Back in November, I wrote about a movement in the wealthiest area of north Atlanta to secede from the city and spin off into its own municipality. The Buckhead district of Atlanta believes that its residents can handle their affairs better than the city of Atlanta can.
This effort to create a new Buckhead City (since there’s a town called Buckhead near Lake Oconee) has earned its own special nickname: “Buckxit.”
The website for the Buckhead City Movement claims, “The City of Atlanta has displayed a pattern of neglect and disrespect towards our community which has caused crime to increase at an alarming rate, our infrastructure to crumble, and many residents to flee the area.”
The Buckhead City Committee seeks a new city that includes “a police force that is respected, properly staffed, appropriately trained, and fully funded,” “emergency response times that are as fast as possible,” “city services commensurate with taxes paid,” and “a well-maintained infrastructure,” along with more direct control and responsive leadership.
The movement has gained momentum, with residents posting yard signs and making their voices heard.
We are pushing forward with @BuckheadCityGA and your support is critical!
Here's how you can help:
💥 Keep your yard sign UP! Don't have a yard sign? Ask us and we will have it delivered within 48 hours. Request one here: https://t.co/EQDk3JFOQz(cont'd.) pic.twitter.com/TuTlp7cRnw
— Buckhead City GA OFFICIAL (@BuckheadCityGA) February 25, 2022
Naturally, the mainstream media thinks they know what’s up. Bloomberg went out of its way to call the Buckhead City Movement a “strike at the power of Atlanta’s Black political class.” Axios didn’t waste any time, referring to Buckhead as “Atlanta’s Whitest Neighborhood” in its headline.
That characterization couldn’t be further from the truth, because the Buckhead City Movement is full of followers from all races, walks of life, and political persuasions.
Related: Atlanta’s Soaring Crime Rate Is the Legacy of Leadership Caving to Wokeness
The Buckhead City Committee had high hopes for the General Assembly to place a referendum for Buckhead residents on the ballot this year, but the legislature said no.
“Republican state leaders essentially nixed the idea of allowing residents in the district known as Buckhead, an upper-crust area home to about 20% of the city population, to vote on deannexation later this year,” Bloomberg reported. “House Speaker David Ralston told reporters on Friday that the legislation wouldn’t be considered this session after Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan, who leads the state senate, voiced opposition to it.”
“We’ve made a lot of progress this year getting two bills into the legislature, and people thought it would never get this far,” said Christian Zimm, a member of the Buckhead City Committee who is running for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District.
But “Buckxit” has new hope. The State Executive Committee of the Georgia Republican Party has agreed to allow a question about Buckhead secession to appear on the primary ballot in May.
The question reads as follows: “Crime has dramatically increased throughout the country including in our capital city of Atlanta. Should the citizens of residential areas like the Buckhead community of Atlanta be allowed to vote to create their own city governments and police departments?”
“Successful cities have come from these important Cityhood movements which bring local governments closer to the people at a much more efficient cost and which provide better services,” reads a statement from the Buckhead City Committee.
“We are very much looking forward to receive this important feedback from our fellow Georgians across the entire state,” said Buckhead City Committee CEO Bill White in the statement. “We often hear how Buckhead has lost so many visitors as families tell us they no longer feel safe coming from Athens, Blue Ridge, Gainesville and across the state to celebrate, dine, shop and visit for special family occasions or even for business. The results of this ballot question will be even more significant to share for the GA Legislature as they decide putting Buckhead City on the ballot for May or November 2023.”
Former Georgia state Representative Beth Beskin agrees with the decision to place the question on the primary ballot.
“I understand how things work under the Gold Dome,” she said. “It is important that the people of Buckhead have the opportunity to vote on cityhood just as the General Assembly is providing that opportunity right now to” other nascent cities in metro Atlanta.
It’ll be interesting to see how well the question performs on the May primary ballot. I’ll keep you posted.
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