Mayor Kasim Reed and Atlanta Police Department officials have agreed to meet with Black Lives Matter organizers on Monday, July 18, from 9 to 11 a.m. at city hall.
The meeting came after a fifth consecutive night of protests – this time in Buckhead – in the wake of the shooting of two black men by police in Louisiana and Minnesota. More than 15,000 demonstrators marched through Downtown over the weekend on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
A crowd of several hundred marched from the Lenox Square MARTA station to the Governor’s Mansion on Monday night and protest organizers demanded to meet with both Reed and APD Chief George Turner. Both Reed and Turner arrived on the scene and met for 45 minutes with organizers.
Reed told assembled media that he had asked for a “cooling off” period from protests as officers were exhausted from 12 hour shifts and five days of protecting protestors and the community. The mayor said the organizers wanted to discuss income inequality, housing, what they consider heavy-handed police tactics and other concerns.
Atlanta Police arrested 15 protestors during Monday night’s march through Buckhead.
Associate Editor John Ruch with our sister publication Buckhead Reporter was on the scene for the protest. Check out his recap and interviews at this link.