UPDATE: Carroll County has issued official statement
On July 12th, the Carroll County Board of Commissioners released their official statement: here
On July 8th, I created the flyers that you may have seen circulated online and began to spread the news around as much as possible. On the morning of July 9th, I contacted members of the Carroll County Board of Commissioners.
In my phone calls to the board members, I asked them: "Is it true that Carroll County is being considered as a possible location for future migrant detention facilities?"
At the time of my phone call, Commissioner McClendon did not know anything about this and told me he would be getting to the bottom of things and would get back to me. However, Commissioner Chance and Commissioner Lee responded to my question with a yes. However, they did let me know that something like this would probably not happen in Carroll County, because they doubted that Carroll County would have a large enough area of land and/or and empty facility.
On July 12th, Carroll County released their official statement, and as promised Commissioner McClendon reached out to let me know. While I am glad to hear that there is no formal application to consider in Carroll County, the truth is that the Trump administration is actively looking for places to put these inhumane facilities in areas surrounding sanctuary cities (such as Atlanta). Just because this may not happen in Carroll County does not mean that this magically goes away. They will continue to look until a county does fit the bill.
I encourage you all to keep sharing this with your friends, family, coworkers, clients, etc. Please do not abandon the Carroll County board meeting on August 6th. It is still important to show up and let your voice be heard.
From my understanding in talking with Carroll County board members and someone who has attended meetings before, at the meeting there will be a sign up sheet where you can write your name/address/contact information if you would like to speak. Everyone who signs in will be given 3 minutes to address the board on any topic. I've received conflicted answers on whether or not non-residents of Carroll County can speak, but Commissioner McClendon has said that ANYONE can speak regardless of where they live in Georgia. When you are given your 3 minutes of time to speak, board members will not be able to address you then. However, they will go through the contact information provided at the sign in and the commissioner assigned to your district will follow up with you if they feel the need. Obviously if you don't live in Carroll County, then you aren't in any district and they will not follow up with you. I have been told attendance to these meetings is very sparse. I'm hoping we can come together as a community to change that.
However, this goes beyond Carroll County. Below, I will be sharing telephone numbers of GA government officials you can call, fundraisers you can support, and voting resources. If you do not live in Georgia, I encourage you to take the time to look up the telephone numbers of government officials in your own state as well. Please do not let your fight for this end here. Stay informed. There is so much more work that can be done.
CALL:
- Brian Kemp, GA Governor: 404-656-1776
- Geoff Duncan, GA Lieutenant Governor: 404-656-5030
- GA Senate, and their contact information: here
- GA Representatives, and their contact information: here
VOTE:
DONATE: