LAWRENCE KNIGHTON: Can we all just get along?

It was March of 1991 when Rodney King spoke these infamous words after being beaten at the hands of Los Angeles police officers for driving while intoxicated. King said, “Can we all get along, can we stop making it horrible for the older people and the kids?”

Sadly, these words still ring in my ears for Albany, Georgia. I believe Albany is at a place where we all either get along or we all go down together.

Albany is a gold mine waiting to be unearthed. We have so many treasures in this community, and after 35 years of being here, I am ready to see it come to pass. This will only happen when our city leaders, county leaders, school system leaders, law enforcement and other members of this community come together and realize that one group cannot do without the other.

Being here for 35 years and seeing the gold mine still buried is very hurtful. Let’s be clear on the facts: Albany leadership has missed out on a number of golden opportunities through the years. Albany missed out when leadership refused to allow Interstate 75 and Interstate 10 to flow through Albany. Albany also missed a great opportunity with the floods of 1994 and 1998, tornadoes, and other cataclysmic weather that did major damage here.

Oh, and don’t forget all of the SPLOST and T-SPLOST money that has come through Albany.

If we look at the billions of dollars that have come through Albany, this city should be the mecca of southwest Georgia. Instead we have a population that has decreased by more than 20,000 people, a school system that has decreased by almost 3,000 students, and a tax base that has all but completely deteriorated. How do we fix this? We fix this by holding all of our leaders accountable. We also do this by getting involved for the good of all of Albany.

There has been a lot of talk about the firing of Mike McCoy as county administrator. Some are for and some are against the firing. Let me give you some nuggets to think about. If McCoy was assistant administrator from 2009-2019, knowing that employees were making a minimum wage of $7 per hour and did not do anything about it until he became county Administrator in 2019, that says a lot about his leadership.

Why didn’t he go to then-County Administrator Richard Crowdis and fight for the employees? Better yet, why did the two previous county commission chairmen not do anything about it? McCoy had been in position long enough to have fought for employees unless he had no power.

Even when we look at all of the money that has come through this county, what can you say has been a tremendous change? Oh, I know. The rich got richer and the poor got poorer.

The decline in population and the eroding tax base started many years ago. Many people in the community want to attribute this to the current county commission board and chairman. This current county chairman started in January 2023. The decline in population and the eroding tax base began under past administrations led by Richard Crowdis, Mike McCoy, Bodine Sinyard and Christopher Cohilas.

So how do we fix this? We have to hold all of our community leaders accountable. We have to get involved for the betterment of all of Albany. We have to demand better of our city and community leaders in addition to our school system leaders. We can no longer turn our backs or close our eyes to the ills of our community. The time to get involved is now.

In order for the treasure that is in this community to become the “Good Life City,” we have to take notes from all of the other surrounding counties such as Lee, Tift, Crisp, Lowndes and Thomas. While we are stagnant and decline here in Albany, these communities are experiencing major development, growth and prosperity. It is time for our community to come together and live up to our motto of the Good Life City.