Petition Seeks Renaming Of Confederate Avenue In Atlanta

ATLANTA, GA -- Bolstered by similar efforts around metro Atlanta, a new online petition seeks to rename Confederate Avenue in Atlanta. Longtime Atlanta resident Joe Thomas, the creator of the petition, says it's time he is well acquainted with Confederate Avenue.

"It was part of our route to Braves games, and it was where I waited for the school bus," he says in the petition. "We used it so much I never thought much about the name. It was normalized. We can't normalize hate any more." (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

Thomas said that he will deliver the petition to Mayor Kasim Reed once it reaches its 10,000-signature goal. It has more than 8,500 signatures as of Thursday morning. When and if Thomas' petition reaches Reed, he may find a sympathetic ear.

Reed has formed a group of advisers that will review the Confederate names and markers in the city. "Today, our city is known across the country and world for being a beacon of equality, diversity and inclusion," Reed said in a statement last week. "We must continue to focus on making Atlanta a city for everyone."

Former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes said on a blog posted on the website of his Marietta law firm that he is in favor of changing the name of Confederate Avenue because of the agency that has an address there.

Change Name Of Confederate Avenue In Atlanta, Says Ex-Gov Roy Barnes

In the days since the tragic clashes in Charlottesville, Va., Confederate monuments and markers have been vandalized across the South, even in metro Atlanta. Someone changed the street sign of Confederate Avenue to Considerate Avenue at one corner, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. At another corner, Boulevard, Confederate was spray-painted black.

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Atlanta police officials were notified about the incidents, the AJC reports.

In Kennesaw, vandals twice tore down a Confederate flag after a petition called for its removal. The city's lawmakers passed a resolution to take the case to Georgia's General Assembly.

Kennesaw City Council Passes Resolution to Decide Fate Of Confederate Flag

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