Atlanta City Council members Liliana Bakhtiari ran on platforms of police accountability. Councilmember Bakhtiari in particular had been a vocal opponent of the proposed police and fire “training” facility in unincorporated DeKalb County prior to their election to city council, and an ally to the movement to stop it. Our open records requests have since revealed that Bakhtiari has been the subject of a lobbying campaign from the Atlanta Police Foundation.
Local groups advocating against cop city have been ignored by Bakhtiari and Dozier for months. Bakhtiari’s office was even presented with a near-complete resolution of non-support for the city ordinance approving cop city, and Dozier pledged his support for that ordinance. All attempts to follow up with their offices by community members and activists about the resolution of non-support were met with silence. It is hard not to see APF’s influence at work here.
Jason Dozier and Liliana Bakhtiari must be held accountable to their campaign promises, and we must encourage them to stand up to the private money that funds the Atlanta Police Foundation. Call their offices, email their staff, and show up to public comment at the Atlanta City Council on October 3rd at 1:00PM and the Public Safety and Legal Administration Committee on October 10th at 1:00PM and tell them to Stop Cop City!
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