Clarkston, Georgia

Clarkston is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 14,756 as of the 2020 census, up from 7,554 in 2010.

The city is noted for its ethnic diversity, and is often referred to as "the most diverse square mile in America" and "the Ellis Island of the South." In the 1990s, refugee resettlement programs identified Clarkston as a good fit for displaced persons of many backgrounds. The rental market was open, residents were moving farther out from the Atlanta urban core, and Clarkston was the last stop on a transit line into the city. At present students attending Clarkston High School come from over 50 countries; the local mosque (Masjid al-Momineen, or Mosque of the Faithful in English) has a diverse and sizable congregation; and over half the population is estimated by some to be foreign born.

History

A post office called Clarkston has been in operation since 1876. The Georgia General Assembly incorporated the place in 1882 as the "Town of Clarkston", with municipal corporate limits extending in a one-half mile radius from the Georgia Railroad depot. The community was named after W. W. Clark, a railroad official.

Geography

Clarkston is located at (33.810304, −84.239877).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and 0.94% is water.

Clarkston is on the Eastern Continental Divide.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 14,756 people, 3,727 households, and 2,341 families residing in the city. The most reported ancestries were African American (23.6%), Ethiopian (12%), Burmese (8.7%), Congolese (4.2%), Nepalese (4.1%), and Afghan (2.3%).

Education

DeKalb County School System operates Clarkston's public schools.

Zoned schools which have attendance boundaries in the residential-zoned portions of the city limits include:
* Jolly, Idlewood, and Indian Creek elementary schools
* Freedom Middle School and Tucker Middle School
* Clarkston High School and Tucker High School
All the school district-operated schools are located outside of the city limits of Clarkston.

Atlanta Area School for the Deaf, operated by the State of Georgia, is in the Clarkston city limits. Additionally, Georgia Fugees Academy Charter School, a charter school, is in the city limits.

The Clarkston Campus of Georgia State University's Perimeter College is just south of the city limits.
Georgia Piedmont Technical College, part of the Technical College System of Georgia, is also south of Clarkston.

Public libraries

DeKalb County Public Library operates the Clarkston Branch.Library Locations & Hours
" DeKalb County Public Library. Retrieved on February 24, 2010.

Refugee resettlement

Georgia is among states that receive the highest amount of refugees for resettlement, and has resettled more than 37,000 refugees since 1993. Clarkston receives a large portion of these refugees, but arrivals have gradually declined yearly since 2016. In 2016, then Georgia Governor Nathan Deal issued and then reneged on an executive order attempting to cease influx of Syrian refugees into the state. Additionally, as of 2019 federal funding for refugee programs has decreased and executive orders have been issued that allow states increased authority to limit resettlement, which has resulted in the downsizing of several Georgia resettlement organizations.

Organizations that aid the resettlement of refugees in Clarkston include:

* Friends of Refugees
* Fugees Family
* International Rescue Committee of Atlanta
* New American Pathways
* World Relief Atlanta

Transportation

Major roads

*
*

Mass transit

* MARTA Bus 120 connects to MARTA Blue Line rail service at Avondale
* MARTA Bus 125 connects to MARTA Blue Line rail service at Kensington

Pedestrians and cycling

*Stone Mountain Trail

In popular culture

In television

* Clarkston was featured in season one of " Good Girls" Netflix series (the fictional supermarket "Fine & Frugal" was shot in Fresh Food Town in the Tahoe Village plaza).
* Clarkston is the setting of the episode "Make Ted Great Again" in the second season of ''Queer Eye'' in 2018.
* Clarkston is featured in the episode "It's a Greens Thing" in the first season of Vivan Howard's PBS cooking show ''Somewhere South'' in 2020.

Notable people

* Machop Chol (born 1998) – soccer player who represented the South Sudan national team

References

External links

City of Clarkston official website

Clarkston GA News

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African diaspora in the United States
Clarkston
Cities in DeKalb County, Georgia
Cities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Refugees in the United States