Sen. Raphael Warnock holds heated town hall in Atlanta
Screaming protesters removed from Warnock town hall
About a half-dozen screaming protesters were removed from the Sen. Raphael town hall at Zion Hill Baptist Church in Atlanta on Sunday.
ATLANTA - A town hall hosted by Democratic Sen. Warnock became heated and multiple people protesting the war in Gaza were removed from the event.
The backstory:
The town hall was set to begin on Sunday afternoon at Zion Hill Baptist Church. Attendees had to pre-register.
Before the event started, Zion Hill Pastor Aaron L. Parker, Ph. D., asked the audience to remain respectful while they presented their questions.
Sen. Raphael Warnock full Atlanta town hall
Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock held an in-person town hall at Zion Hill Baptist Church southwest Atlanta, beginning at 4 p.m. ET on May 4, 2025.
FOX 5 Atlanta streamed the event live on YouTube, FOX5Atlanta.com and FOX Local.
Timeline:
Right off the bat, Sen. Warnock was heavily critical of the Trump administration.
He joked that this had been the longest 100 days of his life, referencing President Donald Trump's recent milestone in office.
Trump's first 100 days in review
President Donald Trump marks 100 days in office. While Democrats and Republicans alike agree it's one of the busiest starts to an administration in U.S. history ... that's about all they agree on. Here's a look back at his time in office.
He also harped on the firing of federal workers and expressed his disappointment in the deep funding cuts for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
At 4:40 p.m., he finished his remarks and opened the floor for questions from the public. The moderator clarified that tickets were given out to the audience and would be pulled at random to determine the order of questions asked. The audience was asked to keep their speaking time to 60 seconds.
Anyone who was not allowed to speak was asked to find and speak with a representative after the town hall.
Sen. Warnock town hall Q&A
Sen. Warnock vs. 'Free Palestine' heckler
Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock held an in-person town hall at Zion Hill Baptist Church. After a man asked him to clarify his stance on the Gaza war, there was an outburst in the crowd. A woman could be heard screaming at the senator while he waited. He then asked her to sit down with him at another time for a conversation to hash things out so others could continue asking questions.
What we know:
Tensions flared during the question and answer section when Warnock was asked which side he aligned with more in the conflict in Gaza.
In the middle of his answer, some pro-Palestine supporters began shouting him down.
"Do you want me to answer the question?" Warnock asked the group. "I will answer the question, but I'm not gonna shout."
Warnock's staff eventually escorted about half a dozen protesters out of the building.
Despite the interruptions, Warnock also addressed a variety of other issues.
When asked how he's working to stand up to actions by the Trump administration, Warnock told the crowd he would "drag Trump officials before my committees" in order to hold them accountable.
He mentioned his position as a ranking member on the Senate Finance Committee several times and how he could use that position.
Full fiery Q&A at Sen. Warnock town hall
Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock hosted an in-person town hall at Zion Hill Baptist Church. Here's the full question and answer portion.
What they're saying:
Sharon Crenshaw's number was called, and she made an impassioned plea for those with mental illnesses who get help through her nonprofit, Building Blocks.
She told the senator her clients were supposed to get assistance from the Department of Community Affairs but that she wasn't able to get through the bureaucracy to get her clients help.
Crenshaw said many people she works with are facing eviction.
"So I'm asking you, what can you do to get these agencies to help me help these people who are coming out of homelessness?" she said through tears.
Warnock commended her work and directed his staff to set up a time when they could speak one-on-one.
Crenshaw says she’s grateful the senator seemed to want to help her.
"I know I was heard today. The senator's legislative assistant was standing behind me. I spoke to him, and he assured me that they will be in contact with me," she said.
The other side:
Because of the size of the crowd, not everyone got a chance to ask their questions directly to Warnock.
FOX 5 spoke with a federal worker at Customs Enforcement who came but said they didn't want to be identified out of fear of retaliation.
She told us the atmosphere at her work has become increasingly hostile in the recent weeks.
"It's very disconcerting. I used to be really proud to let people know I work for this agency. But now I'm just like, 'Oh, I'm the enemy now for some reason.' It's really heartbreaking. There's a lot of federal employees. We know for a fact that we could work anywhere for double the amount of money that we're making now. But we do it because we love our country and our jobs are important. So yeah, it's just very demoralizing," the federal worker told us.
She said she would be following up with Warnock to make sure her concerns are heard.
The Source: The Office of Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock shared information leading up to the town hall on social media.