“We call on all people of good conscience to stand in solidarity with the movement to stop Cop City and defend the Weelaunee Forest in Atlanta.”
Sign on to a statement of solidarity.
Read more about the movement.
ATLANTA IS A CITY IN A FOREST
We have the highest percentage of tree canopy of any major metropolitan area in America. Our canopy is the main factor in ensuring Atlanta’s resiliency in the face of climate change. The forest in Southeast Atlanta is home to wetlands that filter rainwater and prevent flooding. It is also one of the last breeding grounds for many amphibians in the region, as well as an important migration site for wading birds.
The history of this particular land is deeply scarred. In the 1800s shortly after the land was stolen from Muscogee Creek peoples, it was used as a plantation. In the early 1900s, a prison farm was opened where inmates were forced to perform unpaid agricultural labor, marking the rebranding of slavery into for profit prison labor. The Atlanta Police Department currently uses this hallowed ground as a firing range.
This forest is at risk of destruction as the police and Hollywood make plans to pave over Atlanta’s largest remaining green space.
The Atlanta Police Department seeks to turn 300 acres of forest into a tactical training compound featuring a mock city. This project was announced to the shock of community members who had been given no opportunity to weigh in on the proposal. The entire process has been shadier than the forest itself.
Intrenchment Creek is an existing public park adjacent to the Prison Farm. Dekalb County wants to trade away this land to Ryan Millsap, the former owner of Blackhall Studios (now rebranded as “Shadowbox Studios”), a major film production company. Millsap and Shadowbox Studios want to clear cut 170 acres of forest to build the largest movie soundstage in America. This project would cement Atlanta as the new Hollywood, making the cost of living in our city outrageous. For more info on the land swap, and to donate to a lawsuit against Millsap, visit StoptheSwap.org.
We refuse to let our forest be bulldozed in favor of the police and sold out to Hollywood. There are many forms of action and advocacy to be taken. This is a broad, decentralized, autonomous movement. Get involved in whatever ways move you. Take a walk in the forest with your friends.
Latest posts
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Eviction Notice from the Mvskoke People to Mayor Andre Dickens and Cop City
Attention: Mayor Andre Dickens and the Atlanta City Council Contemporary Mvskoke People are now making the journey back to our homelands, and hereby give notice to Mayor Andre Dicken, the Atlanta City Council, the Atlanta Police Department, the Atlanta Police Foundation,the Dekalb County Sheriff’s office, and so-called “Cop City” that you must immediately vacate Mvskoke…
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MEDIA ADVISORY: Students, Educators, and Neighbors Rally March 11 to Defend Weelaunee Forest and Stop Cop City
For Immediate Release Students, Educators, and Neighbors Rally to Defend Weelaunee Forest and Stop Cop City ATLANTA — On Saturday, March 11th from 10:00am to 2:00pm, Atlanta student leaders, children, families, educators, and community members will come together for a Youth Rally and Festival at Brownwood Park in East Atlanta to protest the destruction of…
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Media Advisory: First annual Weelaunee Food Autonomy Festival to occur at Weelaunee People’s Park March 10-13, 2023
The movement to Defend the Atlanta Forest is seeing a surge of new energy with its fifth Week of Action (March 4-11), which will segue into the first annual Weelaunee Food Autonomy Festival (March 10-13). This gathering is organized at the site known as Weelaunee People’s Park, threatened by a contested land swap to real…