MACON, Ga. — Saturday marked the second annual Macon Music Half Marathon hosted by the Macon Tracks Running Club.
Hundreds of runners made their way through downtown Macon's musical landmarks, including the Allman Brother's Museum, the Little Richard House, the Otis Redding Foundation and Capricorn Studios.
While runners enjoyed the 13.1-mile route full of live music stops, the route design struck a chord with some locals in the Pleasant Hill area. For neighborhood activist George Muhammad, his concerns hit close to home.
Muhammad, who serves as the Vice President of the Pleasant Hill neighborhood organization, said his group is still working to preserve its historically Black neighborhood decades after it was split in two by Interstate 75.
"We definitely felt like we need to voice our opinion, and certainly they should respect it," Muhammad said. "There's a lot of damage, we've been encroached upon by this highway in the most devastating manner. This area of Walnut Street is like a flash point of encroachment now."
The organization sent a letter to the Macon Tracks Running Club back in August, which said the following.
"We decline that your November 2024 race event should route through Pleasant Hill. There are many other routes it can use and we ask that you not disrespect and attempt to take advantage of Pleasant Hill as we strive through the ongoing challenge of maintaining its identity, revitalization, and restoration of traditional values and integrity."
"This is a neighborhood with a lot of poverty, a lot of challenges, and they need to be invested in," Muhammad said.
Despite Macon Tracks meeting with the Pleasant Hill Neighborhood Organization twice, the route remained the same. Macon tracks president F.M. Barron said that, while they attempted a solution, they elected to keep the race route the same.
"We purposefully chose Pleasant Hill as part of our route because of the ongoing work by many groups to reconnect it with the rest of the community and to highlight its rich history," Baron said. "We approached many groups - along with the Pleasant Hill Neighborhood Organization - to find ways to work together. We met with them twice, and let them know that next year, we would reevaluate the race route. This year’s race route was already set, and it can take weeks to map a course and get all the necessary and required approvals."
While Muhammad's efforts weren't successful this year, he's continuing to push for Pleasant Hill neighbors' voices to be heard.
"If they want to do something in the future, they will talk to us first and find a way it's actually going to benefit the community," Muhammad said.
