Morning, y’all! Big season for Abrahamic religions. The holy month of Ramadan began today for Muslims, and Ash Wednesday marks the start of the solemn Christian season of Lent. With all the fasting and spiritual contemplation, you may have some cranky friends. Here’s how to support them.
Let’s get to it.
QUESTIONS AFTER TEACHER KILLED IN ICE CHASE CRASH
Credit: Adam Van Brimmer/AJC
Credit: Adam Van Brimmer/AJC
Savannah is mourning the loss of a beloved teacher who was killed by a driver officials say was fleeing ICE officers.
- Linda Davis, 52, was in her fourth year teaching special education in Savannah’s public schools and had a gift for connecting with students, her colleagues and family said.
- Davis was driving to work Monday when she was struck and killed after a Guatemalan man ran a red light allegedly trying to evade capture by immigration officials.
- The driver is facing several counts, including vehicular homicide. He is in the country illegally, according to ICE, but had no prior criminal record.
Area leaders and law enforcement expressed concern over the tragedy
- Chatham County police said they were unaware of the ICE operation.
- The chairman of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners noted county police standards would not have allowed the pursuit. He also said local police may have been able to help if ICE had involved them.
- Savannah Mayor Van Johnson questioned whether Davis’ death could have been prevented. “What this individual was wanted for, did it necessitate the end result?” he said.
🔎 READ MORE: This is the third fatal traffic crash involving ICE agents in the past year
Not signed up yet? What’re you waiting for? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.
REMEMBERING THE REV. JESSE JACKSON
Credit: Louie Favorite/AJC
Credit: Louie Favorite/AJC
I may be poor, but I am Somebody; I may be young, but I am Somebody; I may be on welfare, but I am Somebody.
After civil rights giant Jesse Jackson died Monday at 84, Atlanta leaders echoed his historic refrain above and lent their voices to Jackson’s memory.
- “He made a tremendous contribution to this country and to the world.” — Ambassador Andrew Young
- “He gave me a glimpse of what is possible and taught me to say, ‘I am somebody.’” — Sen. Raphael Warnock
- “At his heart, he always wanted people to find equality, and he fought for that all the way through the bitter end.” — Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell
UATL has a beautiful collection of thoughts from Atlanta greats on Jackson’s passing, from the King family to other former city mayors.
NEW WARNINGS ON FBI RAID FALLOUT
Fulton County filed a motion arguing the FBI’s seizure of the county’s 2020 election ballots violated the Fourth Amendment and that the action was based on “possible,” rather than “probable cause.”
Attorneys for the county blasted the credibility of the affidavit and of White House officials who backed the raid.
They’re not the only ones to issue a warning over the aftermath of the raid.
Former Dem. Gov. Roy Barnes and former GOP Sen. Saxby Chambliss told the AJC’s “Politically Georgia” podcast that the Trump administration’s relitigation of Fulton County could undermine confidence in Georgia’s election system and set a dangerous precedent.
The two former officials work together through the bipartisan Democracy Defense Project, which seeks to preserve election integrity.
🔎 READ MORE: Barnes says FBI surely has ‘better things to do’
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
📺 Warner Bros. Discovery has briefly reopened takeover talks with Skydance-owned Paramount to hear the company’s “best and final” proposal, even as the Hollywood giant continues to support the studio and streaming deal it reached with Netflix.
💼 President Donald Trump will headline his first Georgia event since reclaiming the White House when he visits Rome on Thursday. The White House says the focus will be jobs and affordability.
🗳️ Longtime Republican utility regulator Tricia Pridemore said Tuesday she won’t seek another term this fall, opening up a seat on the powerful Georgia Public Service Commission in an already tense year for Republicans.
⚡ Georgia Power has proposed a plan that would lower monthly utility bills for customers as soon as this summer, ending a series of six rate increases that started in 2023. The company’s plan still needs to be approved by the Georgia Public Service Commission, after hearings that are set to unfold over the next few months.
A NEW SEASON OF ‘IT’S UATL’!
Credit: Illustration: Broly Su/AJC
Credit: Illustration: Broly Su/AJC
“It’s UATL,” the AJC’s Black culture podcast, is back in action. The season 2 premiere features a candid conversation with Mayor Andre Dickens on Atlanta’s status as a Black mecca.
Plus, hosts Nedra Rhone, Najja Parker and DeAsia Paige share the latest on the rebrand of legendary HBCU spring break bash Orange Crush, and wax poetic on Bad Bunny’s Afro-Caribbean connections.
Part of what makes “It’s UATL” so special is the great chemistry among its leading trio.
“We’ve allowed ourselves to be really vulnerable with each other, and that has been a bonus to us and our listeners,” says Nedra Rhone.
Get a peek at the new season here. Plus, listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also tell your smart speaker to “play ‘It’s UATL’ podcast.”
ATL SCHOOL LUNCHES LEVEL UP
Buffalo chicken pasta, sushi, elote-inspired mac and cheese, a Lowcountry boil: School kids deserve to eat good!
- AJC food critic Henri Hollis got to taste-test 10 new lunch options from Fulton County Schools alongside students for the eighth annual Student Choice Food Challenge.
- School nutrition staff and vendors use the event to test new recipes and get feedback from the very kids who will be eating them.
- While flavor is important, there’s a lot that goes into creating nutritious high-quality lunches for an education system as large and diverse as Fulton County. Entire careers and areas of expertise are dedicated to the pursuit.
So, what did Hollis think of the latest creations?
“Placed in their proper context, these school lunches blew me away,” he writes.
🍽️ TODAY’S MUST-READ: The details of a good school lunch, plus taste test standouts
NEWS BITES
Italy’s men win the country’s first speedskating gold in 20 years
We love a good win for the home team.
It’s not tanking, it’s, uh, tactical failure.
Lunar New Year ushers in the Year of the Horse
Horse girls (and guys), it’s your time.
ON THIS DATE
Feb. 18, 1931
Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
Entire nation embroiled in war over potlikker-cornpone etiquet. A nationwide upheaval, extending to the highest circle of philological erudition, has followed The Constitution’s defense of an age-old southern tradition against the vehement assaults of Huey P. Long, governor of Louisiana and United States senator-elect. And at a dinner-dance here Tuesday night … a discussion of cornpone and potlikker led (to) a vote. The dunkers were defeated 136 to 16 ...
While that entire paragraph felt like a series of cuss words, the question at hand was, should cornpone (a type of cornbread, for you philistines) be dunked into potlikker (the juice from a pot of greens) or crumbled?
For fear of taking the wrong side, I think it depends on the structural integrity of the corn pone (we put a space in there these days) and whether or not dunking would get your fingers all messy.
ONE MORE THING
Corn pone is incredibly easy and cheap to make, and the texture is exquisite. Put a fried egg on there, maybe some hot sauce? Now that’s a morning.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
