Thread by @antiracistsouth

THREAD 🧵🪡

Exposing corporate & political conflicts of interest in the “South River Forest and Public Safety Training Center Community Task Force”

— PART 4: “History & Civil Rights NGO’s”

How corporate money shapes the ways we connect our history to the present.

#StopCopCity

#1 Jill Savitt, the National Center for Civil & Human Rights (@Ctr4CHR)

Jill Savitt seems to be a good person who genuinely cares abt working towards justice, but is caught up in a web of media, liberalism & big money that is actively attempting to neutralize her better angels.

But regardless of her intent, as the face of a national center for Civil & Human Rights— someone with deep knowledge of conditions leading up to genocide, authoritarian regimes & other human rights atrocities— Savitt’s silence around the #StopCopCity movement has been noticeable.

I believe that in her heart, Savitt supports the #StopCopCity movement & is likely in deep internal turmoil watching the state repression of activists including the GSP/APD murder of non-binary forest defender #Tortuguita. After all, she did “like” this post from @kamaufranklin👀

Jill Savitt’s statement on behalf of @Ctr4CHR during the 2020 uprisings speak volumes abt the contradictions of her & the center staying silent as protestors are systematically abused by the state.

“We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

Now let’s examine the WHY: why is @jillsavitt & the @Ctr4CHR staying silent about one of the most egregious campaigns of Atlanta civil & human rights violations in recent memory?

Follow the (corporate) money. Museums need funders. Corporations need NGOs to look like they “care”

The @Ctr4CHR checks off all the boxes as other NGOs on the Cop City “community engagement” task force (which is a hand-picked Astro-turfing campaign to create the illusion of community input/buy-in).

✅Cop City donors
✅ Central Atlanta Progress
✅ Current/former ATL officials

Even their programs and events are sponsored by some of the biggest Cop City funders. Their “sponsorship” placements read like dystopian propaganda. This from @Delta w/ a long track record of racism & environmental injustice:

usatoday.com/story/travel/a…

nbcnews.com/news/us-news/b…

From the @BlankFoundation to @nscorp, @CoxEnterprises to @HomeDepot & @GeorgiaPacific, NGOs like @Ctr4CHR often rely on the very same elites & corporations who protect & profit from the oppressive system of racial capitalism— even when the NGO’s “mission” is to oppose injustice.

It’s also no coincidence that @ossoff has remained conspicuously silent on the repression of #StopCopCity activists while ostensibly rewarding @Ctr4CHR for their continued cooperation and compliance with the corporate Cop City agenda. Repression of protest is a bipartisan issue.

https://twitter.com/erniesuggs/status/1664817954955853824

It must also be mentioned that @atlcouncil President, @DougShip was the founding CEO of @Ctr4CHR where @Ruwa4Georgia interned under him. And whereas @Ruwa4Georgia has spoken out against state repression & human rights violations against the #StopCopCity mvmt, Shipley has yet to…

https://twitter.com/dougshipmanatl/status/1643396527379849218

Whether due to @Ctr4CHR leadership’s political analysis or the influence of money & power, the org is falling into the trap of reformism that Black organizers have warned about for generations. Co-hosting a “civic conversation” on “community policing” w/ APD is a prime example.

https://twitter.com/micahinatl/status/1429968702674452481

As these mainstream “Civil Rights” orgs host events on civil discourse, democracy & non-violence, they also seem to have no problem partnering with some of the most violent and oppressive leaders— once again serving to rehabilitate their image.

https://twitter.com/thrasherxy/status/1651296418156380182

In 2021 @Ctr4CHR literally co-hosted a webinar about “disinformation” as a threat to democracy… with an institute named after the war criminal who invaded a sovereign nation under the pretext of “democracy” using completely fabricated disinformation to justify the war… 🤯🤯🤯🤯

https://twitter.com/JournalismProj/status/1420722649823653895

Through the logic of liberalism & racial capitalism, corporations & mainstream “civil rights” orgs can partner to celebrate & profit off histories of resistance— including supposedly “violent” resistance (#Stonewall was a riot)— as long as they occurred in the “past” just NOT NOW

https://twitter.com/wendyhstewart/status/1144593232665423878

A close examination of @Ctr4CHR’s 2021 Form 990 shows that the center is running a training program for police called “Law Enforcement: REPAIR” that earned them almost $100k in gross profits in 2021. This is a clear financial conflict of interest w/ the Cop City taskforce. #GApol

The REPAIR curriculum was co-created by law enforcement and the DOJ, & supposedly helps LEO “detect relevant risk factors for civil & human rights abuses”— which is either a misidentification of the problem or a really slick counterinsurgency campaign.

COPS ARE THE RISK FACTOR.

If the goal of the training was to prevent civil & human rights abuses, and the *entire* Atlanta Police Department went through the training the year before enacting some of the most repressive human rights abuses against #StopCopCity protestors… clearly it doesn’t work! #GApol

It’s time for @Ctr4CHR to abandon attempts to reform APD & instead stand w/ Atlanta communities who have loudly & consistently opposed the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

Join us in calling on @jillsavitt to speak out to #StopCopCity at the @atlcouncil vote June 5th!

#2 Sheffield “Frank” Hale, Atlanta History Center

Hale is the CEO of @ATLHistCenter and a member of the Buckhead Coalition, in addition to several other prominent boards and organizations.

Note: the Buckhead Coalition is largely seen as a driving force behind Cop City.

Once again, a cursory review of the @ATLHistCenter reveals that their board is largely made up of representatives from Atlanta’s most wealthy & powerful families as well as reps from corporations funding Cop City: @Accenture @ChickfilA @CoxEnterprises, @UPS, @Delta & more.

Hale is doing quite well as the CEO, earning a cool $297,485 salary plus an additional $175k in bonuses for 2022! For that kind of money you can bet that Hale is going to do whatever possible to make the Board of Directors happy. Not that Hale seems the type to rock the boat…

According to @ATLHistCenter’s new strategic plan, they hope to focus on strengthening “democracy.”

This as Hale continues to participate on the taskforce which itself is an anti-democratic ploy by the elites & @andreforatlanta to make it seem like Cop City had community input.