How an Atlanta City Council meeting resulted in ping pong balls flying

Activists disrupted Atlanta’s City Council meeting on Monday, Sept. 16, by throwing hundreds of ping pong balls and shouting, “You dropped the ball on democracy,” in protest of the proposed “Cop City” development. The ping pong balls tossed represented over 100,000 signatures gathered for a petition opposing the construction of the facility.

Opponents argue that the decision to build the facility should have been made by the people of Atlanta, not City Council members.

“Will you listen to the people of this city or will you silence them,” said Devin Barrington-Ward, a local civil rights activist. “Will you be remembered as leaders who defended democracies or one who stood by while it died?”

Mayor Andre Dickens, D, claims the petition was turned in too late. However, opponents countered that claim by filing a federal lawsuit that accuses the city of “stonewalling” and Dickens of suppressing votes.

The mayor’s office said the petition itself “raises serious legal questions whether a referendum could be used to reverse action previously approved by the City Council,” adding that it’s waiting for a final legal decision before commenting further on the petition.

The $90 million, 85-acre complex would house police and firefighters, and includes a shooting range and mock city for training. Dickens argues that it will help the city retain and hire much-needed officers and replace outdated and rundown facilities.

The site where the facility would stand has been at the center of several protests by civil rights groups and environmental groups. Just outside of Atlanta, the location is a forested area in a predominantly Black neighborhood and opponents say it should be preserved.

City officials claim that some violent protests in the area have caused the price of the project to go up by nearly $20 million.

Demonstrations against the project reignited after the shooting death of Manuel Paez Terán, who police opened fire on after he allegedly shot a state trooper and wounded him.

Officers returned fire and shot Teran 57 times. However, a special prosecutor in the case chose not to bring charges against state troopers because he said the use of deadly force was “objectively reasonable.”

Relatives and family members of Terán said he had his hands up when officers fired their weapons.