Seattle: A large crowd of protestors gather inside Seattle City Hall with Councilwoman Kshama Sawant to greet the protestors on Tuesday night marking the 12th consecutive night of protest in the wake of George Floyd’s death few weeks ago, that sparked the nation over colour discrimination, and police brutality.
Councilwoman, Kshama Sawant, allowed the protestors to step inside of the building which is generally locked up at night. She addressed the crowd and discussed about the upcoming council chokeholds and chemical weapons, police budget and the “Amazon Tax.”
While it may not look like social distancing is able to happen in here they are on top of safety. My mask slipped & one of the organizers just told me I’d have to keep it on to be inside @KIRORadio #seattleprotest #blacklivesmatters pic.twitter.com/E9PYG4snjm
— Hanna Scott (@HannaKIROFM) June 10, 2020
Many protestors called for Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan to resign, as per reports, for defunding Seattle’s police department have increased in urgency. In response to the protest, Durkan’s office released the following statement on Tuesday night, “Mayor Durkan will not be distracted from the critical work that needs to be done at a moment that Seattle is facing its most challenging time in its history. The disparities, health, and economic impacts of the pandemic are an unprecedented challenge. Now we are faced with the pain and trauma relating to the murder of Mr. Floyd and the generations of systemic racism in our city and country that rightfully need to be addressed not through words but action.”
“The City has so much healing and work to do – that is where Mayor Durkan will continue to spend her focus in the coming days, weeks and months ahead. At this pivotal moment, we cannot fan division when we need to come together to make actual steps on policing, invest in community, safely reopen our city to get workers back to work, and address the inequities in every system, including in education, housing, access to wealth building jobs and the criminal justice system.”
They also added in the statement, “As the person who originally investigated the Seattle Police Department for the unconstitutional use of force, Mayor Durkan believes that SPD can lead the nation on continued reforms and accountability, but knows this week has eroded trust at a time when trust is most crucial.”
The scene inside #Seattle City Hall as protesters pack both the 1st & 2nd floors just before pm @KIRORadio #seattleprotest #BlackLivesMattters pic.twitter.com/4NMZxQFfE9
— Hanna Scott (@HannaKIROFM) June 10, 2020
“Mayor Durkan has worked non-stop over the last three months to keep our community safe and to address the inequities of the pandemic in our community. Working together, we must focus our investments in opportunities for communities of color and increase efforts that go even beyond what we built the first two years, like free college, expanding preschool, protecting domestic workers and rideshare drivers, building affordable housing, and investing in community led youth safety programs.”
Assistant Police Chief Deanna Nollette said that no officers will respond to City Hall, unless they are needed in the area. However, officers deployed tear gas on protestors in Capitol Hill last Saturday night, one day after Durkan announced a 30-day ban on using tear gas.
Norman Pearlstine is the Chief Editor of News Raise and focuses on Business news. His responsibility is to oversee the editorial content including business, commodities, personal investments and the stock market.
