The Changing Face of Atlanta

weekdays on Morning Edition, February 23- March 2

For a wide variety of reasons Atlanta has become a magnet for people from across the United States and around the world. Where a generation ago the face of our city was largely black or white, today the metro population is visibly more dynamic in its diversity. During the week of February 23rd -March 2nd, WABE’s Morning Edition will air a series of features and interviews entitled, “The Changing Face of Atlanta” that will offer insight into the recent population trends, what impact the city’s newest neighbors are having on the old, and how we define an “Atlanta identity”.

February 28, 2009Part 6: Buford Highway’s Window on the World
On a map, State Route 13, aka “Buford Highway” stretches at a 45-degree angle northeast from Atlanta, through Chamblee into Doraville. In reality, it runs around the world. Thousands of people from a score of ethnicities have settled along the artery: Hispanics from central and South America; Asians from Vietnam, Cambodia, China, and Korea. In our final segment on “The Changing Face of Atlanta” we’ll tour stores and markets anchored to this “international village” and talk to the entrepreneurs who have found a new life in metro Atlanta.

Listen to Buford Highway’s Window on the World here »

When we started this series, we asked what it means to be an Atlantan. All last week, WABE’s City Café invited listeners to call in with their answers. So as we conclude today, here are some of your answers.

Listen toTalk Back here »
February 27, 2009Part 5: Ambassador Andrew Young, former Congressman and Atlanta mayor
In the 1960s and 1970s African-Americans emerged as the dominant political force in the city. Ambassador Andrew Young was there for that transition, and perhaps as much as any single individual nurtured and preserved the black-white political and business coalition that has served Atlanta successfully for more than a generation. In another 2-part interview, Young reflects on the evolution of that coalition, and offers his thoughts on the roles the region’s newest immigrant groups may play.

Listen here »
February 26, 2009Part 4: D.A. King, President of the Dustin Inman Society
The changing face of Atlanta has spurred a change in attitude toward many of the region’s newest residents as well. D.A. King has become the lightning rod for native and “legal” citizens concerned about the presence of ‘illegal aliens’ or ‘undocumented workers’ (depending on your attitude). Here King clarifies his group’s raison d’etre, and discusses the misconceptions attached to his organization, the Dustin Inman Society.

Listen here »
February 25, 2009Part 3: Elise Shore, Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
Latinos account for the fastest growing and most visible new population group in metro Atlanta. As regional counsel for the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), Elise Shore works to safeguard immigrants’ rights and interests. In a two-part interview, she sheds light on the misconceptions that exist in both the immigrant and native populations, and what challenges those myths present for successful assimilation.

Listen to Part 1 of the extended interview here »

Listen to Part 2 of the extended interview here »
February 24, 2009Part 2: Mike Alexander, the Atlanta Regional Commission
Mike Alexander is a people watcher. As division chief of research for the Atlanta Regional Commission, part of his job is to chart the movement of groups into, out of, and between different sections of metro Atlanta. Whether it’s Hispanics, Asians, African-Americans, Californians, New Yorkers, urbanites or sub-urbanites, Alexander will crunch some numbers and paint a portrait of the changing face of Atlanta.

Listen to Part 1 of the extended interview here »

Listen to Part 2 of the extended interview here »
February 23, 2009Part 1: An Atlanta Identity
Ask yourself, “How would you describe Atlanta’s identity as a city to someone who doesn’t live here?” It’s a question we asked many people who now call Atlanta home. Their answers offer a few common threads that may surprise Atlanta residents, both life-long and recent transplants.

Philly might claim a cheese steak sandwich, Miami art deco buildings, and New Orleans, jazz. But what reflects Atlanta’s identity?

Listen here »