Seattle Democratic Socialists of America

Comrades,

It has been a hard week. We are heartbroken to learn of Summer Taylor’s passing, one of two protesters who was hit by a car that intentionally ran into a protest for Black lives on Friday night. Our hearts are with their family and friends, and everyone grieving this devastating loss. Rest in power, Summer Taylor. We will do our best to honor your memory as we continue this fight for Black lives. We mourn the dead, and fight like hell for the living.

Last week, the Seattle Police Department swept CHOP, destroying the community space that had been created through resistance, joy, and solidarity over the past month. SPD destroyed people’s belongings as well as the art, vigils, and mutual aid stations that protesters had created. In carrying out this sweep, the SPD demonstrated their unaccountable character, blatantly breaking the recently passed law banning the use of pepper spray and blast balls. This violent repression by the SPD shows the deeply reactionary character of the capitalist state and the limits of democratic oversight allowed over its core repressive institutions. The SPD must be defunded.

Mayor Durkan deserves blame and anger for these actions, but it was never just about CHOP. We keep fighting until we win the demands of the Black-led movement: defund SPD by 50%, reallocate funds to communities, and release all protesters with no charges.

Not only did Mayor Durkan sweep CHOP last week, but she also lashed out in anger over the march to her mansion last weekend, writing an angry letter to the Seattle City Council in which she demanded that they remove the one socialist City Councilmember, Kshama Sawant. Durkan’s attempts to cover up for her failure as a mayor will not distract us from the real issue: that Mayor Durkan has consistently overseen police violence in this city and refuses to meet the demands. Mayor Durkan must be impeached. You can read our joint response with BAYAN Seattle, Roxanne White, and Anna Hackman here.

EVERYDAY:

Protests continue everyday. Over the last week, protesters have continued to march on the mayor’s mansion! While we know that COVID-19 cases are rising, we encourage all members to take necessary precautions and join the protests if you feel safe to do so. Please travel with protest buddies.

Here are a few upcoming protests to join. DSA will be at all of these; we encourage you to meet up with DSA comrades and join together! Please check Slack for coordination and updates.

Justice for Shaun Fuhr March

Monday, July 6 at 3PM

Rally at Westlake with Shaun’s family, march to Mercer Street and shut down one of the biggest intersections in Seattle.

Page Engage & Poets in the Park

Presented by Black Collective Voice and “Pay The Fee” Tiny Library

Friday, July 10 at 5:30 (Poets in the Park) and 6:30 (Page Engage)

Jimi Hendrix Park

JULY GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING:

Join us TOMORROW for our monthly general membership meeting!

Tuesday, July 7 at 7PM

RSVP here

We’ll hear from democratic socialist Shahid Buttar, who is running against incumbent Nancy Pelosi for Congress in California. We’ll also come together and offer a space to reflect on the uprising for Black lives, what’s next for the movement, and how we can fight to defund SPD. We can’t wait to see you there!

Seattle DSA