“This isn’t a plan to help Georgia, it’s an overt attempt at a return to Jim Crow.”
A few years ago, Bill White, a fund raiser for Donald Trump, moved to Atlanta from New York and decided to push for Buckhead to secede from Atlanta. Buckhead, a wealthy and predominately white community, exists in the predominately Black city of Atlanta.
For decades, Atlanta has embraced its Black community which has helped the city stand out nationally in terms of business, politics, and culture.
But White would tug at the emotions, and hate, of some Buckhead residents and lawmakers by using some of the oldest tricks in the racial handbook. White would use crime as a catalyst to scare Buckhead residents into the idea of segregating itself from the majority-Black city of Atlanta.
It’s the same playbook used by white people in the 1960s and ’70s when Blacks would integrate schools and communities. White Flight occurred across the nation as white families left most major cities and moved to majority-white suburbs.
Segregation was also backed by the federal government through redlining practices. In 1934, the FHA refused to insure mortgages in Black communities and offered subsidized housing for white subdivisions where Blacks could not purchase homes.
Those decisions would impact American cities for decades as poverty and crime became more concentrated.
Bill White, an outsider from New York, was able to get political backing for Buckhead City from lawmakers who reside hours away from Atlanta.
Earlier this week, Senate’s State and Local Governmental Operations Committee passed S.B. 114 by a 4-3 vote led by Republican lawmakers. The committee is comprised of several Republicans who do not live in the metro Atlanta area such as Sen. Rick Williams of Milledgeville; Sen. Sam Watson of Moultrie; and Sen. Randy Robertson of Cataula.
The four Republicans on the committee supported the bill, while the three Democrats opposed it. Democrat Sen. Jason Esteves called the proposed bill a “half-baked pie” that would have a devastating impact on the city of Atlanta and Atlanta Public School system.
Gov. Brian Kemp’s office would agree with Esteves assessment that the idea of Buckhead City did not come with a real plan.
Kemp’s Executive Counsel David Dove sent a memo that urged lawmakers to resolve several issues with S.B. 114 before moving it forward to the Senate. Legally, it could be a quagmire for Buckhead to become its own city and those who proposed secession have yet to provide answers on key issues.
Dove questioned how the bill could impact municipal bonds and how widespread default could occur. There is also the issue of students who live in Buckhead who attend Atlanta Public Schools. For instance, North Atlanta High is located in Buckhead and is a part of APS. If Buckhead becomes a city, students and schools would be impacted.
What will happen to Atlanta-owned properties such as parks that Buckhead City may not purchase? Parks that are owned by the City of Atlanta are patrolled by the Atlanta Police Department. A new city could cause more confusion when it comes to safety.
The bill is also calls for an overt theft of Atlanta by allowing Buckhead to purchase Chastain and Memorial Park for $100 per acre, Atlanta fire stations for $5,000 each, and buildings and schools for $1,000 each. In Buckhead, an acre sells for at least $1 million and buildings can also be sold in the millions.
Those who support Buckhead City are only looking to segregate a majority white community from a majority-Black city. They would look to financially break Georgia’s largest city for a chance at an all-white city.
This isn’t a plan to help Georgia, it’s an overt attempt at a return to Jim Crow.
About Post Author
