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Jan 22, 23

Bank Backing ‘Cop City’ Targeted as Hundreds Take to Streets of Atlanta Following Police Killing

photo: Unicorn Riot

On January 21st, about 400 people gathered in Underground Atlanta, where people shared their love and memories of Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, also known as Tortuguita, and called for justice in the wake of their death at the hands of the police.

After 30 minutes, the crowd took off. About 3/4 of the crowd were in black bloc. Activists from the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) attempted to lead the group south, perhaps towards the atate Capitol building or the CNN center, but bloc members turned the crowd around and led them north. The sun was just starting to set as the bloc, about 300 strong, turned north up Peachtree street. The commercial downtown district, gutted out by years of neoliberal policy, is populated almost exclusively by business people, university students, and unhoused people.

The bloc traveled north, as road flares and fireworks marked their progress. Umbrellas blocked local news video cameras as graffiti sprung up on walls, with phrases like “RIP Little Turtle” and “Stop Cop City.” The crowd chanted, “No justice! No Peace!,” and “Be Like Water,” as they moved along at a brisk pace, flanked by reporters. Bank windows were smashed and umbrellas blocked cameras, with a Wells Fargo branch, a funder of Cop City, receiving special attention.

Soon, the raucous crowed arrived at 191 Peachtree Street, the building housing the Atlanta Police Foundation. Rocks flew, smashing into the front of the building, as marchers smashed out even more windows. Fireworks lit the scene up. A cop car left unattended in the area was smashed, while another caught fire.

As the police pulled up, the crowd dispersed. Some individuals were tackled and violently arrested by the police, with Unicorn Riot later reporting that one person may have been run over by a police car. As the crowd dissipated, more police flooded the mile-long stretch of Peachtree Street the group had marched up.

In a later press conference, police, who have been violently attacking Cop City opponents for months in an effort to destroy an entire forest, claimed that property destruction was “terrorism.”

Local activists are encouraging people to donate to the Atlanta Solidarity Fund to help support those arrested by law enforcement.

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