Atlanta: An Overview
Drew Flint and Ishani Spanier
Atlanta Child Murders
Between the years of 1979 and 1981, approximately 29 Black children across Atlanta were brutally murdered. The murder was later attribtued to Wayne Williams. Most evidence was attributed to fiber comparisons between victims and parts of Wayne's car (1). This event shook Atlanta's Black community. Curiously, this event failed to reach the nation. Furthermore, it took several months before the Atlanta police began taking the case seriously; the police continued to believe it was drug related until the event became truly out of hand (2). This speaks volumes about how Atlanta historically viewed its Black populations. They had no protection from the police even provided the horrendous incident. Furthermore, most of the victims were kids from poor backgrounds (3).This truly shows that Atlanta was greatly divided along class lines as well. In essence, race and class stood as tremendous divisors across the city of Atlanta. Nevertheless, Atlanta’s history does not always have to be its future. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms reopened the case in 2019 to ensure that it
is thoroughly investigated and that the victims’ families are truly compensated. This is putting the spotlight on the case and making more people aware of the horrendous event. While Atlanta’s past may be marred by a gruesome criminal case cast aside by its people, today, Atlanta is doing its best to rectify the situation and ensure that those historic divide (4). From our readings, we find that Tayari Jones' book Leaving Atlanta perfectly encapsulates the Black community's reactions to the event: fear of the unknown, disgust at the possibility of it being a white person, and sheer helplessness (5).
Silicon Valley of the South
In just five years, Atlanta venture capital investments have totaled over $2.1 billion and over 2 million jobs have been created (6). How did Atlanta become such a powerhouse of technological innovation? One of the primary motivations is the wealth of extreme talent that has recently flooded into the city. In addition, the great level of diversity across the city draws many major tech companies in. Specifically, Atlanta brings a wealth of Black talent to the very exclusive major tech companies (7). Atlanta is a city that presents a breeding ground for what tech companies want their future to look like. Moreover, Atlanta’s government has lowered the cost of business for major companies to entice them to move. Once businesses account for the ease of travel through the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Atlanta becomes a perfect location to open up business (8). Such changes across Atlanta in the present truly set it up to become the “Silicon Valley of the South”. Once more companies continue to move into Atlanta for its diverse talent and low operating costs, Atlanta will truly assert itself amongst cities such as San Francisco and New York. Atlanta stands to represent the America of the future: a city of diverse technological innovation right in the heart of the South.
Southern Food Culture in Atlanta
Atlanta, the beating heart of the modern South, is known for its welcoming Southern hospitality. This attractive atmosphere can be understood through the comforting and relaxing dishes served throughout diners and street markets in the sprawling metropolis. The history of southern food in Atlanta and across the South has deep roots tracing back centuries. In reality, the comfort foods we now call “Southern” represent the harmonic fusion of Black, Native American, and White influences despite interracial violence and slavery (9). “Red beans and rice, cornbread and potlikker, fried chicken, fatback, and biscuits,” are just some of the foods used to introduce this wide representation of the American South. Southern food represented everyday life in the form of farm-to-table cooking (10). Today, several southern restaurants and food spots exist in Atlanta boasting the modern interpretation of the comforting southern cuisine the city knows all too well (11). However, southern cuisine is evolving in Atlanta. The city has served as a cultural melting pot accepting dishes from other cultures all around the world and immersing them with traditional southern food items and dishes. Some restaurants are now combining catfish with Gujrati spices while others are adding bacon to gyoza for example (12). While this may seem odd at first glance, this pattern of combining the culinary traditions of different cultures in Atlanta traces directly back to the start of southern food (the product of African, Native American, and European culinary traditions).
And a Zombie Apocalypse?
Despite the popularity and clout of northeastern cities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (then the Communicable Disease Center) was headquartered in Atlanta on July 1, 1946 due to the higher rates of malaria transmission in the southeastern United States. The CDC (now located in 54 different countries with over 14,000 employees) is still headquartered in Atlanta and has helped lead to Atlanta’s rise in popular culture as the “zombie capital of the world" (13). A perfect example of this popular culture representation is the bombshell television show, “The Walking Dead”. With an estimated following of 16 million, the show is set in a post-apocalyptic Atlanta and surrounding Georgia ravaged by a zombie plague (14). The CDC has also piggybacked on this zombie craze by releasing Preparedness 101: Zombie Pandemic. This comic strip, although entertaining, carries more serious undertones. In an age where covid-19 still preys on the global population, public health preparedness remains at an apex. The comic even details how to create an emergency kit to "be ready for any kind of disaster, even zombies" (15). These "zombified" portrayals of Atlanta in popular culture serve to highlight the city's futuristic side as a center of information for public health and preparedness for the challenges of the world (and who knows, maybe even a zombie apocalypse)!
Work Cited
ATKID: The Atlanta Child Murders Case - FBI Studies. https://fbistudies.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/FBI-Grapevien-Atlanta-Child-Murders-Susan-
Lloyd.pdf. (2)
Atlanta Breakfast Club, http://atlantabreakfastclub.com/. (11)
“Atlanta's Fortune 500 and 1000 Companies: Knowatlanta - Atlanta's Relocation Guide.” Knowatlanta.com, https://www.knowatlanta.com/jobs/atlanta-
fortune-500. (7)
“CDC - Malaria - about Malaria - History - CDC's Origins and Malaria.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 23 July 2018, https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/about/history/history_cdc.html#:~:text=The%20center%20was%20located%20in,where%20malaria%20was%20still%20endemic. (13)
DeLong, William. “Was Wayne Williams a Serial Killer of 23 Kids - or Did a Racist System Railroad Him?” All That's Interesting, All That's Interesting, 4 Feb.
2022, https://allthatsinteresting.com/wayne-williams. (4)
FrankCNBC. “Atlanta Is a Growing Hub for Top Tech Companies like Apple and Microsoft to Find Black Talent.” CNBC, CNBC, 4 Feb. 2022,
Goldchain, Kimberly Turner and Michelle. “The Walking Dead: Mapping 55 Locations from the Hit TV Show.” Curbed Atlanta, Curbed Atlanta, 13 Mar. 2017,
https://atlanta.curbed.com/maps/walking-dead. (14)
Headlee, Celeste. “A Food History of the Modern South.” Georgia Public Broadcasting, https://www.gpb.org/news/2017/05/23/food-history-of-the-modern-
south.(10)
Jones, T., 2014. Leaving atlanta. New York: Grand Central Publishing.(5)
McGeary, Lily. “Case File: The Atlanta Child Murders.” Forensic Science Society, Forensic Science Society, 1 Mar. 2022,
https://forensicsciencesociety.com/thedrip/case-file-the-atlanta-child-murders.(1)
Murray, Erin Byers. “The New Southern Cuisine: Don't Call It Fusion.” Thrillist, https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/southern-food-evolving-2019. (12)
“Preparedness 101; Zombie Pandemic.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/6023. (15)
Shieber, Jonathan, and Kathleen Hamrick. “How Did Atlanta Become a Top Breeding Ground for Billion-Dollar Startups in the Southeast?” TechCrunch,
TechCrunch, 25 May 2021, https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/02/how-did-atlanta-become-a-top-breeding-ground-for-billion-dollar-startups-in-the-southeast/?guccounter=1. (8)
“The Native American Roots of Southern Cuisine.” Modern Farmer, 10 Oct. 2018, https://modernfarmer.com/2014/04/southern-food-journey-native-america/.
(9)
Turner, Laura Jane. “Atlanta Child Murders - What Mindhunter Didn't Tell You about the Controversial Case.” Digital Spy, Digital Spy, 30 Aug. 2019,
https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a28744473/wayne-williams-atlanta-child-murders-mindhunter/.(3)