Category Archives: Voices

Voices

OPINION | Gig Worker Minimum Wage Is Good for Business

by Luzmila Freese

Barely two months ago, Seattle gig workers began earning minimum wage for the first time. Here at the Latino Community Fund (LCF), we are led by and serve Latino and immigrant community members who share a vision of a brighter, stronger economic future for us all that includes living wages for us all. We know a truly healthy economy is one in which Seattle’s local businesses and workforce have the support they need. That’s why we support efforts to make Seattle a great, affordable place to work, and requiring that app corporations pay workers fairly is an essential step toward that vision.

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Voices

OPINION | To Close Out Women’s History Month, Let’s Commemorate Influential Local Women

by Gennette Cordova

As March comes to a close, the deluge of sentiments honoring the illustrious and unflinching women who’ve left their mark on the world around us will soon slow to a drip. So as we pay tribute to those whose names have rang out globally throughout history, let us also uplift the lives and work of the women who’ve impacted our more immediate surroundings.

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Voices

OPINION | ShotSpotter: Why Waste Money We Don’t Have on a Technology That Doesn’t Work?

by Marcus Harrison Green

(This article is co-published with The Seattle Times.)

Correct me if I’m wrong, but are we not staring dismally at a near quarter-billion-dollar budget deficit in this city?

Given the boa-constrictor grip soon to be tightening around our finances, maybe this is not the best time for our City Council to consider spending money on a controversial and ineffective technology when we just so happen to have a hydra-headed crisis of addiction, homelessness, and affordability in this city.

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Voices

OPINION | Seattle’s Untested New Gig Work Law Is Making Life Harder for Small Businesses

by Tonin Gjekmarkaj

I own and operate Byrek & Baguette, a local bakery and café in Seattle serving Albanian dishes that have been perfected in our family for generations. We strive to provide great food and great service while creating jobs and contributing to the community. Unfortunately, the latest costly regulations imposed by Seattle’s City Council are changing all that.

The costs of eating out and ordering in are rising rapidly, spurred by inflation, high rents, staffing costs, and — most notably — the newly enacted Seattle City Council policies that have increased fees for app-based delivery.

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Voices

OPINION | Sen. Murray’s Legacy: Funding Gaza’s Tragedy

by Jen Greenstein

As an elementary school social worker, doing my taxes this year involves a horrifying cognitive dissonance. How can it be that my tax money, earned from supporting students in Seattle, is funding the 2,000-ton bombs dropping on schools, hospitals, refugee camps, and homes in Gaza?

Over the past four months, the Israeli military has killed more than 12,000 children in Gaza. Israel’s offensive has orphaned or separated over 17,000 children from their families. In early February, Sen. Patty Murray, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, voted to send the Israeli military an additional $14.1 billion — even after the International Court of Justice investigated Israel for plausibly committing genocide and ordered Israel to take immediate steps to protect civilians in Gaza. How can my country do this in my name, as a Jew? And how can it be that Sen. Murray — a self-professed “mom in tennis shoes,” grandmother, and former preschool teacher — is signing the check?

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Voices

OPINION | We Need More Internet Connectivity and Digital Skills Training for Seattle’s Growing Latino Population

by Estela Ortega

We started in an empty building. The former Beacon Hill School was abandoned and run-down in 1972, when I joined 70 other people, united in our purpose to make a stand for our community in a peaceful occupation.

Inspired by Martin Luther King Jr., we shared a vision to turn the historic school into a “beloved community,” free from poverty, hunger, and homelessness. And at age 22, I found my lifelong calling to serve our Latino community and other overlooked and underserved residents of King County.

That once-empty building is now home to El Centro de la Raza (The Center for People of all Races), a thriving hub for the growing Latino population — and everyone else — in South County. We serve more than 20,000 people each year with dozens of programs, including housing, education, small business development, financial empowerment, and so much more. We believe that with the right skills, support, and resources, everyone can do something great.

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Voices

OPINION | This Women’s History Month, Uplift the Powerful Outcomes of Women’s Movements

by Cindy Domingo

As we celebrated International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8, I was reminded that out of the negative experiences and stories of women and girls, powerful social movements led by women develop. Such was the emergence of International Women’s Day. Begun by socialist European movements, it was the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in Chicago that killed 146 young, mostly immigrant women that popularized IWD. Today, IWD is celebrated globally as a day to highlight the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. Coupled with the declaration of March as Women’s History Month, women’s contributions to history, especially in the area of women’s equality, can become the discussions in classrooms, community meetings, and events. However, celebrations and education on history are only one part of IWD and Women’s History Month, as their spirit is also a call to action for continued work and organizing for women’s equality.

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Voices

OPINION | Why I’m Urging South Seattle Democrats to Vote ‘Uncommitted Delegates’

by Bailey Medilo

I entered political organizing out of survival, not passion. As a young Brown child of Filipino immigrants living in southeast Seattle and South King County, my lived experience is seeing our leadership and policies fail — forcing my family and our communities further into marginalization, poverty, and continuous struggle.

None of this is unique, but a reality shared by countless young immigrants and children of immigrants across this nation. To address these struggles, young voters and organizers have been at the forefront of progressive victories and the election of Democratic candidates throughout this nation, including President Joe Biden. This activism is driven by a belief in harm reduction and the promise of a better future for our communities — which Biden’s 2020 campaign heavily aligned itself with.

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