As Atlanta prepared to host the 1996 Olympic Games, the city built a jail. The Atlanta City Detention Center opened in 1995, pitched as a pressure valve for the upcoming influx of visitors. For people like Allen Hall, who've endured chronic homelessness, it felt like something else entirely.
"The jails became homeless shelters," said Hall, now 72. He remembers people packed "wall to wall" in cold, cramped cells as the city showcased itself to the world. Hall was arrested in 1996 while living under an Old Fourth Ward bridge, then jailed after police discovered crack cocaine in his pocket. But he believes he would have been locked up regardless.
"No question about it, the Olympics was why people were being arrested," Hall said. For local unhoused people back then, it was either jail or a one-way bus ticket out of town, courtesy of Fulton County. An estimated 9,000 low-income Atlantans were arrested in the 18 months leading up to the 1996 Olympics.
With the FIFA World Cup fast approaching in June, Hall fears history repeating itself. He finally moved into an apartment in January after spending nearly 30 years on the streets, with assistance from housing advocates and city leaders. Mayor Andre Dickens has committed to a "housing first" approach, but advocates remain wary as the tournament draws near.
