THE PEOPLE SHOULD RUN THE CITY

A Conversation with Kristen Starks on Data Centers, Organizing, AI & Fighting for Fayetteville

The data center struggle is connected to pretty much every issue we’re facing because all of these issues are connected by an underlying theme: we live in a system that prioritizes profits for billionaires, tech companies, and politicians who work for them over meeting the needs of our people, our planet, our cities, and the people who live and work here every day.

That system, according to organizer and Fayetteville resident Kristen Starks, guarantees that there will always be another fight.

“There’s always going to be something,” she says. “There’s always going to be stuff like data centers. There’s always going to be stuff like ICE raids happening. I mean, I’m sure you all saw that they’ve killed two people in the past week. It kind of never ends if you’re organizing in the type of way that I am. But the stakes are high, so we’ve got to do what we’ve got to do.”

For people trying to understand what is happening with data centers in Fayetteville, Starks has quickly become one of the voices helping make the issue plain. A nurse, organizer, and local leader with the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), she has been deeply involved in the fight against proposed changes to Fayetteville’s zoning laws that could make it easier for hyperscale data centers to be developed throughout the city. But before getting into the data centers, we wanted to know more about the person behind the organizing.

MEET KRISTEN

“I’m Kristen Starks. I’m 25 years old. I will admit, I’m from Greensboro, North Carolina, so I am not a Fayetteville native.” That admission immediately feels familiar in Fayetteville. “Most of us aren’t, actually,” she laughs. “Fayetteville collects people from all over who end up here, often in some way in connection to the military.”

Starks moved to Fayetteville in August 2024. She works as a nurse and is also an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Her path toward organizing, however, started long before she arrived in the Ville.“I’ve always been the type of person that sees something wrong and feels the need to do something about it,” she explains. Her development into an organizer came alongside her political development and a deeper understanding of how the issues she cared about were connected. “If you really look into it and analyze the nature of the world, you start to see that everything is ultimately connected to the capitalist system that we’re living in , a system that puts profits for this itty-bitty, tiny, minuscule fraction of people over the needs and wants of literally everybody else: the workers. ”That realization led her toward socialism, but she says becoming a socialist and becoming an organizer were not necessarily the same thing.

While in college, Starks became involved in student organizing, specifically around issues impacting Black students on her campus. Later, while living in Durham and attending nursing school, she found PSL. The timing was significant.After October 7, 2023, and the escalation of the war in Gaza, Starks attended a protest in downtown Raleigh. “That’s where I found the party,” she says. “And when I was there, I was like, ‘Wait. These people are spitting. I gotta be part of this.’” She got to know the organization, eventually joined, and continued organizing. Now, she is part of local leadership in Fayetteville.

SO, WHAT EXACTLY IS THE DATA CENTER FIGHT ABOUT?

If you’ve heard the phrase “data center” thrown around but still aren’t exactly sure what everyone is arguing about, Starks has a simple explanation. “Data centers are these huge physical facilities that store the computers and servers and all that stuff that power AI.” You don’t need to understand all the technical details to understand the issue, she says. “There are these huge, oftentimes multi-acre facilities that store tons of computers to power AI.” And while smaller data centers can technically exist almost anywhere, including a facility like Croo Studios, that’s not what people mean when they talk about the massive hyperscale data centers being proposed across the country.

The computing power needed for companies like Google, Meta, and other major technology companies is significantly larger. But for Starks, the central question isn’t whether people like AI.

“The core issue is that they are not being built in order to meet the needs of the people.” Starks believes AI itself has the potential to be beneficial for working people. “We could use it to automate the type of tasks that we don’t want to do, or that are really menial, that grunt-work type stuff. That could free up a lot of our time.”

In theory, that could mean more time with family, more sleep, and more time to create.

“Instead, AI is being used to do a lot of the creative work that we should be doing.” That part hits close to home for creatives. “I would rather have the time to create my own flyer or hire a graphic designer instead of all using the same AI flyer.” She laughs. “Oh my Lord. I can’t. It drives me insane.”

The same argument applies to music, film, photography, writing, and countless other creative industries.

At the same time, people are still working 40, 50, and sometimes 60 hours a week just to pay rent.

“So AI is not being used to meet the needs of the people, to allow us to have more of our wants,” Starks says. “AI is being used to displace workers.” That displacement could affect creative workers, white-collar workers, and eventually blue-collar workers as well. But again, Starks says the question isn’t whether AI itself is good or bad. “It’s about how this is being done.”

WHO GETS TO DECIDE?

According to Starks, the biggest problem is who is making the decisions. Corporations, CEOs, shareholders, tech companies, city councils, and local and state governments are making decisions about how AI should be used and what infrastructure should be built to power it. The people who live and work in those communities, she argues, aren’t being given enough of a say. “We technically have all of the data centers we need to power our uses of AI,” she says. “But these companies want to build more and more and more because it’s the newest trend in capitalist speculation.” The question then becomes: What are the costs? That’s where the conversation gets much bigger than technology.

Data centers require enormous amounts of electricity and water. Starks argues that many are being proposed in vulnerable communities, including rural areas and communities that already struggle to have a say over how their land is used.

“These data centers use gallons upon gallons of water a day.” And North Carolina is already dealing with significant water and environmental concerns. Starks also points to the state’s existing PFAS contamination issues, including contamination connected to the Chemours plant. “Our water is already polluted. Our water bills are already way too high. Our energy bills are way too high.” She argues that the increased demand for electricity from data centers could require additional power-generation capacity, which could ultimately affect utility costs and environmental impacts. Then there are the tax incentives. North Carolina offers incentives designed to attract data center development. Starks points to estimates that the incentives could amount to billions of dollars.

Her question is simple: What else could that money fund?

Schools. Infrastructure. PFAS cleanup. Teachers. Health care. “Why wouldn’t that money be going toward our needs? For Starks, that is the core of the argument. “It’s tech companies getting to do whatever the heck they want with our money, with our resources, damaging our public health, and we get no say in it.”

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN FAYETTEVILLE?

So where does Fayetteville stand? According to Starks, Fayetteville City Council is considering changes to the city’s zoning laws that could make it easier for data centers to be developed in areas currently zoned industrial. The concern is the proposed use of “by right” development. In simple terms, Starks explains that if a company submits a proposal for a data center in one of those industrial zones and the proposal meets the requirements, it could automatically be approved without requiring a special-use permit. That could mean no additional public hearing and fewer opportunities for community input. “That means as long as they meet these very loose requirements, they can play with us, play with our money, play with our resources, play with our land.”

Starks is especially concerned because industrial zones often exist near some of the city’s poorest communities and communities of color. She points to areas around the Murchison Road corridor as an example of neighborhoods located close to industrial zoning. And there is another layer. North Carolina has restrictions on what is known as “down zoning.” Starks argues that once the city opens the door to this type of development through zoning changes, closing that door later could become much more difficult. “That’s how high the stakes are,” she says. “Basically, they’re trying to open the door and say, ‘Come on in. Fayetteville is open.’”

BUT THERE’S A REASON TO BE HOPEFUL

The situation might sound bleak. Starks doesn’t deny that. But she also doesn’t believe the outcome is predetermined. “All around the country, communities of regular people are rising up against data centers and they’re winning.” She points to community resistance that has delayed or stopped proposed projects and says that public pressure can make a difference. One of the major demands emerging from these movements is a moratorium. A moratorium is essentially a pause on new data center development.

The idea is to pause development long enough for communities and governments to create regulations that protect residents, land, water, infrastructure, and public resources. “I’m not sure I want one here at all,” Starks says. “But even if they are going to come, let’s make sure that we’re doing it on our terms, not these companies’ terms.” She argues that companies naturally have an incentive to minimize costs. “They’re not going to implement the extra infrastructure that’s required to keep us safe. Why would they do that? That’s going to cost them more money.” The same applies to water usage, energy consumption, and environmental protections. “So even with a community-led process, we can at the very least create regulations that protect our people, our land, our water, and our wallets.” Starks points to communities across North Carolina, including Charlotte, Durham, Canton, and Boone, as examples of places where moratoriums have become part of the conversation or been enacted. Her message for Fayetteville is straightforward: “If other cities are showing that it’s possible, I believe we can do it here too.”

THE PROTESTS

The movement in Fayetteville has already made its presence known. On June 8, residents gathered outside Fayetteville City Hall before packing the City Council chambers. More than 200 people were inside. Before that meeting, more than 50 residents had signed up to speak during the public forum, although not everyone was able to speak because of the city’s time limits. The council had been preparing to move forward with setting a public hearing for the proposed zoning changes. But the public pressure changed the timeline. “They were forced by public pressure created by the protest, by people showing up and packing City Hall,” Starks says. “They were like, ‘Ah, okay. Let’s pump the brakes a little bit.’” The date was pushed back. For Starks, that was a partial victory. “This could have already been passed by now.” But she also sees it as proof that organizing can have an impact. “That was a partial win, and we should take it as that. We should see it as a sign that pressure works.” The next step was to use the additional time to build the movement and increase pressure.

SO, WHAT CAN PEOPLE ACTUALLY DO?

Starks doesn’t want people to simply watch from the sidelines. There are several ways she says residents can get involved. The first is signing and sharing the petition. The petition is meant to counter the argument that only a small number of people oppose the proposed changes. “We need as many people as possible to sign it so they can’t dispute, ‘No, the people of Fayetteville don’t want this.’”

At the time of the interview, the petition had already collected more than 1,000 signatures.

But signing it isn’t the only thing people can do. Share it. Send it to your family. Your friends. Your group chats. Your coworkers. Your church. Your creative community. Your neighborhood.

Starks also encourages people to participate in community outreach by talking directly with their neighbors. “We go to people. We knock on doors. We show up at events. We do all this type of stuff to get the word out.” There are also opportunities to participate through social media, including sharing personal testimonies about why residents do not support data center development in Fayetteville. And, of course, there is showing up. The rally and City Council meeting scheduled for August 10 became another major organizing moment, with organizers planning to rally outside City Hall before packing the council chambers.

TAKING THE FIGHT TO THE STATE

The movement isn’t stopping at Fayetteville. Starks says PSL chapters across North Carolina are working alongside other community organizations on a statewide No Data Centers in NC campaign.

The state-level fight matters for several reasons. First, North Carolina’s incentives are one of the major reasons companies are interested in coming here. Second, the state plays a major role in regulating the energy system, including Duke Energy. Starks argues that increased energy demand from data centers could lead to increased infrastructure costs and utility rates. And third, state law matters because of the restrictions surrounding down zoning. The statewide campaign has three major demands: A statewide data center ban. Stopping Duke Energy from increasing rates to pay for data center-related power expansion. Repealing tax incentives that attract data center companies while redirecting public money away from other community needs. For people who want to get involved, Starks encourages residents to learn more about the statewide campaign and sign its petition as well.

“WE SHOULD RUN THE CITY”

Throughout the conversation, one thing becomes clear: Starks’ argument is bigger than data centers.

It’s about who gets to decide what happens in a community. “I care about my people,” she says. “I care about my own power bill. I care about my bills. I care that my water is clean.” She believes every working person deserves clean water, safe and healthy housing, health care, and a job that provides a living wage. And if technology eventually replaces certain jobs, she asks a bigger question: Why shouldn’t society make sure those workers still have meaningful work? “We got plenty of stuff to do around here.” She pauses. “There’s plenty of stuff to get done, right?”

If machines can do more of the work, Starks argues that the goal shouldn’t necessarily be to make people work more. “Why are we still working 40, 50 hours a week? How about we all work less? We all have more time to spend with each other, to build community, to make art, to do music…”

Then she adds: “I’m gonna say this one over: get some sleep.” The room laughs. “Can we all sleep a little bit better, maybe?” For Starks, that is part of the bigger picture. The goal isn’t simply to stop a data center. It’s to create a society where technology, resources, and economic systems serve the people who actually make communities function.

“I’m a nurse. I run the hospital. The bus driver keeps the city moving. The truck driver makes sure you get your stuff. The people checking you out at Walmart, they make Walmart run.” Amazon drivers make Amazon run. Workers make companies run. “So if that’s the case, then we should have control.” And then comes perhaps the simplest line of the entire conversation: “If we make the city run, we should run the city.”

REVOLUTIONARY OPTIMISM

At one point, we asked Starks about something that often gets left out of conversations about organizing: What do you say to people who feel hopeless? Her answer is what she calls “revolutionary optimism.” But it isn’t optimism based on pretending everything is fine.

It’s optimism rooted in history.

“One of the tools of the people who are in power to maintain their power is to make us feel hopeless,” she says. “They win when we think there’s nothing we can do.” For Starks, history shows that meaningful change has rarely happened because people in power simply decided to be generous. She points to Juneteenth and the history of emancipation, the fight for the eight-hour workday and 40-hour workweek, and the Civil Rights Movement. “These wins happened because people were organized in mass and demanding it.” She also pushes back against the idea that major movements were created solely by a handful of famous leaders. People remember the names. But behind those names were thousands, sometimes millions, of people organizing. “You don’t have to be MLK.” She argues that the power of movements comes from ordinary people recognizing their collective power. “We actually make the system run. So if we got organized, we could shut it down.”

FAYETTEVILLE IS ASKING QUESTIONS

When asked how she has seen Fayetteville change since she began organizing here, Starks is careful not to overstate her experience. She only moved to the city in 2024. But she has noticed something. “I think the City Council knows that they’re not going to be able to just get away with stuff without any sort of public opposition.” She also sees something happening beyond City Hall. People are starting to question the way things work. Does it make sense for corporations to come into a community, receive public incentives, use public resources, potentially impact water and energy systems, and make decisions without meaningful community input?

People are asking. And the questions are getting bigger. “They’re asking questions not only about the data center issue, but even about the nature of America as an institution, the nature of capitalism as an institution, the fact that the law is set up for the billionaires to win every single time over us.” People are looking for something. “They don’t necessarily know what they can do or how to go about it, but they want to do something.” And that, Starks says, is what excites her most about Fayetteville. “There is something that every single average person in Fayetteville can do.” The challenge now is turning that curiosity into clarity, and that clarity into action. “People are looking for the questions. People are having questions. We just gotta bring them to the right answers.”

For Starks, organizing is ultimately about reminding people that they are not powerless.

The people who live here make Fayetteville run.

The people who work here make Fayetteville run.

The people who create here make Fayetteville run.

And if the people make the city run, perhaps it’s time they had a much bigger say in how the city is run.

That’s the fight.

And according to Kristen Starks, it’s one worth showing up for.

WHAT CAN YOU DO

This past Monday, Fayetteville residents showed up and made their voices heard during a public hearing on a proposed ordinance that could open the city up to data center development. Community members called out the Council for attempting to push through a rushed and dangerous policy that could leave our communities vulnerable to pollution, increased strain on our resources, and higher utility costs.

That’s the whole point of a moratorium: a temporary pause on data center development that gives the community and city officials time to establish meaningful regulations that protect our people, land, water, infrastructure, and wallets. As Kristen Starks explains, even if data centers ultimately come to Fayetteville, development should happen on the community’s terms—not solely on the terms of corporations.

Instead, City Council once again voted against the moratorium and sent the proposed zoning ordinance back to city staff for additional edits before it can be reviewed again in October. While sending the ordinance back may create another opportunity for discussion, it does not erase the larger concern: the door to data center development remains open, while the community continues demanding stronger protections and a real say in what happens next.

This is bigger than data centers. It is about who gets to decide what happens in Fayetteville.

Do corporations and elected officials get to determine how our land, water, energy, and public resources are used? Or should the people who live and work here have a meaningful voice in those decisions?

The fight against data centers is ultimately a fight for community power. As Starks puts it, “If we make the city run, we should run the city.” We deserve better.

We deserve a democratic system where working people—not billionaires, corporations, or political interests, have the power to determine how development happens, how our resources are used, and what is in the best interest of our communities. The fight isn’t over.

There are a number of petitions you can sign today to help the fight against data centers In Fayetteville and North carolina. Click here to view PSL's links to take action now.

Get organized. Stay informed. Show up. Ask questions. And keep pushing.

Because Fayetteville belongs to the people who live here, work here, build here, and make this city run.

That’s the fight. And it’s one worth showing up for.

Zairis T. Miles

Editor-in-Chief

FAYNC Magazine