Recently the city of Atlanta, Georgia, has been in the news regarding the construction of a government building that is being built for a public safety training center. The Atlanta Public Training Center, deemed “Cop City” by those opposing such, is designed to provide specialized training for both police and fire departments.
Anti-police activists have targeted this construction with actual acts of terror, saying it will militarize police and endanger communities. The building area has been vandalized numerous times, and protests about the construction have resulted in a police car being set on fire, fireworks being set off, windows in businesses in Atlanta smashed, and other such mayhem.
Closer to home, we have our own “Cop City.” The town of Fitchburg proposed that a $47 million facility be constructed to support the police department. The department itself is currently housed in the basement of the Fitchburg City Hall. The police chief, who previously served in Milwaukee, Alfonso Morales, has determined that a larger facility is needed to ensure public safety. Crime from Madison is spilling over and other areas in the vicinity also need support.
The Fitchburg Police Department really needs a building with a jail, more square footage for detaining criminals and to simply provide adequate working conditions for the police as they are doing their jobs.
One would think such a proposal is a no-brainer. However, in this day and age of vilifying and hating the police, the little town of Fitchburg incurred the wrath of many “Freedom Inc.” attendees at a Common Council Committee meeting where this proposal was put to the public. Fitchburg is not a large community, but Freedom Inc. – a liberal activist group based in Madison – had such in their sights.
A letter was sent out to Freedom Inc. activists before the meeting, urging attendance, in which the following was stated: “The national trend of constructing oversized police facilities, a.k.a. Cop Cities, is an alarming and treacherous path that Dane County must steer clear of entirely. Policing practices and public spending priorities perpetuate systemic racism and oppression against Black and SEA communities. Freedom, Inc. firmly believes that officials must prioritize the needs of the community over the financially irresponsible police budget in Fitchburg. We know that we keep us safe.”
Dan O’Donnell of WISN radio had a segment on the Fitchburg Common Council Meeting on Feb. 14, 2024. If anyone wants to be horrified about what activists think – or just how crazy they really are – I highly recommend checking out Dan’s reporting on this meeting.
Wisconsin Right Now also ran a news article summarizing the crazier comments at the meeting and noting that Gov. Tony Evers’ and Attorney General Josh Kaul’s offices have funneled grants to Freedom, Inc.
During Dan’s radio show, he referenced several speakers from Freedom Inc. and their statements about the proposed police department for Fitchburg. To briefly highlight a few: A speaker identified as Connor talked about how F-35’s and F16’s were flying over his apartment in Madison – like a military war zone. He said at least they were not dropping bombs like they do on innocent Palestinians. He stated that “the police are a military force” and “there is no such thing as a good cop.”
Bianca Gomez claimed that the police chief (Alfonso Morales) “likes to harass and intimidate residents.” She does not want the police building built as she does not want to “aide and abade (yes, she said “abade”) a neofascist colonial state.”
Gena Thomas said that a police building is not needed as “police cannot prevent crime… cure illnesses…they don’t build houses…” The police are “symbols of violence and oppression.”
The best is yet to come. Freedom Inc. representative Josh Shilling said that the building will only serve to “increase police terror in Madison and surrounding areas.” A proposed gun range for the building will “increase the ability for the police to murder their own citizens”. Mr. Shilling ended his diatribe with the statement: “Pigs IS Pigs.”
Since the audience was comprised of mostly protestors against the police and the proposed police building, there was a smattering of applause after each of the speakers mentioned. (Oh, and did I mention most of the protestors were all wearing masks – is anyone surprised)?
Unfortunately, it appears as though for now the Fitchburg Common Council lost its backbone and was too afraid to stand up to those who hate law and order. The proposed building was put on hold. At least Atlanta and the Atlanta police force had the guts to do the right thing – the right thing necessary to protect the law-abiding among their citizens and not cave to the “social justice” (i.e. “criminals are the real victims”) warriors. “Cop City” – The Atlanta Public Training Center – will become a reality in Georgia. Here’s hoping that eventually the good folks and Common Council in Fitchburg – who are law-abiding and want to protect the community from the criminal element – will do the right thing and allow a new police department to be built.
In closing, it was interesting to read the news takes on this meeting. Not one mention of the hateful anti-police vitriol in any of the Madison online papers. Not one mention of the overabundance of one political activist group (Freedom Inc) whose members appeared to outnumber those in attendance. The loud voices of the minority ruled by intimidation over those who at the time were too afraid to do the right thing. Seems to be happening a lot these days.
(I wish to thank Dan O’Donnell for giving me permission to reference his radio show on this subject. Check out Dan O’Donnell – News/Talk 1130 WISN (iheart.com) and/or Dan’s Twitter at: Dan O’Donnell (@DanODonnellShow) / X (twitter.com))
