Protestors clash in Stone Mountain — Soda Citizen

STONE MOUNTAIN, GA: August 15

Photos and words by Sean Rayford.

“We're here to defend our rights. To be called a white supremacist — or a nationalist or any other derogatory term — I mean, it ain’t true,” says Chris Hill, leader of Georgia III% Security. “I’m not wearing a KKK robe or a Nazi uniform, or a brown shirt, or none of that shit. I'm a damn free American citizen.”

Hill is in downtown Stone Mountain, GA on Sunday with about ten others from his team, rallying with other right wing militia groups and pro-Confederates in response to a challenge from Grandmaster Jay, leader of the Not Fucking Around Coalition. But NFAC isn’t here today. And in fact, no one is at Stone Mountain because the police have the park shut down. There are however, over a hundred demonstrators who’ve assembled in the small downtown section of the Atlanta Suburb. Civil rights activists, organized by Flower United, outnumber pro Confederates about 2 to 1.

“They called out III%ers and militias and pretty much issued a dare - issued a threat. And this was originally supposed to be a way counter that. To say hey, ‘we're not afraid of anybody.’ Much less being called out by a black supremacy militia,” says Hill, using “militia” mockingly.

Directly behind Hill, a man who arrived in the morning with a large Confederate battle flag, and who identifies as Rev-Zac Hay on social media, reveals a Nazi flag. “I tried to join the III%ers and y'all kicked me out,” says Hays when the flag is called to attention.

Hill says he disassociates from Neo-Nazis, but Alex Johnson, of Atlanta, doesn’t buy it. “Chris Hill — he was in the meeting with [Chester] Doles. They can say that they don’t know what's going on. Even if you want to give them that, we can't give Chris Hill that.” Doles is former leader in the Klu Klux Klan, affiliated with a white-separatist group, the National Alliance, and appeared at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville with the Hammerskins.

“If you ask those [other] guys what is going on, they're confused about the sequence of events. Because again, Doles and the other actual Neo-Nazis were the people that filed the permits,” says Johnson.

Dionisio Tabora of Stone Mountain, like Johnson, came to protest racial inequality. “The III %ers haven’t spouted any racist terms or done anything racist - it's other people not connected that came to this rally who had done racist things,” he says.

An hour later and three blocks away in front of Stone Mountain First United Church, shoving matches and fights begin breaking out. For more than thirty minutes, small groups erupt in violence before being separated by fellow demonstrators. Eventually, riot police clear the street and issue an order to disperse. No arrests reported.

“There's a lot of misunderstandings. And I think that's one of the things we need to tackle as a country,” says Tabora.

Dionisio Tabora, left, with Atlanta Protest for Justice.