Morning, y’all. So where did you land this holiday weekend? Maybe you followed your stomach, Joey Chestnut style. Or perhaps you were among the 50,000-plus who ran the 56th Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race. This year’s field came from all 50 states and 27 countries. The youngest runner was 10; the oldest 96. The fastest time was 27 minutes, 35 seconds. Incredible.
Photos here. Full inspirational story here. What do you think of this year’s T-shirt?
Certainly a lot to cover locally following the long weekend, but we are starting in Athens — with a story of hope.
CRAYONS, CHESS, FREEDOM
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
Some days at Athens-Clarke County Jail start with a box of crayons. A cohort of men pick at random and get 10 minutes to draw “anything you value.”
On another day, they’ll write a letter to the 16-year-old version of themselves. They start with an affirmation: that they matter, that they aren’t broken. Then they name a trauma that shaped them, the mistakes it fueled and the resilience it built. It ends with practical advice, anchored in four core principles: trustworthiness, truthfulness, honesty and integrity.
Athens-Clarke County Jail embarked this year on a bold experiment aimed at making it less likely inmates will return after they’re set free.
Inmates are picked to participate in daily classes on topics such as conflict resolution, fatherhood, addiction and art. They range in age from 22 to 55.
Most are awaiting trial or sentencing hearings, with charges that include aggravated assault, burglary, intent to commit theft and probation violations.
There are some intriguing pieces of this program, which is led by Shane Sims, a 47-year-old former convicted felon.
- The men live apart from the general population without an officer watching them around the clock.
- They sleep in a large common space instead of smaller cells and hold each other accountable while managing their daily routines.
- The second week includes an “Adverse Childhood Experiences Quiz.” It has 10 questions about trauma before age 18: abuse, neglect, living with addiction or violence.
- A lesson in chess: You win by setting goals that take dozens of moves.
- A graduation ceremony, with suits donated by local churches and the Masonic lodge. For many, it’s their first time tying a tie.
“People asked how we could we afford to do this. I responded: How can we afford not to do this?"
🔎 When you need a break from your Monday, read all of Fletcher Page’s excellent story.
Not signed up yet? What’re you waiting for? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.
BEHIND THE NEW BIG BILL
President Donald Trump on Friday signed into law a massive bill that makes sweeping changes to health care, food benefits and green energy incentives while cutting taxes. Independent budget analysts say the bill will increase the national debt by trillions.
It’s known as both the “big, beautiful bill” or the reconciliation bill. Either way, the AJC has a breakdown on how its provisions could play out in Georgia. Among the notes:
- Medicaid and health care: About 310,000 Georgians are expected to lose health insurance under the legislation. The state’s biggest health insurance coverage loss would come not through Medicaid but via changes to the Affordable Care Act exchange, also known here as Georgia Access.
- Agriculture: Farm provisions in the bill modifying the Federal Crop Insurance Program are expected to boost the state’s ag industry.
- Education: The bill ends one student loan program and puts a cap on borrowing for another.
HIGHER ED QUALITY ASSURANCE
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
The University System of Georgia joined with five other Southern state systems (in Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas) to form the Commission for Public Higher Education.
The new agency’s goal is to create an accreditation model that will “focus on academic excellence, student outcomes, process efficiency, and the pursuit of quality assurance.”
The AJC’s Jason Armesto writes it’s a development that follows recent attacks against accreditors, as conservatives like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have accused them of being “woke” while criticizing their diversity, equity and inclusion standards.
MUST-KNOW POLITICS, BUSINESS AND NATIONAL NEWS
🙏 Families sifted through waterlogged debris Sunday and stepped inside empty cabins at Camp Mystic, an all-girls summer camp ripped apart by flash floods that washed homes off their foundations and killed at least 82 people in central Texas. Dozens remain unaccounted for across the state.
🛟 Multiple people were injured after flames erupted from two boats, one on Lake Lanier and the other on Lake Nottely, during the Fourth of July holiday, officials said. The fire in Hall County was extinguished using a portable pump, while the vessel in Union County burned and sank at the shoreline.
👣 The Atlanta City Council approved a new 535-mile expansion plan known as Trails ATL that aims to make the city more walkable, bringing 10-minute access to trails for 95% of city residents by 2052.
🇺🇸 Elon Musk said he’s carrying out his threat to form a new political party after his fissure with President Trump, announcing the America Party in response to the president’s sweeping tax cuts law.
CAPRISUN POKE TO THE CHEST
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez
If you’ve wandered past Connally Hotel on Peachtree Street, then you’ve probably been puzzled by the nearly 17-story mural of a kneeling man who appears to be being impaled by a giant straw. Or is that a beam of light?
Either way, the mystifying mural’s days might be numbered, writes the AJC’s Thomas Lake.
NEWS BITES
‘Killer Bees’ swarm close to Georgia border
Don’t panic. I repeat, don’t panic.
Fire guts Virginia-Highland gelato shop
GoFundMe has already nearly hit the $9,000 goal. People are great.
Braves’ Olson, Sale overcome slow starts to earn All-Star selections
Congratulations to them. The team, however, is a season-worst 11 games under .500 after being swept by the Orioles.
Make it two: Dream’s Rhyne Howard joins Allisha Gray as WNBA All-Stars
The Dream, meanwhile, sit in second place in the Eastern Conference standings.
ON THIS DATE
July 6, 1933
Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
The Atlanta Journal — Comiskey Park is jammed for All-Star Game. Baseball’s dream game came true at Comiskey Park Thursday … Not a cloud streaked the skies as the capacity throng started trooping into the park hours before game time.
Cheating here by a day, but it lets me remind y’all that the MLB All-Star Game is set to be played in Atlanta on July 15. The festivities begin Friday, July 11, at Truist Park with the HBCU Swingman Classic, an All-Star game between players from historically Black colleges and universities.
ONE MORE THING
For all you fellow fans of the “Simpsons,” you will get a kick out of Apu/Moe Szyslak/Chief Wiggum Hank Azaria’s latest act: lead singer of a Bruce Springsteen tribute band. Hank Azaria and the EZ Street Band perform Saturday at The Eagle Theatre.
Since you read all the way to the bottom, you must be wondering if I were a Chestnut or a Peachtree Racer. Well, I landed somewhere in the middle. Got a little sore from a half-mile jog with my dog, while also battling meat sweats from inhaling a big ol’ burger and far too much of my friend Kevin’s famous chicken casserole.
Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
