Two Fridays ago, U.S. Rep. John Lewis, the Civil Rights Movement leader whose district encompasses three-quarters of Atlanta, announced he would not attend the presidential inauguration. The next day, a proud Southern city found itself suddenly labeled on Twitter as in “horrible shape and falling apart,” not to mention “crime-infested.”

That was not an accurate portrayal of the Atlanta I know. Not the city that is home to the Atlanta BeltLine, an innovative, globally praised project that is making the entire city more attractive and friendly to pedestrians. Not the Atlanta where richly diverse groups of neighbors gather on their porches and stoops. Not the city I love.

So, the next day — Sunday, January 15 — I reached out to some friends in Rep. Lewis’ Fifth District. And friends of friends. And tapped on the shoulders of strangers. Over the course of eight hours, I drove throughout the district and sat down with 11 folks for impromptu conversations on their front porches.



Here’s what I saw and what they said about life in the Fifth.