Trump the target of Atlanta protests
ATLANTA» President Donald Trump was greeted by a roar of cheers and a smattering of boos as he stepped onto the field Monday night for the biggest game in college football, while activist groups protested a president who has used sports to incite political battles.
Hours before, Trump, speaking to a group of farmers and ranchers in Nashville, Tenn., again criticized athletes who do not stand for the national anthem.
“There’s plenty of space for people to express their views and to protest, but we love our flag, and we love our anthem. And we want to keep it that way,” he told the annual gathering of the Farm Bureau.
At the national championship game between Georgia and Alabama at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Trump stood for the national anthem and left to take his seat.
The Atlanta branch of the NAACP on Monday afternoon had encouraged those going to the game to wear white and wave white towels if they disagreed with Trump’s policies and statements, a move meant to mock conservatives who sometimes call liberals “snowflakes.” The organization also asked people to tweet during the game about the alleged falsehoods told by the president during his first year in office.
NAACP Atlanta did not plan any sort of demonstration aside from the tweetstorm, chapter President Richard Rose said, and did not want to disrupt the game. The group protested policies and statements by the Trump administration it deems racist, such as Trump’s hesitance in condemning white nationalists and Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s rollback of Obama administration policies on civil rights issues, including criminal justice, policing and voting rights, Rose said.
“This is a demonstration for American principles, American rights, American safety,” Rose said.
A second group, Refuse Fascism and Refuse Fascism ATL, held a protest outside CNN’s world headquarters nearby to support the athletes Trump has criticized for kneeling during the national anthem to protest social injustice and police brutality. As of 7 p.m., about 30 people marched in the rain, some holding signs that read “Keep your tiny hands off my button,” and “The City of Atlanta + Cobb County Hates Trump.”
While Atlanta’s mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, promised a “safe, smooth and secure” championship, the president’s appearance created additional traffic and logistical headaches for the city, which expected 100,000 people for events associated with the title game. A year ago, Trump described Atlanta on Twitter as “falling apart” and “crime infested” after Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., refused to attend his inauguration. It’s something the people of Atlanta, which leans Democratic, haven’t forgotten.