12 September 2009

hear, hear

cousin john chimes in:

Chief of Police Richard J Pennington

226 Peachtree St. SW

Atlanta, Georgia 30303

September 12, 2009

Dear Chief Pennington,

Chief Pennington, this raid on the Eagle last Thursday night just reeks. It smells of the same pattern of harassment that the Gay and Lesbian community has seen for decades in this city. We had hoped, no--we had believed that the time for this type of systemic harassment had passed with the advent of enlightened administrations like the Franklin administration, but apparently this is not so.

I don’t patronize the Eagle, and haven’t been in any bar for a decade or more but I remember the way it used to work. Every so often, just coincidentally before a city-wide election, there would be a push to “clean up” the city of “undesirable” elements. I saw this in the 1960’s and 1970’s when the targets were bars such as Mrs. P’s and the Joy Lounge on Ponce. Then, as now, the point is harassment and humiliation of the patrons. The point is to portray the establishment as a “problem” establishment. Very convenient when the time for liquor license renewal comes up.

But wait, I thought we had a LGBT liaison in the APD to work with the community and the bar owners to try to fix the real problems and avoid the harassment. I guess I was just mistaken. Where was the liaison? Why were police officers, including apparently homophobic officers sent--in such great numbers--to deal with a dancing license violation. What kind of judgment is that?

This is the APD reacting to anonymous complaints from Midtown groups that just want to remake Midtown into a sanitized, glamorous, all-white, enclave. And I say that as a white man who knows these folks. They hated the Buckhead Village nightlife because it was too young and too ethnic, They now want the gay people who do not fit their image out of Midtown. They are also targeting black nightclubs in the Midtown area. What’s next--will it be Castleberry hill or West End?

I understand why these groups want to control the city and remake it into their lily-white, country club dream. I really do get it. I’ve seen this my whole life. You may remember what harassment was like. I just don’t understand why you would countenance such a thing. I don’t believe for a minute that the Mayor does. Again, where is the LGBT community liaison in the APD? You guys have failed big time.

Sincerely yours,

John W. Hoard

Cc: Mayor Shirley Franklin,

City Councilman H. Lamar Willis

City Councilwoman Joyce Shepard

City Council Chairwoman Lisa Borders

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