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

#CloseTheCamps #CloseTheCampsSeattle #CloseTheCampsSEA ”

– https://www.facebook.com/events/2372559429659878/

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

Sunday, June 17th, 2018

Hundreds filled Westlake Park in downtown Seattle in protest of ICE enforcement of federal policy to arrest and detain immigrants seeking asylum and separating families in the process. WA Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal spoke on the separation of children from their families and the conditions at the detention center she visited.

“I promised these women that we will get them out and we will reunite them with their families…We are building a movement to make sure that we get them out of there and we get this policy reversed…The UN Human Rights Commissioner has already weighed in on this and has said that this is a violation of the rights of the child. The United States of America had to have the UN Commissioner on Human Rights tell us that this is a violation. We should know that already! It is outrageous that we are doing this…We are going to have a mass mobilization. Hopefully you will hear about it in the next 24 hours and you will get details on it.” – Pramila Jayapal

“All over the country, thousands of people are organizing rallies, marches, vigils in 60+ cities to protest the cruel separation of children from their parents at the border and the conditions in which Trump is holding children in detention. Congress has the power to stop tearing families apart b/c all #FamiliesBelongTogether #NoEstanSolas #ChingaLaMigra

Join the Rally, on Fathers Day, June 17th, at noon, and stand in solidarity with asylum seekers who have been separated from their children. We are gathering endorsers and speakers now, and will be posting more info soon. See current endorsers below.

1) We demand the immediate release of the imprisoned asylum seekers—mothers and fathers all—and that they be reunited with their children.

2) Washington State agencies and the City of Seattle should not collaborate with or facilitate immigration enforcement, detention, or deportation.

3) Finally, the State of Washington immediately closes any public and privately owned immigration prisons.

ENDORSERS
NW Immigrants Rights Project
NWDC Resistance/Resistencia al NWDC
Casa Latina
CAIR Washington
Latino Civic Alliance
Equal Rights Washington
Seattle Indivisible
ACLU Washington
The Truman National Security Project
Womxn’s March Seattle / Seattle Womxn’s Marching Forward
Refuse Fascism Seattle”

– Families Belong Together/Familias Unidas No Divididas

https://www.facebook.com/events/2121249018088293/

June 5th, 2018

At 7:30 am, 9 activists locked together with “lockboxes” set up a blockade on 2nd Ave. at Spring St. in downtown Seattle in protest of deportations and ICE’s treatment of detainees. Led by chants of “Chinga La Migra” and “Fuck ICE”, activists held up the morning traffic until approximately 2 hours before streets were re-opened. Nine activists were arrested after being cut from their lockboxes by the SPD “cut team”.

Maru Mora Villalpando explains why they are on 2nd Ave. protesting ICE. 

“From 1000 2nd Avenue in Seattle to the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, we say, ICE out of Washington State! Activists are locked down RIGHT NOW outside Washington State’s deportation epicenter at 1000 2nd Avenue in downtown Seattle. Come down NOW and show support, as we say, Abolish ICE! Chinga la Migra! Bring your signs, bring your friends, as we rally on the public sidewalk.

Why are we at 1000 2nd Avenue?
1000 2nd Avenue is the deportation epicenter of Washington State. Everything we consider “la migra” is housed here. It’s time for us to stop allowing the business as usual of deporting our community members in this anonymous downtown office building. We’re here to say: “Chinga la Migra!” “Abolish ICE!”

What parts of the deportation pipeline are at 1000 2nd Avenue?
ICE’s lawyers: On the 29th floor is the Northwest headquarters for the ICE Office of Chief Counsel, the lawyers who face off against our community members argue for their deportation every day.
ICE’s investigators: On the 23rd floor is the Northwest headquarters for ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations, the agency’s investigative branch. Although Seattle and King County claim to be “sanctuaries” for immigrants, the Seattle Police Department and the King County Sheriff actively collaborate on joint task forces with this branch of ICE leading to prosecutions and deportations.
Seattle Immigration Court: On the 25th floor, the Seattle Immigration Court, under the control of avowed white supremacist Jeff Sessions’ Department of Justice, processes thousands of deportations every year.
The Border Patrol: On the 22nd floor, Customs and Border Protection has their Seattle field office. This agency is charged with tracking down and arresting our people on the border, and feeding them into the deportation machine.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has become Trump’s police force. The US spends more money on immigration enforcement than on all other federal law enforcement agencies combined. Trump’s cops have absolutely no oversight, and they are taking their marching orders from a president with a Racism First agenda. Trump’s cops have no place in our city, and we’re taking to the streets today because we want them gone.

Accessibility info: Several bus lines and the light rail serve 1000 2nd Avenue. We will be on public sidewalks. Legal observers and peace keepers will be present.”

– https://www.facebook.com/events/187017988679310/