The media is going out of its way to turn this story racial (the AP headline is “White Atlanta suburbs push for secession,” as if a suburb can be “white” rather than “predominantly white,” and as if they were just trying to work in a Dixie reference). There’s no doubt a racial undercurrent, but I suspect it’s as much class as race.

Here’s the gist:

“A potentially explosive dispute in the City Too Busy to Hate is taking shape over a proposal to break Fulton County in two and split off Atlanta’s predominantly white, affluent suburbs to the north from some of the metropolitan area’s poorest, black neighborhoods.

“Legislation that would allow the suburbs to form their own county, to be called Milton County, was introduced by members of the Georgia Legislature’s Republican majority earlier this month.”

It’s not hard to see why upscale suburbanites would want to leave this:

“[One supporter] cited the county’s troubled library and public transit systems and a jail that was taken over by a federal judge because it was filthy and unsafe.”

Not to mention having to deal with city lawmakers who spout off threats like these:

“‘If it gets to the floor, there will be blood on the walls,’ warned state Sen. Vincent Fort, an Atlanta Democrat and member of the Legislative Black Caucus who bitterly opposes the plan. Fort added: ‘As much as you would like to think it’s not racial, it’s difficult to draw any other conclusion.’”

Milton County actually has a history:

“The legislation calls for amending the Georgia Constitution to allow the return of Milton County, which succumbed to financial troubles during the Depression and was folded into Fulton County in 1932.”

As bad a rep as anything reasonably called “segregation” gets — and as painful as the history of U.S. secession is — it really is important for people to live in areas that reflect their policy preferences and values. Democracy irons out differences peacefully, but oftentimes entire areas live under laws they despise.

Take Illinois, for example. Liberal Chicago and conservative down-state interests collide constantly, from issues like gun control to legislators giving Chicago transportation money from the whole state’s taxes. Sometimes there’s less friction when different kinds of people have different governments.

Similarly, city ways of managing things aren’t working in the Atlanta suburbs, and any government would find the current county’s huge, cumbersome population difficult.

Finally, it’s hard to see where the city lawmakers are coming from in opposing it. Say the suburban representatives really are racists. Why would you want them in your county?

The only real reason is that the suburbs pay more taxes. This motivation doesn’t seem quite so noble as the I-oppose-this-because-I’m-anti-racism line.

Robert VerBruggen blogs at http://www.therationale.com.