Fulton Commissioner calls Atlanta Mayor’s letter “over the top”; Sur Legal on protecting immigrant workers; Chamblee’s proactive approach to data centers

The very public disagreement between the Atlanta Mayor’s office and the Fulton County Commission continues. Last week Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens sent the commission a letter regarding a recent majority vote to “commit approximately $1.3 billion” toward a new Fulton County Jail. The harshly worded letter to the board threatened to end an agreement in which 700 detainees were housed at the Atlanta City Detention Center and is also calling for the board to be more responsive and collaborative towards the city’s Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative. On today’s Closer Look with Rose Scott, we hear from Fulton County Commissioner Dana Barrett. She believes the county should find a way to work with Mayor Dickens but thinks his letter does not tell the full story.  

Then, we meet a nonprofit that’s attempting to help immigrants amid the Trump Administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement. Of the 169 million people in the American workforce, more than 32 million are immigrants — more than 8 million of which are undocumented. Many of those workers have become the target of the Trump Administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement. Still, as the U.S. Constitution states, they have fundamental rights within the United States, regardless of their citizenship or immigration status. The Sur Legal Collaborative has made it their mission to defend immigrant workers and make sure they know their rights.

Chamblee is the latest city in Georgia to pause new data center developments. The northern DeKalb County city has adopted a 180-day moratorium that halts the acceptance of any related applications. Jimmy Furst, Chamblee At-Large Councilmember, joins the show and shares the “major concerns” Chamblee residents have about data centers and the proactive approach city lawmakers are taking. He shares how their fast-growing urban community can’t afford the massive water consumption, heat, and noise that data centers produce and they need to further understand their impact before accepting any applications.

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