Atlanta, GA
Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church building up Atlanta’s Black community
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Big Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church is known for being the first Black church in Atlanta.
But it doesn’t always get credit for its role in shaping the civil rights movement, Black education, social change, and even political influence.
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For over a century, Big Bethel has been lifting up Black voices when others tried to silence them.
“There wasn’t a bigger Black-held facility in the city of Atlanta than this place. Us and Wheat Street were it for Black congregations meeting over a thousand people,” said Pastor John Foster.
For the past 11 years, Pastor Foster has been a testament to the true power of what ministry can do.
“We support a halfway house for men dealing with substance abuse two blocks away. Right behind us is this 180-unit affordable housing complex called Bethel Towers that gives subsidized housing to the community,” Pastor Foster said. “We have young people that work really diligently with the homeless.”
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The work didn’t start there. Turn the page back to the late 1700s and head north to Pennsylvania where former slave Richard Allen was forbidden from praying at St. George’s Church.
Determined to worship, Allen formed the original Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia. His voice eventually spread all the way to the south, leading to Atlanta’s first Methodist Episcopal Church — Bethel Tabernacle.
“During the 1960s, Big Bethel was one of the four pillars civil rights churches. It was on this strip here — Wheat Street, then Big Bethel, and then Ebenezer and Butler Street,” Pastor Foster said.
The church became the Black city hall for prominent civil rights leaders and politicians to meet.
In 1881, the church decided to establish a space for higher learning.
“Eventually we started having some classes held here at Big Bethel,” said Historian Ernest Tate. “There were other sites as well.”
Born out of the basement of Big Bethel, it would be called Morris Brown College.
“I couldn’t ask for anything better,” said Morris Brown College graduate Charles Moore.
At 100 years old, Moore still remembers his time on campus after fighting in World War II. He majored in business and graduated with honors. He returned later to run business operations for the HBCU.
“I ended up staying there 15 years at Morris Brown. Could you imagine that?” Moore said.
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The walls of Big Bethel have borne witness to success stories like Brother Moore, offering a platform for Black folks to stand on.
“You have everything from the first NAACP conference in the south that was held at Big Bethel in 1920,” Tate said.
“This area just holds a great amount of pride and history about what God has done through the African-American community,” Pastor Foster said.
Copyright 2024 WANF. All rights reserved.
Atlanta, GA
Buckhead apartment building evacuated due to dangerous carbon monoxide levels
ATLANTA – A Buckhead apartment building was evacuated for a time late Tuesday night due to a carbon monoxide alarm.
What we know:
The incident occurred at an apartment complex in the 2900 block of Pharr Court South.
According to Atlanta Fire Rescue, firefighters are investigating elevated carbon monoxide levels.
The entire building was evacuated as a precaution.
One person was evaluated at the scene for possible carbon monoxide exposure.
Crews ventilated the building while they looked for the source.
Firefighters say they were able to finally locate the source and contain it.
Once readings were back to a safe level, residents were allowed back inside the apartments.
What we don’t know:
It remains unclear how many residents were displaced by the evacuation.
The Source: The details in this article come from the Atlanta Fire Rescue.
Atlanta, GA
2 arrested in deadly drive-by shooting of 7-year-old Atlanta girl, police say
Two suspects in a shooting that left a 7-year-old Atlanta girl dead and her mother injured are now in custody nearly a week after the violence, police say.
The shooting happened around 9:45 p.m. on Feb. 24 at a home on the 2200 block of Tiger Flowers Drive NW.
Investigators believe the shooting stemmed from a dispute between one of the victim’s family members and the gunman over the phone. Thirty minutes after the argument, the suspect came back and fired shots into the home, police said.
Officers responding to the scene found a 44-year-old woman and her daughter, identified as 7-year-old Zoe Price, shot. Medics rushed the pair to a local hospital, but Price died from her injuries.
Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said the department’s homicide unit secured an arrest warrant for 19-year-old Preston Smith two days after the shooting. Smith turned himself in to the Fulton County Jail on March 2.
Schierbaum said officers executed a search warrant on Feb. 27 at a home on McDaniel Street. On that day, 17-year-old Steven Richardson, who police described as an “accomplice,” turned himself in to authorities.
Both men are charged with murder, criminal attempt to commit murder, three counts of aggravated assault, second-degree criminal damage to property, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and four counts of third-degree cruelty to children. Richardson is also charged with possession of a Firearm by a Person Under 18.
At a press conference to announce the arrests, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens described Price as a bright and compassionate little girl who was “full of energy and full of joy.”
“Her life was cut short in an act of senseless violence, and that loss is not abstract. It is a chair that is going to be missing at the dinner table each night. It is an empty classroom seat next to her friends,” Dickens said.
The mayor called the arrests “a step forward towards justice” for Price’s family and families across the city.
Dickens said that violence, like the act that took Price’s life, would not be tolerated in Atlanta.
Atlanta, GA
Atlanta Braves News: Top 30 Prospects, Starting Pitching Depth, More
On Monday, the Braves were able to earn another Spring Training victory over the Detroit Tigers. It was a game where the starting pitching depth of the Braves was on full display, as Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz, and Owen Murphy all threw multiple innings. While it is likely unwise to expect big things from any of these three arms this season, they are a part of the “next man up” group for the Braves if injury again impacts the rotation. Each had a solid effort today, a trend that will hopefully continue.
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