Dear John,

Down here in Georgia, we got some unfortunate news yesterday: Atlanta’s highly anticipated Music Midtown Festival – with headliners like Jack White – announced it would be canceling this year’s event. The reason? Georgia’s dangerous gun laws put in place by Republicans like Brian Kemp.

As more and more Americans are coming to terms with the dangers of gun violence, the festival organizers wanted to ban firearms on the premises of the concert, but Georgia’s gun laws wouldn’t allow it. 

When our state’s laws make it impossible to ensure a safe event and organizers pull the plug, maybe that’s a sign that we’ve gone way too far in the direction of catering to the far right at the expense of public safety and common sense.

The problem isn’t just that music fans will miss out on some great performances in Piedmont Park – this cancellation is a major blow to the local economy. Brian Kemp’s reckless extremism has now caused a huge loss for our business community and folks who were counting on working this two-day event. 

And trust me, John – the Music Midtown Festival won’t be the last major event to pull out of Georgia as long as our state’s extremist Republicans continue to pass laws that cater to special interests and their far-right base. 

This story is indicative of a larger trend, John. It’s not just about a canceled music festival. If we don’t flip Georgia blue in November and elect Stacey Abrams as our next Governor, we can expect our state to continue down a dangerous path where our Republican leaders continue to elevate partisan politics over common sense and people’s lives.

Onwards,
Lucy McBath