May 15th, 2021
At least 200 people gathered at Be’er Sheva Park for a prayer walk to Othello Park in honor of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. Demands for justice and an end to violence against indigenous people were joined by songs and drumming as people moved North on Rainier Ave. A car brigade, bicycle brigade, and an indigenous motorcycle club provided protection for those on the march.
October 24th, 2019
Seattle, WA
It wasn’t just activists at the Amazon spheres during this lunchtime protest. Seattle City Council members, candidates for the upcoming election, tech workers, Amazon employees, and labor organizations joined together to protest Amazon’s cash dump of $1.5 million dollars into the Chamber of Commerce’s political action committee, Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy (CASE).
In a rare show of support, City Council members and registered Democrats Lorena Gonzalez and Theresa Mosqueda joined with Socialist City Council member Kshama Sawant (D3) and candidates Shaun Scott (D4) and Tammy Morales (D2) as they spoke against such a significant corporate influence in a city council election.
With less than two weeks left before the election, PAC spending will likely increase, but with national politicians weighing in, so will the numbers of eyes on Seattle’s election.
You can read more about the election and Amazon’s cash influence here…https://www.capitolhillseattle.com/2019/10/response-to-amazon-cash-helps-sawant-secure-key-new-allies-her-fellow-council-members/
Indigenous Peoples Day
October 14, 2019
Saturday, October 12th, 2019
The Spheres were once again the target of a rally against Amazon and their hosting of Immigration and Customs Enforcement database and possible enhanced biometric database to track and apprehend immigrants. Approximately 100 protestors rallied first at the Spheres before walking to the Amazon 4-star store and forming a picket line. 10-15 SPD watched from their bicycles on the corners as the protest kept to the sidewalk.
From the event Facebook page…
“Close the Camps Rally
Saturday October 12th, 2-4 pm
Amazon Spheres in Downtown Seattle!
The Democratic Socialists of America invite you to join us in protesting the inhumane, illegal, and unconstitutional immigration system, as we bring attention and shame to the Trump Administration and the corporate collaborators harvesting human misery for profit! We’ll be holding a rally outside the Amazon Spheres in downtown Seattle, gathering on the corner of 6th & Lenora, from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday October 12th.
Our demands are simple and just; urgent and necessary; personal and powerful:
Abolish ICE! End all raids and all deportations! End courthouse arrests! Enforce Keep Washington Working! Close the Northwest ICE Processing Center and all private prisons! Divest the city of Seattle from GEO and private prisons! End the relationship between Big Tech and ICE! Recognize the Duwamish Tribe and their right to the land! And above all:
CLOSE THE CAMPS!
At the rally, we’ll be gathering signatures for a Peoples’ Petition with our demands that we’ll deliver to Seattle City Hall, and collecting funds for the Fair Fight Bond Fund!
If your organization would like to endorse this action, please contact Seattle DSA at immigration@seattledsa.org. We are also soliciting speakers for this event – endorsers guaranteed a speaker’s slot!
closethecampsoct.org l seattledsa.org l dsausa.org
____________________________________________________________________________
PRINCIPLES OF THE SDSA IJWG CLOSE THE CAMPS TEAM
We reject a global system that facilitates the movement of capital across borders but denies human beings the freedom to live with dignity in the communities of their choice. We demand full and equal rights for all regardless of citizenship, an end to all forms of immigrant detention and imprisonment, and a humane, publicly funded immigration system that actively supports people who choose to move to the United States.
The Seattle DSA Immigration Justice Working Group (SDSA IJWG) works in solidarity with immigrant-led organizations to provide immediate material support to people harmed by our immigration system; and offers a socialist analysis of our immigration system in order to build political will for a socialist world without detention or second class citizenship for anyone. A better world is possible!
In Solidarity, The Seattle DSA Immigrant Justice Working Group
August 1, 2019
Nearly 300-400 activists and community members showed up to protest ICE at their downtown headquarters in Seattle. This diverse crowd was joined by passersby and cheered on by cyclists and those driving by in cars. While loud chants of “free the children” echoed through the streets of downtown, less than 15 Proud Boys and III%ers made a small, ineffectual attempt at a counter-protest by chanting “build the wall” and “lock them up”, were soon separated by SPD who formed a wall between the two groups. Some of those gathered to counter-protest were open carrying pistols while one had a rifle slung across his chest. Those protesting ICE were not open carrying any weapons and peaceful in their demonstration. There were no arrests.
From the Facebook event page…
“We can no longer watch as our friends and neighbors are torn from their homes by the Trump Administration. We can also no longer wait for our politicians to decide when the right time is to solve this crisis. With every child that dies in a cage due to inhumane conditions, we are reminded that the time is now. ICE violates the very being of our most vulnerable communities and they must be abolished, alongside all detention. We are the solution. Every day we bear the guilt and pain of watching our nation descend into fascism.
The time is now to stand in defense of asylum seekers, migrants, and people of color. The Northwest Detention Center, the largest private immigration prison in the United States, is Washington’s best kept secret. The offices at 1000 2nd Ave serve as the nexus for Washington’s deportation machine. This fight is not only happening on the Border — it’s here. Rally the city. #NeverAgain.
OUR DEMAND: That the Washington legislature bans private immigration detention centers throughout the state. Illinois recently became the first state to do so; let’s become the second.
BRING YOUR FRIENDS AND SIGNS.
This is a mass action, not an arrest action. Some attendees may be undocumented, so please be mindful of your words and actions. Simply, do not incite violence.
If you have any questions or are part of an organization that would be interested in speaking at our rally, please send us a message at rallythecity@gmail.com. We will be updating this page frequently with confirmed endorsements and speakers.
ENDORSED BY:
Never Again Action
The Human Rights Defense Center
Close the Camps
Seattle DSA (Democratic Socialists of America)
ANSWER Coalition (Act Now, Stop War, End Racism)
Refuse Fascism
SEA SOl (Seattle Solidarity)
Puget Sound Sage
Amnesty Group 4
FSP (Freedom Socialist Party)
LELO (Legacy of Equality, Leadership, and Organization)
Transit Riders Union
Radical Women
Colectiva Legal Del Pueblo
Socialist Alternative
Mijente
La Resistencia
Casa Latina”
– https://www.facebook.com/events/356850948313381/?active_tab=about
January 8th, 2019
At least 40 activists gathered outside the lobby of the Canadian Consulate in Seattle to protest the arrests of water protectors and activists at the Gidumt’en checkpoint on land belonging to the Wet’suwet’en Nation. The land is under threat from Coastal GasLink, a project of TransCanada Corporation, who has been constructing a 670-kilometer fracked gas pipeline that will carry fracked gas from Dawson Creek, B.C. to the coastal town of Kitimat, where LNG Canada’s processing plant would be located.
“In response to the call for a solidarity action on Tuesday, January 8, 2019 responding to the International Solidarity with Wet’suwet’en Day of Action. This action will take place on unceded Duwamish & Coast Salish land at the Canadian consulate @ 1501 4th Ave Seattle WA.
Calling on all drummers and prayer warriors to show up in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en territories and all land defenders at the access point on Gidumt’en territory.
This will be a prayerful action. Please bring your drums, songs, copal, signs, etc.”
Facebook event page – https://www.facebook.com/events/2489982587683263/
You can read more about this issue here…”https://lastrealindians.com/heavily-armed-rcmp-tactical-unit-and-military-forces-confronting-un-armed-indigenous-land-defenders/mattremle/“
Seattle, WA
10/8/18
Indigenous people and allies from around the Pacific Northwest gathered at Westlake Park on Duwamish (dxÊ·dÉ™wÊ”abÅ¡) land for a rally and march to celebrate the 5th year Seattle has celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Day. More than 150 people marched in the rain from Westlake Park long 5th Avenue to Seattle City Hall, where a rally was held. Evening events were held at Daybreak Star.
The process of ending the celebration of a genocidal, slave trading, lost navigator, was long, and thanks to tireless work by activists like Matt Remle and many others, the proclamation was voted on by the Seattle City Council and was signed into law by mayor Ed Murray in 2013.
Seattle,WA – 10/06/18
The day of Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, nearly a thousand people gathered at Westlake Park in downtown Seattle to protest Trump’s nominee for his history of sexual assault and lies under oath.
Speakers from NARAL Pro-Choice Washington, Shout Your Abortion, Seattle Clinic Defense, political representatives, and activists spoke at the rally before the crowd marched through downtown Seattle to the US District Court at Stewart and 7th.
“The stakes are too high to stay home! All of our lives are literally on the line as Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court threatens to roll back women’s rights, voting rights, LGBTQ rights, and more. And, it’s not just that — we owe it to all the brave survivors of sexual violence who have come forward, like Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Deborah Ramirez, and Julie Swetnick, to ensure their stories were not shared in vain. We believe survivors. We will #StopKavanaugh.
This is it! The Senate is planning to vote on Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination on Saturday at 2:30pm. We say NO and this is our final opportunity to ensure every senator votes NO too! We are marching to remind them that the Supreme Court is the People’s Court.”
8/18/18
While the numbers of the far right groups like Patriot Prayer, III Percenters, Proud Boys, and others seem to grow, they are consistently outnumbered by antifascists, leftist organizations, labor groups, and community activists. While firearms were present on both sides, the far right group were heavily armed with both rifles and sidearms.
SPD kept both sides separated by at least 50 feet and metal barricades, although far right activists were seen walking through the counter protest side. Armed militia and III Percenters acted as security, having people open their bags, having them drink their water to prove it wasn’t acid, and checking the guns of protestors on their side that were not white.
The far right group marched around the block twice, but were prevented from interacting with counter-protestors. Three on the counter protest side were arrested for non dispersal, but only minor scuffles and brief confrontations were spotted between the groups.
The Dignity Virus 