Atlanta has long been known as a center of black wealth, political power and culture; a cradle of the Civil Rights Movement [1] and home to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It has often been called a black mecca.[2]
The 2010 and 2000 black population of the city of Atlanta was:[3] [4] [5] [6]
From 2000 to 2010 Atlanta saw significant shifts in the racial composition of its neighborhoods. (See: Demographics of Atlanta: Race and ethnicity by neighborhood) There was a decrease in the black population in the following areas:
While there was an increasing black population in these areas:
In Metro Atlanta, Black Americans are the largest racial minority at 32.4% of the population, up from 28.9% in 2000. From 2000-2010, the geographic distribution of blacks in Metro Atlanta changed significantly. Long concentrated in the city of Atlanta and DeKalb County, the black population there dropped while over half a million African Americans settled across other parts of the metro area, including approximately 112,000 in Gwinnett County, 71,000 in Fulton outside Atlanta, 58,000 in Cobb, 50,000 in Clayton, 34,000 in Douglas, and 27,000 each in Newton and Rockdale Counties.[7]
In 2015, Greater Atlanta had the greatest numerical gain in new black residents of any city area in the U.S., with more than 198,031 black residents moving there, according to an analysis of census data.[8]
Since 1973, Atlanta has consistently elected black mayors, and two in particular have been prominent on the national stage, Andrew Young and Maynard Jackson. Jackson was elected with the support of the predominantly white business community, including the chairmen of Coca-Cola, Citizens & Southern National Bank, the Trust Company of Georgia, and architect and Peachtree Center developer John Portman. They were hopeful that a new progressive coalition would be forged between downtown and City Hall; but they were not prepared for the level of support for the goals of the black community that the mayor provided through support for minority-based businesses
