What you need to know about the violent ‘Cop City’ protests in Atlanta

Protests have intensified in Atlanta, Ga., over plans to build a new police training center, resulting in recent violence at the site dubbed “Cop City.” 

Thirty-five people were detained by police on Sunday after what the Atlanta Police Department called “a group of violent agitators” clashed with authorities, and 23 people were charged with domestic terrorism over the incident.

Here’s what you need to know about the protests:

What are the protests about?

Protesters are demonstrating against the proposed Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, a training campus for officers that would include a shooting range, a nature trail and a “mock village” for cops to practice raids.

The $90 million, 85-acre project was approved by the Atlanta City Council back in 2021 and is in part an effort to “improve morale, retention and recruitment” for Atlanta law enforcement, according to the project’s description from the nonprofit Atlanta Police Foundation.

The protesters represent a variety of interests. Some are against the militarization of police, while others are against the environmental impact of construction on the forested land on which the new facilities are set to be built.

The demonstrations against the police training center come against the backdrop of major protests in Atlanta more than two years ago after the brutal killing of George Floyd at the hands of police — which spurred many to leave the force, as reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

How have the protests played out?

Protests against the planned site have been going on since it was announced. Authorities fatally shot a man who injured a state trooper during an attempt to clear out the site back in January, and demonstrations cropped up in downtown Atlanta later that month, near the Atlanta Police Foundation. 

Protests escalated further on Sunday when, according to police, individuals dressed in black “used the cover of a peaceful protest” to “conduct a coordinated attack on construction equipment and police officers.”  

The protesters entered the construction area for the training center and “began to throw large rocks, bricks, Molotov cocktails and fireworks at police officers,” and ultimately “destroyed multiple pieces of construction equipment by fire and vandalism,” according to a release from the department. 

How have police responded?

Atlanta Police Department chief Darin Schierbaum called the most recent incident a “very violent attack” aimed at police. 

“This was a very violent attack that occurred this evening. Very violent attack. This wasn’t about a public safety training center, this was about anarchy and this was about the attempt to destabilize,” Schierbaum said.

Additional protests are reportedly planned for the coming days, and police say they’re prepared to respond with “a multi-layered strategy that includes reaction and arrest.”

“This movement is resisting unbridled police authoritarianism & racist brutality. The Atlanta Police are out of control. They call in Georgia State Patrol as their shocktroops. They have killed a protestor, attacked a music festival, and charged dozens with domestic terrorism,” posted Defend the Atlanta Forest, a social media site used by members of the movement.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and a number of other groups have called for the domestic terrorism charges against those detained over the weekend to be dropped.

How have politicians responded?

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) declared a state of emergency in January after protests over the activist’s death during the clear-out attempt. 

Kemp said after Sunday’s violence that “domestic terrorism will NOT be tolerated in this state” and that law enforcement’s “bravery should be celebrated” in their response to this weekend’s violence. 

Following the January protests and the death of the activist, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens affirmed the city supports the right to peaceful protest but said they would “not tolerate violence or property destruction.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) has blamed Antifa for the incident and, on Tuesday, introduced a resolution to declare the group as a terrorist organization.

“Last weekend, Antifa rioters firebombed the future police training facility in Atlanta. Antifa has been terrorizing Americans for years, and it’s time to end the lawlessness,” Greene said on the House floor. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.