ATLANTA and OAKLAND (October 2, 2023) Today the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) – a Quaker organization with a long history of holding corporations accountable – released a list of corporations complicit in the construction of Cop City. Cop City, officially known as the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, is a militarized $90 million police training facility that would be built on top of Atlanta’s largest green space. The project has faced massive opposition both from Georgia residents and nationally.
“The people of Atlanta have shown tremendous strength and courage in standing up to the police and City Council in order to stop Cop City,” said Dov Baum, AFSC’s Director of Corporate Accountability and Research. “But the forces that are driving this project are not just public officials. Big corporations have been donating millions of dollars to fund Cop City, and others are benefiting as contractors and sub-contractors. While we can't vote to remove them from office, we can demand that these companies take their hands out of policing our communities.”
The list includes companies involved in the Cop City project, including Motorola Solutions, Brasfield & Gorrie, and Nationwide Mutual Insurance. The report also lists corporate and foundation donors, funders, and sponsors for the Atlanta Police Foundation (APF), including Bank of America, Home Depot, and Delta Airlines. AFSC plans to use the information gathered to pressure corporate sponsors of Cop City to divest from the project.
The list was compiled by AFSC and drew heavily from research that was published by Stop Cop City Solidarity and Stop Brasfield & Gorrie. Ally organizations, including Adasina, Color Of Change, Justice Capital, LittleSis, Presente, and the Private Equity Stakeholder Project, also contributed information. Some updates and additions were made using ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer tool; APF webpage, meeting minutes, and financial documents; and additional media reports.
AFSC staff and supporters based in Atlanta have been working tirelessly with the Cop City referendum coalition to collect over 116,000 signatures to get a referendum on Cop City on the ballot for the next election. “In talking with voters in recent months, I know that an overwhelming number of us don’t want more militarized policing in our city,” said Tim Franzen, Director of AFSC’s Economic Justice Program in Atlanta. “We want to preserve our urban forest and natural resources. And we want our tax dollars to go toward schools, affordable housing, health care, and other programs that promote safety and well-being for all our community members.”
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The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes a world free of violence, inequality, and oppression. Guided by the Quaker belief in the divine light within each person, we nurture the seeds of change and the respect for human life to fundamentally transform our societies and institutions. We work with people and partners worldwide, of all faiths and backgrounds, to meet urgent community needs, challenge injustice, and build peace.