Georgia Today: Town sues over new ICE center; GA's education scorecard; Michelle Buteau hits Atlanta

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, a Georgia town is suing the Trump administration to stop the construction of a nice detention center. Georgia Democrats are furious over the push to redraw voting districts, and a new public health initiative will help Georgia pharmacies expand HIV prevention services. 

Natalie Crawford: This is really going to de-stigmatize HIV prevention services. 

Peter Biello: Today is Thursday, May 14. I'm Peter Biello, and this is Georgia Today. 

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Peter Biello: A Georgia town chosen for the site of a new immigration detention center is suing the Trump administration to stop the effort. GPB's Grant Blankenship has more. 

Grant Blankenship: Officials in Social Circle, east of Atlanta, have said all along their water and sewer systems are nowhere near the task of serving the estimated 10,000 detainees ICE plans to house at the warehouse ICE purchased in the city of 5,000 people. Now Social Circle has sued ICE in Georgia's Middle District Federal Court, alleging the agency has completely flouted required environmental review of the warehouse detention center project as spelled out in the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA. Eric Taylor is Social Circle city manager. 

Eric Taylor Environmental protection regulations and administrative regulations require them to do these types of reviews and public input sections and it has not happened. 

Grant Blankenship: A similar suit by the state of Maryland resulted in a preliminary injunction against ICE there. For GPB News, I'm Grant Blankenship in Macon. 

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Peter Biello: Georgia Democrats are blasting Gov. Brian Kemp's call for a special session to redraw political maps. State party chair Charlie Bailey said yesterday the move shows Republicans are scared of Georgia voters. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports Georgia's Legislative Black Caucus is promising to fight any maps that dilute Black voting power. 

Sarah Kallis: Georgia Legislative Black Caucus chair and state Sen. Nikki Merritt says the decision to redraw the state's political maps following a Supreme Court decision weakening the Voting Rights Act is an attempt to silence Black voters. 

Nikki Merritt: This is an attack on Black political power. This is a attack on the growing coalition of voters reshaping the Georgia's future. 

Sarah Kallis: The Legislature will meet on June 17 to start the process of approving new maps ahead of the 2028 election cycle. So far, no proposed maps have been made public. Governor Brian Kemp said Wednesday that Democrats shouldn't criticize the maps before they see them. Georgia is the latest state planning to redraw voting maps amid a national trend of creating districts to favor one party. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis at the state Capitol. 

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Peter Biello: A new public health initiative will help pharmacies expand HIV prevention services in Georgia, where many communities are disproportionately impacted by HIV. GPB's Ellen Eldridge has more. 

Ellen Eldridge: RX for Change is a national coalition to advance HIV services in community pharmacies, including testing and prevention. The partnership includes Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, AIDS United, the Black Public Health Academy, and the National Pharmaceutical Association. Natalie Crawford is an associate professor with Emory. She says bringing HIV prevention services into pharmacies will increase access and reduce stigma. 

Natalie Crawford: You can go for a bag of chips or your allergy medication. No one knows what you are going in there to get. It's really going to — this is really going to de-stigmatize HIV prevention. 

Ellen Eldridge: Crawford says expanding services could also significantly increase access to PrEP, a medication that can prevent HIV in people most at risk. For GPB News, I'm Ellen Eldridge. 

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Peter Biello: A Harvard University report shows continuing problems but also bright spots in Georgia's education landscape in grades three through eight. The university's education scorecard released yesterday shows the state 34th in math and 21st in reading. Math scores have flatlined since 2022 and remain nearly half a grade level below 2019 levels. Chronic absenteeism remains more than 7% above pre-pandemic levels, despite improvement. At the same time, it shows several districts outperforming their peers, including Atlanta, Ben Hill, Marietta and McDuffie. It highlights Atlanta Public Schools for its use of instructional and literacy coaches, rigorous use of data, summer meal and transportation programs, and teacher retention. Georgia's mixed results from the Harvard University report mirror national results for post-pandemic education recovery. 

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Peter Biello: Wellstar plans to open its more than $350 million Hospital just west of Augusta on Aug. 26. On Tuesday, the company announced the opening date for its Columbia County Medical Center. The six-story facility, including 100 beds and a planned Level 2 trauma center, will be the first hospital in rapidly growing Columbia County. 

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Peter Biello: Atlanta public health officials are preparing for an influx of visitors this June and July during the FIFA World Cup. Fulton County Board of Health Commissioner Marcus Plescia told reporters yesterday they're focused on public safety and disease prevention, including for infectious diseases like measles. 

Marcus Plescia: We are trying to be particularly prepared for that, but I think that's gonna be challenging because of the kind of mobile nature of the fan base. Nonetheless, we're putting together a specific plan for that. 

Peter Biello: He says they're also planning for daily inspections of food vendors and telling first responders to update their vaccinations. Heat-related illnesses during the height of summer and other health concerns are expected when tens of thousands of soccer fans arrive. 

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Peter Biello: Jacuzzi is closing its manufacturing facility in Valdosta. The California-based hot tub maker told state officials on Tuesday the closure will end 110 jobs. Local entrepreneurs built the bathcraft facility in Valtosta in 1986. Jacuzzi acquired it two years later and it was significantly expanded in 2007. The company says it plans to focus on shower products built at other locations as consumer demand shifts away from traditional bathtubs. 

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Peter Biello: Atlanta-based humanitarian organization CARE celebrated its 80th anniversary this week by launching a new generation of its original CARE packages. The global nonprofit began by delivering food after World War II. Its new effort promises to reach 2 million people by 2030 with emergency kits that include shelter, cooking, water, and hygiene needs. 

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Peter Biello: Atlanta's bike and pedestrian trail, the Beltline, sustained more than 91,000 jobs and generated an estimated $23 billion in economic output in 2025. That's according to an impact analysis Beltline officials released yesterday. The trail's first section opened in 2008 and its entire 22-mile corridor is on track to be completed by 2030. 

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Peter Biello: Comedian Michelle Buteau has built a career turning real life into comedy, from motherhood to marriage to body image and everything in between. You may know her from her Netflix series, Survival of the Thickest, or her stand-up specials. She's also a best-selling author. Michelle is bringing her Surviving and Thriving tour to Atlanta on May 15. She spoke with GPB's Pamela Kirkland. 

Pamela Kirkland: I want start with the title, "Surviving and Thriving." It feels like a mindset as much as it is a title. What does that look like in your world right now and how does it show up in this show? 

Michelle Buteau: Woo! Are we talking physically, emotionally, metaphysically? 

Pamela Kirkland: All the above. 

Michelle Buteau: I saw this quote on Instagram — no shade, if you're getting your motivational quotes from Instagram. And it was "The tools that you need to survive won't be the ones you need to thrive." And I saw that at a time when I brought my twins home from the hospital. It was a crazy journey. Six years of IVF, multiple losses, went through surrogacy. And I was like... "Oh, I am, like, not enjoying this." And I saw that quote and I'm like, "Oh, I have been surviving this. Now I can rest and thrive." And that quote has stayed with me because as you know, the world has gone through some changes, things feel darker and harder. I'm, like, "OK, this is what everyone has meant when joy is an act of resistance." We have to find our joy no matter what, because if you let the bad stuff take over, then you will always feel bad and I want to feel joy and keep my edges. That's, you know, I got to start small. That's how I want me to live my life. And so I thought, "Wow, going out in America in this time to cities that I haven't played in 15, 20 years, like — we're going to be thriving. We are going to thriving. I'm going to recognize that we've been going through it, but now we're gonna have some fun."

Pamela Kirkland: You're stopping in Atlanta. How do audiences here compare to other cities? 

Michelle Buteau: Atlanta is one of those places where, like, you know, no matter what's going on in the world, you're going to dress up, you going to get clean, you gonna go to a show, you got to celebrate. Like no matter what. You're gonna like have the worst week ever, but still make a reservation for that overpriced brunch and take 1,100 pictures for the carousel. Like, I love the joy that just vibrates in Atlanta and I feel like in Georgia — and most Southern states, which I love because I'm from Jersey, right? And so like, when a state feels like there's so much personality and pride it feels like a country, a nationality? Like, that's my happy place, you know? Because at the end of the day, I always love to prove, especially within comedy, we have more in common than we don't. Like, I think it's really fun to celebrate our differences and point them out, but always, like, punching up, never punching down. 

Pamela Kirkland: You did an interview not too long ago with NPR's Rachel Martin. You said you didn't think stand up was for you because you're an openly happy person. 

Michelle Buteau: Yes. 

Pamela Kirkland: How do you make being happy funny? 

Michelle Buteau: I mean, I think you're funny or you're not. You know what I mean? It's like, you can only really appreciate happiness and joy if you can recognize how bad that stuff was. So it's not like I don't go through stuff. It's not like I don't feel sad, but I'm not gonna live in that place, you know? I'm just not. And so I feel like a little roasting here and there, you know, a little storytelling, no big whoop. What's the lesson we learned here, everybody? I'll tell you what I went through so you don't have to — or maybe you should. Some people have to, more than once, go through it. I feel like, you know, there's a lot of ways you could be happy and not be, you not feel like you have to play into this idea of a comedian who's depressed and broke and, you know, just— For a lot years, comedy was like, it was really cool to not be happy. And oopsie daisy. I'm too cute for that. Sorry, too cute for that. 

Pamela Kirkland: When people come to the Tabernacle in Atlanta on May 15, what can they expect from you in this show? 

Michelle Buteau: Well, you know, there's some storytelling. There's some hard jokes. There's a dollop of shade. It's a good recipe for comedy, you know? But just don't be surprised. People are always surprised when they hear my mouth. And it's not fake. It is authentic. She's a Jersey girl. This is how the story comes out. 

Pamela Kirkland: Michelle Buteau's "Surviving and Thriving" tour comes to the Tabernacle in Atlanta on May 15. Tickets are available now. Michelle, thank you so much for talking to me. 

Michelle Buteau: Oh my God, thank you for talking to me! 

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Peter Biello: In Georgia sports, the Braves became the first team in the majors to win 30 games by beating the Cubs last night. Atlanta scored three runs in the eighth inning to beat the Chicago Cubs four to one. Chris Sale gets the start tonight as the Braves and Cubs wrap up their three-game series at Truist Park. And the Atlanta Falcons will find out with the rest of the NFL, which teams they'll be playing and win during the 2026 season tonight. Anticipation is building ahead of the schedule release at 8:00.

Peter Biello: And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, go to our website, gpb.org/news, and remember to subscribe to this podcast because we'll be back in your feed tomorrow afternoon. And your feedback is welcome by email, send it our way. The address is georgiatoday@gpb.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thank you again for listening. We will see you tomorrow. 

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For more on these stories and more, go to gpb.org/news