An Important Message from Mayor Dickens Regarding January 21st Protests

CITY OF ATLANTA 
55 TRINITY AVE, S.W. ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303-0300

TEL (404) 330-6100

Andre Dickens 
MAYOR

January 26, 2023

To all those who live, work and study in Downtown Atlanta:

I write to you following the incidents that took place on Saturday evening, when a group of rioters used the guise of a peaceful protest to conduct destructive acts in our community.

While quickly contained and mitigated, I know this incident was frightening to those who live or work in Downtown Atlanta. As your Mayor, I want to personally extend my assurances that your safety remains our highest priority, and we are working tirelessly to prevent these illegal acts from occurring again in Atlanta.

I am proud that the Atlanta Police Department—in close coordination with our regional and state law enforcement partners—responded immediately to stop the attack, arrest those involved, and prevent the destruction from spreading in our community.

APD made six arrests Saturday night. None of those arrested are Atlantans. In fact, five of the six don’t even live in Georgia. These are outsiders who have come here for their own political aims. They want to scare and disrupt. But Atlanta is stronger than them.

Let me be crystal clear: the City of Atlanta and the Atlanta Police Department will continue to protect the right to peaceful protest. That is part of our DNA as the Cradle of the Civil Rights Movement.

But we do not tolerate violence or property destruction. We find those who commit such acts, we arrest them, and we charge them appropriately.

As your Mayor, I want to thank you for investing in Downtown Atlanta—whether by making it your home, your office, your place of worship or your place of education. I and the City of Atlanta will continue to be your partner as we move our great city forward.

Sincerely,



Mayor Andre Dickens