.NDIyMQ.NDIyMQ

--= = = = - STATEMENT BY IVAN ALLEN, JR. MAYOR OF ATLANTA On Civil Disorder in Atlanta, Tuesday, September 6, 1966 The disorders in the Summerhill neighborhood in Southeast Atlanta las t evening were the result of a deliberate attempt by certain members ·of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (Snick) to .¢reate an incident of this very nature. We can be thankful there were no serious injuries. Some 10 police officers received minor injuries, mostly as a result of tear gas. Assessment of property damage has not been completed, but it does not appear to be too severe. Five City police cars were damaged as a result of bricks or bottles thrown through windows. Seventy-two arrests were made by the Police Department. Conditions at this time indicate that the violence has ended and calm exists throughout the area. The Atlanta Police Department is now working two twelve-hour shifts until further notification by Chief Jenkins. All off-duty firemen have been placed on alert. The firemen on duty during the night responded promptly and efficiently to several calls in the area. The spark of violence ignited by a few reckless and irresponsible individuals touched off an explosion of civil disorder that shattered Atlanta's long record of racial amity. �'.' Page 2 I mu s t again commend the members of the Atlanta Police Department for their prompt response and handling of this situation. The citiz ens of Atlanta, and especially the good citizens of SummerhillMechanic sville, can be justly proud of their police officers this morning. _ I am not talking from hearsay when I say that every citizen of Atlanta owes a debt of wholehearted gratitude to our dedicated police officers, for I was personally in the thick of the disturbance throughout those frightful hours of mob hysteria. No one need make charges to me about police brutality during this disorder, I saw plenty of brutality, but it was being used against the police officers, not by them. From what I h~ard with my own ears and saw with my own eyes in the center of this melee, I feel certain that hundreds of normally good citizens were inflamed;(out of their normal senses. They were victimized by those who sought to incite violence. ~ We liiince:rely appreciate the action of Governor Carl Sanders and the Georgia Department of Public Safety for the backup men and equipment provided to us. It is a tragedy that a few irresponsible and misdirected youths have such utter disregard and contempt for their fellow man that they place the lives and property of innocent citizens in serious jeopardy. ,, �