By Arianna Coghill | Mother Jones
Last week, Republican state Attorney General Chris Carr released an indictment charging 61 “Stop Cop City” activists under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corruption (RICO) Act. The indictments followed a lengthy state investigation into demonstrations aiming to halt the construction of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, often dubbed “Cop City” by its detractors. Some of those charged are facing up to twenty years in prison. Protesters are being prosecuted for donating to bail funds, handing out fliers, and self-publishing magazines—a move civil rights advocates worry could set a dangerous prosecutorial precedent for other organizers nationwide.
“This is breathtakingly broad and unprecedented use of RICO state terrorism and money laundering laws against protesters,” said Aamra Ahmad, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU’s National Security Project, a group of legal experts who ensure people’s rights are protected under the government’s national security policies. “Georgia is wielding these sweeping laws to stigmatize and target those who disagree with the government. And we should be concerned about how this could be replicated across the country and with other individuals.”
On September 5, Georgia’s prosecutor’s office unveiled a 109-page indictment against over 60 people connected with the “Stop Cop City” movement—fulfilling Governor Brian Kemp’s promise to crack down on protests. Nearly two dozen of the defendants are also facing domestic terrorism charges in connection to demonstrations earlier this year. “This indictment is treating protesters and community activists as if they were an organized crime ring,” said Ahmad. “The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy if that dissent is patriotic. And we have a right to disagree and dissent with those in power and demand a better world.”
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