PHOTOS: Atlanta Sister Cities and why we're paired
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Eighteen sisters are a lot to keep track of. Atlanta's first sister city was proclaimed in 1967. Seven years later, the city had five sister cities and Mayor Maynard Jackson created the Atlanta Sister Cities Commission to oversee and expand the program. Each pairing has its own committee that determines the nature of the partnership and programming—cultural, economic, educational and humanitarian. It's an organized affair—the committees issue annual reports and some have their own websites. The cities are honored at the City Hall rotunda, where you'll see 18 national flags centrally displayed. (John Spink / 1997 AJC file photo)