Community: VFW Meat Raffle from 4 to 7pm @ Skyway VFW Hall 7421 S. 126th St Seattle, WA 98178. More Info: email persimmon1859@gmail.com
Movies: Opening of Maleficent starring Angelina Jolie, showtimes 4:15pm, 7:30pm and 10:15pm @ Ark Lodge Cinemas 4816 Rainier Avenue South Seattle , WA 98118. More Info: http://www.arklodgecinemas.com
Saturday, May 31st
Art: Franklin High School Art Show from 12 to 8pm @ Columbia City Gallery 4864 Rainier Ave S Seattle WA 98118. More info:www.columbiacitygallery.com
Civic: The Gathering: A Discussion to Address the Negative Perceptions of Rainier Beach and How to Reduce Youth Violence from 1:30pm to 5:00pm @ South Shore School 4800 South Henderson Street S Seattle. More Info: http://www.rbcoalition.org/join-the-gathering-saturday-may-31-2014
Music: A Magical Evening of Disney Music, shows at 7:oopm and 9:30pm @The Royal Room 5000 Rainier Avenue South Seattle 98118. More Info: http://www.theroyalroomseattle.com
Sunday, June 1st
Community: Brunch at the Beachcomber from 10:00am to 12:30pm @ Beachcomber 12623 Renton Ave S Seattle, WA 98178. More Info: (206) 772-5183
Music: Margo Lauritzen “Heart Improvement” CD Release from 9:00pm @ The Royal Room 5000 Rainier Avenue South Seattle 981178. More Info: http://www.theroyalroomseattle.com
If you have an event to post, please email events@southseattleemerald.com
Gems is a column devoted to spotlighting the various denizens who contribute to the rich mosaic that is the South Seattle area.
Who: Drina Turner
Avocation: Library Assistant
Favorite Area of South Seattle: Skyway
Where You Would Know Her From: Perched vigilantly behind Skyway Library’s front desk, ready to combat belligerent loudness and delinquent book returns.
What’s your favorite thing to do in South Seattle?
Working as a Library Assistant. It’s not a passive job as some might think. It’s actually quite dynamic. You get a diverse range of thoughts and ideas when you’re helping people with their problems. The clientele changes throughout the day. In the morning you have job seekers and people who work nights, along with the elderly. The library becomes somewhat of their social scene and a place for entertainment. Then in the afternoon, you have students coming from school and in the evening you have people just getting off from work, so throughout the day you have various needs being met. You many times become, “that person,” for people to talk to when they don’t have anyone else. Sometimes just “being there” helps them a great deal.
So what is the difference between a librarian and a library assistant?
It can be confusing! A librarian is someone who has their master’s degree in library science. A library assistant is someone who has at least a high school diploma.
Are there any amusing stories you can share as a library assistant?
One that stands out had to do with someone forgetting their library card and not having any identification. Usually when people come up to the front desk and need their library card, but don’t have any way of identifying themselves we ask them a series of questions to ascertain that we are giving the correct person the correct information.There was this young lady who came to the desk and didn’t have any identification but she said, “but my name is tattooed here!” and then proceeded to pull her shirt down to reveal this large tattoo of her name on her neck. I was thinking, “Well you more than likely are who you say you are… but that doesn’t exactly meet our verification criteria.”
How do you get on a library assistants good side besides being a lover of silence in the library?
One of the things I find extremely helpful when you visit a library is to just approach whoever is sitting behind the desk as someone who really is there to help you. The best thing to do is not assume that you’re going to be met with resistance or negativity, that way your interaction goes lot smoother. That’s works so much better than giving them a hard time for no apparent reason. And yes, as librarians and library assistants, we do understand that there are policies in place that we may not all agree with, but they’re in place for a reason, and part of it is to protect your own confidentiality. If we just gave your information out to anybody who just knew enough to get it, then you would be here for a completely different reason and not a good one. It’s important to assume first that you can get help if you ask for it, and there’s never a need to escalate a situation if you are not getting the help you want.
What’s the strangest request you’ve ever received at the library?
Well, this is a broad answer, but people tend to think that we know everything, as if we are a walking Google (laughter). So, people think we have mastered the most recent version of Microsoft Publisher, or that it’s second nature to us to decipher complex federal and county law, so request can run the whole gamut.
What 3 books do you recommend people read right this very moment?
Good Lord Bird by James McBride, which is going to be made into a movie starring Jaden Smith (Will Smith’s son).
Dear Girls Above Me by Charlie McDowell, about a young man who can hear the conversations of the women who live above him, with many of them being true to life.
Giant George by Dave Nasser, about a Dog who is larger than any great dane
How do you think South Seattle can be improved?
I think that there is a lot of potential for development here. My feeling is that areas go through periods of time of vitality and depression before they are revitalized, and I have a feeling that this area is on the upswing.
I’m hoping that when people see the new (Skyway) Library being built that it will draw more commerce to the area of Skyway, so that people have more choices for shopping needs and anything else. Many of the residents in this area are at a financial disadvantage in comparison to other areas, and as a result of that there are several services that are lacking. I hope that the county finally decides where this area belongs, as right now it is unincorporated, neither tomato or tomatoe, in not belonging to Renton or Seattle. There is much more that can be done in this area and I’m hoping it will soon experience a growth spurt.
Finally, people should go to the library because?
There’s a lot that the library can provide,at no cost to you other than having an ID card. All we ask is that you have picture ID if you are 18 and over, you can come here to request movies, books (in various formats), as well as having access to different programs we offer that are inclusive to young and old. We are currently making a push for health and trying to offer classes and presentations, where people are here to talk about what you can do to get healthy, foods and exercises. We try to challenge the thinking that the library is just a place where you can come and be quiet. We have a game day that is geared towards young teens and programs for small children. This is your tax dollars at work for you. If you need help and there is no place that you think you can go, come here and find out. The library of your youth, is not the library of today!
Editor’s Note: Race Matters is a new column which provides a nuanced take on race and its impact on the culture of the South Seattle area.
by Sam Louie,M.A., LMHC
Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA team Dallas Mavericks provoked controversy following his interview with Inc. Magazine regarding his views on race and culture.
“I mean, we’re all prejudiced in one way or another. If I see a black kid in a hoodie and it’s late at night, I’m walking to the other side of the street. And if on that side of the street, there’s a guy that has tattoos all over his face — white guy, bald head, tattoos everywhere — I’m walking back to the other side of the street. And the list goes on of stereotypes that we all live up to and are fearful of. So in my businesses, I try not to be hypocritical. I know that I’m not perfect. I know that I live in a glass house, and it’s not appropriate for me to throw stones.”
His comment comes after the NBA’s actions against Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was caught on audiotape making racially charged comments. The NBA banned Sterling for life and fined him 2.5 million dollars after he told a female friend, V. Stiviano, not to bring Black people to Clippers games. Sterling is in the midst of having the NBA force him to sell his team as well.
Some have accused Cuban of being a bigot but I think this misses the point. In the interview he adds, “While we all have our prejudices and bigotries, we have to learn that it’s an issue that we have to control.” Control and how we handle our prejudices is the operative word here. Just because Cuban has prejudices doesn’t make him racist. Being aware of race, culture, context and the implications it poses to us personally is much more valuable than people ignoring the subject matter by hiding behind the veil of being blind to color when they say, “I don’t see color”. What these people are implying is that their decisions and how they treat someone aren’t based on another person’s ethnicity, skin tone, or appearance. I believe for the most part, Americans don’t discriminate in hiring practices, housing, and other significant racial issues, but when it comes to issues of socialization and our own personal comfort zone, we do discriminate and have our prejudices.
Despite our best attempts to not think about race, there will be times and situations where race, culture, image, and stereotypes form our decision-making. I believe if we deny this part of ourselves, we deny our humanity. We are at our core, primal creatures. We make automatic decisions that are unconscious, reflexive, and based on our need for survival.
There’s an almond-shaped part of our brain in the temporal lobe, called the amygdala, that is hard-wired to any threat (real or imagined). The amygdala, controls autonomic responses associated with fear, arousal, and emotional stimulation. This is the “fight or flight” portion that we hear about and as much as we may want to turn this part off in the name of cultural sensitivity, the neurons that fire in this region are automatic and can’t be shut down. Now I believe we can learn and grow in our sensitivity to threats but that takes much effort since what you perceive as a threat is based on your upbringing and as adults hard to change without significant work.
For example, I grew up in South Seattle and graduated from Rainier Beach high school. I lived, played, and went to school with African-Americans for my formative years. Consequently, in my adult life I gravitated towards Black journalists when I was working in t.v. news because I felt most comfortable around them. This didn’t make me a racist but since I never knew or was surrounded by “middle-aged, white men” growing up (except teachers), I had no context of how I would be treated and hence saw white men as more threatening to my sense of security. I remember at one point, my girlfriend at the time asked me, “Why do you only hang out with Black people from work?” I got defensive because I wasn’t purposely ignoring White folks but had just gravitated towards African-Americans since I thought had more in common with them.
This same logic applies when I’m in other urban areas around the U.S. I don’t have fear being in ethnic communities (i.e. Asian, Black, Latino, etc.) because there’s a certain familiarity I’m accustomed to. However, if this isn’t your upbringing you’re going to feel uncomfortable, wary, and possibly scared or fearful. The same applies to people who present a certain stereotypical image. Whether it’s the stereotype of an Asian gang-banger, a White Supremacist, or a Black thug, I know for myself these images create different responses to me depending on the context. In all the conversations and stories I hear about race, context is often left out. Context is vital because context is what make the amygdala in the brain is searching for on a real, everyday, moment-by-moment level.
For example, if there’s a group of young White men with tattoos and shaved heads walking around South Seattle, I’d think they were lost and this wouldn’t trigger my amygdala as a source of threat. Same thing if they were walking around downtown Bellevue. However, if I’m in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, a city close to the original headquarters of the Aryan Nations, and saw this same group walking down the street, my fight and flight response would be screaming at me. I’d be foolish to ignore it. This same response comes up when I see Asians who dress and look like gang members driving or hanging around South Seattle. I am vigilant not to look at them in any way that could be misconstrued to provoke them. Am I being racist? I don’t think so because based on the context, it’s simply my sympathetic nervous going into autopilot.
I will acknowledge there are times when clients I work with have undergone significant childhood stressors and threats to safety (i.e. consistently getting bullied, beat-up, teased, etc.) that in adulthood they remain in a hyper-aroused state of fight or flight around men of any ethnicity. Even if the perpetrators were of one race, the level trauma can be so damaging that any man, regardless of race, is seen as a threat. The same level of trauma happens to women who are raped. If race was a role then there may be extra sensitivity to the offender’s race but the damage can be so encompassing that the women don’t discriminate on race per se but the entire male gender could be seen as a threat.
Issues of race need to be further explored instead of simply compartmentalized or having people ostracized for their views. Honest discussion, openness, education, and socialization can break down our preconceived notions of those we know little of or know only through caricatures or stereotypes. It behooves us all to know where we fall on the continuum of prejudice, racism, and bigotry.
Adobe Stock Image May Chanikran
Sam Louie is an Asian-American psychotherapist with a private practice in Seattle and Bellevue. He focuses on issues of culture, race, and addictions. He is also an Emmy-Award Winning former t.v. news journalist and can be reached at: www.samlouiemft.com. sam@samlouiemft.com and on Twitter @SamLouieSpeaks
After arresting a 46-year-old man in last week’s “shopping cart” homicide in the Othello Park neighborhood, detectives are now seeking more information about the victim of this terrible crime.
Police believe the victim in this case, Daryl M. Ford, was homeless and detectives are asking for help identifying where Mr. Ford may have frequented or camped in the Seattle area.
If you have any information which could aid in the prosecution of this case, please call the homicide tip line at (206) 233-5000.
Last week the Seattle Council’s Planning, Land Use, and Sustainability (PLUS) committee once again took up the North Rainier Rezone, last seen inspiring a diverse set of public comments earlier this month. There were more public comments that are by now quite repetitive, although the latest tactic is calling for yet another 2-year delay while companion parks, economic development, and transportation plans develop. I predict approximately zero current opponents would suddenly accept the plan then, as it still won’t address their fundamental desire to limit the number of low-income neighbors and preserve effortless parking at local businesses. Meanwhile, rents spiral upward and the Rainier Valley continues to suffer.
Afterwards, the committee approved three amendments to the legislation and tabled a fourth proposed by Councilmember Bruce Harrell, who was out of town. Unfortunately, one of the amendments requires a title change to the bill, so the committee will have to wait until June 3rd to vote on the legislation and send it to full council.
The three attendees (Mike O’Brien, Nick Licata, and Tim Burgess) approved the following three amendments:
1) Amend the proposed zoning to exclude the parking maximums currently operative in other “Seattle Mixed” Zones (basically just South Lake Union and Lower Queen Anne). This triggers the required change in the bill title, and addresses the fear that the proposed maxima “might be too low” for certain businesses, like grocery stores, envisioned for the area.
2) Change the “Class I” pedestrian street designation to “Class II” on McClellan and Rainier. Class II allows “more flexibility” for street interface. It would keep transparency requirements, but permits more uses at ground level for a “greater range of businesses.” Rather than forcing nothing but eat/drink and retail, health care, light industrial, and office applications would also be allowed on the first floor — but not residential. The council is concerned about vacant storefronts, reflecting many comments from residents.
Even Class I setbacks are flexible in the design review process, but Class II allows 12 ft. setbacks as a matter of course. DPD thought “more suburban, less active” might be appropriate given the traffic on these streets. Notably, on-street parking on these streets would improve the pedestrian environment, possible if SDOT uses the “bowtie” street reconfiguration here to greatly improve bus/rail transfers.
3) The committee added a few blocks east of MLK and north of McClellan to the upzone (the blocks labeled LR3 and NC1-40 in the upper right), due to a request from the landowner, the nonprofit Mt. Baker Housing Association. These parcels are already developed to LR3 (Low Rise-3), but MBHA would like to tear this down, add more affordable housing, and simultaneously deal with residual contamination from a dry cleaning business there. The parcels would become MR2 (Midrise 2) and SM-65 (Seattle Mixed 65′), respectively.
From my perspective, these three amendments range from wonderful to mixed. The expanded housing on the MBHA site is unmitigated good news. Meanwhile, it’s clear that parking minimums create a whole suite of bad effects, but maximums are debatable, particularly in a place where redevelopment might take a while to get off the ground. As for the pedestrian classification, allowing a broader diversity of businesses is probably a good idea.
The Harrell amendment, on which the committee decided to delay deliberations until Mr. Harrell could be there to discuss it, would lower the 125′ limit on the Lowe’s site to 85′, although a contract rezone could raise it again once the City knew would would go in. As always, height is a flash point, but this amendment would simply reduce the site’s potential and add yet more veto points to its best possible use. DPD believes residential will not utilize 125′ under current conditions. Reducing the height will make residential more competitive, and is likely to subvert the often-expressed community wish for the site to be focused on job creation.
Mr. Burgess specifically asked for neighborhood feedback on this amendment, via public comment at the next meeting or via email. Let him know what you think.
Mr. O’Brien closed by asking about the lot immediately south of the station but not affected by the rezone, currently LR3-RC. Across a quiet street from the station, any sensible framework would upzone these extremely aggressively. Last decade these blocks fell out of the plan because they might cast shadows on deserted Cheasty Blvd., there were single family homes on the other side of the greenbelt, and there were commercial uses nearby that have since largely disappeared. I wish I was joking about any of these “problems.”
Since this terrible decision, the status of these blocks has changed. Capitol Hill Housing purchased the southern block. The northern block will be split between an underground King county sewer overflow storage tank (!!!! – hopefully it’s buildable above) and a northern half split among several parcels. Mr. O’Brien asked for input from DPD and the public about making some or all of this area SM-85 or SM-65. Good for Mr. O’Brien to bring up this common-sense revision. Thank him and let him know this is a good idea.
As a side note, Lyle Bicknell of DPD said there is already interest in redeveloping the Rite Aid/QFC site immediately north of the station while preserving those tenants. Good news!
Wendy Olsen, MFT, answers all the relationship questions you were dying to ask, but just couldn’t muster up the courage to. You can email questions to editor@southseattleemerald
Q: I’ve been having a fling with a colleague from work and things have been working fine, in that we both seem to be getting what we want physically out of the deal without any commitment. He however has started expressing that he wants more of an actual relationship with me but I honestly value my freedom a lot at this point in my life, and while I could see myself, maybe, dating him one day, now just isn’t that time. I don’t feel like I’d be stringing him along if I told him that someday I might be open to it but now I’d just like to continue the status quo, as sexually, things are great. I feel men do this all the time without shame, so would I be wrong?
Wendy: Being honest about how you really feel is the kindest thing you can do. By being honest with him, you are allowing him to make the best choice for himself: continue with sexual play and see what the future holds for the two of you or look for something more involved with someone else. You both have choices in the matter. Kudos to you for wanting to give him the truth and the option to opt out.
Q: I recently proposed to my girlfriend after two and a half years of dating. She said yes, but then revealed to me a couple weeks after we got engaged that she cheated on me with an ex-boyfriend a few months after we began dating. She says that it meant nothing and that it was early in our relationship. I respect that she told me even though she didn’t have to, however it does make me look at her in a different light, and somewhat makes me rethink our relationship and whether I should even marry her now. Am I overreacting or should I just appreciate her being honest and let it go?
Wendy: When someone reveals something that happened in the past, they’ve had time to resolve their feelings over it. However, when we hear it for the first time, no matter how long ago it was, it is fresh for us. Your feelings and confusion are normal. Yes, she was honest with you and at great risk to herself and to your relationship. She made herself very vulnerable by disclosing her indiscretion. In disclosing to you, she allowed you to fully give what I’ll call” informed consent” in your relationship. Now you know something more about her, a fault or mistake. When she says it meant nothing, that very well may be the truth. However, I would encourage both of you to explore why she cheated. It is important for you both to have a clearer understanding about how that happened in order to avoid it happening in the future. It may be as simple as, she was seeing you, but not yet committed. The ex came back into the picture and by being with him again she realized that she didn’t want anything more with him and really did want a relationship with you. Indiscretions happen. It doesn’t mean that all is lost.
Q: My husband and I have been married for a little less than a year, and over time it’s been revealed that he likes some fairly lewd pornography. It’s something I’ve gone along with in terms of watching it with him, however it’s something I’m having an issue with tolerating any longer. He says that he needs it to “get in the mood,” but “hello” that’s what I’m supposed to be for. It makes me feel a bit disparaged knowing that this is what he needs. I’ve told him several times how I feel, but I’ll catch him still viewing it. I want to tell him, “It’s the porn or me,” but is that realistic?
Wendy: The porn issue is a common one in relationships. Porn is the opposite of intimacy. When going solo, it is something that people use to become aroused and climax without worrying about meeting someone else’s needs. You only have to worry about yourself. It’s fantasy. Some couples use it as a form of foreplay. On the other hand (no pun intended), if you are feeling sexually invisible to your husband, that is problematic. When you say he tells you that he “needs it to get in the mood”, that may be something that you two need to talk more about. If you are at the point that you feel his relationship to pornography is at the expense of the intimacy between the two of you, seek professional help. A professional can help both of you understand your different needs sexually and emotionally and help you come to some sort of resolution. Wendy Olsen is a Marriage & Family Therapist, specializing in Sex Therapy. You can find more of her advice at http://www.talk2wendyolsen.com
I went to The Evergreen State College, a place known for activist students who are nicknamed “Greeners”. This is where I first realized that corporations and the wealthy were taking control of our democracy and that the media is complicit. The symptoms of this situation are more than I can list here: our climate is changing, our education system is being undermined, and most major life transitions now require tithing to banks which themselves are crime-ridden and impervious; to name just a few.
I went to Evergreen in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. I would come back to Seattle to visit my friends and family, where the change in context, from radical college town to mainstream middle class upwardly mobile city, made me uncomfortably aware of how few people had access to the kind of info I was absorbing there.
Fast forward to now, and things are different. We in Seattle get it. In fact, 75% of us think that a $15 minimum wage is a good idea.
A few years ago, I decided to change what I do in life to include activism and organizing. It is the best thing I ever did outside of family, and I can’t believe there aren’t more people working on this stuff. Where are the torches and pitchforks?
People are busy. I get that. I’m busy too. With most of the people I know on the same page with me philosophically, I often wonder why people don’t get involved more deeply than clicking online petitions.
I think there are a few answers in play. One is people don’t turn out if they don’t think it will make a difference. It is a simple value judgment. I have a certain amount of time, and it never feels like enough, so I won’t spend a minute of it on something I am not persuaded will change things. There is also a bandwagon effect, meaning people look to see what others are doing and decide on action or inaction based on that. Right now, the norm is that we can volunteer in a soup kitchen and feel righteous, but if we work to make soup kitchens obsolete we are considered a little deluded.
These attitudes have lots of causes. Most of the progressive organizations wielding an email list have found that they can get people to click with a message of doom and gloom. This gives them good short term results, but at the same time, our collective perception of whether we have a shot at making a difference is eroded. People get overwhelmed.
It isn’t a part of our culture right now to engage politically. Our country has been influenced by an anti-intellectual movement, and by a cult of fierce independence. Both of these things have undermined who we are fundamentally, and by that, I mean as a species. We are social. Interdependence is part of our makeup. But deeply antisocial forces have turned us against our own intrinsic natures—turned us against the instincts that in the past have allowed us to thrive. So now here in Seattle, the friendliest of climates in the world of organizing, a place where so many of us understand how the oligarchy is shaking us down, when we picture organizing or activism, the image that pops to mind is not of ourselves.
It isn’t accidental that people are skeptical about making a difference, and they won’t discover they can be effective by accident, either.
How do we change “I” to “we”? How do we move from fierce independence to fierce cooperation? How do we sear into minds the image of people doing better by working together?
For a start, we need a beacon to rally around and push towards. We need to talk more about the world we want—what makes a life well lived, and how can we all have access to that, not just stomp our feet and yell about our corporate rulers being mean to us. We, the movement builders, need to do a better job of demonstrating what we are working towards, showing glimpses of the future we are trying to attain. Second, we have to give people a sense that we can make a difference, because as it turns out, we can. Third, it has to be fun.
If we are going to win, it will take a movement that belongs to all, not just us Greeners.
Sandra Vanderven is a Senior Organizer at Fuse Washington and Board President of the Backbone Campaign. She can be contacted at sandra@fusewashington.org
While gyms are traditionally known to celebrate slim figures and body-builder images, Rainier Health & Fitness has a different purpose: to encourage healthy lifestyles, strong bodies and authentic community. For Amal*, her husband and seven children, Rainier Health & Fitness has been a key part of developing healthy practices. Every family member exercises regularly and Amal herself walks to the gym from their Beacon Hill home to hit the treadmill or participate in a yoga class.
Amal’s friends ask her, “Why do you go to the gym? You’re already skinny?” Amal replies that exercising is about staying healthy and feeling well, not just being skinny. Her mom died in 2008 and had high blood pressure and high cholesterol, so she wants to prevent suffering from the same preventable conditions. Plus, if she doesn’t work out, her muscles get tight and she has migraines. The migraines are actually what drove her to join the gym in the first place in April 2010; Amal’s doctor said she should go to the gym, a stress-free environment, for her migraines. Now they only resume after not coming for a week or two. “Coming here is good for my heart and brain,” Amal says.
In addition to regular exercise, Amal’s family has also made healthy changes to their diet thanks to the influence of their vegetarian daughter. Amal used to drink lots of coffee, but now has reduced her consumption to one cup per day. Coming from Somalia where many dishes are prepared with oil, she has steered away from this ingredient and has quit frying food. Instead, she serves the family only brown rice, oatmeal and whole grain bread, spaghetti and cereal. She also checks the labels of food and looks at calories before purchasing. As a result, no one in her family is overweight.
“Health is number one.” Amal says, “It’s worth $30 per month.” She tells everybody to come here and has met lots of new friends while working out.
* pseudonym, name changed to protect privacy
About Rainier Health & Fitness
Rainier Health & Fitness first opened its doors in March of 2005 with the dream of using exercise to address health disparities in its neighborhood. Since then it has grown to over 1600 members. The volunteers and staff at Rainier Health & Fitness are dedicated to improving the health of their Rainier Valley community by encouraging healthy lifestyles and strong bodies. The fitness center makes exercise fun and accessible by offering affordable prices and creating a non-intimidating workout environment, especially for those who are new to exercise. A variety of group classes including yoga, ZUMBA fitness, Pilates, turbo kick and cycling are available to members at no additional cost while personal training, group training and CrossFit are offered through certified trainers for comparably low additional fees. Regular memberships are an affordable $30 a month with a one-time membership fee of $99.
Skyway Solutions is hosting an Elected Officials Panel tomorrow, May 22nd from 7:00 -8:30 pm at the Skyway Water and Sewer Building : 6723 S 124th Street, Seattle, WA 98178. The panel will feature King County Councilmember Larry Gossett and 37th District Representative Sharon Tomiko- Santos. All residents of the south Seattle area are encouraged to attend.
Western Conference Finals: San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Down to the two best teams in the west. They happen to be the #1 and #2 seed. This is a matchup that lots of people expected this late into the playoffs. The Spurs are veteran ball club with a lot of bench production. The Thunder are led by MVP Kevin Durant as they try to reach the Finals again. Both teams are matched up evenly so the key factor is bench play. Whoever has more production out of their bench will advance to the NBA Finals.
Winner: Oklahoma City Thunder in 7 games
Eastern Conference Finals: Miami Heat vs. Indiana Pacers
The most anticipated match up of the playoffs by far. Since day one of the NBA season everyone has been saying the only team that can dethrone the back-to- back defending champions is the Indiana Pacers. The Heat are the best team in the playoffs sitting at 8-1 in the postseason. Lebron James and the rest of the team are firingon all cylinders. The Pacers on the other hand are struggling as of late. However the Pacers do happen to have home court advantage in this series, and if they can get things together they ill be the Heat’s toughest matchup. The key factor in this series is Roy Hibbert. The Pacers can’t win unless he has a monster series scoring on the low block and controlling the paint with rebounds and blocked shots.
Winner: Indiana Pacers in 7 games
Amplifying the Authentic Narratives of South Seattle
Events this weekend in the South Seattle area
