The notion of secession is still alive in the South, at least in the community of Buckhead, a suburb of Atlanta, Ga.
There, according to Fox News, Buckhead City Committee CEO Bill White says the community is “really feeling like this is a war zone.” The network uncovered some data showing burglaries are up 26 percent, robbers are up 8 percent and rape is up an alarming 80 percent.
“The wealthy Atlanta enclave has been fighting to become independent of the state’s capital as rampant crime has plagued the neighborhood,” Fox News reported, “but has been unsuccessful so far in getting the measure on an election ballot.”
According to White, Atlanta is short an estimated 180 commissioned police officers. The result is a city in trouble, identified as one of the six major cities in the U.S. where violent crime is on the rise. The other cities cited in a Fox News report are Baltimore, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and New York City. All are reportedly “on pace to break their 2021 levels of violent crime halfway through this year.” The report said New York City has seen a 25.8% jump in violent crime at this point in 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, despite seeing a small decrease in the amount of homicides recorded in the city.
The Atlanta situation appears to be deteriorating. White said secession of a neighborhood from a large city has never before been done.
Fox News is reporting the “surge has also been a politically challenging topic for the White House.”
It could also become a campaign issue as the midterms approach.