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Mayday, Mayday, The Golden Fleece Has Been Hacked
Can Kasim Reed Restore Order, Save the Airport, and Keep Buckhead Happy?
By far, Atlanta is the most prosperous city in Georgia and arguably in the top five municipal economies in the southeastern region. Her strength lies in the two cities within a town, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and the Buckhead commercial and residential district. Tax revenues from Hartsfield-Jackson and Buckhead are the driving force behind Atlanta’s prosperity.
As Atlanta moves into the third decade of the 20th century, it is doubtful that she can keep Hartsfield-Jackson and Buckhead under her control. For several years, the Republican-led Georgia legislature has toyed with the notion of taking control of the airport from the City of Atlanta. Legislators cite past incidences of corruption in the awarding of contracts in construction and vending operations.
In 1952, Buckhead was annexed into the City of Atlanta under the leadership of then-Mayor William Hartsfield to maintain majority White control in the city as Black Atlantans were beginning to flex their political muscle in the affairs of city government.
Hartsfield’s scheme worked. The influx of Buckhead residents allowed Whites in Atlanta to maintain political power until October 1973, when Maynard H. Jackson defeated the incumbent mayor and…
