Atlanta Mayor-designate Keisha Lance Bottoms was sworn in Tuesday in an emotional ceremony that saw the wife and mother vow to uplift the city and continue its deliberate path to greatness.
“I am committed to working with City Council to resolve issues surrounding property deeds to the Atlanta Public Schools & land on the Morris Brown campus,” Lance Bottoms told the crowd, which was filled with many who look like her.
“It is imperative that we be united, so we can move forward and take the next great step in our collective future. Now is the time to put aside race and division and geography and politics, and invest in becoming #OneAtlanta.”
The inauguration was streamed live on the city of Atlanta’s website so that any who wished could see the star-studded event. Outgoing Mayor Kasim Reed spoke, as did former Mayor Andrew Young.
Lance Bottoms seemed overwhelmed with emotion at times as she reflected on her place in local and national history. “Standing here today as the 60th Mayor of Atlanta is the proudest moment of my life. I want to thank all of Atlanta and each and every one of you here today for your support, your encouragement and your faith in me.”
She promised to work with regional leaders to help improve the lot of all Atlantans and pledged to create a citywide Children’s College Savings account for each child entering kindergarten in the Atlanta Public Schools. She also said that she would appoint a Chief Education Officer on her staff to make sure the city’s youngest residents were a priority.