As hedge funds snap up residential property in Atlanta, driving up home prices and rents, local philanthropic groups are fighting an uphill battle to provide affordable housing, especially on the rapidly gentrifying Westside.
Posted inDemocracy
What’s the deal with Zombie Bills?
Q. What is a Zombie Bill? A. Ordinarily, legislative bills are subject to both House and Senate consideration, either before or after Crossover Day, the deadline for a bill to pass out of its legislative chamber to the other one. This year, March 6 was the deadline day for a bill to get enough “yes” […]
Posted inHousing Affordability
Tenant protection bill before Georgia Senate must do more to curb predatory landlords, advocates say
Housing advocates say a bill proposing new tenant protections is a step in the right direction for Georgia, which has weak tenant protection laws, but it still fails to properly shield people from predatory and negligent landlords.
Posted inDemocracy
Will Georgia Republicans’ batch of anti-riot bills chill free speech?
In the wake of high-profile protests of “Cop City” in Atlanta, Georgia’s Republican lawmakers are pushing a trio of bills aimed at cracking down on street protests and riots. “Our governor and our attorney general have made it clear that Georgia will provide no safe haven to rioters,” said Rep. Mike Cheokas (R-Americus), a sponsor […]
Posted inDemocracy
Railroad Workers United organizer explains the push to nationalize railroads after Atlanta demonstration against Norfolk Southern
In the wake of Norfolk Southern’s derailment disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, a simmering push to nationalize the railroads is gaining steam. At a lively rally outside Norfolk Southern’s Midtown Atlanta headquarters on March 11, a group of about 50 students and activists waved signs saying “Nationalize the Railroads” – something Railroad Workers United has […]
Posted inDemocracy
Georgia House weighs bill to restrict land ownership for immigrants from China, Russia, Iran, and other targeted countries
A bill that restricts certain immigrants from countries the U.S. considers “foreign adversaries” from buying either agricultural land or land near a military installation in Georgia passed the state Senate last week, and is now under consideration by the House. A similar bill, HB 452, died in the House last week, and immigrant advocates are […]
Posted inDemocracy
As Trump and red states attack voter data group, Raffensperger snaps back
Republican-led states keep pulling out of ERIC, a bipartisan nonprofit that helps its member states maintain accurate voter lists–but Georgia is not among them. Quite the opposite, in fact. In a statement issued last week, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger defended the Electronic Registration Information Center as “an important tool” for election integrity. “Maintaining […]
Posted inHousing Affordability
Reynoldstown residents vote against plan to house homeless in micro-unit apartment complex
“I voted to not let another slumlord in here,” one neighbor said.
Posted inHousing Affordability
Atlanta’s top homeless advocate says NIMBYism stunts housing efforts
Could a planned apartment complex turn Reynoldstown into “the land of the Walking Dead, with zombies combing the neighborhood?”
Posted inDemocracy
What Atlanta residents can learn from Chicago’s version of “Cop City”
The controversy over Atlanta’s proposed Public Safety Training Center, known by opponents as “Cop City,” strikes University of Chicago law professor Craig Futterman as deja vu. “It sounds almost exactly like the conversations and debates that we’ve had in Chicago for years,” said Futterman, who founded the University of Chicago’s Civil Rights and Police Accountability […]