OCILLA, Ga. (WALB) — Allegations over hiring based on race has become a point of controversy in Irwin County government. In the most recent County Commission meeting, held on June 1, an alleged text thread between county leaders became a major focus.

That text conversation comes months after Irwin County Commission Chairman Vince Thompson pushed to dissolve the Ocilla-Irwin Industrial Authority. County Commissioner Chris Paulk said he and Commissioner Aldene Tyson opposed the move, which required unanimous support for approval.

>> LEARN MORE: 2nd South Georgia county moves to dissolve industrial authority. What it could mean for future data center builds <<

The newly-created Irwin County Industrial Authority leaves Ocilla leaders out of it. Several county leaders said they believe that move is motivated by race.

WALB’s Taylor Lewis obtained a text thread between Chairman Thompson and Commissioner Paulk. In the thread, Thompson expressed concern that Ocilla Mayor Melvin Harper and Dr. Lemond Hall, both Black men, would try to replace the current Economic Development Director, who is a white woman.

“I support her totally and am trying to save her job,” Thompson wrote in a text message. “Melvin and Lemond want to replace her with a person of color. Just like they want to two fire [two white employees whose names are redacted] and replace them with a person of color.”

⬇️ READ THE FULL TEXT EXCHANGE BELOW ⬇️

During Wednesday’s meeting, Paulk told the chairman and audience that he personally contacted the people referenced in the text messages after reviewing them and confirmed the allegations about replacing those employees were false.

Other text messages obtained by WALB show that Thompson told a data center developer the new authority would only oversee data center operations and payments.

In messages, Thompson wrote that he was trying to protect the job of the current economic development director.

Thompson added: “The new authority is only for the data center. I’m trying to help fix the joint authority as well for future growth. Maybe the reason the status quo sucks is nobody here can see what I see.”

The official then questioned why Thompson did not believe the existing Ocilla-Irwin Industrial Authority was capable of handling data center oversight.

In text messages, officials expressed concern that the situation made it appear Thompson was trying to avoid the possibility of Black leadership.

Mayor Melvin Harper denied Thompson’s allegations, saying he never intended to replace the current director or any employees.

“That is not true,” Harper said. “It was very alarming and surprising to me.”

Harper also called the allegations “disrespectful” and said leaders should not promote that type of thinking or behavior.

“It’s certainly disrespectful to even be in a leadership position and to lead people into that type of thinking or behavior or even to adopt the ideology that that’s okay,” Harper said. “That is not okay. It’s sad. It’s unfortunate.”

“I feel like they were more than capable,” Harper went on. “I believe that the integrity of the individuals that make up this authority, that their heads and hearts are in the right place toward not only the city of Ocilla, but also Irwin County.”

When asked again whether he had intentions to hire persons of color in leadership roles solely to hire persons of color at all, Harper rejected the idea.

“To do that would be racism,” Harper said. “And I wouldn’t do that. I don’t operate like that. That’s just nonsense.”

Harper also emphasized the importance of unity between the city and county moving forward.

“There’s no Ocilla without Irwin County, no Irwin County without Ocilla,” Harper said.

Chairman Vince Thompson issued the following statement regarding the messages:

“I am fine with the revelation of the text conversation. I wanted it out there. Any injection of race or allegations of racism when it comes to the creation of this new IDA is completely manufactured and simply a distraction as we work toward, not only stabilizing the county’s financial situation, but preparing the County for what may be a once in a lifetime financial windfall. When you are in disagreement with another commissioner on an issue, and all of their arguments are falling flat, they tend to go to personal attacks.”

Following Thompson’s statement, another county official, who said they wish to remain anonymous, disputed that characterization. They said the concerns raised throughout the process focused on legal, financial and procedural questions surrounding the new authority rather than personal attacks.

Read the full text exchange between Chairman Thompson and Commissioner Paulk below:

Have a news tip or see an error that needs correction? Let us know. Please include the article’s headline in your message.

To stay up to date on all the latest news as it develops, follow WALB on Facebook, Instagram and X. For more South Georgia news, download the WALB News app and add WALB as a preferred source on Google.

Copyright 2026 WALB. All rights reserved.