CNN Headquarters In Atlanta Vandalized

Hundreds of demonstrators poured into the streets near Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park on Friday night, smashing windows and clashing with police officers in a protest that grew so tense that the city’s mayor forcefully told people to go home.

(ajc.com photo)

The NY Times reports not far from the park, the city’s iconic tourist destination, some people climbed atop a large red CNN sign outside the media company’s headquarters and spray-painted messages on it. Some people jumped on police cars. Others threw rocks at the glass doors of the Omni Hotel, eventually breaking the glass, and shattered windows at the College Football Hall of Fame, where people rushed in and emerged with branded fan gear.

Protestors reach CNN Headquarters Friday evening (Reuters photo)

“It’s enough,” Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in an evening news conference. “We are all angry. This hurts. This hurts everybody in this room. But what are you changing by tearing up a city? You’ve lost all credibility now. This is not how we change America. This is not how we change the world.”

#BREAKING: Protesters have set a police car on fire in front of the CNN Center: https://t.co/c8cPBZLATJ pic.twitter.com/0KGIs868MG

— WSB-TV (@wsbtv) May 30, 2020

At CNN Headquarters, protesters smashed the lobby windows and seemed prepared to go inside during a tense face-off that was broadcast live on the cable network. A line of officers in riot gear blocked the way. At one point, protesters appeared to hurl a firework that set off a loud bang.

Demonstrations turn violent at the CNN Center in Atlanta. @CNNValencia reports from the ground. https://t.co/IfX7CINlGY pic.twitter.com/vIIkWGXanW

— CNN (@CNN) May 30, 2020

Rapper and activist Killer Mike had an urgent plea for CNN following the vandalism its headquarters faced in Atlanta amid the George Floyd protests.

Killer Mike, an Atlanta native, was speaking at a news conference alongside Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms on Friday night as a violent mob defaced the CNN Center's iconic sign outside the of the building, broke windows, and threw objects inside the lobby.

During his remarks, the rapper had some choice words for the liberal network.

"I love CNN ... but what I'd like to say to CNN right now- karma's a mother..." Killer Mike said. "Stop feeding fear and anger every day. Stop making people so fearful. Give them hope!"