The Mayflower left Plymouth, England for a voyage to America on September 6, 1620.
The United States government was nicknamed “Uncle Sam” on September 7, 1813.
On September 7, 1864, General William T. Sherman sent a letter to his Confederate counterpart, General John Bell Hood, offering to transport civilians out of Atlanta for their safety.
The Georgia General Assembly appropriated $1 million for construction of a new State Capitol on September 8, 1883.
President William McKinley was shot on September 6, 1901. He is buried in Canton, Ohio, not far from the Professional Football Hall of Fame.
Alonzo Herndon founded the Atlanta Life Insurance Company on September 6, 1905, one of Georgia’s great success stories.
The Fulton County Courthouse was dedicated on September 8, 1914.
The first supermarket, a Piggly Wiggly, opened on September 6, 1916 in Memphis, Tennessee.
On September 6, 1941, Margaret Mitchell christened the cruiser USS Atlanta – Atlanta would later sink after being hit by 50 shells and a torpedo during the Battle of Guadalcanal.
The Professional Football Hall of Fame opened on September 7, 1963 in Canton, Ohio.
The Summerhill Race Riot broke out in Atlanta on September 6, 1966.
On September 8, 1966, viewers of the Star Trek debut first heard the monologue opening, “Space, the final frontier…”
On Sept. 8, one of the most enduring franchises in TV and movie history celebrates its 50th birthday. Star Trek debuted on NBC in 1966, developed by Roddenberry, a former Los Angeles cop who wanted to make a TV series which could sneak past the rampant escapism of most programs back then.
At a time when scripted TV rarely dealt directly with the turbulence of the times, Star Trek set its social messages against a space opera backdrop. Swashbuckling Captain Kirk ran the Enterprise, backed by cerebral first officer Mr. Spock and emotional Southern medical officer Dr. Leonard McCoy.
On the surface, the show’s plots dealt with exotic alien worlds in a future where space travel was commonplace. But Roddenberry and his writers slipped in subtle messages.
One classic story pointed out the absurdity of racism by depicting a war among members of an alien race, where one faction was colored black on the left side of their face and body and white on the right. The other faction had the colors reversed.
And as the end of state-sanctioned segregation rattled America, Roddenberry featured TV’s first interracial kiss: Aliens forced Captain Kirk to smooch his African American communications officer Lt. Uhura.
Future Atlanta resident Curtis Mayfield saw his song, “Superfly” turn gold on September 7, 1972.
Here’s my favorite song by Curtis Mayfield, “People Get Ready.”
President Gerald Ford pardoned former President Richard Nixon on September 8, 1974 for“all offenses against the United States which he, Richard Nixon, has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9, 1974.”
Former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter returned to the Little White House in Warm Springs, Georgia, on September 6, 1976 to kick off the final phase of his presidential campaign.
On September 7, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed the Panama Canal Treaty, which promised to turn over control of the canal to Panama by 2000.
Google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin on September 7, 1998.
On September 6, 2014, USS John Warner (SSN-785), a mighty Virginia-class nuclear attack submarine, was christened at Newport News Shipbuilding. Big John calls Naval Station Norfolk its homeport. USS John Warner was commissioned on August 1, 2015 at Norfolk Naval Station.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Brian Kemp issued Executive Order #09.05.24.01, ordering flags flown at half-staff on state properties in honor and memory of those affected by the shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Barrow County. The order is effective until sunset on the day of the last victim’s interment.
The Harris-Walz campaign “Reproductive Freedoms” Bus Tour stopped in Savannah, according to the Savannah Morning News.
At the third stop for Vice President and Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris’ “Fighting for Reproductive Freedom” bus tour, [Callie Beale] Harper shared her story to a crowd in Savannah. The tour started Tuesday in Palm Beach, before going to Jacksonville Wednesday and will make at least 50 stops in a number of states running up to the election in November.
Alongside Harper, U.S. Rep Nikema Williams, State Rep. Anne Allen Westbrook and local Pastor Candance Hardnett spoke on the importance of voting and fighting for reproductive freedom. Williams, who represents Georgia’s Fifth District in Atlanta, opened up the short rally by reflecting on the shooting that happened Wednesday at Apalachee High School.
Alongside Harper, U.S. Rep Nikema Williams, State Rep. Anne Allen Westbrook and local Pastor Candance Hardnett spoke on the importance of voting and fighting for reproductive freedom. Williams, who represents Georgia’s Fifth District in Atlanta, opened up the short rally by reflecting on the shooting that happened Wednesday at Apalachee High School.
“My heart goes out to the students, the teachers and families of everyone touched,” Williams said. “As a mama, I know that when I send my Carter to school, I expect him to come back safely. That’s what freedom is about, the freedom for our babies to learn and come home safely to our families.”
During her rally in Savannah last week, which gathered 7,500 community members, Harris pledged to sign legislation restoring reproductive freedom nationwide if congress were to pass it under her presidency. Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, removing the right to have an abortion. Georgia’s law effectively bans abortions after six weeks.
The rally ended with Williams once again urging those gathered to “get it done” and do the work to elect Vice President Harris in November.
Savannah-Chatham County Public School System will have heightened security after the Barrow county school shooting, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Wednesday afternoon, SCCPSS Public Information Manager Sheila Blanco issued a statement on behalf of the district stating, “tragic events in Barrow County Schools are not related to our area and we have no reports of any disturbances in Chatham County.” The statement noted that out of “an abundance of caution” the BOEPD’s campus police officers were placed on a “heightened level of patrol” Wednesday afternoon.
BOEPD Chief Terry Enoch relayed Thursday via an email from Blanco, that there are no enhanced checks of students or other measures outside of the typical safety and security measures practiced by the BOEPD and its local law enforcement partners. “Nothing out of the ordinary is going on except a heightened level of visibility.”
The district’s Wednesday statement underscored the importance of school safety, reading, “SCCPSS remains committed to a multi-layered security approach in our daily school operations and OUR Campus Police Department has established partnerships with other police and emergency agencies in our area.” The statement also reiterated the BOEPD’s “See Something, Say Something” mantra, expressing that safety is a “shared responsibility” among staff, students, families and campus police.
Toombs County Schools are also at a raised DEFCON level, according to WTOC.
All schools across Toombs County are ramping up security Friday, following a “disturbing” post on social media.
The Toombs County School System says around 5:45 am Friday, they became aware of the “disturbing” social media post that “insinuated shooting” and notified law enforcement.
TCSS says the post did not mention any Toombs County Schools specifically.
TCSS says Lyons Police Department and the Toombs County Sheriff’s Office were able to get the situation under control before the school day started.
As a precaution, additional officers have been placed at every Toombs County campus as an extra layer of support and security.
Toombs County Schools will remain open Friday, but all campuses will continue to have additional law enforcement on hand.
Liberty County Schools informed parents of online threats, according to WTOC.
The Liberty County School System is letting parents know they are aware of anonymous online threats that have been shared on social media.
The school system says they are taking the threats seriously and have been directed to local law enforcement for investigation.
The Liberty County School System released a statement saying in part, “We want to emphasize to our parents, the importance of speaking with students about making any threats as they will be taken seriously and addressed to the fullest extent possible by law enforcement. The safety of all students and staff is the utmost priority of the Liberty County School System.”
The Liberty County School system (LCSS) and the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) are investigating threats made online to “shoot up” local schools.
A spokesperson with the LCSS said that they are aware of threats made for Snelson-Golden Middle School (SGMS) and Lewis Fraiser Middle School (LFMS).
“We’re aware of the threats that have happened, and it’s being investigated at this time by law enforcement,” the spokesperson said.
“These threats towards our schools are taken seriously, and have been directed to local law enforcement for investigation at this time,” the statement from LCSS said.
A Hall County student was arrested and is accused of online threats, according to Atlanta News First via WTVM.
After a teenager was arrested for allegedly killing four people in a shooting at Apalachee High School on Wednesday, another local teen was taken into custody and accused of making threats online, according to the Gainesville Police Department.
Gainesville police said a 14-year-old faces charges of terroristic threats and disruption of the operation of a public school. They are being held in a regional youth detention center.
After the shooting, social media was ablaze with hoaxes, misinformation and possible threats, police said. Late on Wednesday night, the police department, officials began investigating when the teen allegedly made an alarming social media post “referencing threats and actions.”
The suspect’s name, as well as the school they attend, has not been released. Hall County touches Barrow County, which is home to Apalachee High School.
“Our hearts are broken surrounding the heinous attack at Apalachee High School in our neighboring community,” Gainesville Police Chief Jay Parrish said in a statement. “Hoax or not, we will actively investigate every threat or possible action to any school or student.”
A Thomasville student is in custody after being found with a gun in school, according to WALB.
A student is in custody following a handgun being brought to Maclntyre Park Middle School on Thursday, according to the Thomasville City School System.
Around noon, a student at the middle school told the principal that she had seen a handgun in another student’s bag, per a release. The principal and school resource officer then found that the student searched her belongings and found a handgun.
There were no reports of threats or injuries.
“We are very thankful that the student reported what she had seen as it allowed the administration to quickly secure the firearm. I commend the student who acted to help keep her school safe and the school principal and resource officer who reacted quickly and professionally to mitigate the danger. I am thankful that our students have a relationship with the school administration where they feel comfortable reporting anything suspicious.” [said] Dr. George Kornegay, Thomasville City School interim superintendent
Local politicians discussed school security in the aftermath of the Barrow County shooting, according to WTOC.
Local democrats saying more needs to be done to limit people’s access to firearms saying that in the case of Wednesday’s shooting, a 14-year-old should never have had a gun.
Meanwhile, local republicans putting the focus on safety measures and technology both in and around schools. Both emphasizing the importance of this topic, especially with an upcoming election in just a few months.
“I’m worried more about our value systems and what causes people to do these kind of things. I’m 77 years old, nothing like this ever occurred when I was in school,” said Rep. Bill Hitchens.
“Gun safety is on the ballot. We need to remember that firearms are the leading cause of death for Georgia’s children and teens and that’s a staggering statistic. And we know that parents care deeply about this issue and care deeply about keeping their children safe at school,” said Rep. Anne Westbrook.
Meanwhile, Candler County schools having their own scare on Wednesday, after someone saw images from Apalachee High School and confused that school’s logo with Metter High School’s.
Assistant Superintendent John Jordan with Candler County Schools says, “high school went on a lockdown and school resource officers began canvassing for a potential threat.”
While the report was a mistake, Jordan noting he’s glad someone thought to report something that worried them.
“I love the fact that somebody was concerned and they saw something, they said something,” said Jordan.
Now, the district continuing to learn from how they handled the scare on Wednesday.
“Reconvening to debrief on yesterday’s event with local law enforcement to look at our actions, their actions,” said Jordan.
Crawford County public schools are responding to online threats, according to the Macon Telegraph.
Roberta law enforcement planned to have an increased presence at Crawford County Middle High School on Friday after investigating a school shooting rumor that circulated online.
The threat mentioned that a possible shooting would occur at the school on Friday. School administrators and local law enforcement said the threat originated out of state and wasn’t believed to be credible, according to a Facebook post.
“We can’t find anything credible about this threat, but we’re not going to write it off. We’re going to take it seriously,” Roberta Police Department Chief Ty Matthews said over the phone.
Matthews said the rumor was found on a fraudulent web address that was similar to the school district’s actual webpage.
Crawford County Schools Superintendent Anthony Aikens said he was notified of the threat from a parent, who received the information from her son in North Georgia.
“This same information has been circulated to multiple school districts across the state,” Aikens said in an email. “It has been my experience that this type of threat has happened in the past following school shootings.”
Matthews said local authorities were already taking extra steps to provide more security at the school on Thursday following the school shooting.
“Parents are on edge about this, and rightfully so,” he said. “But we will be there Friday morning and all throughout the day to ease parents’ nerves and make sure the faculty, staff and students can do what they’re there to do.”
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and Forsyth Police Department were also taking extra measures after being made aware of “threatening comments” on social media that could be considered terroristic threats, according to a Facebook post.
Franklin County public schools are closed today after the Barrow shooting, according to AccessWDUN.
Due to online threats made directly towards The Franklin County School System late in the evening on Thursday, officials said through their social media posts that all FCSS schools will be closed on Friday, September 6 for all staff and students.
Authorities are working closely with local law enforcement and the GBI regarding this situation, as heightened awareness is spreading throughout the area following the deadly shootings at Barrow County’s Apalachee High School.
A Muscogee County school was closed after a bomb threat, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.
Students and staff at Jordan Vocational College and Career Academy in Columbus evacuated the building Wednesday after the Muscogee County School District received a report of a potential bomb threat.
After the Columbus Government Center was evacuated in downtown during the morning, Jordan Vocational High School was evacuated in midtown during the afternoon.
Replying to the Ledger-Enquirer’s questions in an email, Muscogee County School District communications director Kimberly Wright said the bomb threat was communicated via phone to a Jordan staff member at 1:56 p.m.
The school was evacuated at 2 p.m., and the scene was declared safe for everyone to return to their classes at 2:20 p.m., Wright said.
More on the Government Center evacuation from the Ledger-Enquirer:
First responders have cleared the Columbus Government Center and allowed people to go back in after a bomb threat caused the building to be evacuated Wednesday morning, Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman said.
Countryman said the sheriff’s office received a report that someone claimed to have set up bombs in all of the courtrooms.
Countryman said the sheriff’s office secured the county judges who were working in the government center and were evacuating all personnel and visitors from the building earlier Wednesday morning.
He said all prisoners at the government center were transported back to the county jail.
“We wanted to take our safety precautions on that and ensure that we can examine all the courtrooms and do a bomb sweep with our K-9 dogs that are trained to detect bombs,” Countryman told the Ledger-Enquirer.
United States Representative Sanford Bishop (D-Albany) kicked off his campaign for reelection in the November 5, 2024 General Election, according to the Albany Herald.
U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., visited Albany Wednesday to kick off his campaign for re-election to serve Georgia’s 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House, a position he’s held since 1993.
Bishop is the longest-serving U.S. Congressman from Georgia and recently accepted the ceremonial role of dean of the Georgia Congressional Delegation, he said during his campaign kickoff at the downtown Government Center. Bishop served Albany through the Flood of 1994, the tornadoes in 2018 and most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic, he noted.
Bishop said he holds the “top slot” for Democrats in agriculture, which is important in a state with agriculture as its top industry. This slot is on the Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA Appropriations subcommittee.
He also serves on the Authorizing Committee of Agriculture. Through these positions he said, he’d helped work on the Farm Bill, which is a legislation package passed every five years. Bishop said the Farm Bill is “long overdue” in ensuring farmers have a safety net.
Bishop said he’s fought to create and maintain jobs at the Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Fort Moore in Columbus and Albany’s Marine Corps Logistics Base. The Congressman pointed to defense as Georgia’s second industry. He serves on the Military Construction Veterans Affairs Appropriations subcommittee.
“I’m here to ask you to renew my contract for another two years so that … I can continue to finish the job we’ve been working on,” he said. “We want to lower prices … make sure that you … thrive and that you get ahead. We’re trying to work for a strong retirement, a better education … safe communities, support for our law enforcement, affordable, accessible health care, for a strong national defense.”
On the same day he kicked off his campaign in Albany, Bishop joined Georgia Reps. Debbie Buckner and Michelle Au to talk about the Harris-Walz campaign and health care in rural Georgia.
They were joined by Dr. Karen Kinsell, the only full-time doctor in Clay County, a rural county about 50 miles west of Albany. The four shared the same sentiment: Georgia’s rural hospitals won’t survive another Trump presidency.
Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance, have been vocal about ending the Affordable Care Act, an action that Au said would place 1.2 million Georgians at risk of losing health insurance coverage. Since 2010, nine rural Georgia hospitals have closed. Bishop said 18 more of the state’s rural hospitals are in danger of closing and leaving their communities if the ACA were to be disbanded.
“It would cut funds for rural hospitals and would raise the cost (of health care) for millions of rural Americans,” Bishop said.
Georgia is one of 10 states that hasn’t expanded Medicaid under the ACA. Georgia also boasts a higher poverty rate than most states and has the second-highest rate in the nation of people without health insurance. These factors culminate to create a state that is one of the sickest states in the nation, Au said.“Nowhere do these three conditions come together as visibly as in rural Georgia,” she said.
Bishop said Trump inflicted lasting damage on southwest Georgia communities. He pointed to Cuthbert’s Southwest Georgia Regional Medical Center, which closed its doors in 2020 after 70 years of serving Cuthbert and surrounding rural communities.
“That left communities in our district without jobs, without a trusted hospital to turn to in times of sickness or illness or accidents,” Bishop said. “Another four years of Donald Trump in the White House will threaten the existence of hospitals all across rural America.”
Kinsell painted a picture of the underresourced health care system that struggles to serve rural southwest Georgia. The closest hospital to Clay County, she said, doesn’t have a computer for patient care and handwrites notes to patients. Nurse practitioners service the ER because there is only one doctor and pediatrician left in the county.
She said many of her patients fail to get basic care for common diseases like blood pressure or diabetes – they split pills in half because they can’t afford more.
“We deserve better,” she said.
Kinsell said Medicaid is crucial both for Georgians and Georgia hospitals. It keeps rural hospitals open by increasing the amount of care for which they’re reimbursed. She said it helps health care workers by creating a system that has the infrastructure and finances to pay its health care work force, attracting more doctors or nurses to more rural areas.
“Cuts to that coverage would exacerbate the struggles that they already face, particularly in underserved and uninsured populations,” she said. “I don’t think Donald Trump cares about the struggles of Georgians and rural hospitals. Do you think he’s ever worried about paying for a pill? Please. He only cares about catering to the corporations and his wealthy friends at the expense of rural … communities in Georgia and across the country.”
Kinsell said as a doctor in Georgia she believes Harris and her plans to lower health care costs and protect programs like the ACA are what’s best for Georgia.
Bishop said the Biden-Harris administration met rural Georgia’s medical woes head on. It capped the cost of insulin for seniors and fought to protect Medicare and Medicaid. He said Cuthbert is now on the path to re-open its hospital due to the Biden-Harris administration’s appropriation of millions of dollars of federal funding.
During his campaign kickoff, Bishop stressed the upcoming presidential election as being “extremely consequential.”
“The other side wants to take us back. We don’t want to go back,” he said. “We want to go forward.”
Savannah-Chatham public schools’ STEM Academy adopted a new cell phone policy, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Savannah-Chatham County Public School System’s (SCCPSS) STEM Academy at Bartlett Middle School, 207 E Montgomery Cross Road, included a new electronic device policy in its Student Handbook as of Aug. 1. Students now place their personal cell phones into a lock box, which can hold up to 24 phones, from the first bell to the final bell, said Principal Lydia Taylor.
One student told her that he liked the new policy because the school atmosphere seemed calmer. However, he divulged to her that he kept a calculator in his pocket because it felt like a phone.
Youth mental health research such as a 2020 National Institutes of Health study found smartphone and social media use can cause “sleep deprivation, and negative effects on cognitive control, academic performance and socioemotional functioning.”
The Pew Research Center published a report in June stating 72% of high school teachers agree that “cell phone distraction is a major problem in the classroom.”
Youth mental health research such as a 2020 National Institutes of Health study found smartphone and social media use can cause “sleep deprivation, and negative effects on cognitive control, academic performance and socioemotional functioning.”
The Pew Research Center published a report in June stating 72% of high school teachers agree that “cell phone distraction is a major problem in the classroom.”
SCCPSS’s Student Code of Conduct details the Use of Electronic Devices by Students – Policy JCDAF-R(1), which essentially places any restrictions of personal electronic device use on each individual school, with language that allows for the buck to stop with teachers or school personnel. The policy was originally adopted on July 11, 2012 and last revised on May 11, 2022.
The City of Eastman raised their property tax millage rate, according to 13WMAZ.
Eastman just raised millage taxes by 2.5%.
City officials said they needed to use this money for more positions in the police department and fire department.
“I’m also a tax payer and I own a house in the city and nobody wants to pay more taxes,” Eastman police chief Billy Cooper said. “But as far as my department we’re just trying to get back where we used to be.”
Cooper says he has seen the need for more officers in his department and in the fire department.
He says that’s why the city is raising taxes by 2.05 mills.
The extra money will add three jobs to his department and three to the fire department.
“In 2000, we answered 369 calls in the month of January and we had more officers than we have today,” Cooper said. “In January of this year, we answered 772 calls.”
Cooper says they only have 11 officers right now.
Graham Snyder is the chairman of the Eastman City Council. He says the city relies on these departments to keep them safe.
If your house is worth 50,000 a two mill increase will cost you about $3.40 cents a month and for a 125,000 home it’s about $8.50 cents.
New Tybee Island City Manager Bret Bell discussed the community’s priorities, according to WTOC.
“It’s the best community, I feel like, in America, and it needs an organization that really sort of gets that. So that’s my game plan,” said Tybee Island City Manager Bret Bell.
But as City Manager, he’s getting to know the community in a different way than as a local meeting with City Council and department heads to learn their priorities and how things are operating now.
“I understand how good organization works, and my goal is to help empower these individuals to make good choices, and make sure that those choices are aligned with our Council’s strategic priorities,” said Bell.
At the top of Bell’s list of to-dos – getting the Fire Department in order.
In recent weeks, they’ve lost their EMS license and been warned by the State of Georgia their whole department could lose their certification because the interim fire chiefs aren’t certified to be in those roles.
”As I’m going around talking to the community, and we’re talking through a lot of issues, and they’re serious issues that need to be addressed, I always like to remind people that they live in paradise and things can’t get that bad, right, if you’re living in paradise? It really is such a wonderful community. That’s what attracted me,” said Bell.
Bell adds that the fire department’s EMS license will hopefully be restored Friday.
Chatham County Sheriff John Wilcher spoke to media for the first time since his hospitalization, according to WTOC.
Chatham County Sheriff John Wilcher is back to work after a hospital stay this year.
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