The Jolt: Buckhead cityhood chief pushes “sick” phony MARTA conspiracy
By Patricia Murphy - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Greg Bluestein - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Tia Mitchell - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Although several Cobb County cityhood bills are zipping through the General Assembly this session, a parallel effort to break the Buckhead neighborhood away from the City of Atlanta is stuck somewhere between first gear and park.
One factor is the sheer complexity of trying to strip one piece out of an existing city to create another, as the Buckhead City proponents are trying to do.
But another factor is Bill White, the CEO of the Buckhead City Committee.
Although White is well connected with several lawmakers and was even appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp to the state Board of Corrections, White’s use of social media to amplify race-based or dangerous conspiracies has not escaped the notice of Republican power brokers.
The first was a retweeted-then-deleted post from VDARE, a white nationalist blog.
The latest example came last night when White went to Instagram in an attempt to raise doubts about the recent death of Jeffrey Parker, who was the CEO of MARTA until he died by suicide in January.
Parker was widely respected in the state Capitol and had close relationships with many lawmakers. At the time of his death, Kemp released a statement saying Parker had “an incredible mind for transportation and logistics and a heart for people.”
Shaken members of the state House went to the floor to praise Parker’s work and urge others struggling with mental health challenges to seek help.
A highly placed Republican in the state Capitol called White’s post about Parker’s death “subterranean.” Atlanta City Councilman Amir Farokhi said White’s comments were “sick and should be roundly shouted down.”
White did not respond to a request for comment.