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Georgia National Guard and police are patrolling areas of Downtown Atlanta and Buckhead on Saturday after a night of looting, vandalism, arson, and violence rocked the city.
Cleanup is underway in the hard-hit Centennial Park district, which was a flashpoint for the violence that devolved from a peaceful protest of the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued the following statement on Saturday afternoon: “The Department of Public Works deployed crews early this morning to begin cleaning up our streets in the downtown and Buckhead areas of the city and our public safety officials are working to keep our businesses and communities safe. The Department of Transportation is working to remove graffiti from public buildings in those areas as well. We also coordinated with neighboring jurisdictions to provide additional public safety resources and with the Governor’s office to provide assistance from the National Guard to help with our recovery.”
Citizen volunteers and work crews were already clearing glass, boarding up hundreds of broken windows and assessing losses after looting at The College Football Hall of Fame, McCormick & Schmick’s restaurant, CNN Center, Waffle House, Chick-fil-A, and Starbucks to name a few. The pavement along Centennial Park Drive and Park Drive were scorched after protesters set three police cars on fire. A visitor’s center inside Centennial Park was destroyed by fire and the Olympic Rings defaced by graffiti.
While the Atlanta Police Department hasn’t released arrest figures, TV news and social media showed two “jail buses” being filled with detainees. Georgia State Patrol officers in riot gear and the National Guard joined APD to regain control and clear the streets in the early morning hours after Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency in Fulton County. Tear gas and bean bag rounds were fired into the crowd to disperse demonstrators.
APD posted a statement on its Facebook page after midnight that several of its officers had been injured in the Downtown fracas and multiple shots were fired at an officer in Buckhead as the violence moved north. Officers had water bottles, rocks, firecrackers and knives thrown at them during the standoffs.
Dozens of social media posts showed looting at the “Disco Kroger” and Binders art store at Piedmont and Peachtree, Target at Lenox Marketplace, The Shops Buckhead Atlanta, and inside Phipps Plaza where the Gucci and Dior shops were ransacked. Icebox jewelry store on Peachtree Road reported broken windows, but looters were unable to breach the store’s safe.
Atlanta Fire Department vehicles were attacked as firemen extinguished a blaze set at Del Frisco’s Grille.
Mayor Bottoms also said in her statement: “What we saw overnight was not a protest, and it was not Atlanta. We as a people are strongest when we use our voices to heal our city instead of using our hands to tear it down. We know our citizens are angry. We are angry and we want justice. If we are to enact change in this nation, I implore everyone to channel their anger and sorrow into something more meaningful and effective through non-violent activism. What started out as a peaceful demonstration, quickly turned into mayhem and unnecessary destruction, and ultimately an assault on businesses that are already struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Protests were set to continue on Saturday, including a demonstration planned outside the Governor’s Mansion on West Paces Ferry Road at 5 p.m., according to social media posts.
See more photos of the cleanup at CBS 46 at this link.
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Looters and vandals hit Buckhead’s Phipps Plaza, Lenox Square and other local businesses late on May 29 and early May 30 as a Downtown protest over the death of George Floyd moved north.
Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency enabling Fulton County to activate up to 500 Georgia National Guard troops “to protect people & property in Atlanta.” The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office said its entire law enforcement division was deployed to Lenox Square.
Vandals and rioters could be seen on TV broadcasts and social media looting the Gucci store at Phipps Plaza and smashing into the Target store at Lenox Marketplace across the street. There were also reports that the AT&T store on Lenox Road had been looted and damaged.
Other local businesses were damaged as well. The Del Frisco’s Grille restaurant in the Waldorf Astoria hotel complex on Peachtree Road briefly burned, according to the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department, which reported that its fire trucks were damaged by rioters.
Collin Kelley contributed to this report
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A Rally for Justice march from Centennial Park to the State Capitol in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis, MN police officer turned into a violent protest in Downtown on Friday evening.
Protesters attacked police cars with barricades, set fire to a police cruiser on Centennial Park Drive, smashed windows at CNN Center, looted McCormick & Schmick’s restaurant, and clashed with officers. Heavily armed police moved in making arrests, using aerosol dispersants, and firing bean bag rounds at the crowd. In Midtown, protesters briefly blocked the Downtown Connector between 10th and 14th streets.
The demonstrations had started peacefully around 3 p.m., but a group of several hundred protesters splintered off from a group of thousands to protest outside CNN Center and block Centennial Olympic Drive.
APD Chief Erika Shields was walking among the crowd outside CNN Center and said she had no problem with the protesters demonstrating their First Amendment rights and did not want the evening to devolve into an “arrest fest.” Earlier, Shields denounced Floyd’s murder calling the fired and charged Minneapolis officer a “failed cop and human being.”
An emotional and angry Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in a 9 p.m. press conference that protesters were not helping their cause. She denounced the violent protesters as “disruptors” seeking to create chaos.
“You are disgracing your city and the life of George Floyd and the life of everyone who has been killed. We are better than this. Go home, go home!” Bottoms said. “What I see happening on the streets of Atlanta, this is not a protest, this is not in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr., this is chaos. A protest has purpose. If you’re breaking out windows and running down the street with liquor in your hand, who are you honoring and remembering?”
Killer Mike, rap star and entrepreneur, cried as he encouraged people to fight injustice by filling out the Census and registering to vote. He also encouraged the return of the city’s police review board to get ahead of problems that have beset other cities. “After you burn down your own home, all you have left is char and ash,” he said.
Dr. Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr, reiterated her father’s message that constructive change can only come through nonviolence.
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Gov. Brian Kemp controversial decision to allow businesses to start reopening on April 24 was met with cheers and jeers from those who were either encouraging a jumpstart for the Georgia economy or fearful of a surge in cases of COVID-19.
More than a month later, many businesses have reopened, while others are waiting for a further drop in coronavirus cases. No matter which decision owners have made, the majority are still seeing losses thanks to uncertainty from the public, social distancing measures, and operating costs.
Bonnie Kallenberg, owner of the four Finders Keepers consignment boutiques, reopened her shops on May 19, but did so hesitantly. “There was just no data out there to make a decision on when we should reopen,” she said. “We just had to make a week-by-week assessment and try to decide if people were ready to get out and shop. It’s been frightening.”
Kallenberg said Finders Keepers Furnishings in Decatur had shown the most resilience. She had allowed customers to come in two at a time to shop before the official reopening day. “I think the furniture store will rally first, but the clothing stores will be slower. I don’t think people are ready to shop for clothes.”
Despite the uncertainty, Kallenberg said there were some silver linings: she finally opened an online store and catalogue at fkconsign.com, which is updated daily with new arrivals. And speaking of new arrivals, she said people had more time to clean out their closets while sheltering-in-place, so the Finders Keepers boutiques had “some awesome pieces coming in.”
“I think summer is going to be shaky with kids out of school and people still working from,” Kallenberg said. “I think come fall, if kids go back to school and people start going back to work normally, we’ll be okay. We’re just going to hang on through the summer.”
Men’s and women’s clothing boutique M2[Mode Marche] at Ansley Mall was closed for six weeks and owner Levi Sandelin said business came to a virtual standstill except for a few online orders (shopmodemarche.com).
“It was a zero revenue period for us,” Sandelin said, but he was able to keep his employees on the payroll.
Sandelin reopened M2 in early May and said revenue had “trickled in” since. “People just aren’t getting out and shopping like they did before. They are holding on to their money because the future is uncertain when it comes to employment and the economy.”
Sandelin said he was hoping things would get back to something approaching normal by the end of the year but was bracing for a longer period. He also owns Stable & Company, a sales agency for a number of boutique brands of footwear and accessories.
“I think we will survive, but it’s going to be tough,” Sandelin said frankly. “Anyone who says they have it in the bag and will definitely survive are in denial.”
Bad Axe Throwing (badaxethrowing.com), the recreational entertainment venue where customers, literally, throw axes at targets while enjoying food and beverages, has been a popular destination on the Westside since it opened in 2017. However, customers weren’t ready to come back when it opened at the end of April. The venue made national headlines when company president and CEO Mario Zelaya candidly said reopening was a “disaster” with only two customers the entire weekend.
Since that nightmarish scenario, Zelya said Bad Axe, which operates numerous locations in the U.S. and abroad, had made “substantial changes” to its business model and marketing message to show customers it was safe to return. Some of those changes included eliminating walk-in customers and requiring reservations, along with trumpeting its social distancing and safety precautions. Zelya said business was ticking up slowly but surely every weekend as more people looking for entertainment.
The arts community has taken the brunt of the pandemic closures with cinemas and performance venues still closed at press time in late May. Historic Plaza Theatre (plazaatlanta.com) and Dad’s Garage Theatre Company (dadsgarage.com) teamed up for weekend drive-in movies in the parking lot at both of the venues in Poncey-Highland and Old Fourth Ward respectively. Plaza Theatre owner Chris Escobar also created an online streaming service where patrons could watch indie and foreign films at home.
“The Plaza has been a huge supporter of Dad’s over the years, so we wanted to share the love and offer up our empty parking lot for their movie projectors,” Dad’s Garage communications director Matthew Terrell. “While the theatre remains closed, The Plaza plans on showing some really exciting movies like Clue and Jurassic Park that folks can watch from the comfort and safety of their vehicles. Dad’s Garage believe arts and culture remains vital to our community, especially during challenging times like these. We hope folks will find joy and comfort in the classic drive-in experience.”
Similarly, Donna Lefont – ex-wife-and-still-friend of former cinema empresario George Lefont – has created a streaming film platform for the Lefont Film Society at FoodFilmMusic.com. She’s been using her connections in the movie industry to curate a selection of indie, foreign, and documentary films at the site.
“My goal is to curate a slate of films like George did when he was operating Garden Hills Cinema or Silver Screen,” she said.
She plans to keep the platform going – splitting rental costs for the films with the distributors – and include guest film curators and have chefs cooking a meal inspired by their favorite movies.
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