After years spent in anti-homeless advocacy and social justice activism, rarely does Joshua Farris allow designations branded on him by someone else to cause much consternation. The exception is the one label that has consistently been associated with his name since announcing his campaign for District 2’s city council seat: “longshot”.
Farris believes this word has limited relation to reality, despite both The Stranger and The Seattle Times attaching it to his attempt to become the district’s first representative. The Iraq War veteran chalks this dismissiveness up to a system where “[one’s] seriousness as a candidate is measured by how much money you have in the bank, as opposed to how many feet you have in the streets”.
The reluctant candidate points not just to the grassroots support he’s received as evidence of his campaign’s viability (Farris says the vast number of signs dotting Rainier Avenue for miles attest to that), but also the obstacles he has had to overcome during his run, which have included eviction, homelessness and a perceived misinformation campaign by local media – plights he feels resonate solidly with the constituency of South Seattle, putting him in a more relatable position than that of his two opponents, twice-elected Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell and food policy planner Tammy Morales. The Emerald spoke with Farris at Columbia City’s Flying Lion Brewery, a setting affirming his “everyman-ness” as Farris put it, and evoking one label he held in wide regard: the candidate you could envision yourself having a beer with.
South Seattle Emerald: You’ve been an advocate for the homeless and those being displaced for the last several years. Why did you decide to run and step to the other side of the ledger, so to speak?
Joshua Farris: If you read most of the stories published about me, they comment on the fact I haven’t raised the same kind of campaign funds that other candidates have. Can we only elect people supported by millionaires? Is money the only measure of a candidate? Well, I’m used to running grassroots campaigns with no money. I know that people-power is the only way to counter the big money interests in power.
As you may know I entered the race a little late. The reason I entered the race is because I didn’t see a candidate I could support and people asked me to run. We needed an activist to run in South Seattle. We wanted somebody who could represent our interests and somebody we could trust to fight in City Hall.
People in our campaign have worked with SAFE (Standing Against Foreclosure & Eviction). I was a co-founder and the lead organizer before I resigned in order to run. We’ve been advocating for policies that would have helped people in the South End, such as strengthening Just Cause Eviction Protection, so people could pay to stay in their home. In effect, this would have been a kind of moratorium on foreclosures for former homeowners and tenants in Seattle.
This year housing is the number one issue for Seattle District 2. Our city is becoming unaffordable for most people. Last year we began the process of raising the minimum wage which I supported. The incumbent fought against the $15 per hour minimum wage every step of the way. Oddly now it’s the incumbent who is taking credit for it. It’s that kind of opportunism in politics that turns people off.
People are being displaced from the neighborhoods they’ve lived in for most of their lives. I’m not running to be everything to everyone, like Bruce, but to actually bring solutions. Seattle has major problems that have been neglected and made worse by the current city council. City Hall only seems to hear the voices of the moneyed class and is turning this city into a playground for the rich. Their agenda is to make the rich richer and the poor poorer. People on the ground feel the effects of that agenda and it’s pushing them out of the city.
What I will do is hold the doors to City Hall open and allow people to have a voice after this election. I will go out of my way to engage people every week. I won’t do some token thing where I have office hours in the district every week. I want to have a weekly town hall forum over a radio broadcast where we explain what our office did last week, what’s coming up, and let people call in to discuss the issues on a weekly basis. I want there be transparency and direct democracy for the people in Southeast Seattle. That’s why I’m running.
Emerald: What would your approach be in attempting to create greater economic parity between South Seattle and its northern counterparts. This area has one of the lowest median incomes in the city. How do you attack that as a city council member?
Farris: We need more investment in small businesses and targeted economic development along Rainier Ave S. and Martin Luther King Way would make it a destination area and not just a through way.
I will work to enact a vacancy tax on commercial real estate that’s been sitting empty for more than six months to encourage landlords to lower rents so that small businesses can afford to succeed here. I will fight to restore affirmative action so more people in the South End can get jobs.
Emerald: In terms of affordable housing, everything has been bandied about in terms of linkage fees and other options. What do you support in terms of making sure this area stays the same and there’s less displacement?
Farris: There are still poor working class people of color who work in Seattle, but a lot of them are forced into Renton, Federal Way, Kent, and south of the city. One of the ways we can preserve the diversity of the city and broaden it is by building more affordable housing. I strongly support Kshama Sawant’s plan to build 50,000 units of affordable public housing.
We need affordable housing that’s based on the metric of 30 percent of your salary, even if you only make $10,000 a year or don’t have money coming in at all. In addressing displacement, we also need recognize the fact that Seattle has the fastest growing homeless population in the country. We need to recognize housing as a human right. We should emulate what Phoenix is doing for veterans and what Salt Lake City is doing for everyone. Put everyone in housing. It turns out that it costs dramatically less, nearly 50 percent less, to put people in homes first. That will be my number one priority to end homelessness.
We have more than two thousand empty houses in South Seattle. We need to establish a vacancy tax to discourage banks from keeping empty homes off the market, prevent banks from refusing to negotiate loan modifications, and establish a means to recover the social costs of their greed.
What we need is a regulated housing market. The city council is primarily responsible for Land Use policies. The city council can do this, but it takes conviction and it takes political will; something I don’t think the other two candidates in South Seattle have. I can say our campaign has already been successful. The other candidates have been parroting our proposals since the day after our first debate.
It is difficult to believe Bruce on housing. He’s had eight years. He could have studied what’s been happening in other cities. He could look at Los Angeles and see that they sued Wall Street to recover money. He could have looked at Salt Lake City. He could have looked at Phoenix to see what they’re doing to combat veteran homelessness. He could have looked at the vacancy tax they’re applying in Oakland. He could have looked at all these things, but he didn’t. Further, he has a staff of people to explore these problems and could rapidly come up with policy recommendations that the more liberal council members could sign onto. But, Bruce did nothing.
For 7 ½ years, Seattleites lost millions and billions of dollars of hard-earned equity they had in their homes. The African American community was hit the hardest. Our history and our dignity are under attack as we face displacement. That is what’s at stake here; human dignity. This housing issue is number one. I’ll sponsor a tenant bill of rights and rent control.
Emerald: Speaking of housing, you’ve been in the unique position of actually being evicted from your home recently. You’ve said this is an experience everyone running for city council should have?
Farris: Being thrown out of your home is a visceral experience. It was poetic to be evicted as an anti-eviction organizer while running for city council, on a housing justice platform. We could have continued to fight our eviction but it would have distracted us from the campaign. Our primary purpose is to help build the movement and unseat Harrell. On the last day before an unlawful detainer could have been filed, I moved out. We demonstrated and drew attention to the issue that landlords have all the power in this town. There are no tenants’ rights. You can basically be evicted with only twenty day notice which my wife and I were given. In some cases, tenants can suffer no-fault evictions without any notice. Not to mention the economic evictions from rent hikes people can’t afford.
Emerald: In turning to transportation issues, let’s first talk about the proposed road diet along Rainier Avenue. Are you supportive of SDOT’s proposal to narrow the lanes from four down to two lanes to curb accidents on the street?
Farris: I don’t believe these transit plans should be imposed on the neighborhoods. We need to have support from the community councils and neighborhoods before we move ahead with anything. The way it is now, Department of Transportation comes to a community meeting and says: This is what we’re going to do. Any questions?
The city has a tendency to design and build new transit projects in an unsafe manner and then criticizes those same designs for their serious flaws. Such “bold and visionary” designs have a very short shelf life before another huge money-pit of a proposal comes along that will solve all of our decades-long problems and revolutionize the use of the targeted locality. Having witnessed how such projects are developed and executed in Southeast Seattle, like many people worried about their skyrocketing property taxes, I admit to being skeptical.
I know some people in the South End like the idea of a road diet and some people don’t like it. Rainier is a major arterial. Our energy future requires that we reduce carbon emissions. We need more trolleys, light rail, and more walkable neighborhoods. I believe the road diet is where we’re headed, but let’s get real community support for it first.
Emerald: What are your feelings on the proposed Graham light rail station attached to Mayor Murray’s “Move Seattle” levy in November?
Farris: It’s around 28 blocks to walk from Othello station to Graham. That’s an impossible situation for people who want to take transit. They end up walking to Rainier and catching the number 7 bus. That’s dumb. Metro took out bus routes because they want to force people to take the light rail. We need a Graham street station. I’d also like to see more east to west transit options as well. It’s ridiculous that all of our mass transit flows into downtown when so many people work in SoDo and Georgetown. It’s just over the hill. Fares have doubled in the last ten years for crying out loud. I’d like to restore and expand the ride free zone downtown as well as roll back the fare hikes as soon as possible with progressive funding sources.
Emerald: In terms of education. How do we push towards a more equitable system for South End schools?
Farris: We have an issue where Olympia has basically screwed Seattle with rent, screwed us with taxation, screwed us with affirmative action and screwed us with education. Jesse Hagopian (a Garfield high school teacher) went down to Olympia a few years ago and tried to carry out a citizen’s arrest of the senators down there because they were in violation of the Washington State Constitution which says that education should be funded equally. The Washington State Supreme Court should hold the entire State government in contempt. I think the schools in the South End need just as many resources as those in the North End.
I support data and reality. We have proof that something like the International Baccalaureate program works in Rainier Beach. Why is that only for another year? I’m in favor of low cost solutions that have been proven to work to educate our kids. As an activist I’m very aware of the school to prison pipeline. African American students are three times as likely to be suspended from school than their white peers. What does this say to those kids?
Emerald: There have been some things published about you in recent weeks in various publications, including that you have DUI charge, and that you punched a homeless man out of a fit of anger. Would you care to address any of these stories?
Farris: I don’t spend my time spreading whisper campaigns about Bruce. The stories I’ve read in the Stranger and Crosscut are utter nonsense. Once you put people in a situation where they’re saying, “I did not kill that person,” the question becomes, “well, did he or didn’t he kill someone?” I’ve heard plenty of nasty rumors about Bruce. I don’t know if they’re true or not. Articles about me say things like: “Do you know he doesn’t have as much money and he’s not a valid candidate?” Then somebody comments, “By way he also had a D.U.I. and he’s nuts.”
You don’t have to be an investigative journalist to look up my criminal record. If you did, you would see that I don’t have a DUI. I have a charge where I was sentenced to a fifty dollar fine, and it was dismissed.
I have been arrested because of my work as an advocate for civil society and social justice. I’ve committed civil disobedience plenty of times. All of that has been dismissed.
The Crosscut story of me punching a guy sprang from me organizing down at Nickelsville. A vicious guy attacked me and I defended myself. The guy reported me to police after he attacked me. When I found out about it, through the sensational Crosscut piece, I filed a complaint with the police in order to tell my side of the story. I’m sure nothing will come of it.
Emerald: You continue to take offense with people labeling you the “fringe” candidate. How do you combat the constant refrain that your campaign shouldn’t be taken seriously?
Farris: Yes, we are a serious campaign. I know I feel serious after working all day to put my campaign signs in the ground. I know I feel serious when the issues I’ve brought up during the forums are parroted by my two opponents. I also know I’m dead serious when I say I’d fight to make sure developers pay their fair share; they’ve had a free handout in this town for long enough.
Emerald: Let’s say you win the District 2 council seat, at the completion of your first term, what would you want your South End constituency to say about you?
Farris: I want them to say I’m the Councilmember that cares about people before profits. Mine is a true grassroots campaign and you shouldn’t have to be a millionaire to run for office.
I want to demonstrate that Kshama Sawant is not an anomaly. We can elect normal people, including socialists, organizers, plumbers, and janitors. They don’t have to all be city planners, corporate lawyers and bureaucrats. Quite frankly, those are the people who got us into this mess. We don’t really need any more of the old guard running the city.
Emerald: Finally, a question from Mohammed a local middle schooler in the Youth Tutoring Program at Lake Washington Apartments: If Batman fought Superman, who would you want to win?
Farris: I would root for Superman, mainly because I wouldn’t want to support the billionaire do-gooder Bruce Wayne and Superman is an immigrant from space. He’s a working class guy. He’s a starving journalist who doesn’t get paid much. I have to go with the working man.
Having a lackey place tons of signs in public right of ways does not show grass roots support. It shows you have one person willing to spend an hour driving around putting up signs.
I don’t think the Farris For Seattle campaign can afford to pay for “lackeys” like other campaigns.
Its show that there is real people whom have been affected by the bad and unconscious polices passed in City Hall, polices that just represent the richest people in the city and that ignore the voices of the most vulnerable people in the district. This people who have been ignore is supporting Josh in a real grassroots campaign and as Josh said is not just about having a lot of money to run a campaign, when you don’t have money but you have the real people backing you up that send a great and powerful message to all; don’t you think?
I support Josh!
So, the way to show you have grassroots support is by paying folks to put up all those signs?
How do you know he pays people to put up signs? Maybe Josh pays people to put up signs? How would you know?
I put up some of those signs. I’m a volunteer. I’ve worked with Josh Farris on a few projects. One of the first projects I worked with him on was risking arrest to keep a disabled veteran in his home of 62 years. I like the style and perspective he gives to a debate.
The Farris For Seattle Campaign is all volunteer.
Josh Farris finds it difficult to tell the truth.
Farris: Regarding the SAFE organization “I resigned in order to run”. Truth: He lead a SAFE protest on June 25th at Seattle Town Hall.
Farris: “The incumbent (Bruce Harrell) fought against the $15 per hour minimum wage every step of the way.
Truth: David Freiboth of the M.L. King County Labor Council stated the following on March 30, 2015 during public testimony: “Councilmember Harrell, one of the unsung key people in the minimum wage campaign…I just want to thank you for that.”
Farris: “I do not spend my time spreading whisper campaigns about Bruce (Harrell)”.
Truth: Farris posts pictures of Harrell’s home on the Farris campaign Facebook page with disparaging comments, then posts to twitter disparaging his wife.
Farris will not speak to the Stranger’s political reporter because she quoted Farris about copying Sawant’s donor list from the Public Disclosure Website to solicit them for contributions.
With Farris, its always somebody else at fault:
– I’m not rich like the other guy.
– The writer is against me because she quoted me correctly.
– I was evicted because my landlord did not like me.
– I am homeless now. Until my new townhouse is ready. (Yes, the homeless candidate just bought a condo).
– The homeless guy made me punch him in the head. How dare a reporter file a public records request.
– The police won’t follow up on the complaint I never filed.
– Getting temporary protection orders filed against me is just part of my job. Besides, they are all baseless…really.
– Sawant and Licata won’t take my calls anymore… Oh wait, that is true.
– I am not trying super hard to ride Sawants coattail into office. I did not know her campaign signs look just like mine.
See you in the funny papers Josh.
Anybody can show up at a protest. Farris shows up at a lot of protests, but I doubt he’s organizing any while he’s running for office.
Josh was the guy leading the protest with a bullhorn as seen in pictures posted on The SAFE Facebook page. No need to doubt it, because it is true.
About Bruce: He was one of the city council who really water down the $15 minimum wage, he vote yes at the end because it have so much public support and because Kshama did push for it since she got it the sit for city council, thank you Kshama if wasn’t for her political will, we never could have won a $15 minimum wage! As a activist that was fired for organizing and standing against the pretty bad and inhuman work conditions that fast food restaurants offer to our people, i was fighting for better work conditions and raising the minimum wage since the first fast food strike in Seattle. I feel offended knowing the Bruce said that he was key to pass the historic minimum wage, because, saying this is just hypocrisy!
It is good to know you have worked to improve your community. I am confident CM Sawant also pursued the wage increase with vigor. That said, I was relaying the public testimony of Executive Director David Freiboth (M.L. King County Labor Council) which represents 125 unions with 75,000 members. The Director thanked CM Harrell as a key person for his work on the campaign. The point being Josh Farris stated in the article that CM Harrell “fought against the $15 per hour minimum wage every step of the way”. So who is more credible, the M.L.K.C.L.U Director or Josh Farris?
There’s a huge different between still working for SAFE and bottom-lining a protest.
Bruce Harrell wasn’t really an “unsung key hero”. of the minimum wage push. He could have been on the commission like Kshama Sawant, but he wasn’t. He took a backseat during the push and didn’t really commit until he saw the popularity of it (like most of the incumbents).
He also was willing to throw disabled folks under the bus and keep them from getting the minimum wage.
http://seattlish.com/post/87226197676/a-15-minimum-wage-update-still-winning-and
He also voted to throw early workers under the bus and retain a training wage.
http://www.capitolhillseattle.com/2014/06/seattle-finalizes-plan-for-15-minimum-wage-eventually/
A whisper campaign is sending paid trolls to the comment section of articles to write disparaging (not to mention uncited) character attacks. Posting about Bruce Harrell’s $2 million house in Bellevue on the Farris campaign’s page is a direct statement about Harrell. He keeps an address in D2 to run, but he’s not really a resident. That’s relevant to voters if Harrell’s trying to portray himself as some longtime resident of District 2 (or Seattle for that matter).
So, South Seattlite, do you have any actual critiques of Farris’s policy proposals and/or support for things like a vacancy tax, publicly built housing, strengthening Just Cause eviction laws? Or, do you just have more baseless character attacks?
$15 Wage: Actually CM Harrell Was a member of the Select Committee on the Minimum Wage and Income Inequality and the Mayor’s Income Inequality Advisory Committee. As mentioned previous, The M.L.King County Labor Council personally complimented CM Harrell’s work on the $15 minimum wage campaign. Josh Farris does not agree. Josh could back up his opinion with evidence in a follow up interview, right?
Trolls: I do not think it is necessary for Trolls to be paid, but ok. what does the position pay?
Policy: Josh Farris has provided titles of possible policies. Where are the policy papers he has written on those subjects? You know, the detail which follows the policy title? I would be happy to provide a layman’s critique once the papers are made public.
You seem to know a lot about Josh Farris. Too bad what you think you know is not based in fact. So I’ll hit your points one by one.
Point one:
“I resigned(from SAFE) in order to run.”
Josh was lead organizer at SAFE. He when SAFE was founded three years ago, he was the man who put all of the organizers he could find in one room and got us started in the business of saving homes. From its founding until about a year ago when I left SAFE, he was working around 60 hours a week to keep people in their homes. I know this because 20 of those hours I was working beside him. When he says he resigned. It doesn’t mean he stopped fighting to keep people in their homes. It means that he could no longer be relied upon to put 60 hours of work in each week because those hours were being moved towards saving the city from Bruce Harrell and his cronies (people like you).
Point two:
“Council member Harrell, one of the unsung key people in the minimum wage campaign.
From the meetings I attended concerning 15now!, Harrell was at best a non existent voice, and considering the district he is supposed to represent, that is unacceptable.
Point three:
Farris posts pictures of Harrell’s home on the Farris campaign Facebook page with disparaging comments, then posts to twitter disparaging his wife.
Harrell is the wealthiest member of the city council and he represents the poorest district. His multi-million dollar home overlooking Lake Washington is a relative point considering the fact that most of his votes favor the monied interests in this city.
I don’t do “Twitter” so I can’t speak to that other point.
Point Four:
Farris will not speak to the Stranger’s political reporter because she quoted Farris about copying Sawant’s donor list from the Public Disclosure Website to solicit them for contributions.
Did you miss the word “Public” in public disclosure? The Stranger article implies that there is something wrong with reaching out to Sawant voters who can no longer vote for her due to the newly implemented District elections. Josh is the only candidate on the ballot who has marched with her, campaigned with her and been arrested with her. Of the three candidates on the ballot, we are the only one who is likely to assist Sawant in creating a new path for our city.
Your tirade:
– I’m not rich like the other guy…He isn’t
– The writer is against me because she quoted me correctly…I don’t know what you’re talking about (and you can quote me on that one)
– I was evicted because my landlord did not like me….Josh’s landlord evicted him when he announced his candidacy for city council. Does that sound like a friend?
– I am homeless now. Until my new townhouse is ready. (Yes, the homeless candidate just bought a condo)…When you have no home. You are homeless. When you are evicted you rental options diminish and you are forced to make faster choices than you would under normal circumstances.
– The homeless guy made me punch him in the head. How dare a reporter file a public records request….while speaking at a homeless encampment, Josh was attacked, and falling back on his Iraq war veteran training. He put the guy down. Much like Bruce Harrell would have done if he had ever visited a homeless encampment in his nearly eight year in office.
– Getting temporary protection orders filed against me is just part of my job. Besides, they are all baseless…really…We did a SAFE style protest in front of Josh’s landlord’s home. He filed a restraining order. It was thrown out of court (like we said before, he doesn’t like Josh).
– Sawant and Licata won’t take my calls anymore… Oh wait, that is true…We didn’t know they weren’t taking our calls. We haven’t called them, but we did speak to Kshama at the last debate. She is a friend, and she need the support of people like Josh to pass Rent Control, to stop illegal foreclosures, and end the attack on working class people in this city. The stakes are too high to risk another term with Bruce Harrell.
SAFE: Ok, thanks for clearing that up. Its not that Josh Farris has resigned from SAFE? He just spends less time with the organization? Fair enough, However, Josh said he resigned from the organization in the article. It’s probably a misquote by the writer. Maybe the S.S. Emerald writer would check his/her notes to verify.
$15: Once again, it was the Director of a labor organization with 75,000 members who provided the public testimony thanking CM Harrell as a “Key Person”. I would not pretend to know the issue as well as Mr. Freiboth. Josh is about “Data and Reality”, maybe he should consult with the labor council about it.
Copied contributor list: You are correct, the list is public. Illegal by federal law pertaining to federal elections but not necessarily for state and local elections. Josh Farris is a supporter of CM Sawant. She surely agreed to the Farris campaign using her list. It seems reasonable Josh would have asked permission first. The Stranger’s Heidi Groover must have missed this point. It would be simple for Josh to contact Miss. Groover to correct the record.
Don’t know writer: Sorry, my fault. It is Heidi Groover of the Stranger. The article concerning Josh Farris, angry, and won’t return her calls is from July 1st, 2015, District Date. She is a reporter I assume Josh could contact her and clear up any potential misunderstanding.
Expensive House: President Obama Makes $400,000 a year and lives in the White House, and signed the ACA. Would Josh Farris contend the President can’t relate to people with less income because he travels in a tricked out 747?
Eviction: Josh Farris had a contract which the property owner legally ended. So, Josh would have been fine with the result if they were friends?
Homeless: Josh Farris lost his lease and then purchased a condo within a couple of weeks. Does Josh really want to compare his situation to a Nickelsville resident? Find me one tent city person who would take that deal.
Punch: Per the police report, Josh Farris and two males arrived at Nickelsville just before midnight, visiting hours at the encampment ended at 10pm. He was asked to leave, instead he knocked on the door of a resident and started an argument which lead to the assault. No way Josh could have avoided that situation, right?
Protection Order: If public records are correct, Josh Farris was served a valid Temporary Protection Order for Harassment granted by a judge. A subsequent court hearing did not extend the order. So, yes it was thrown out…kind of, but not really.
Sawant: Yes, Sawant is a friend who scrubbed her campaign social media accounts of Farris Campaign related pictures. Josh should clear this up and invite her to a joint campaign rally. The sooner the better. The primary is almost here.
Apologies for a perceived lack of fact contained in my prior comment(s). Good luck to you and the Farris electoral campaign.
This is how Bruce Harrell was key to water down the minimum wage; and the person who wrote the article was right, people an i whom were involved in fighting and advocating for passing the minimum wage know this!
In the end, the provision to let giant non-profits like the Gates Foundation skate was cut out, which was nice, but the door was left open for training wages, and for lower wages for those with disabilities, which is…not ideal. Oh,and Bruce Harrell for some reason thinks that paying disabled people less will help them get jobs, so that’s…fun.
Thank you Bruce Jackson for the link:)
http://seattlish.com/post/87226197676/a-15-minimum-wage-update-still-winning-and
As posted previously. Josh Farris’s argument is with the M.L. King County Labor Council. It was the organizations Executive director who praised CM Harrell’s work on the minimum wage campaign. Josh is a member of a local electrical union, right? Josh has stated this on several occasions. If Josh feels so strongly about the organizations representation of CM Harrell’s work he should contact the labor organization who provided the public testimony.
Some volunteer protest roles include: chant leader, bullhorn guy or gal, police liaison, media liaison, banner holder, picket sign holder, videographer, photographer, transportation, food handler, legal support, and bottom-liner (responsible for organizing the organizing). Did you say you saw a picture of Josh with a bullhorn? Perhaps one of the volunteer organizer/bottom-liners asked him to run the bullhorn for a while and somebody took his picture? I wonder if there any truth to what you say… Silly rabbit, don’t you know tricks are for kids!
Let’s just forget about that whole protest was about Hank Paulson bailing out the banks and selling out the country. I like people that care about the world…
Sure, that sounds logical. Go with it.
Yeah, I think I will go with logic and vote for Farris. I hope you’re being paid well.
A person cannot bully and cheat their way to a council position. Seattle is not that big a city, people will notice.
This is the thing Farris folks. You can’t say and publish stuff without regard to validity, context and truth. Josh Farris is passionate, he gets some attention. The problem is he has not put in the work necessary to be a valid candidate. The council job is facilitating the operation of a city. Josh lacks skills to effectively administrate a council position. Have you looked at Morales’ and Harrell’s resumes? In part they reflect a history of civil commitment and administrative prowess.
CM Richard Conlin was no hack. His extended tenure was respected. Conlin proved efficient in his duties to the Council. Yet he lost his seat to CM Sawant, a socialist. She has the requisite ability and background to support her position. Her PhD in economics is also a plus.
Josh Farris will not lose the contest by acknowledging his opponents accomplishments. Unless, he has few or none of his own to compare.
By the way: I am neither paid or affiliated with any candidate, campaign or political organization.
An astounding $370,000 is what the government spends everyday to let Bertha sit in a hole underneath Seattle. All for a few rich men’s fantasies of luxury development. That money could have been used to solve the housing crises and provide free transit to all in the city. Harrell was a big proponent of the disastrous project. Based on this alone, one could argue that Harrell is dangerous and reckless with Seattle’s precious resources… that he must go and should be investigated for corruption. It’s an amazing scandal dreamed up by the monied interests. Again, I’ll go with logic and vote for Farris. Socialists actually solve problems instead of making them worse for quick profits. Bruce and his class have no right to control Seattle after a history of such violent incompetence.
Speaking as a member of the Farris Campaign, Is your organization calling for an investigation of CM Harrell for corruption? Pretty serious charge. When will Josh Farris make a public statement with details of the alleged wrong doing?
I understand your position and your opinion, you have the right as any citizen to have your own opinion about who you think is more valid candidate and who is not for the position of city council. I respect your opinion. I am supporting Josh as most people that are commenting here! I am supporting him because, he have show multiple times with actions not with words that he really care and want to find the best solution for the problems that real people are facing every day in the district and the city, problems such as; displacement, homelessness, racism, poor access to education and a very poor diet for the lack of economic resources people in district 2 have etc.This is the people that have been affected by the polices that people in positions in power created, and this need to change. I am agree with Josh about the importance and the necessity to put in power people who care and that are already fighting for a better society, people who are not afraid to calling big corporation out and that put people first before putting profit. Any human been should be able to run for the positions of city council as long as they care and as long as they are already putting their faces without fear to retaliation to defend other people against injustice. Josh have been doing it for several years without mattering about his title or occupation, Josh is doing every day all what i just mentioned.
“We needed an activist to run in South Seattle. We wanted somebody who could represent our interests and somebody we could trust to fight in City Hall.” -Josh Farris
By the way Noam Chomsky as most of the people who is commenting here and I support Josh. If Noam Chomsky who is an eminent American theoretical linguist, cognitive scientist and philosopher, who radically changed the arena of linguistics by assuming language as a uniquely human, biologically based cognitive capacity (http://www.famousscientists.org/noam-chomsky/ http://www.egs.edu/library/noam-chomsky/biography/ ). If he is endorsing Josh and supporting him from who else does he need validation. I know from who else need to validated Josh, and that is by the people who live inside the district and the city. They should be the one whom should validate or not Josh with their vote. You cannot speak for all of them but for yourself. If you believe that Josh is not a validated candidate is your opinion and I respect it.
I have been helping to put up signs and flyers for josh because I believe in what he stands for. He has no money to pay anyone, and is probably going to go into debt just to pay for the signs. about 100 signs on Rainier Ave DISAPPEARED over night and that was not random act of vandalism. It was a concerted effort, I can only assume, from Bruce’s camp. It’s sad that after working all day I spend my time for something I believe in and other people think it’s ok to destroy it. Is Bruce just vindictive or is he really worried that Josh might be a real threat?
Who is Bruce?
The Noam Chomsky endorsement is a big deal to the Farris campaign. Are Noam Chomsky and Josh Farris associates? Maybe a past collaboration on an intellectual paper? Is there correspondence the Farris campaign would make public to give context to the process used to obtain the endorsement?
There are no short cuts to obtain elected office.
Sure there is: lots of money
Does southseattlite have anything positive to say about his corporate candidate or is all he can do is attack josh with innuendo and half truths? And what about our signs was he the paid lackey taking them down? Whoever did showed their true feelings about democratic freedom.
Can you be more specific. What innuendo and half truth are you referring to?
Hi Steve, I was thinking about the Josh Farris campaign and your sign issue. You may be right there could be a concerted effort, i.e., conspiracy to remove your campaign signs from district two. But there may be a more simple and straight forward explanation.
Who did Josh assign to review SMC 23.55.12.C Temporary Signs ordinance. Were the campaign volunteers informed where and how the signs can be legally placed? E.g., signs placed on planting strips in front of private property including leased property residential or business must have the consent of the occupant. Or, no signs placed in a planting strip may be no more then 24 inches in height when located within 30 feet of an intersection.
Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is charged with enforcement. For more information the SDOT phone number is 206-684-5267.
My previous comment in included the information that I am neither paid or affiliated with any candidate, campaign, or organization. And, I have yet to decide which candidate to vote for. Would you share this with the other Farris campaign folks who have been commenting about this?
Also:
1. You referred to “Bruce’s camp”. Who or what is this?
2. Would you provide some detail regarding your statement about the innuendo and half truths you are concerned about in my previous posts? It would be good to clear up any misunderstanding.
Just a suggestion: Maybe Josh Farris should concentrate on getting on the final ballot before going straight at the incumbent. It may be an easier row to hoe at this time.
I don’t think SDOT takes down signs in the middle of the night
I also don’t think SDOT takes only one candidates signs while leaving “Banks” and “Harrell” on the road. I love that Harrell has endorsed Banks and is supported by banks as a corporate lawyer living in something that looks like a drug lord’s compound! LOL
Harrell is corrupt and big bertha is a big testimony to that. The status quo is threatened by the Josh Farris Campaign. Those supporting Harrell either do not understand he is corrupt or do and should be ashamed of their complicity in corruption.
the city council already has enough people that have been suckered in by the share/wheel/scott morrow homeless pimps