Clarkston Community Speaks Out stating The City Manager is NOT the Problem

A Frustrated Community Speaks Out
Advocates: The problems in Clarkston have preceded the appointment of the city manager and there have been too many threats being made

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 7, 2023

 

Clarkston, GA – Several members of the Clarkston Community are gathering to speak out as they feel their voices are not being heard and their complaints are being ignored.

Members of the Clarkston community have stated their frustration that there has been a one-sided narrative in the local media, even after numerous complaints and submitted documentation.

Women Watch Afrika has always been an advocate for the marginalized community and was able to seat down with community members to gather the following information.

After several community meetings, Women Watch Afrika has decided to release publicly the information shared by some of the city of Clarkston community members who feel their voices have been suppressed and ignored.

The media has given a narrative of warring factions in which claims are being made that the Clarkston City Manager has failed to do her job and that this is the reason for the mass police resignation.

However, many community members have spoken up at several Clarkston City Council meetings stating that this not the case.  In fact, there have been allegations made at those meetings that the Clarkston Police Chief is the reason the police officers have been leaving.  There have been allegations of mistreatment, harassment, and threats. None of which seem to have made it into the media coverage that are posted after each meeting.

As such, the marginalized community voices spoke with Women Watch Afrika asking that their voices be heard and shared.

The narrative of police officers leaving because of salary or because of a difficult work environment has been in the news.  But the complaint that some officers have shared that the difficult work environment has been caused by the Police Chief has been ignored.  Instead, a false narrative is being told that the blame is with the city manager.

For the first time in the history of Clarkston, the City Manager is a female who is also a Black woman. The community members state that the City Manager has been discharging her job satisfactorily for the benefit of the community.  The community members further state that moves to remove the City Manager from office stem from City Manager stating that police salary increases should be incremental to avoid a severe impact on the city’s budget.  The City of Clarkston is not like the City of Atlanta–it is a smaller city, it is more residential and not as commercial, and cannot afford to pay the police the same amount that Atlanta pays its police.  This view, stated by the City Manager, led to several verbal and written attacks and threats to the City Manager and started the campaign to have her removed from office.

However, community members who have themselves spoken to some of the resigning police officers, were informed by the officers that they are leaving because of the difficult work environment created by their Police Chief and not because of a salary issue.

Additionally, the community members state that the city manager’s work reviews are excellent. There were no write ups and no disciplinary actions in her personnel file. In fact, there were no prior incidents reported before the police chief’s reprimand in April 2023 (which was around when the salary issue campaign started).

For clarity, there were police salary raises for selected officers in 2022 and 2023.

Since 2016, under the Police Chief leadership, 51 police officers have left the police department–meaning police officers have been leaving before the appointment of the current City Manager 18 months ago.  Currently, as acknowledged by the mayor at the last city council meeting, there are 5-9 officers in the police department.

In reviewing past raises, it was shown that three (3) police department heads have received recent raises, while two (2) the Municipal Court Clerk and PED Director did not receive raises.

The community members further state that several grievances of misconduct have been filed against the Clarkston Police Chief.

In addition, the community members stated that the elected officials were sent notices of the incorrect and falsified information submitted to the media but the elected officials did not respond or take action.

From 2021 to 2022, police officers received 10 % hazard pay; and that was increased in 2022 to 2023.  The Clarkston City Council approved the budget and increased the hazard pay to 15%. The Finance Director Dan Defnall publicly acknowledged that the city of Clarkston is more fiscally responsible and stable in the last two years that the City Manager has been working for the city of Clarkston. Thereby showing that the City Manager has been fiscally responsible in her duties.

Under the direction of the City Manager, the city of Clarkston was able to purchase 2 plus acres of land for the expansion of city parks.

The City Manager has served dual roles as the functioning City Manager and the Planning/Economic Development Director with NO additional pay.

Moreover, the City Manager is the only city employee that has received the required classes needed for the city to be a local issuing authority from the Georgia Department of Transportation.  She was the only Representative from Georgia chosen for the Leadership International City County Managers.  The City Manager is on the ICMA planning committee, she was chosen for Leadership DeKalb, and the City Manager fostered the partnership for the Atlanta United Soccer Clinic in the city.

It was stated that the City Manager saved the city over $60000 in service delivery revenue in her first year of employment with the City of Clarkston and that the City Manager created the application to adopt the resolution from the Georgia Municipal Association to be one of the inaugural cities of civility.

Under the leadership of the City Manager, the city of Clarkston has been awarded a $324000 LCI grant, the police department has received a 409,000 dollar grant, and Clarkston has been recognized as a Georgia economic placemaking community.

Because of the City Manager, the first mixed use development is underway in the Clarkston town center district and homeowners were able to receive weatherization, residents were able to receive temporary rental assistance, utility assistance, and business assistance.  To sum it up, the City Manager has been doing an excellent job and has been an asset to the city of Clarkston and to the residents of Clarkston.

However, the community members state that since the false narratives started being spread, the City Manager has received several hate harassing emails, texts, and threats from individuals because she is Black and Muslim.  And so far, no one on the city council has stepped up to speak out against the abuse publicly.  It has been the community members and grassroots organizations in the community, that have been speaking out against this unfair treatment as the City Manager has continued to be bullied, harassed, and defamed under hostile conditions.

The community members state that numerous emails have been forwarded to the mayor and city council regarding the unsafe conditions, threats, and list of grievances faced by the City Manager but they have received no responses.

Consequently, frustrated with the lack of response, the community members are speaking out.

It is unhelpful if the media keeps sharing a one-sided narrative and ignoring the real threats.  It is necessary that all voices be heard.  The community will be speaking out again at the next Clarkston City Council meeting, and all eyes will be on the city council and on the media’s report after the fact.

 

 

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