Who Benefits From ‘Buckxit’?

A Wealthy, White Atlanta Neighborhood’s Bid to Secede Shows What Happens When the Toxicity of National Politics Seeps into Local Affairs

Former House Speaker Thomas “Tip” O’Neill’s observation that “all politics are local” has been borne out in countless cases where divisions over hot-button state and local issues have derailed efforts to reach consensus on matters of more national importance. As recent developments remind us, though, polarization in national politics can just as readily exacerbate divisions over state and local issues.

This scenario seems to be playing out in Atlanta, where acolytes of former president Donald Trump are calling for the affluent, predominantly white enclave of Buckhead to secede from the city.

Proponents …

by James C. Cobb | February 3, 2022

Law Enforcement Isn’t Going Away—That Doesn’t Mean It Can’t Be Reimagined

'De-Tasking' Non-Crime Police Work Could Go a Long Way Toward Building a Safer Society

by Joe Mathews | December 11, 2020

If our communities had fewer police officers doing fewer tasks, they could become less dangerous places for everyone, said panelists during at the debut event of a new Zócalo/University of …

Can L.A. Finally Forget the Fatalism of Chinatown?

A UCLA Historian Offers a New Narrative for a City That’s Defined Itself by Its Injustice, Violence, and Corruption

by Joe Mathews | August 18, 2020

A mother, seeking to protect her daughter and herself, fires a gunshot toward her abusive father, and then flees by car. Los Angeles police, on the scene but in no …

Love the Games or Loathe Them, the Olympics Need to Do Better by Competitors and Local Communities

From Displacement to Doping, Athletes Argue for More Moral and Engaged Leadership

by Joe Mathews | June 19, 2020

The Olympic Games need to overhaul their governance and give more decision-making power to athletes if they are ever going to address their many failings, from the costs they impose …

To Rein in California’s Cops, Reclaim City Hall

Escalating Salaries, Benefits, and Pensions for Police Are Crowding Out Other Services Our State Badly Needs

by Joe Mathews | June 9, 2020

When you hear cops reporting widespread looting in California, you should believe them. Because they are true experts. Indeed, for many decades, the most successful looters in our state have …

A Letter From Greece, Where a Photo of a Sheep Is Going Viral | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

A Letter From Greece, Where Quarantined Sheep Go for Walks

A Daily Debate About Safety and Freedom Has Kept Greeks Safe From Sickness

by Eugenia Triantafyllou | May 1, 2020

For Athens, I am in the middle of nowhere. It’s early morning, and I have walked up the hill that overlooks our apartment building with my dog, Skeletor, a young, …

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