have been working to 8 00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 4: prevent the construction of a now one hundred and ten 9 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:42,520 Speaker 4: million dollar militarized police training facility in the South River 10 00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:47,400 Speaker 4: Forest in southeast Atlanta. I've continuously covered the evolving struggle 11 00:00:47,400 --> 00:00:49,640 Speaker 4: on it Could Happen Here for the past few years. 12 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:49,880 Speaker 5: Now. 13 00:00:50,640 --> 00:00:53,239 Speaker 4: In this episode, I will attempt to summarize some of 14 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:56,240 Speaker 4: the actions from the past six months and the wave 15 00:00:56,320 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 4: of recent repression targeted against the movement. I will also 16 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:02,760 Speaker 4: so who offers some analysis and critique on behalf of 17 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:06,680 Speaker 4: anonymous Force Defenders who spoke with me in dedicated conversations. 18 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 4: After the last week of action in summer of twenty 19 00:01:10,120 --> 00:01:13,160 Speaker 4: twenty three, it was clear the movement needed a new 20 00:01:13,200 --> 00:01:16,039 Speaker 4: way of people to engage in the struggle against Cop City, 21 00:01:16,360 --> 00:01:20,839 Speaker 4: beyond the referendum and the occasional night time sabotage. Forest 22 00:01:20,880 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 4: encampments were essentially impossible, and the weeks of action seemed 23 00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:29,880 Speaker 4: to expunge their usefulness. A small group of people began 24 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:34,520 Speaker 4: organizing what would become known as block cop City. The 25 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:38,440 Speaker 4: idea was that on Monday, November thirteenth, a mass mobilization 26 00:01:38,480 --> 00:01:41,400 Speaker 4: would descend upon the cop City construction site in an 27 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:46,039 Speaker 4: act of non violent protest, and perhaps plant tree saplings 28 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:50,400 Speaker 4: where the forest once stood. This marks the first time 29 00:01:50,560 --> 00:01:54,640 Speaker 4: that the framing of quote unquote strategic nonviolence and nonviolent 30 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,800 Speaker 4: direct action were embraced for a mass action like this, 31 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:01,400 Speaker 4: hoping that it may attract NGOs and activist groups to 32 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 4: co sign onto the action. Historically, throughout this struggle, such 33 00:02:06,520 --> 00:02:10,720 Speaker 4: quote unquote nonviolent framing was at least avoided, if not 34 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:15,320 Speaker 4: explicitly rejected, as a limiting restriction toward achieving measurable victories 35 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:20,639 Speaker 4: against the Atlanta Police Foundation and Cop City contractors. Throughout 36 00:02:20,639 --> 00:02:22,760 Speaker 4: the end of summer and the start of fall, a 37 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 4: speaking tour for Block cup City traveled to over eighty 38 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:28,640 Speaker 4: cities around the country to promote the action and recruit 39 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 4: people to travel to Atlanta come November. Block cup City 40 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:36,280 Speaker 4: started as a very vertical top down plan the central 41 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 4: Conceit was decided upon by a small number of individuals, 42 00:02:39,520 --> 00:02:42,080 Speaker 4: many of whom were not from Atlanta, and the finer 43 00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:44,280 Speaker 4: details would be worked out in a series of public 44 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:47,960 Speaker 4: meetings in the days before the action. Whether or not 45 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:52,240 Speaker 4: local force defenders liked or disliked the proposal, block up 46 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 4: City acted as a gravity well, sucking nearly all of 47 00:02:55,240 --> 00:02:58,560 Speaker 4: the energy, time, and attention into its orbit for the 48 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:02,880 Speaker 4: entirety of a fall in Atlanta throughout the nationwide block 49 00:03:02,880 --> 00:03:05,880 Speaker 4: cop City. Speaking to her, a small subset of attendees 50 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,799 Speaker 4: voiced objections and disagreements with the proposed strategy and its 51 00:03:09,919 --> 00:03:13,480 Speaker 4: use of time and resources. Those opposed to block cop 52 00:03:13,520 --> 00:03:16,400 Speaker 4: City thought the idea of a large public march to 53 00:03:16,440 --> 00:03:20,120 Speaker 4: the worksite was going to put people in unnecessary harm 54 00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:23,760 Speaker 4: without doing much to achieve a measurable blow against cop City. 55 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:26,040 Speaker 4: I'm going to quote from a report back that was 56 00:03:26,080 --> 00:03:30,480 Speaker 4: published online shortly after the action. Quote. Something that tends 57 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:32,920 Speaker 4: to happen in autonomous action is that there ends up 58 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 4: being an inner circle at the core, which can limit 59 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,040 Speaker 4: the scope of who is able to meaningfully contribute to 60 00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:40,600 Speaker 4: the direction of an action, because it creates a hierarchy 61 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:43,640 Speaker 4: at Spokes Council. It felt like this at times because 62 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,280 Speaker 4: it was primarily a small group of speakers who were 63 00:03:46,320 --> 00:03:50,360 Speaker 4: directing the entire Block cop City movement. This led to 64 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:53,480 Speaker 4: dismissal of certain concerns which were brought up by affinity 65 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:57,880 Speaker 4: groups unquote. In the planning stages, organizers pushed back on 66 00:03:57,920 --> 00:04:01,000 Speaker 4: the notion that getting arrested was part of the plan, 67 00:04:01,680 --> 00:04:04,960 Speaker 4: but on the day before the November thirteenth action, a 68 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:07,760 Speaker 4: Block Up City organizer told press and media in a 69 00:04:07,800 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 4: private meeting to have your cameras ready because there will 70 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:14,800 Speaker 4: be arrests at noon, demonstrating some form of intent to 71 00:04:14,920 --> 00:04:17,120 Speaker 4: use people's safety and freedom as a way to generate 72 00:04:17,200 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 4: online buzz with the hope of inspiring people to once 73 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,760 Speaker 4: again take action in the forest. The possibility of arrest 74 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:28,279 Speaker 4: was obviously mentioned at the spokes Council meetings, but was 75 00:04:28,360 --> 00:04:32,680 Speaker 4: framed as far from a certainty, with rallying cries insisting 76 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:35,520 Speaker 4: that the march will be able to all leave together. 77 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:40,239 Speaker 4: During the two days of Spokes Council meetings, the route 78 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:42,880 Speaker 4: and formation of the march to the construction site was 79 00:04:42,920 --> 00:04:47,159 Speaker 4: decided upon, and quote unquote, direct action trainings took place 80 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:50,920 Speaker 4: to prepare people for the march on Monday morning. The 81 00:04:50,920 --> 00:04:55,240 Speaker 4: march was to be split into three distinct clusters, a frontline, middle, 82 00:04:55,279 --> 00:04:59,800 Speaker 4: and rear. Before the march, there was limited communication between clusters, 83 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:03,440 Speaker 4: making it difficult to have informed expectations of how a 84 00:05:03,440 --> 00:05:07,159 Speaker 4: confrontation with police will happen. Part of the quote unquote 85 00:05:07,200 --> 00:05:12,520 Speaker 4: strategic nonviolence stipulation meant that throne objects and projectiles were 86 00:05:12,600 --> 00:05:17,479 Speaker 4: explicitly disallowed. On the morning of the march, words started 87 00:05:17,520 --> 00:05:20,640 Speaker 4: to spread around that what was left of the frontline 88 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:25,719 Speaker 4: cluster decided that only bullets will make the frontline fall back, 89 00:05:25,839 --> 00:05:29,280 Speaker 4: and that they would withstand all other forms of police violence, 90 00:05:29,839 --> 00:05:34,800 Speaker 4: mostly les, lethal rounds, tear gas, batons, etc. Now, this 91 00:05:34,920 --> 00:05:38,960 Speaker 4: whole thing about live rounds was not widely communicated to 92 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 4: people who just showed up for the action. On Monday morning, 93 00:05:42,360 --> 00:05:45,320 Speaker 4: during the spokes councils, it was learned that a vast 94 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 4: majority of attendees had never before been to Atlanta or 95 00:05:48,680 --> 00:05:51,479 Speaker 4: the forest, and a great many of whom had never 96 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:54,600 Speaker 4: attended a protest or engaged in a clash with police before. 97 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:59,479 Speaker 4: Some local force defenders took issue with the perceived strategy 98 00:05:59,520 --> 00:06:03,240 Speaker 4: of primiery recruiting young people from across the country with 99 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 4: little to no experience going up against police. Come Monday morning, 100 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:10,640 Speaker 4: the number of people gathered to march on cop City 101 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:15,120 Speaker 4: was far fewer than what was initially hoped. It's impossible 102 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:18,919 Speaker 4: to say for sure whether the limiting of acceptable tactics 103 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:22,479 Speaker 4: and the non violent framing hurt or helped the final 104 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:26,680 Speaker 4: number of attendees. Regardless, the four hundred or so brave 105 00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:30,239 Speaker 4: people that departed Gresham Park was not the mass action 106 00:06:30,400 --> 00:06:32,360 Speaker 4: initially envisioned by organizers. 107 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:38,479 Speaker 3: Got about three dozen riot cops and SWAT teams stationed here, 108 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:45,280 Speaker 3: blocking off the road heading to the west. Got police shields, 109 00:06:45,279 --> 00:06:49,279 Speaker 3: We have air of fifteen's, We have tactical response vehicles ATV, 110 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:53,040 Speaker 3: A lot of cops behind us, a lot of cops 111 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:57,560 Speaker 3: in front of us. We are completely sandwiched in by 112 00:06:57,560 --> 00:06:57,880 Speaker 3: the police. 113 00:06:57,920 --> 00:07:01,239 Speaker 4: Right now, the front liners approach the police riot line 114 00:07:01,400 --> 00:07:05,400 Speaker 4: at the big intersection near the entrance to Entrenchment Creek Park. 115 00:07:05,839 --> 00:07:09,400 Speaker 4: Two large banners formed a V shaped wedge and the 116 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:11,520 Speaker 4: crowd advanced into the police line. 117 00:07:12,160 --> 00:07:15,200 Speaker 3: People are pushing through, Cops are putting out the fight. 118 00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 4: People are continuing to move forward. The march is pushing 119 00:07:20,760 --> 00:07:24,360 Speaker 4: the cops back. Under the pressure from a few hundred people, 120 00:07:24,920 --> 00:07:26,920 Speaker 4: The police line was pushed back by one or two 121 00:07:26,960 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 4: dozen feet front liners. We stood, police batons and leslie communitions. 122 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:35,240 Speaker 4: Steady progress was being made. That was until tear gas 123 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:39,240 Speaker 4: got deployed. Cops are continuing to loop back, flash bang, 124 00:07:41,440 --> 00:07:44,960 Speaker 4: we got a gap. Cs Gas was first launched into 125 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:48,000 Speaker 4: the middle of the crowd. Police paused to put on 126 00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 4: their own gas masks, but instead of using this moment 127 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:54,920 Speaker 4: to advance further, the bulk of the crowd held their position, 128 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:59,440 Speaker 4: with large sections of the middle cluster subsequently entering into 129 00:07:59,440 --> 00:08:03,360 Speaker 4: the tree line of Entrenchment Creek Park as continuing volleys 130 00:08:03,360 --> 00:08:06,840 Speaker 4: of tear gas were fired by police. This caused the 131 00:08:06,880 --> 00:08:10,400 Speaker 4: front line to retreat back, effectively ending the offensive portion 132 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:12,920 Speaker 4: of the action. As the group that entered into the 133 00:08:12,960 --> 00:08:17,040 Speaker 4: forest was later escorted out by police, rejoined the march 134 00:08:17,160 --> 00:08:21,520 Speaker 4: and eventually returned to Gresham Park. Everyone knew that it 135 00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:25,720 Speaker 4: was a near certainty that police would confront a mobile crowd, 136 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:29,360 Speaker 4: and out maneuvering police all the way to the construction 137 00:08:29,480 --> 00:08:33,760 Speaker 4: site would be highly unlikely. The only way a mass 138 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:35,600 Speaker 4: of people would be able to get to the work 139 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:38,959 Speaker 4: site is if police allowed it. Still, there's much to 140 00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:41,559 Speaker 4: learn from Block cop City, and even just the brief 141 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:44,720 Speaker 4: skirmish with police. So forgive me for engaging in some 142 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:48,160 Speaker 4: tactical analysis based on the good portion of my life 143 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:51,800 Speaker 4: spent in riot jousts and input from others with more 144 00:08:51,880 --> 00:08:55,080 Speaker 4: on the ground experience. We first have to think about 145 00:08:55,520 --> 00:08:58,400 Speaker 4: what will cause a mass of people to break up, scatter, 146 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:01,080 Speaker 4: and retreat. Both on the protester side and on the 147 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:06,600 Speaker 4: police side. The front lines are meant to act semi fluid. Typically, 148 00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:09,800 Speaker 4: projectile launchers are behind the front line and are designed 149 00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:13,400 Speaker 4: to scatter the opposing front line and middle sections of 150 00:09:13,720 --> 00:09:17,160 Speaker 4: the enemy side to disrupt an offensive formation so that 151 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:20,920 Speaker 4: it loses its capacity for for momentum, or to stagger 152 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:24,800 Speaker 4: a defensive line enough to force retreat, as was the 153 00:09:24,840 --> 00:09:28,760 Speaker 4: case on November thirteenth. When a layered defensive police line 154 00:09:28,800 --> 00:09:32,080 Speaker 4: is backed up with vehicles like a bearcat, the on 155 00:09:32,240 --> 00:09:38,320 Speaker 4: foot line will most likely not retreat back behind their vehicles. Frustratingly, 156 00:09:38,520 --> 00:09:42,720 Speaker 4: these massive police vehicles occupy a sort of paradoxical role 157 00:09:43,200 --> 00:09:46,280 Speaker 4: as a ten ton roadblock that would force a center 158 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:49,560 Speaker 4: advancing line to break apart in order to pass, putting 159 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:53,440 Speaker 4: the advancing line in a less strategic position, even though 160 00:09:53,480 --> 00:09:56,840 Speaker 4: if the vehicle was threatened by being overrun, police would 161 00:09:56,880 --> 00:10:00,400 Speaker 4: probably attempt to pull the vehicle back, signifying retreat. So 162 00:10:00,800 --> 00:10:04,680 Speaker 4: how has this paradox been solved before? Well with ranged 163 00:10:04,679 --> 00:10:08,080 Speaker 4: attacks like bottles, fireworks and what the State of Ukraine 164 00:10:08,559 --> 00:10:11,319 Speaker 4: was teaching its civilians to make in the early days 165 00:10:11,320 --> 00:10:14,920 Speaker 4: of the Russian invasion. This is why projectiles are of 166 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:19,720 Speaker 4: such a strategic importance. One cannot break through a police 167 00:10:19,760 --> 00:10:24,240 Speaker 4: line without employing violence. Utilizing projectiles is necessary to force 168 00:10:24,320 --> 00:10:27,559 Speaker 4: rear police vehicles to retreat, along with the CoP's own 169 00:10:27,640 --> 00:10:31,079 Speaker 4: projectile launchers placed behind their riot line, which are used 170 00:10:31,080 --> 00:10:34,240 Speaker 4: to break up the opposing front line, and police have 171 00:10:34,520 --> 00:10:39,560 Speaker 4: no such tactical non violence scruples against using projectiles. Some 172 00:10:39,720 --> 00:10:43,840 Speaker 4: Atlanta anarchists have also noted that the resources put towards 173 00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:46,960 Speaker 4: acquiring a great number of plants that ended up just 174 00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:50,280 Speaker 4: being abandoned could also have been used to acquire gas 175 00:10:50,320 --> 00:10:54,720 Speaker 4: masks for the middle cluster, reinforced shields, and ancillary materials 176 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:58,000 Speaker 4: put towards prioritizing the crowd's efficacy and safety against the 177 00:10:58,120 --> 00:11:02,800 Speaker 4: use of crowd controlled munitions. Thankfully there were no arrests 178 00:11:02,880 --> 00:11:06,120 Speaker 4: made in direct connection to the march, but I don't 179 00:11:06,160 --> 00:11:10,400 Speaker 4: believe this can be accredited to any comprehensive organizing. When 180 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:13,520 Speaker 4: the day prior, media was told that arrests would be 181 00:11:13,559 --> 00:11:17,800 Speaker 4: taking place by lunchtime, for whatever reason, the police let 182 00:11:17,840 --> 00:11:20,880 Speaker 4: a kettled crowd of people go free. We can only 183 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:24,560 Speaker 4: speculate on why, between the logistical hassles, the stretching of 184 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:28,319 Speaker 4: prosecutor resources, and the bomb squad that was actively sweeping 185 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:31,000 Speaker 4: the area of Entrenchment Creek Park and checking all of 186 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:33,360 Speaker 4: the bags and backpacks that were dropped in the area 187 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:38,160 Speaker 4: where the splinter of the march was escorted out by police. 188 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:41,200 Speaker 4: When talking with Force defenders in Atlanta who've spent years 189 00:11:41,240 --> 00:11:45,000 Speaker 4: now engaging in militant struggle against police, they offered a 190 00:11:45,000 --> 00:11:49,480 Speaker 4: more fundamental critique of this action. If the choice to 191 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:53,360 Speaker 4: employ a strategy of nonviolence is in response to grossly 192 00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:56,640 Speaker 4: inflated charges and repression the movement is facing, as some 193 00:11:56,760 --> 00:11:59,839 Speaker 4: block op City organizers have stated, that means that you're 194 00:11:59,840 --> 00:12:02,960 Speaker 4: a allowing the state to determine your rules of engagement. 195 00:12:04,040 --> 00:12:07,160 Speaker 4: The entire idea of announcing your plan to walk onto 196 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:10,320 Speaker 4: one of the most policed areas in the country, did 197 00:12:10,360 --> 00:12:13,120 Speaker 4: in fact prevent people with more on the ground experience 198 00:12:13,160 --> 00:12:17,600 Speaker 4: from participating On the day of the action. Risk requires reward. 199 00:12:18,440 --> 00:12:21,520 Speaker 4: A small core of organizers were so steadfast in one 200 00:12:21,520 --> 00:12:25,880 Speaker 4: particular version of how this event would take shape, branding 201 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:30,600 Speaker 4: people with disagreements as all overly online disaffected nihilists no 202 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:34,400 Speaker 4: longer involved in the struggle in Atlanta. Not only were 203 00:12:34,559 --> 00:12:38,880 Speaker 4: online critiques discarded, but opportunities for in person conversations and 204 00:12:38,920 --> 00:12:41,240 Speaker 4: input from people with more on the ground experience in 205 00:12:41,280 --> 00:12:44,719 Speaker 4: Atlanta were also turned down. And I think it is 206 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:47,880 Speaker 4: important to state hats off to the many young people 207 00:12:47,920 --> 00:12:50,960 Speaker 4: that traveled from around the country to participate in this action. 208 00:12:51,559 --> 00:12:54,200 Speaker 4: One can hope that block cop City broadly and going 209 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:57,360 Speaker 4: up against this line of armed riot police was a 210 00:12:57,679 --> 00:13:01,880 Speaker 4: useful learning experience for whatever happens next in these people's 211 00:13:01,920 --> 00:13:05,080 Speaker 4: lives as we approach the twenty twenty four election and 212 00:13:05,360 --> 00:13:19,720 Speaker 4: who knows what is to come. The night after Block 213 00:13:19,800 --> 00:13:24,000 Speaker 4: Cop City, six vehicles owned by the company Ernst Concrete 214 00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:28,480 Speaker 4: were set on fire in Gwinnett County, Georgia. Earlier that fall, 215 00:13:28,880 --> 00:13:32,319 Speaker 4: Ernst Concrete trucks were seen working on the cop City 216 00:13:32,320 --> 00:13:36,400 Speaker 4: construction site. After the arson, Ernst Concrete released a statement 217 00:13:36,480 --> 00:13:38,280 Speaker 4: saying that they were not going to work on the 218 00:13:38,400 --> 00:13:42,440 Speaker 4: cop City project. In an Atlanta Police Department press conference 219 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:46,520 Speaker 4: from December twenty twenty three, Chief Darren Sheerbaum discussed a 220 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:49,000 Speaker 4: wave of recent arsons Gonda. 221 00:13:49,080 --> 00:13:52,640 Speaker 1: The most recent one happened in Gwinnette County this past November. 222 00:13:53,080 --> 00:13:56,280 Speaker 1: This was Ernst Concrete when a number of construction equipment 223 00:13:56,320 --> 00:13:59,199 Speaker 1: was set on fire. Then we go to three arsons 224 00:13:59,240 --> 00:14:02,480 Speaker 1: that happened right here in Atlanta mcdonna Boulevard where a contractor, 225 00:14:02,679 --> 00:14:05,320 Speaker 1: Brent Scarborough, was targeted three different times in the month 226 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:09,000 Speaker 1: of October of this year, July of this year, as 227 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,400 Speaker 1: well as April this year. We see that the same 228 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:14,319 Speaker 1: group takes credit each and every time on their source 229 00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:17,040 Speaker 1: of giving information out and so it is likely to 230 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 1: be that same group, very small in number, moving from. 231 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:23,040 Speaker 2: State to state. Is likely the profile of these individuals. 232 00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:24,040 Speaker 2: It's very very small. 233 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 1: It is a handful of individuals that are having a 234 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:28,680 Speaker 1: much larger impact on the safety of the city than 235 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:29,160 Speaker 1: they should have. 236 00:14:29,680 --> 00:14:33,160 Speaker 4: Atlanta Fire Chief Roderick Smith and John King, the Georgia 237 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:36,760 Speaker 4: Insurance and Fire Safety Commissioner. Both talked about how these 238 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:41,200 Speaker 4: arsons negatively affect the contractors working to build cop city. 239 00:14:42,080 --> 00:14:46,720 Speaker 6: As we talk about impacts caused by arson, it affects 240 00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:51,040 Speaker 6: our businesses, those that are participating in helping out building 241 00:14:51,120 --> 00:14:55,640 Speaker 6: the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center. We suffer from additional 242 00:14:55,760 --> 00:15:00,000 Speaker 6: cost due to arson that these companies face. An individual 243 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:00,920 Speaker 6: Jeel's faith. 244 00:15:01,840 --> 00:15:04,800 Speaker 5: This affects every one of our citizens in the area because 245 00:15:04,840 --> 00:15:07,720 Speaker 5: all these losses. Yes, there's an insurance company that will 246 00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:11,040 Speaker 5: probably cover some of the costs, but those losses will 247 00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 5: be passed on to customers, so we all will take 248 00:15:14,320 --> 00:15:14,920 Speaker 5: the losses. 249 00:15:15,280 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 4: On January seventeenth, APD put out another press conference to 250 00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:21,640 Speaker 4: discuss even though the police are already doing such a 251 00:15:21,640 --> 00:15:25,640 Speaker 4: great job outstopping crime when it's fourteen degrees and homicides 252 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:28,960 Speaker 4: continue to decline, even still, a new state of the 253 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:32,360 Speaker 4: art police training facility is vital to maintain safety in 254 00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:33,400 Speaker 4: the city of Atlanta. 255 00:15:33,840 --> 00:15:36,640 Speaker 1: We've asked you to come together again today because there 256 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:39,400 Speaker 1: is an effort underway by very small groups of individuals 257 00:15:39,440 --> 00:15:43,160 Speaker 1: anarchists that want to impact the safety of Atlanta, Georgia. 258 00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:45,400 Speaker 2: Just yesterday, piece. 259 00:15:45,200 --> 00:15:48,520 Speaker 1: Of equipment aligned with one of the construction companies that 260 00:15:48,560 --> 00:15:50,840 Speaker 1: is building the public safety training center for every Atlantin 261 00:15:51,640 --> 00:15:55,000 Speaker 1: set on fire. Next door in a neighboring state of 262 00:15:55,120 --> 00:15:58,440 Speaker 1: South Carolina, we had a construction company that had a 263 00:15:58,440 --> 00:16:01,400 Speaker 1: loose connection to the project here that was targeted by 264 00:16:01,400 --> 00:16:04,640 Speaker 1: an individual that used one of the tools of violence 265 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:07,200 Speaker 1: sphere and intimidation that has been used mainly by this group, 266 00:16:07,200 --> 00:16:11,640 Speaker 1: which is arson, set equipment on fire, going after concrete trucks, 267 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:14,720 Speaker 1: and so soon the individuals that have been in the 268 00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:17,480 Speaker 1: dark of night, impacting everyone of our neighborhoods will be 269 00:16:17,520 --> 00:16:21,479 Speaker 1: held responsible as we bring these individuals to justice. 270 00:16:21,960 --> 00:16:24,720 Speaker 4: Police in South Carolina were able to identify a suspect 271 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:28,200 Speaker 4: and ended up arresting and charging them with arson. The 272 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:32,880 Speaker 4: fire chief elaborated on the theoretical risks of arson, such 273 00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:36,280 Speaker 4: as injury to human life and the ugly sight of 274 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:40,160 Speaker 4: burnt rubble left over in neighborhoods, as well as reiterating 275 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:42,480 Speaker 4: how it affects the cop City project. 276 00:16:43,160 --> 00:16:46,240 Speaker 2: What are the effects of arson financial? 277 00:16:46,480 --> 00:16:50,160 Speaker 6: As we've heard earlier, the impact that the equipment being 278 00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:55,440 Speaker 6: burned plays of role with the company's working delays in 279 00:16:55,520 --> 00:16:56,680 Speaker 6: the project due. 280 00:16:56,560 --> 00:16:59,640 Speaker 4: To this, less than a week later, the city had 281 00:16:59,680 --> 00:17:02,560 Speaker 4: a other press conference in front of burnt husks of 282 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:07,000 Speaker 4: equipment outside a construction site run by a Cop City contractor. 283 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:09,399 Speaker 1: If you look over my shoulder, you will see the 284 00:17:09,400 --> 00:17:11,040 Speaker 1: equipment that was burned. 285 00:17:11,080 --> 00:17:13,520 Speaker 2: It belongs to a private contractor. 286 00:17:13,920 --> 00:17:17,119 Speaker 1: There were total four pieces of heavy construction equipment that 287 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:18,160 Speaker 1: were damaged this morning. 288 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:21,960 Speaker 4: Chief Scheerbomb quickly linked the attack to stop coop City 289 00:17:22,600 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 4: due to a post online about the attack accompanied by 290 00:17:26,560 --> 00:17:28,600 Speaker 4: the hashtag stop cop City. 291 00:17:29,080 --> 00:17:30,800 Speaker 2: The hashtag is present. 292 00:17:31,160 --> 00:17:33,960 Speaker 4: Scherbomb also gave an updated account on the number of 293 00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:36,840 Speaker 4: arson attacks which have targeted construction equipment. 294 00:17:37,400 --> 00:17:39,639 Speaker 1: I believe now we're right at thirty four that have 295 00:17:39,680 --> 00:17:42,320 Speaker 1: occurred here in the state of Georgia and elsewhere. The 296 00:17:42,400 --> 00:17:45,399 Speaker 1: vast majority of them are concentrated in North Georgia, but 297 00:17:45,440 --> 00:17:48,280 Speaker 1: there are others that have occurred elsewhere. We're very fortunate 298 00:17:48,359 --> 00:17:51,320 Speaker 1: of an arrest in South Carolina. There's clearly at least 299 00:17:51,359 --> 00:17:54,520 Speaker 1: one other person. This individual or individuals don't care about 300 00:17:54,520 --> 00:17:57,720 Speaker 1: life and safety. If they fire bombed police precincts. Their 301 00:17:57,760 --> 00:18:01,359 Speaker 1: go is to a road, proper public safety infrastructure, and 302 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:02,240 Speaker 1: to row the government. 303 00:18:03,040 --> 00:18:06,920 Speaker 4: Very cool stuff. Indeed, I do believe that thirty four 304 00:18:07,040 --> 00:18:10,200 Speaker 4: number is a gross undercount, but hey, if they've forgotten 305 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:15,280 Speaker 4: a few attacks, really no real harm in that. We have, however, 306 00:18:15,359 --> 00:18:19,240 Speaker 4: gotten a few recent numbers on the monetary damages caused 307 00:18:19,320 --> 00:18:23,040 Speaker 4: by stop cop city activity. In a Georgia State Senate 308 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:26,439 Speaker 4: committee meeting near the end of January, State Senator Debra 309 00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:31,680 Speaker 4: Silcox said that APD Chief Administrative Officer Peter Amman told 310 00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:35,840 Speaker 4: her earlier that day that the estimated cost of nationwide 311 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,920 Speaker 4: property damage made in protest of cop City exceeds one 312 00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:45,840 Speaker 4: hundred million dollars. That beats the ELF numbers. Now four 313 00:18:45,920 --> 00:18:49,679 Speaker 4: days later, the Atlanta Police Department tried to backtrack that 314 00:18:49,800 --> 00:18:53,399 Speaker 4: number to New York Times reporter Sean Keenan, now saying 315 00:18:53,480 --> 00:18:57,119 Speaker 4: that it was ten million dollars in property damage, a 316 00:18:57,160 --> 00:19:00,679 Speaker 4: one thousand percent difference, which either way is a massive 317 00:19:00,720 --> 00:19:03,480 Speaker 4: amount of money. And we do know for sure that 318 00:19:03,520 --> 00:19:06,040 Speaker 4: the city has spent at least one point three million 319 00:19:06,080 --> 00:19:09,719 Speaker 4: dollars just in the legal fees related to cop City. 320 00:19:10,520 --> 00:19:12,280 Speaker 4: We know at least some of that one point three 321 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:16,840 Speaker 4: million dollars was used to combat the cop City referendum campaign, 322 00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:20,760 Speaker 4: an initiative started last summer to collect petition signatures to 323 00:19:20,880 --> 00:19:24,720 Speaker 4: put cop city on an upcoming ballot. I talked with 324 00:19:24,800 --> 00:19:27,440 Speaker 4: Sam Barnes of the Atlantic Community Press Collective to get 325 00:19:27,440 --> 00:19:30,320 Speaker 4: an update on the current state of the referendum. 326 00:19:31,040 --> 00:19:34,399 Speaker 7: The referendum has more or less been stalled out since 327 00:19:34,560 --> 00:19:40,520 Speaker 7: last fall. In response to a lawsuit from Decab County 328 00:19:40,560 --> 00:19:44,560 Speaker 7: residents who claimed that their First Amendment rights were being 329 00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:50,520 Speaker 7: infringed upon because they were not allowed to canvas for signatures, 330 00:19:51,440 --> 00:19:58,480 Speaker 7: A core issued down an injunction, basically allowing the referendum 331 00:19:58,520 --> 00:20:03,760 Speaker 7: campaign to have addition time to collect and then turn 332 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 7: in signatures. The city then appealed that injunction. That whole 333 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:13,520 Speaker 7: situation is currently before the US Court of Appeals, who 334 00:20:13,840 --> 00:20:17,320 Speaker 7: heard arguments from the city's lawyers and the vote campaign's 335 00:20:17,359 --> 00:20:22,520 Speaker 7: lawyers in January and who have not yet issued a 336 00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:23,760 Speaker 7: ruling on that appeal. 337 00:20:24,560 --> 00:20:27,239 Speaker 4: The referendum campaign has turned in what they say are 338 00:20:27,320 --> 00:20:31,760 Speaker 4: one hundred and sixteen thousand signatures, which, if verified, should 339 00:20:31,840 --> 00:20:34,800 Speaker 4: be more than enough to get the referendum onto the ballot, 340 00:20:35,440 --> 00:20:38,000 Speaker 4: but the City of Atlanta has said that they cannot 341 00:20:38,080 --> 00:20:41,640 Speaker 4: start counting these signatures until the Court of Appeals issues 342 00:20:41,680 --> 00:20:42,359 Speaker 4: their ruling. 343 00:20:42,920 --> 00:20:45,800 Speaker 7: It's not really clear where in case law, or in 344 00:20:45,840 --> 00:20:50,679 Speaker 7: Georgia code, or wherever they are getting that legal precedent from. 345 00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:55,919 Speaker 7: But it is the line they are sticking to. So 346 00:20:56,440 --> 00:21:01,080 Speaker 7: long story short, even if the city was to start 347 00:21:01,119 --> 00:21:05,800 Speaker 7: counting votes today, and even if there were enough to 348 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,080 Speaker 7: get this referendum on the ballot the next election, it 349 00:21:09,119 --> 00:21:12,439 Speaker 7: could appear on the ballot in is the general election 350 00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:17,119 Speaker 7: in November twenty twenty four. Cop City for APD and 351 00:21:17,160 --> 00:21:20,560 Speaker 7: the APF's repeated claims is going to open and fall 352 00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:24,280 Speaker 7: of twenty twenty four. Now, I don't personally have a 353 00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:26,480 Speaker 7: lot of faith in that at one point it was 354 00:21:26,520 --> 00:21:29,240 Speaker 7: going to open in August twenty twenty three, just the 355 00:21:29,280 --> 00:21:34,159 Speaker 7: simple fact of every construction project runs into delays. But 356 00:21:35,359 --> 00:21:39,560 Speaker 7: I think it is pretty clear, especially given the clear 357 00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:43,040 Speaker 7: cutting and the concrete pouring that has already happened on 358 00:21:43,080 --> 00:21:48,560 Speaker 7: the site, that it will make significant progress by by November. 359 00:21:49,119 --> 00:21:52,320 Speaker 7: It's pretty obvious that the city strategy here is to 360 00:21:52,359 --> 00:21:55,919 Speaker 7: just delay and delay and delay the referendum until the 361 00:21:56,000 --> 00:22:00,600 Speaker 7: thing gets built, effectively just making the refere random dead 362 00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:01,080 Speaker 7: in the water. 363 00:22:02,080 --> 00:22:05,480 Speaker 4: On February eighth, the Federal Bureau of Investigation connected a 364 00:22:05,520 --> 00:22:08,680 Speaker 4: series of house raids on three homes in South Atlanta 365 00:22:08,800 --> 00:22:12,400 Speaker 4: that they suspected of being linked to Stop Coop City activists. 366 00:22:13,359 --> 00:22:16,359 Speaker 4: Phones and computers were seized, along with stop Coop City 367 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:21,119 Speaker 4: related zines and posters. Occupants of the house were dragged outside, 368 00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:24,880 Speaker 4: sometimes literally. A few were detained for hours on end, 369 00:22:25,160 --> 00:22:28,160 Speaker 4: with one being driven to a police headquarters for interrogation, 370 00:22:28,520 --> 00:22:30,320 Speaker 4: but was released later that evening. 371 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:33,119 Speaker 1: This morning, at six am, investigators of the Land of 372 00:22:33,119 --> 00:22:37,199 Speaker 1: Fire Rescue, Georgia berl of Investigation, Federal Burial of Investigation, 373 00:22:37,600 --> 00:22:40,760 Speaker 1: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and the Atlanta Police Department, 374 00:22:41,160 --> 00:22:43,840 Speaker 1: joined by uniformed elements of this department, the Georgia State Patrol, 375 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:48,520 Speaker 1: executed search warrants signed by judges who'd review the probable cause, 376 00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:52,480 Speaker 1: allowing us to enter three locations to seek evidence connected 377 00:22:52,520 --> 00:22:55,159 Speaker 1: to acts of vandalism and arson that have occurred over 378 00:22:55,200 --> 00:22:58,800 Speaker 1: the last few months. As investigators went to those locations, 379 00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:00,000 Speaker 1: they were armed with an arrest. 380 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:03,480 Speaker 4: War It's worth noting that the search warrants cited federal 381 00:23:03,520 --> 00:23:08,560 Speaker 4: statutes on the destruction of vehicles and reco While executing 382 00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:11,600 Speaker 4: one of these raids, police located in individual whom an 383 00:23:11,640 --> 00:23:15,560 Speaker 4: arrest warrant was issued for days prior and brought them 384 00:23:15,560 --> 00:23:19,720 Speaker 4: into custody. This arrest, along with the one in South Carolina, 385 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:24,160 Speaker 4: also marked the very first arrests linked to clandestine nighttime 386 00:23:24,200 --> 00:23:27,040 Speaker 4: attacks in the three year history of the movement. 387 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:29,800 Speaker 2: We're processing all the locations now. 388 00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:32,919 Speaker 1: The evidence to make that arrest had already been in 389 00:23:32,920 --> 00:23:35,200 Speaker 1: possession of law enforcement even before we executed the search 390 00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:38,760 Speaker 1: warrants this morning, So the arrest wort was signed before today, 391 00:23:39,200 --> 00:23:41,640 Speaker 1: and the arrest wort was not connected with the search 392 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:43,640 Speaker 1: warsols were independent of the arrest we'd be making once 393 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:44,600 Speaker 1: we located this gentleman. 394 00:23:45,119 --> 00:23:47,879 Speaker 4: In a city press conference, the mayor opened by saying 395 00:23:47,920 --> 00:23:51,720 Speaker 4: this arrest was quote linked to multiple acts of vandalism 396 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:55,680 Speaker 4: and arson unquote, yet they were only charged with one 397 00:23:55,720 --> 00:23:59,480 Speaker 4: account of first arrearson, which police linked to the burning 398 00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:02,600 Speaker 4: of eight police motorcycles last July, near the end of 399 00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:06,800 Speaker 4: that summer's week of action. This particular arson is unique 400 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:10,000 Speaker 4: from the many other copcity related at arsens in a 401 00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:13,919 Speaker 4: few ways. This was not targeting construction equipment. Instead, it 402 00:24:13,960 --> 00:24:19,000 Speaker 4: was directly targeting police infrastructure. An unexploded plastic andcendiary device 403 00:24:19,119 --> 00:24:22,159 Speaker 4: was left at the scene and the police training building 404 00:24:22,160 --> 00:24:25,679 Speaker 4: that was singed, the city now claims was occupied by 405 00:24:25,720 --> 00:24:27,120 Speaker 4: a police officer. 406 00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:30,800 Speaker 1: WI was often overlooked as inside of that precinct was 407 00:24:30,840 --> 00:24:33,800 Speaker 1: a protector of the city Atlanta police officers inside. 408 00:24:34,280 --> 00:24:37,800 Speaker 4: As police have said they only had enough information to 409 00:24:37,920 --> 00:24:41,720 Speaker 4: make this one arrest linked to this one specific instance 410 00:24:41,800 --> 00:24:45,280 Speaker 4: of arson. Thus, these raids can be seen both as 411 00:24:45,320 --> 00:24:48,879 Speaker 4: an intimidation attempt and a last ditch effort to collect 412 00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:51,880 Speaker 4: additional information necessary to make future arrests. 413 00:24:52,720 --> 00:24:53,600 Speaker 2: More rest will come. 414 00:24:54,440 --> 00:24:56,480 Speaker 1: It will come soon and will continue to hold people 415 00:24:56,480 --> 00:24:58,800 Speaker 1: accountable to Everyone that has been involved in these acts 416 00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:03,200 Speaker 1: are in jail before a judge. The investigation is very active, ma'am. 417 00:25:03,240 --> 00:25:05,600 Speaker 1: There's a reason we serve three search warrants today. 418 00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:08,440 Speaker 2: We do. We are looking in a wide range of areas. 419 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:11,200 Speaker 1: We believe evidence as hell that will identify whose responsible 420 00:25:11,440 --> 00:25:14,040 Speaker 1: for the others and who else was responsible. 421 00:25:13,520 --> 00:25:14,439 Speaker 2: Besides this gentleman. 422 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:17,080 Speaker 1: The investigation will play that out, but there are others 423 00:25:17,119 --> 00:25:18,760 Speaker 1: that I anticipate will be resting in the end the 424 00:25:18,800 --> 00:25:19,360 Speaker 1: weeks to come. 425 00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:22,960 Speaker 4: This messaging from Chief Sheerbam is obviously meant to spread 426 00:25:23,080 --> 00:25:27,680 Speaker 4: panic and paranoia amongst activists, organizers, and the anarchists of Atlanta. 427 00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:31,440 Speaker 4: Those in Atlanta were quick to prove that repression would 428 00:25:31,440 --> 00:25:34,680 Speaker 4: not stifle attacks against copp City. On the night of 429 00:25:34,720 --> 00:25:37,480 Speaker 4: February ninth, a police car was torched outside of the 430 00:25:37,520 --> 00:25:41,120 Speaker 4: home of an APD officer in the Lakewood neighborhood of Atlanta. 431 00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:44,400 Speaker 4: The next day, police claimed that they track the movements 432 00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:48,280 Speaker 4: of two alleged arsonists via ring, doorbell and street cameras 433 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:51,520 Speaker 4: to a house in Lakewood and conducted a raid that afternoon. 434 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:55,760 Speaker 4: Nothing was found and no arrests were made. The FBI 435 00:25:55,880 --> 00:25:59,520 Speaker 4: and the ATF viewed the vehicle arsen outside of the 436 00:25:59,520 --> 00:26:03,919 Speaker 4: home of Atlanta police officer as a significant escalation and 437 00:26:04,080 --> 00:26:07,480 Speaker 4: made their first on camera speaking appearance on Channel two 438 00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:12,639 Speaker 4: to discuss the possibility of introducing federal charges. The house 439 00:26:12,720 --> 00:26:16,360 Speaker 4: raids threats, doing all these press conferences, it's all part 440 00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:20,040 Speaker 4: of this media frenzy to elicit fear. Earlier this year, 441 00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:23,479 Speaker 4: Chief Sheerbomb unveiled plans to put four hundred and fifty 442 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:27,680 Speaker 4: billboards all across the country offering reward money for information, 443 00:26:28,280 --> 00:26:32,119 Speaker 4: specifically placed in cities they believe anarchists are traveling from 444 00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:35,919 Speaker 4: to set fires in Atlanta. Every single press conference the 445 00:26:35,960 --> 00:26:38,639 Speaker 4: police do. They are desperately begging for members of the 446 00:26:38,640 --> 00:26:41,960 Speaker 4: public to snitch, saying the only way this case will 447 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:45,200 Speaker 4: be solved is if anonymous tipsters come forward with information, 448 00:26:45,760 --> 00:26:49,359 Speaker 4: offering increasingly comical amounts of money if information leads to 449 00:26:49,400 --> 00:26:52,399 Speaker 4: a conviction. Fear is one of the greatest tools this 450 00:26:52,480 --> 00:26:55,640 Speaker 4: state has to bear. But through this sequence of events, 451 00:26:56,000 --> 00:26:59,600 Speaker 4: police and investigators are also kind of showing their hand here, 452 00:27:00,320 --> 00:27:04,119 Speaker 4: demonstrating the current limit of their actionable evidence. It has 453 00:27:04,200 --> 00:27:07,280 Speaker 4: now been well over a month since these raids, and 454 00:27:07,359 --> 00:27:22,600 Speaker 4: as of now, no subsequent arrests have been made. The 455 00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:25,880 Speaker 4: timing of these house raids also seemed intended to disrupt 456 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:29,240 Speaker 4: an event planned for later that month called the Nationwide 457 00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:33,920 Speaker 4: Summit to Stop Coop City, a convergence located in Tucson, Arizona, 458 00:27:34,400 --> 00:27:37,919 Speaker 4: on Amazonia that was planned for February twenty third to 459 00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:41,119 Speaker 4: the twenty sixth. I was not able to attend, but 460 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:44,000 Speaker 4: I spoke with Sam from the Atlantic Community Press Collective, 461 00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,000 Speaker 4: who covered the summit in person. 462 00:27:46,720 --> 00:27:48,840 Speaker 7: It was a four day convergence in Tuo Sun, Arizona, 463 00:27:49,040 --> 00:27:54,520 Speaker 7: called for by the pretty well entrenched radical organizing scene 464 00:27:54,520 --> 00:27:57,000 Speaker 7: there in Tucson that was just intended to be the 465 00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:59,320 Speaker 7: kind of summits we've seen here in Atlanta that are 466 00:27:59,320 --> 00:28:02,600 Speaker 7: often called weeks of Action that can no longer take 467 00:28:02,600 --> 00:28:05,520 Speaker 7: place here in Atlanta. So it was intended to be 468 00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:09,440 Speaker 7: just a gathering of like minded people to share ideas, 469 00:28:09,520 --> 00:28:13,920 Speaker 7: build community, have fun, frankly, and there also were some 470 00:28:13,960 --> 00:28:16,840 Speaker 7: direct actions that occurred during the week. The hub for 471 00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:20,360 Speaker 7: the summit was a park kind of on what i'd 472 00:28:20,440 --> 00:28:24,080 Speaker 7: call the north end of Tucson called Mansfield Park, and 473 00:28:24,119 --> 00:28:28,000 Speaker 7: there was a small camp space set up and organized 474 00:28:28,040 --> 00:28:29,440 Speaker 7: by locals. 475 00:28:30,119 --> 00:28:31,120 Speaker 2: The structure of. 476 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:33,560 Speaker 7: The summit and of the camp space in general was 477 00:28:33,640 --> 00:28:36,399 Speaker 7: again very familiar to anyone who has attended any of 478 00:28:36,400 --> 00:28:40,160 Speaker 7: the Weeks of Action in Atlanta. There were camp meals breakfast, lunch, 479 00:28:40,160 --> 00:28:44,400 Speaker 7: and dinner. There were camp announcements, a lot of spontaneous 480 00:28:44,440 --> 00:28:47,080 Speaker 7: activities within the camp. A couple movie nights were held. 481 00:28:47,680 --> 00:28:52,280 Speaker 4: Tucson, Arizona on Amazonia is about one hundred miles from 482 00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:55,560 Speaker 4: the US Mexico border. Sam told me about a panel 483 00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:59,600 Speaker 4: they attended on the intersections between the border, Gaza and Atlanta. 484 00:29:00,400 --> 00:29:02,800 Speaker 4: If you've been paying attention to the cop city struggle, 485 00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:06,320 Speaker 4: you're probably already familiar with these themes. The Atlanta Police 486 00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:09,680 Speaker 4: Department participates in the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange the 487 00:29:09,720 --> 00:29:13,080 Speaker 4: GILLY program, where they trained with members of the IDF. 488 00:29:13,800 --> 00:29:20,560 Speaker 7: The talk featured Jewish Americans, Palestinian Americans. A correspondent from 489 00:29:20,640 --> 00:29:23,640 Speaker 7: Indian Collective who was there to cover the summit as well, 490 00:29:23,640 --> 00:29:28,240 Speaker 7: also spoke during that event, and that intersection was I 491 00:29:28,280 --> 00:29:35,760 Speaker 7: think even before Aaron Bushnell self immolated that Sunday was 492 00:29:35,800 --> 00:29:40,160 Speaker 7: probably the most profound theme wunning through the weekend, again, 493 00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:44,640 Speaker 7: especially with Tucson's proximity to the border and to native 494 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:48,840 Speaker 7: lands that are on the border and which are often 495 00:29:48,880 --> 00:29:53,560 Speaker 7: surveilled using wait for it, Israeli military technology. The sort 496 00:29:53,640 --> 00:29:58,920 Speaker 7: of official name of the summit was the Nationwide Summit 497 00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:03,560 Speaker 7: to Stop cup City, which was a sort of wink wink, 498 00:30:03,640 --> 00:30:10,640 Speaker 7: nudge nudge at Nationwide Insurance, which is the main underwriter 499 00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:15,080 Speaker 7: of the insurance policies that ensure what would be cop City. 500 00:30:15,880 --> 00:30:22,400 Speaker 7: Nationwide has a major corporate office in Scottsdale, Arizona, which 501 00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:24,960 Speaker 7: is in between Tucson and Phoenix. 502 00:30:25,680 --> 00:30:28,360 Speaker 4: On the first night of the summit, a small group 503 00:30:28,400 --> 00:30:33,840 Speaker 4: of anonymous vandals attacked three subsidiaries of Nationwide Insurance in Tucson, Arizona, 504 00:30:34,120 --> 00:30:39,480 Speaker 4: tous'n Azugna, breaking windows and vandalizing their buildings. Later on 505 00:30:39,560 --> 00:30:42,840 Speaker 4: in the week, there were two more public direct actions 506 00:30:42,880 --> 00:30:45,800 Speaker 4: that happened during the summit. The first was a black 507 00:30:45,840 --> 00:30:48,360 Speaker 4: block march on the night of February twenty fifth in 508 00:30:48,480 --> 00:30:52,800 Speaker 4: downtown Tucson, Arizona, tousann Azugnia as a crowd of a 509 00:30:52,840 --> 00:30:56,880 Speaker 4: little under one hundred people moved through downtown stop Coop City. 510 00:30:56,880 --> 00:30:59,600 Speaker 4: Graffiti filled the plaza and a P and C bank 511 00:30:59,640 --> 00:31:02,360 Speaker 4: as well as they recently closed Wells Fargo branch had 512 00:31:02,400 --> 00:31:05,560 Speaker 4: their windows a smashed. Wells Fargo is affiliated with the 513 00:31:05,600 --> 00:31:08,960 Speaker 4: Atlanta Police Foundation and PNC is a financial backer of 514 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:13,080 Speaker 4: the Mountain Valley Pipeline in the Appalachians. Police were able 515 00:31:13,080 --> 00:31:15,640 Speaker 4: to arrest at least three people suspected of participating in 516 00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:18,800 Speaker 4: the march. Oddly, they were charged with arson of an 517 00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:22,600 Speaker 4: occupied building, I believe due to fireworks being thrown in 518 00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:25,760 Speaker 4: or near one of the banks. Given the name of 519 00:31:25,800 --> 00:31:29,040 Speaker 4: the Nationwide Summit, it was expected that there would be 520 00:31:29,120 --> 00:31:32,080 Speaker 4: a public action targeting nationwide insurance. 521 00:31:32,880 --> 00:31:37,880 Speaker 7: So Monday morning we headed up to Scottsdale, Arizona again 522 00:31:38,040 --> 00:31:40,680 Speaker 7: just outside of Phoenix. Phoenix is about two hours away, 523 00:31:41,640 --> 00:31:46,800 Speaker 7: where we stopped by a sort of sidewalk rally type 524 00:31:46,800 --> 00:31:51,160 Speaker 7: situation that was happening outside of the Nationwide Regional offices, 525 00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:55,160 Speaker 7: which was honestly quite locked down, quite hard to get 526 00:31:55,200 --> 00:31:59,240 Speaker 7: access to it. As we were leaving the sidewalk rally 527 00:32:00,080 --> 00:32:04,880 Speaker 7: and being followed by Scottsdale's finest bicycle riders, I thought 528 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:07,640 Speaker 7: it was interesting that one of the bicycle cops had 529 00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:13,600 Speaker 7: a life behind Bars personalized painted bicycle bell. It was 530 00:32:13,720 --> 00:32:17,760 Speaker 7: Teal and said a Life behind Bars, And when when 531 00:32:17,840 --> 00:32:20,400 Speaker 7: we asked him about it, he just said, I just 532 00:32:20,440 --> 00:32:22,760 Speaker 7: thought it was funny because you know, I'm a cop 533 00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:25,160 Speaker 7: and I'm behind bicycle bars. 534 00:32:26,000 --> 00:32:26,480 Speaker 2: It was. 535 00:32:27,880 --> 00:32:32,040 Speaker 7: Delightful and look forward to further coverage of this exciting 536 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:36,080 Speaker 7: story in a soon to be released ACPC video feature. 537 00:32:36,920 --> 00:32:42,200 Speaker 7: So after the rally outside of Nationwides offices, we got 538 00:32:42,200 --> 00:32:46,200 Speaker 7: a tip that a lockdown style action would be happening 539 00:32:47,040 --> 00:32:52,040 Speaker 7: somewhere in the Scottsdale Phoenix area that afternoon, So maybe 540 00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:55,680 Speaker 7: around four or five o'clock, we traveled to the hills 541 00:32:56,120 --> 00:33:01,320 Speaker 7: of Maricopa County, Arizona, formerly home to America's toughest Sheriff 542 00:33:01,400 --> 00:33:06,040 Speaker 7: Joe Arpio into this sort of enclave of gated, dead 543 00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:11,960 Speaker 7: end streets with fabulously expensive homes. One of these homes 544 00:33:12,040 --> 00:33:17,680 Speaker 7: is owned by a nationwide insurance executive. So the activists 545 00:33:17,800 --> 00:33:21,840 Speaker 7: that locked down placed their bodies in front of two 546 00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:29,320 Speaker 7: entrances to this enclave with the intention of disrupting the 547 00:33:29,360 --> 00:33:34,480 Speaker 7: evening of this nationwide executive and their neighbors. There were 548 00:33:34,640 --> 00:33:38,840 Speaker 7: six activists in total that locked down, three at each entrance. 549 00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:41,960 Speaker 7: They used a device that has been ascribed to me 550 00:33:42,240 --> 00:33:45,440 Speaker 7: as being called a cupcake, meaning it was a bag 551 00:33:45,480 --> 00:33:49,480 Speaker 7: of concrete placed on the inside of a car tire 552 00:33:50,320 --> 00:33:53,880 Speaker 7: set with some rebar and a kind of pipe sticking 553 00:33:53,880 --> 00:33:56,320 Speaker 7: out of it, where I assumed there was some sort 554 00:33:56,360 --> 00:33:59,160 Speaker 7: of like handcuff locking on the inside of the pipe. 555 00:33:59,200 --> 00:34:03,680 Speaker 7: The gates were also locked shut with like bicycle locks. 556 00:34:04,120 --> 00:34:06,600 Speaker 4: People were locked to the entrance of the gated community 557 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:09,920 Speaker 4: for almost four hours before being arrested. All six were 558 00:34:09,960 --> 00:34:12,880 Speaker 4: ultimately given misdemeanor charges and released within twenty four to 559 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:16,080 Speaker 4: forty eight hours. Sam also talks to me about how 560 00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:20,279 Speaker 4: these big public gatherings like the summit in Tucson, Arizona, Son, 561 00:34:20,320 --> 00:34:23,640 Speaker 4: not Azamia seem like they just can't really happen in 562 00:34:23,680 --> 00:34:24,680 Speaker 4: Atlanta anymore. 563 00:34:25,280 --> 00:34:27,479 Speaker 7: So in November here in Atlanta, we had the Block 564 00:34:27,520 --> 00:34:32,560 Speaker 7: Cop City Convergence, which was organized to a pretty significant 565 00:34:32,560 --> 00:34:37,680 Speaker 7: extent by folks not from Atlanta. I know. One reason 566 00:34:37,680 --> 00:34:40,880 Speaker 7: I heard for that was it's pretty well known that 567 00:34:41,040 --> 00:34:45,479 Speaker 7: organizers in Atlanta are tired, and there was a group 568 00:34:45,520 --> 00:34:49,480 Speaker 7: of people from outside of Atlanta that felt like they 569 00:34:49,520 --> 00:34:53,000 Speaker 7: could carry that lift to organize and action here in Atlanta. 570 00:34:54,040 --> 00:34:57,000 Speaker 7: The summit in Tucson, to my knowledge, is the first 571 00:34:57,160 --> 00:35:00,800 Speaker 7: major convergence that has been organized out side of Atlanta 572 00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:04,960 Speaker 7: with a call for folks to come from the nation over. 573 00:35:05,400 --> 00:35:09,840 Speaker 7: It was a very keen or a very sharp feeling 574 00:35:10,120 --> 00:35:13,840 Speaker 7: of grief that this was not happening in Atlanta, that 575 00:35:13,840 --> 00:35:16,640 Speaker 7: it could not happen in Atlanta, both because the forest 576 00:35:16,840 --> 00:35:20,680 Speaker 7: has had a huge chunk of it bulldozed, but also 577 00:35:20,880 --> 00:35:26,839 Speaker 7: due to the police occupation of the forest, that this 578 00:35:26,960 --> 00:35:30,800 Speaker 7: could not happen in Atlanta right now in the Willani Forest, 579 00:35:31,600 --> 00:35:35,640 Speaker 7: And I think, especially given recent events in Atlanta, in 580 00:35:35,960 --> 00:35:37,800 Speaker 7: anywhere in Atlanta in Georgia. 581 00:35:37,920 --> 00:35:42,879 Speaker 4: Frankly, even if due to continuating circumstances, events like this 582 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:45,759 Speaker 4: may not be able to happen in Georgia. Sam told 583 00:35:45,760 --> 00:35:48,360 Speaker 4: me that once the summit kicked off and things got going, 584 00:35:48,840 --> 00:35:52,280 Speaker 4: it became clear that, of course, convergences can and probably 585 00:35:52,280 --> 00:35:56,080 Speaker 4: will continue to happen anywhere and everywhere. For a long time, 586 00:35:56,239 --> 00:36:01,040 Speaker 4: a slogan of this struggle has been cop city is everywhere. 587 00:36:01,280 --> 00:36:08,239 Speaker 7: Even if there weren't similar cop city like facilities planned 588 00:36:09,160 --> 00:36:12,680 Speaker 7: or already being built all over the country. I believe 589 00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:16,279 Speaker 7: the latest count was a sixty nine or seventy. I 590 00:36:16,320 --> 00:36:19,560 Speaker 7: can't quite remember who did that research, But even if 591 00:36:19,600 --> 00:36:23,560 Speaker 7: it wasn't for that again to go back to like 592 00:36:23,840 --> 00:36:28,960 Speaker 7: the sharp through line of Gaza, the border, Indigenous lands, 593 00:36:29,560 --> 00:36:36,840 Speaker 7: Gilly historal genocide, this struggle is the same everywhere. The 594 00:36:37,239 --> 00:36:40,200 Speaker 7: police are the same everywhere. As I recently discussed on 595 00:36:40,239 --> 00:36:41,280 Speaker 7: this podcast. 596 00:36:41,840 --> 00:36:44,799 Speaker 4: As this episode draws to a close, I'd like to 597 00:36:45,000 --> 00:36:47,760 Speaker 4: air out some thoughts I've had ruminating around my head 598 00:36:47,800 --> 00:36:52,680 Speaker 4: for a while about inter conflict as desperation. These comments 599 00:36:52,760 --> 00:36:56,200 Speaker 4: are not about any specific city or situation. This simply 600 00:36:56,239 --> 00:37:00,160 Speaker 4: reflects a pattern I've observed in various struggles caught in 601 00:37:00,200 --> 00:37:03,560 Speaker 4: a down spiral, particularly during the fallout of the twenty 602 00:37:03,600 --> 00:37:08,840 Speaker 4: twenty protests nationwide. Historically, I think Atlanta has actually proven 603 00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:11,440 Speaker 4: to be pretty resilient against this sort of thing. But 604 00:37:11,719 --> 00:37:14,600 Speaker 4: as the stakes are quite high, I would hate to 605 00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:17,520 Speaker 4: see something similar happen, as the cop city struggle here 606 00:37:17,520 --> 00:37:21,680 Speaker 4: in Atlanta seems to be entering its latter stages. First, 607 00:37:21,760 --> 00:37:25,000 Speaker 4: I'd like to say it's always a worrying ticking clock 608 00:37:25,280 --> 00:37:28,920 Speaker 4: once people start getting treated as disposable or as political 609 00:37:28,960 --> 00:37:32,480 Speaker 4: props to be sacrificed in the service of spectacle. But 610 00:37:32,680 --> 00:37:36,520 Speaker 4: primarily I've been thinking about at a certain point far 611 00:37:36,640 --> 00:37:39,480 Speaker 4: enough within a struggle, it becomes easier to fight each 612 00:37:39,480 --> 00:37:42,600 Speaker 4: other than it is to fight police. Which is not 613 00:37:42,640 --> 00:37:45,799 Speaker 4: to say all conflict is bad. Conflict can often be good. 614 00:37:46,360 --> 00:37:49,720 Speaker 4: Tension can result in a new innovative action that otherwise 615 00:37:49,800 --> 00:37:53,920 Speaker 4: might not materialize. But when said actionable conflict starts to 616 00:37:53,960 --> 00:37:57,360 Speaker 4: materialize more frequently against each other rather than against the state, 617 00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:02,560 Speaker 4: that signals impending doom. Being able to consistently put your 618 00:38:02,600 --> 00:38:05,040 Speaker 4: beliefs into practice with a like minded group of people, 619 00:38:05,200 --> 00:38:08,320 Speaker 4: to directly engage against systems of oppression like the police 620 00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:11,279 Speaker 4: or the state, especially in your own city, is a 621 00:38:11,320 --> 00:38:16,000 Speaker 4: life affirming process, almost intoxicating it's very easy to become 622 00:38:16,000 --> 00:38:20,640 Speaker 4: addicted to high intensity conflict. Unfortunately, the state is a 623 00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:24,360 Speaker 4: resilient bastard. Even if you can land a few sizeable blows. 624 00:38:24,920 --> 00:38:27,760 Speaker 4: Over time, this state can gather a lot of resources 625 00:38:27,800 --> 00:38:30,719 Speaker 4: to push back, and it take a few days, weeks, months, 626 00:38:30,840 --> 00:38:34,360 Speaker 4: or even years. Only in our minds may the glorious 627 00:38:34,480 --> 00:38:37,840 Speaker 4: first spark of uprising last forever, the burning of the 628 00:38:37,880 --> 00:38:40,720 Speaker 4: Third Precinct, or the first year or so of defend 629 00:38:40,719 --> 00:38:45,040 Speaker 4: the Atlanta Forest. But nostalgia is a trap, and eventually 630 00:38:45,080 --> 00:38:48,719 Speaker 4: the empire does in fact strike back. But as it 631 00:38:48,760 --> 00:38:51,960 Speaker 4: becomes harder, more dangerous, more frightening to engage against the state, 632 00:38:52,960 --> 00:38:56,320 Speaker 4: the desire for that rush of conflict stays. It lingers. 633 00:38:56,800 --> 00:38:59,359 Speaker 4: So what is one to do? The walls are closing in, 634 00:38:59,400 --> 00:39:01,960 Speaker 4: but you have this need to fight, so you take 635 00:39:01,960 --> 00:39:05,319 Speaker 4: out your anxiety, PTSD and frustration on those around you. 636 00:39:06,160 --> 00:39:08,719 Speaker 4: It is much more scary to fight the police. This, 637 00:39:08,840 --> 00:39:12,480 Speaker 4: by comparison, is easy while still feeding that conflictual drive. 638 00:39:13,239 --> 00:39:16,200 Speaker 4: We must keep on fighting. And since it's harder and 639 00:39:16,239 --> 00:39:19,000 Speaker 4: more scary to continually fight the cops or the state, 640 00:39:19,440 --> 00:39:21,920 Speaker 4: we instead are looking for ways to fight each other, 641 00:39:22,080 --> 00:39:24,799 Speaker 4: to find scapegoats to purge, often in service of some 642 00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:29,600 Speaker 4: unrelated personal grievance or in group self preservation constant attack, 643 00:39:29,719 --> 00:39:33,680 Speaker 4: constant strength, constant purity. These conflicts can take form as 644 00:39:33,719 --> 00:39:36,960 Speaker 4: blame as to why desired outcome is not being achieved, 645 00:39:37,440 --> 00:39:41,239 Speaker 4: intensified a stratification of in group out group dynamics, as in, 646 00:39:41,600 --> 00:39:44,239 Speaker 4: these are the bad people in the movement, whereas we 647 00:39:44,480 --> 00:39:48,080 Speaker 4: are the enlightened definity group with the only successful strategy 648 00:39:48,560 --> 00:39:53,520 Speaker 4: or conspiratorial co intel pro like actions such as cop jacketing, 649 00:39:53,560 --> 00:39:57,120 Speaker 4: snitch jacketing, and more general bad jacketing against people who 650 00:39:57,320 --> 00:40:01,680 Speaker 4: you have simple organizational disagreements with. This can also manifest 651 00:40:01,719 --> 00:40:06,160 Speaker 4: as a deep unwillingness to hear preemptive critical commentary and 652 00:40:06,239 --> 00:40:08,520 Speaker 4: the assumption that all criticism comes from a place of 653 00:40:08,560 --> 00:40:12,560 Speaker 4: bad faith. A recent article in a popular anarchist publication 654 00:40:13,080 --> 00:40:17,000 Speaker 4: roped in genuine critique and disagreement as somehow being in 655 00:40:17,080 --> 00:40:20,839 Speaker 4: alignment with the state's motivations against the movement and is this 656 00:40:21,040 --> 00:40:23,920 Speaker 4: not just a form of cop jacketing, saying that if 657 00:40:23,920 --> 00:40:26,680 Speaker 4: you disagree with a particular strategy, that means you are 658 00:40:26,760 --> 00:40:30,080 Speaker 4: in alignment with police because they also dislike a particular strategy, 659 00:40:30,360 --> 00:40:33,799 Speaker 4: but the police dislike the strategy for a completely different reason, 660 00:40:33,840 --> 00:40:38,400 Speaker 4: because they dislike any form of resistance. Claiming that critique 661 00:40:38,400 --> 00:40:40,719 Speaker 4: from anarchists and criticism from the state come from the 662 00:40:40,800 --> 00:40:45,800 Speaker 4: same fundamental place is simply laughable. It is in moments 663 00:40:45,800 --> 00:40:50,320 Speaker 4: such as this, when repression is increasing, that justified frustration 664 00:40:50,400 --> 00:40:53,560 Speaker 4: and fear leading to paranoia, can be turned into a 665 00:40:53,600 --> 00:40:57,200 Speaker 4: weapon by the state. At these moments, people must be 666 00:40:57,280 --> 00:41:00,640 Speaker 4: the most vigilant against their own fear, resulting in retreat 667 00:41:00,680 --> 00:41:04,040 Speaker 4: from battle against the state and turning to intra conflict 668 00:41:04,080 --> 00:41:07,920 Speaker 4: as a desperate form of alternative struggle. Solidarity, love and 669 00:41:08,000 --> 00:41:14,160 Speaker 4: care are paramount, including harsh love, including well meaning critical commentary, debate, 670 00:41:14,400 --> 00:41:19,120 Speaker 4: and constructive conversation. Well, that's enough of that. Finally, I'd 671 00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:22,959 Speaker 4: like to give an update on the Copcity construction timeline. 672 00:41:23,360 --> 00:41:26,200 Speaker 4: The past few months, city officials and the Atlanta Police 673 00:41:26,239 --> 00:41:29,239 Speaker 4: Foundation have made a series of statements claiming construction is 674 00:41:29,560 --> 00:41:32,960 Speaker 4: very much on schedule and quickly approaching completion. 675 00:41:33,480 --> 00:41:36,360 Speaker 1: I want to say this, the construction of those training 676 00:41:36,400 --> 00:41:39,160 Speaker 1: centers on schedule. We will be moving in in December. 677 00:41:39,200 --> 00:41:41,080 Speaker 1: It will be operational this time next year. 678 00:41:41,600 --> 00:41:46,320 Speaker 2: The new facility is almost seventy percent complete with construction. 679 00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:50,280 Speaker 4: Many have pointed out that this is a ridiculously high number, 680 00:41:50,400 --> 00:41:53,560 Speaker 4: considering that a video published by the police just a 681 00:41:53,560 --> 00:41:57,560 Speaker 4: few days ago showed an unfinished foundation and a single 682 00:41:57,680 --> 00:42:01,760 Speaker 4: paved road. Now Sam from the Atlantic Community Press Collective 683 00:42:01,920 --> 00:42:05,239 Speaker 4: helped explain what this number might be referring to. 684 00:42:06,040 --> 00:42:09,799 Speaker 7: There are no walls built, to say the least, I 685 00:42:09,840 --> 00:42:14,279 Speaker 7: personally believe that to be a very charitable reading of 686 00:42:15,160 --> 00:42:17,759 Speaker 7: a document with a construction timeline. We've seen as a 687 00:42:17,800 --> 00:42:21,200 Speaker 7: result of our open records requests that sort of break 688 00:42:21,520 --> 00:42:25,080 Speaker 7: the what a lay person such as myself would call 689 00:42:25,120 --> 00:42:29,600 Speaker 7: it the construction process up into things like permitting, pre construction, 690 00:42:29,840 --> 00:42:35,040 Speaker 7: development construction. On that timeline, they were about seventy percent 691 00:42:35,120 --> 00:42:39,440 Speaker 7: done with the development, and they were also about seventy 692 00:42:39,480 --> 00:42:43,960 Speaker 7: percent done with the whole process, ranging from permitting to 693 00:42:44,239 --> 00:42:47,720 Speaker 7: cutting the red ribbon. What Again, as a lay person, 694 00:42:47,760 --> 00:42:51,279 Speaker 7: I would also call the construction process, meaning the whole 695 00:42:51,320 --> 00:42:55,240 Speaker 7: you know, roof, walls, doors, thing on. That particular document 696 00:42:55,440 --> 00:42:59,040 Speaker 7: was zero percent complete, or like, I shouldn't say zero 697 00:42:59,120 --> 00:43:01,440 Speaker 7: percent because they have like concrete paths and stuff. I 698 00:43:01,440 --> 00:43:03,680 Speaker 7: don't remember exactly what the date on this document was 699 00:43:03,719 --> 00:43:07,759 Speaker 7: but it was zero to a very small percentage of complete. 700 00:43:07,920 --> 00:43:11,719 Speaker 7: So yes on the grand construction timeline of filing the 701 00:43:11,760 --> 00:43:16,200 Speaker 7: first document to again literal walls. Yeah, sure, they're seventy 702 00:43:16,200 --> 00:43:21,000 Speaker 7: percent complete by any measure of construction to the average season. No, 703 00:43:21,280 --> 00:43:23,520 Speaker 7: they are not seventy percent complete. 704 00:43:24,760 --> 00:43:27,200 Speaker 4: Before I close this episode out, I do want to 705 00:43:27,280 --> 00:43:30,160 Speaker 4: let listeners know about ways to support Jack, the person 706 00:43:30,239 --> 00:43:33,759 Speaker 4: rested in the house raid last month. In the show notes, 707 00:43:33,760 --> 00:43:35,759 Speaker 4: I will link to a fundraiser that goes towards his 708 00:43:35,840 --> 00:43:38,920 Speaker 4: legal fees, jail commissary, and phone calls. You can also 709 00:43:39,000 --> 00:43:42,200 Speaker 4: go to the website free Jack dot co. That's free 710 00:43:42,400 --> 00:43:46,600 Speaker 4: Jack dot Co for information on how to mail letters 711 00:43:46,640 --> 00:43:49,320 Speaker 4: and books to Jack while he is currently being held 712 00:43:49,360 --> 00:43:53,360 Speaker 4: in jail without bond. Trials and court cases related to 713 00:43:53,400 --> 00:43:57,279 Speaker 4: the Georgia Copcity recoindittment have all been delayed till at 714 00:43:57,360 --> 00:44:01,320 Speaker 4: least this summer. Follow the Atlantic Community Press Collective for 715 00:44:01,520 --> 00:44:05,040 Speaker 4: updates on that as they happen. See you on the 716 00:44:05,080 --> 00:44:05,920 Speaker 4: other side. 717 00:44:06,360 --> 00:44:08,719 Speaker 2: If you think he's planed to stay, you. 718 00:44:08,680 --> 00:44:12,080 Speaker 1: Know, obviously he's not here and we're seeking him, and 719 00:44:12,120 --> 00:44:13,600 Speaker 1: so we would ask him to come in and answer 720 00:44:13,600 --> 00:44:14,240 Speaker 1: our questions. 721 00:44:19,400 --> 00:44:21,760 Speaker 4: It could Happen here as a production of cool Zone Media. 722 00:44:22,000 --> 00:44:23,799 Speaker 2: Well more podcasts from cool Zone Media. 723 00:44:23,880 --> 00:44:26,719 Speaker 7: Visit our website coolzonemedia dot com, or check us out 724 00:44:26,719 --> 00:44:29,640 Speaker 7: on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen 725 00:44:29,719 --> 00:44:30,440 Speaker 7: to podcasts. 726 00:44:30,800 --> 00:44:32,880 Speaker 4: You can find sources for It could Happen Here, Updated 727 00:44:32,960 --> 00:44:36,000 Speaker 4: monthly at coolzonemedia dot com slash sources. 728 00:44:36,200 --> 00:44:37,000 Speaker 7: Thanks for listening.