On Sunday, September 13, Humans First, a self-described “grassroots conservative organization fighting for an America First AI policy,” brought its nationwide bus tour to Bessemer, where the group held a news conference warning about the dangers of unregulated AI data center construction.
“Alabama is squarely in Big Tech’s crosshairs right now, and Bessemer is ground zero,” said Amy Kremer, chair of Humans First. “A massive hyperscale data center campus, Project Marvel, is planned to cover roughly 1,600 acres and demand enormous amounts of electricity, and it’s not the only one. Just up the road in Birmingham, Nebius is pushing another massive AI data center project in the Oxmoor Valley. This isn’t one project, it’s Big Tech targeting an entire state, and the people who live here deserve a real say in what gets built in their own backyards.”
While Humans First says it does not support national or statewide data center moratoriums, the group has expressed strong opposition to the lack of public input that has characterized data center construction in communities like Bessemer. The organization also promotes broader skepticism of artificial intelligence and the technology’s potential effects on jobs, national security and children’s safety.
“The unaccountable buildout of data centers, with no say from communities and significant local impacts, is an unacceptable infringement on our liberty,” a section of the organization’s website reads. “We do not support a national data center moratorium, or even state moratoria, but each community must be able to decide what sort of life they want for themselves, and whether or not to have a data center built in their community.”
Bessemer marked the third stop on the Humans First “Data Center Revolt Bus Tour,” which launched last week in Dallas during the Republican midterm convention. The tour will reach Washington, D.C., on September 16 before heading west through several states and cities and eventually ending in Silicon Valley on October 5.
“If Republicans want to win in November and keep control of the House and Senate, as well as key state races, then they absolutely must listen to the grassroots,” Kremer said. “Poll after poll makes it clear that conservatives do not want these large hyperscale data centers forced on them. No amount of money big AI spends buying politicians and high-priced lobbyists will change public opinion on this issue.
“Any elected official who wants to get elected better get on board and stand with the American people.”
The heated national debate over data centers has also become a key point of contention in Alabama’s gubernatorial race. Democratic nominee Doug Jones has repeatedly used the issue to attack his Republican opponent, U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama.
Speaking to the Alabama Sheriffs Association in July, Tuberville dismissed claims that data centers make too much noise and would “ruin the climate,” saying, “Bull crap.” On September 1, Tuberville outlined his data center policies in an opinion column published exclusively by APR. He said local communities should decide whether a data center is built and proposed requiring the facilities to pay full taxes, cover their infrastructure and utility costs, replace the power and water capacity they use, and protect residential ratepayers from higher costs.
Kremer said Republican officials who fail to heed grassroots opposition to data centers could pay a political price at the ballot box.
“There is no issue that ignites anger among the conservative base more than the issue of big AI data centers,” Kremer said. “These data centers, which are often the beneficiaries of the very corporate welfare Republicans claim to oppose, are being forced on communities who do not want them, and Alabama families are asking who protects their power bills, their land, their water, and their communities.”
“To grassroots conservatives our message is clear: help is on the way!” she added. “We are coming to stand with you and make sure your voices are heard.”
Correction: An earlier version of this report broadly stated that Tommy Tuberville had referred to concerns about data center construction as “bullcrap.” During remarks in July, Tuberville used the phrase specifically in response to claims that data centers make too much noise and would “ruin the climate.” The report has been updated to clarify the scope of his remarks and include the data center policies he outlined in a September 1 opinion column published by APR.
