The scenes from Atlanta, GA on Friday afternoon were incredible and powerful.  The scenes from Friday night, however, were something different altogether.

During the daylight hours, an incredibly diverse group of Atlantans gathered to pay their respects to those who have been unjustly killed in incidents involving the police, including George Floyd of Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor of Louisville.

Some of the images from the capital of the south were heart wrenchingly beautiful.

Look at Atlanta 🙏🏾 #JusticeForGeorgeFlyod pic.twitter.com/2t6RApcEIw

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— AMP Davisss ⚡️ (@imdavisss) May 29, 2020

But, as sunset approached, things took an ugly and violent turns.  Police cars where destroyed, several vehicles were set ablaze, and an affluent section of a northern suburb was looted.

That’s when Atlanta Mayor Keish Lance Bottoms made a profound and stern statement. 

“This is not Atlanta. This is not a protest. This is not in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. This is chaos. A protest has purpose. When Dr. King was assassinated we didn’t do this to our city. So if you love this city, this city that has had a legacy of black mayors and black police chiefs and people who care about this city where more than 50 percent of the business owners in metro Atlanta are minority business owners, if you care about this city then go home.”

And her tone was unmistakable.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms says the violent demonstrations in Atlanta are “disgracing the life of George Floyd”: “When you burn down this city, you’re burning down our community. If you want change in America, go and register to vote.” https://t.co/N5oZfxvFs3 pic.twitter.com/us3whIQnqu

— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 30, 2020

Bottoms would then yield the floor to local Atlanta musicians T.I. and Michael Render, (stage named Killer Mike), the latter of whom also delivered a powerful plea, relating to the crowd that he is the son of a police officer himself.

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