Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed is in trouble with the police department for a picture taken in which he and several celebrities put their hands up in the “hands up, don’t shoot” tribute.
“Having the mayor of our city participate in what can only be described as ‘controversial support’ can easily be misinterpreted and conclusions drawn that police brutality is a problem in the Atlanta Police Department,” Ken Allen, president of the APD’s chapter of International Brotherhood of Police Officers, said. “Such conclusions are dangerous for the citizens, the officers and counterproductive to our great city.”
However, other Atlanta citizens disagree, and some say the mayor’s show of “support” is nothing but an empty gesture.
When the police department aired its concerns, Reed’s officer responded by pointing out that Reed had added 900 officers and several new task forces to the police presence and that his support for them was “unquestionable.”
One man who protested in Atlanta, Renzo Marches, says the mayor does not support his cause. “When I did it, I got arrested. It’s one thing to be in front of a camera and pretend like you care,” said Marches. “The police grabbed people to make it look like they had done something.”
The photo in question was apparently taken at the annual Masked Ball in December.