The Spectacle of a Police State: This Is Martial Law Without a Formal Declaration of War
by John W. Whitehead and Nisha Whitehead / June 10th, 2025
#policestate #usa #nokings
#trump
#tiktok #copcity #abolition #law #justice #democracy #humanrights #america #trump #tech #autocracy #oligarchy #fascism #antifascism #racism #classwar #lgbtq #protest #women @politics
@humanities
@blackmastodon
@indigenouspeoples
@BLKNewsNow
@blackvoices
#cdnpoli
#Atlanta ‘s #CopCity Brought to You by Southern Capital / Mariah Parker
#abolition #prisons #tiktok #policestate #possecomitatus #usa @blackmastodon @BLKNewsNow @blackvoices #democracy #incarceration #PoliceFunding #police #fascism #antifascism #health #blackmastodon
Freedom of Information Act requests (FOIAs), or Open Records Act Requests (ORARs) in this context, are vital tools for journalists and the public to access government information and ensure transparency. While it’s unfortunate that media outlets had to go to trial to obtain crucial details about #CopCity, the eventual release of these records marks a significant victory for accountability and the public’s right to know.
Defendants in Georgia ‘Cop City’ case say they are in limbo as trial delays continue
By R.J. RICO
Updated 12:26 AM EDT, May 12, 2025
ATLANTA (AP) — "Single mother Priscilla Grim lost her job. Aspiring writer Julia Dupuis frequently stares at the bedroom ceiling, numb. Geography and environmental studies researcher Hannah Kass is worried about her career prospects after she graduates from her Ph.D. program.
"The three are among 61 defendants accused by Republican Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr of participating in a yearslong racketeering conspiracy to halt the construction of a police and firefighter training facility just outside Atlanta that critics pejoratively call 'Cop City.'
"Their cases are at a standstill, 20 months after being indicted under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, or RICO, which is likely the largest criminal racketeering case ever filed against protesters in U.S. history, experts say.
"Trial for five of the defendants was supposed to start last year but got bogged down in procedural issues. The judge overseeing the case then moved to another court. A new judge has set a status hearing for Wednesday.
"The delays have left people in limbo, facing charges carrying up to 20 years behind bars for what they maintain was #LegitimateProtest, not #DomesticTerrorism. The case also has suppressed a movement that brought together hundreds of #activists to protect a wooded patch of land that ultimately was razed for the recently completed $118 million, 85-acre (34-hectare) project.
"Officials say the project is sorely needed to replace outdated facilities and boost officers’ morale. Opponents say it will be a training ground for a #MilitarizedPolice force and its construction has worsened #environmental damage in a poor, majority-Black area.
"Protests escalated after the fatal 2023 shooting of Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, known as #Tortuguita, who was camping near the site when authorities launched a clearing operation. Officials said they killed Tortuguita, 26, after the activist shot and wounded a trooper from inside a tent.
"A family-commissioned autopsy concluded Tortuguita was killed with their hands in the air, but a prosecutor found the officers’ use of force was 'objectively reasonable.' "
Read more:
https://apnews.com/article/cop-city-rico-charges-61-atlanta-be5ef1ed1951a73870656f61fbbc567b
#ACAB #StopCopCityQueens #StopCopCitiesEverywhere #JusticeForTort #USPol #StopCopCity #WeelauneeForest #DefendTheForest #CopCity #SilencingDissent #CiminalizingDissent #MilitarizedPolice
#CopCity is officially opening today, made possible only through extreme state #violence, including the murder of #Tortuguita, clearcutting of #forest #land, & mass #criminalization of #protesters.
But the fight does go on. Support for those facing charges is still critical.
#Politics #Democrats #Republicans #Liberals #Conservatives #Vote #Election #DemocraticParty #RepublicanParty #DonaldTrump #Trump #JDVance #JoeBiden #Biden #KamalaHarris #TimWalz #Democracy #USA #Musk #Fascism #Ecology
@TCatInReality @Faithslayer202
“ #CopCity should be staffed by at least 50% females and minorities”
Dems:
- blocked single payer
- pretended to offer student debt relief hidden behind means-testing
- funded Tesla and insider-traded on those green energy investments
- elected corrupt minorities
- censured the only Palestinian in Congress
- funded GOP candidates in places where DNC candidates were anti-AIPAC
- didn’t hold a primary
You are championing austerity and cosplaying leftism.
Sat Noon - #StopCopCity: Imaginary Crimes Tour @ North American Indian Center of #Boston, 12 pm
"ATLANTA, GA — Supporters of people facing racketeering charges in Georgia for their alleged involvement in protesting #CopCity are launching a public education tour this week to draw attention to the ongoing criminal cases and increased repression against social movements. The "Stop Cop City: Imaginary Crimes" tour starts in Atlanta on April 4 and will include events in over 60 cities across the country through April and May. The tour will feature panel discussions, anti-repression resources, and merchandise. The tour also aims to provide direct support to defendants by raising morale and much-needed funds.
Dozens of people arrested at various times and locations around #Atlanta since 2021 were indicted in August 2023 under the #Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. More than 17 months later, none of the 61 people charged with #RICO have been tried."
https://mailchi.mp/726b785d6da5/press-release-cross-country-stop-cop-city-imaginary-crimes-tour-begins-this-week-to-educate-public-about-rico-cases-and-ongoing-repression
#activism #BostonWeekend 35/x
This legislation SOAP/SODA zones, put forth by Cathy Moore (an ex-Native reservation Court judge) was strongly opposed.
None the less the city council rammed this legislature through.
And Mayor Bruce Harrell, whose up for re-election, happily signed off on this cop city bullshit.
They crushed public comment with massive police presences and violent arrests, with several public commentators still facing charges!
Seattle cops have just activated their new 24/7 citywide AI surveillance camera network.
Cops at operations centers will be watching the video from over SIXTY HD cameras in three neighborhoods.
The cops are storing video for 30 days, or indefinably if a cop decides they want to keep it for "investigation".
Seattle residents tried to stop this dragnet, saying it will only empower Trump in our region.
https://stopsurveillancecity.wordpress.com/2025/04/13/spd-cctv-cameras-are-live/
#Seattle #SPD #ACAB #copcity #PNW #Privacy #surveillance #police
#GeorgiaUSA - the same state that brought us #CopCity!
#SandySprings passes restrictions on #protests, #canvassing and engaging with others without permission
Hayden Sumlin, April 4th, 2025
Excerpt:
"Police Chief DeSimone said the personal encroachment ordinance would assist public safety in Sandy Springs. He cited a case recently where two individuals silently walked across the City Green during the Oct. 10, 2023 'Stand in Solidarity with #Israel' vigil wearing 'Arab headdresses with two #Palestinian flags that walked into the crowd.'
" 'My guys had to grab them pretty quick and get them out of there; this ordinance will help us do that because they walked through there for only one reason, to intimidate,' DeSimone said.
"Councilwoman Reichel asked DeSimone if that meant his department, 'would arrest someone just for walking through a group of people?'
" 'Yes,' the police chief answered. 'If they were walking with a Nazi flag, under this ordinance we would arrest them. Palestinian flag, we would arrest them. Because they are doing it for only one reason and that is to intimidate the Jewish community.' [But it's okay for #ElonMusk and others in #Trump's circle to use Nazi salute? HYPOCRITES!]
"Councilwomen Reichel and Kelley pushed back on his comments about the ordinance and Palestinian people.
"At one point DeSimone asked Reichel, who is #Jewish, if she would consider it harassment for someone to walk by her with a Palestinian flag at a pro-Jewish event.
" 'I don’t think that would be harassing me. I mean, if they came up to me and started getting in my face or started pushing me, or started to physically touch me, that is harassing, yes,' she said. 'But I do believe in the #FirstAmendment and I believe in freedom of speech.' "
#GeorgiaProtestLaws #USProtestLaws #USPol #AntiProtestLaws #FreePalestine #ACAB #StopCopCity
I said it before and I'll say it again - “We Came to the Forest” is the podcast everyone around #Atlanta wondering about #CopCity and the #StopCopCity movement needs to listen to.
It’s journalism we’ve been overdue…
#WeCameToTheForest
https://wondery.com/shows/we-came-to-the-forest/
I know. Just suggesting bringing it here. First time I've seen that particular photo. Where is it?
You should read up on the #copcity protests. Only the death of a protestor really broke thought the MSM's filtering here.
#CopCity Is Everywhere
Learning from the Movement to #DefendTheForest
#CrimethInc, 2025-03-14
"The movement to #StopCopCity and defend #WeelauneeForest was one of the most important social struggles of the Biden era. Its trajectory tells us a lot about the challenges we confront today under Donald Trump. In the final chapter of our chronology, we trace the movement’s concluding phase, beginning in 2023 and ending with Trump’s arrival in power, and explore what we can learn from it."
Read more:
https://crimethinc.com/2025/03/14/cop-city-is-everywhere-learning-from-the-movement-to-defend-the-forest
#ACAB #StopCopCityQueens #StopCopCitiesEverywhere #JusticeForTort #USPol
#CopCity protestors had cameras put up outside there homes and been followed everywhere for simply witnessing a murder in the forest of thier friend and the cop cover up. so instead of doing justice, they load up these charges to divert media questions& drown u in debt
https://www.aclu.org/news/free-speech/rico-and-domestic-terrorism-charges-against-cop-city-activists-send-a-chilling-message
today isnt a new facist day under trump, we have been here for a while, it was just happening to people yall dont care about. like GF/BLM protestors taken in unmarked vans, 60+ under arrest in GA for #CopCity
RICO/domestic terror charges for handing out flyers https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/17/portland-protests-federal-officers-george-floyd
I’ve not listened to every episode, but this podcast is the investigative journalism #Atlanta #Georgia and the world deserves to know from the whole #CopCity debacle
More needs to be uncovered, but this is a start
https://wondery.com/shows/we-came-to-the-forest/
Great discussion reflecting on the new #CopCity documentary podcast and contrasting local politics to other global trends
https://iamkingwilliams.substack.com/p/new-cop-city-podcast-we-came-to-the
Timothy Pratt: Cameras have appeared outside homes of Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ activists. Why are they there?
"What appear to be cameras hidden in unmarked boxes have appeared on utility poles outside the #Atlanta homes of some people connected to the movement against the police training center known as “Cop City”, raising constitutional concerns, the Guardian has learned."
#copcity #police #Surveillance #SurveillanceState
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/14/cameras-cop-city-activist-homes-atlanta
🎙️ Uncover the story behind an activist's shooting and the resistance against 'Cop City' in this gripping new podcast.
Dive into the fight for justice and environmental activism. 🌿✊
