Last week saw the largest protest in Seattle yet—60,000 people came out to the Silent March on Friday, June 12. The Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (or CHOP, Capitol Hill Occupied Protest!) has been steadily growing, with new artwork, cultural events, teach-ins, and food stands popping up every day. This uprising is only growing!
And the Black-led movement is already gaining wins. On Friday, the city of Seattle finally agreed to transfer ownership of the decommissioned Fire Station 6, in the heart of the Central District, to the Black community. It will become the William Grose Center for Cultural Innovation, a demand that Black community organizations in the King County Equity Now coalition have long fought for.
Let’s celebrate these wins, while keeping our sights on the movement’s three main demands:
DEFUND SPD BY AT LEAST 50%
DIRECT THOSE FUNDS TO COMMUNITY-LED HEALTH AND SAFETY SYSTEMS
RELEASE THE PROTESTERS WITHOUT CHARGES
We should be clear: we’ll be out in the streets, at demonstrations and marches around the city, until we win these demands.
Hey hey! Ho ho! Jenny Durkan’s got to go!
In a press conference with Chief Best last Thursday, Mayor Durkan was asked whether she supported protesters’ calls to defund SPD by 50%. Her response? “It is not responsible to suggest that we will cut 50% of our officers,” she said, flat-out rejecting the demand. Mayor Durkan, it is “irresponsible” to let a racist police force—one that is under federal oversight for their excessive use of force—murder, harass, and terrorize Black people, people of color, and our unhoused community members.
Later that day, she showed up an hour late to a “negotiation” meeting with protesters. Durkan originally asked only a few Black demonstrators to show, clearly trying to pick and choose who she meets with, to elevate certain leaders and sell out the movement. But Nikkita Oliver and others showed up as well, and made sure that every Black person who came out could be in that negotiation room. Mayor Durkan did not like that, and left without promising anything.
Now, Durkan is trying to claim that she protects protesters against Trump, despite tear-gassing us just a week ago. She even walked among demonstrators at Friday’s 60,000 person march. But she is not on our side.
That’s why Seattle DSA is amplifying the demand for Durkan to resign. Durkan must go not only for overseeing violence against protesters, but for years of letting police officers off the hook for violence against Black people, for the inhumane sweeps against our unhoused neighbors, and for selling off whole swaths of Seattle to Amazon and big business. If we force her out, it’s a huge win for the movement, and whoever replaces her would have enormous pressure to follow through with the demands and defund SPD. Of course, we know that the whole racist, capitalist system is guilty—ousting Durkan is not enough. We fight so we can continue to raise our expectations of what’s possible.
Update from the frontlines:
Here at CHAZ, our DSA tent is going strong. CHAZ is not a party, it’s a protest—and our members are here every day raising the three demands of the movement and getting signatures for the Defund SPD petition. We’ve also been collecting signatures for Jenny Durkan to resign, and get a big business tax on the ballot this year!
Shout out to our amazing members who are staffing our DSA tent, making connections with community members and having conversations about Black liberation, socialism, and the future of this uprising. Would you like to join? Feel free to come on by when you can, or better yet, fill out this form to sign up for a shift.
What you can do this week:
Wednesday, June 17 at 5PM: SPOG Out! Rally to Expel SPOG from MLKCLC
Come out to CHAZ and join rank-and-file union workers calling for an anti-racist labor movement, and for the Labor Council to remove SPOG, the Seattle police department’s union, from the Council. Rally at 5PM at CHAZ followed by an open mic at 6PM during the MLKCLC meeting proceedings. Facebook event here.
Thursday, June 18 at 6PM: Charleena Lyles Remembrance Vigil
Join Charleena Lyles family and community at Magnuson Park on the 3rd “angelversary” of her murder by the Seattle Police Department. Her family invites us to stand in solidarity with them as they continue to fight for justice. Facebook event here.
See more events below.
New to DSA?
Join here! Are you a member and looking to join our Slack, where most of our communication takes place? Just send your DSA welcome email from Maria Svart to [email protected] and we’ll plug you in.
In solidarity,
Seattle DSA
Time: June 15 @ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Venue: 5023 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA, 98118-1926
Come join DSA District 2 comrades and other Columbia City neighbors as we remember George Floyd. We will collect online signatures in support of the key demands of Seattle organizers, including defunding the Seattle Police Department and impeachment of mayor Jenny Durkan. We will also collect physical signatures on the ballot initiative to tax Amazon and other large businesses in support of [Read More]
Time: June 15 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Venue: Online (Zoom Call)
Socialist Night School is an open course that provides a chance to develop our politics together, regardless of background knowledge or whether you’ve attended a class before. New members and lifelong socialists, all are welcome! To sign up for our mailing list or to find out more, e-mail us at [email protected] ---> RSVP here! [Read More]
Time: June 17 @ 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Venue: Online (Zoom Call)
Does your building management take too long to make repairs? Are you concerned that your lease could be illegal? Does your landlord charge you too much rent? You’re not alone. The Tenant Organizing Collective is a group of Seattle area residents, including experienced housing rights activists, who meet every week to teach each other concrete, effective organizing skills to build power at [Read More]
Time: June 17 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Venue: Online
Due to coronavirus, we'll be meeting online. Join us on Google Hangouts Are you frustrated that you don't have a voice at work? Are you a freelancer who rarely gets paid on time? Are you working 2 or 3 gigs just to make rent? You\'re not alone. The Workplace Organizing Collective is a group of Seattle DSA members, including experienced labor organizers, who meet every week to teach each [Read More]
Time: June 18 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Venue: Zoom
Black Lives Matter District 2 DSA Meeting Thursday June 18, 6-8pm https://zoom.us/j/94766804792 The uprisings sparked by the murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis Police continue across the country. In Seattle DSA members have been participating in protests citywide and in our communities to uplift the calls for justice, and the demands of the growing movement against police violence, [Read More]
Time: June 18 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Venue: Online (Zoom Call)
Join District 4 SDSA to discuss Gramsci’s ideas on hegemony and civil society and how they relate to our current situation. The first reading is by one of our comrades. It explores the 2020 primary using Gramsci’s theory of cultural hegemony. The second is by Buttigieg’s father and gets more into Gramsci’s ideas about hegemony and civil society. His thinking on how society can progress beyond [Read More]
Time: June 18 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Venue: Online
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85968340290 Meeting ID: 859 6834 0290 +12532158782 (Tacoma [Read More]
Time: June 21 @ 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Venue: Online
Join us to pursue a fair and effective Green New Deal to halt climate change and win environmental justice. We explore ecosocialist theory, organize with climate groups, and are developing a campaign for fare-free transit. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82747344396 By phone 253 215 8782 Meeting ID: 827 4734 4396 Questions? Email [email protected] [Read More]
