Morning, y’all! Friday Eve promises to bring another sunny day with temperatures approaching the high 80s.
In today’s newsletter we’ll discuss “Operation Skyhawk,” efforts to get Georgia its first-ever national park and the future of medical marijuana. Plus we look at where Comcast customers can find the Braves game.
But first, back to campus.
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MARCHING ON
Ben Hendren for the AJC
Ben Hendren for the AJC
It’s been a week since the first pro-Palestinian protesters set up an encampment on Emory University’s campus, following the example of college students in New York and many, many other places.
Police have cracked down, arresting at least 40 people (including 24 students and one faculty member) across multiple campuses. Politicians have weighed in, offering support for First Amendment rights and the Palestinian people or calling those involved antisemitic terrorists.
“Those kinds of people, if they break the law, if they spit in officers’ faces like we’ve seen, they’re going to have a pretty bad day, and they will be put in jail,” Gov. Brian Kemp said Wednesday.
Protests, meanwhile, have continued. At Emory, where opposing activist groups gathered on the campus quad Wednesday night. At the University of Georgia and the Savannah College of Art and Design and Kennesaw State, too.
“In order to push our movement forward, we need disclosure and we need to know what our tuition is used for,” April McBride, organizer of a protest gathering at KSU, told the AJC. “We deserve to know where our public funding goes.”
Her statements get to one of the key demands of protesters in Georgia and across the country: divestment.
In addition to calls for Israel to halt its attacks on Gaza (which were prompted by Hamas militants’ horrific Oct. 7 attack), activists want their colleges and universities to cut ties with any companies connected to Israel and its military.
No local institutions have hinted at a willingness to do so.
Nevertheless, the protests show no sign of stopping.
As one group gathered at Emory Wednesday night, carrying signs with messages like “Defund the U.S. war machine, about 100 people convened nearby for a Jewish “solidarity assembly.”
“This was a way for us to unify, to realize that our Judaism is important, and we stand up for them,” Yaakov Fleshel, a rabbi with the Meor organization, told the AJC. “They put us down, we come back as a unified force.”
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‘OPERATION SKYHAWK’
Courtesy photos
Courtesy photos
A complex state investigation into drones making contraband drops for Georgia prison inmates took an unexpected turn when officials discovered a criminal scheme enabled by their own staff.
The AJC takes a closer look at “Operation Skyhawk,” much of which has not been revealed publicly.
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MORE TOP STORIES
» Reporter Joe Kovac Jr. takes us inside the 10-year search for answers in the killings of Lake Oconee couple Russell and Shirley Dermond.
» A federal proposal to reclassify marijuana could allow Georgia pharmacies to sell the drug for medical use.
» Gov. Brian Kemp signed bills requiring cash bail for more offenses and requiring sheriffs to enforce federal immigration law.
» Residents aren’t impressed with Roswell’s plans to replace a historic building with a parking deck.
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SACRED SITE
Will Georgia get its first national park? Bipartisan members of the state’s Congressional delegation recently introduced a measure to designate Middle Georgia’s ancient Ocmulgee Mounds site as such.
There’s a long way to go yet, but U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock called the effort “a living testament to our intertwined histories and a robust source of economic and cultural vitality.”
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NATION AND WORLD
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, says she’ll call for a vote to remove Mike Johnson as House speaker next week. Democrats plan to help save Johnson’s job.
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The Fed declined to cut interest rates again, saying it wants inflation to cool down first.
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BACK IN THE WIN COLUMN
John Froschauer/AP
John Froschauer/AP
A four-run fourth inning and another solid Chris Sale pitching performance gave the Braves a 5-2 win over the Mariners. Next up: A day off, then a road series with the Dodgers.
More highlights:
- If you’re a Comcast customer wondering what to do about the Bally Sports blackout, two streaming options offer the channel: DirecTV Stream and FUBO Live (which is currently running a free trial).
- The newest candidates for Georgia’s High School Football Hall of Fame include former UGA star David Greene, Georgia Tech great Demaryius Thomas and Falcons legend Jessie Tuggle.
- Crowned Wednesday: five new state champions in esports (video games! it’s a thing!), including four-time title winner Brookwood High.
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GOOD EATS
Medley, the big ol’ mixed-use development coming to Johns Creek, announced five new tenants. Offerings include gelato, pastries, pizza, tapas and Thai.
Need more? Check out our list of food and drink events happening around town this month.
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MORE TO EXPLORE
» A rare Georgia Supreme Court race could hinge on abortion rights
» United Methodists strike decades-long ban on LGBTQ clergy
» Atlanta rent prices see slight decline
» Feds answer big questions about the growing bird flu outbreak
» 2 arrested on murder charges months after infant’s shooting
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ON THIS DATE
May 2, 1969
Fed up with nationwide college protests over the Vietnam War and a smattering of other issues, U.S. Attorney General John N. Mitchell called for “an end to minority tyranny on the nation’s campuses.” He deemed the Students for a Democratic Society and other demonstrators “nothing but tyrants.”
“It is no admission of defeat,” Mitchell said, “to use reasonable physical force to eliminate physical force.”
File photo
File photo
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PHOTO OF THE DAY
John Spink/AJC
John Spink/AJC
AJC photographer John Spink caught Brooke Hernando, a former Atlanta Roller Derby player, skating in front of the Grant Park Gateway building on Boulevard.
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ONE MORE THING
Before we go: Chef John Jay’s Jamaican restaurant in Castleberry Hill burned down last month. But he’s soldiering on, cooking in the parking lot while figuring out the future: “The love and the support from the community has just been amazing.”
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Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.
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