Tag Archives: Politics

How Gentrification Shapes South End Politics: Race and Politics in South Seattle

October 21, 2022 Editor

South End voters are not divided by race, but recent trendlines are

by Andrew Hong

South Seattle is a unique and important part of the state to understand. We are the most diverse part of the state, with many neighborhoods being over three-quarters People of Color. However, our community’s needs and an understanding of our communities are often discarded. That includes our politics. Most political analyses of Washington State gloss over Communities of Color, and the analyses that do dive into BIPOC communities often lump all Communities of Color together into one bucket. However, Bellevue Communities of Color are much different from Central Washington Communities of Color which are much different from South End Communities of Color.

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News

Remembering Norm Mineta, Asian American Pioneer

May 5, 2022 Editor

by Sharon Maeda

There are so many stories about Norm Mineta, 90, who passed away Tuesday, May 3. He was a soft-spoken gentleman who was a part of making U.S. history at multiple junctures. Mineta was “the first” many times over: the first Asian American mayor of a major city, San Jose, California, where he was born and raised. Twenty years ago, the San Jose Airport was named for him. He was the first Asian American cabinet secretary and first and only Democrat in the George W. Bush administration.

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News

Coalition for Diverse Political Representation Cites Structural Problems and Solutions

April 27, 2022 Editor

by Sarah Goh

The Emerald blows loudly as the royal trumpet, signaling that there is indeed life abundant. It’s the sound of information, the sound of challenge, the sound of change and — maybe most importantly — the sound of hope. Join me in supporting the Emerald as a recurring donor during their 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28. Become a Rainmaker now by choosing the “recurring donor” option on the donation page!

—Marcus Harden, Educator, Author, & Rainmaker

The 2020 census, administered under President Trump, was plagued with concerns over suppression, exclusion, and proper representation — especially of immigrants and Black and Native communities. In response to these concerns, 92 Washington tribes and organizations came together to ensure that all communities were counted through a relational organizational campaign.

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Voices

OPINION: Political Intermission

August 30, 2021 Editor Leave a comment

by Lola E. Peters

Act One was the campaign. We met the players, learned their public backstories, got hints about their character, and were introduced to the context of their stories. Act Two was the primary: a much shorter period where we learned about ourselves. Through social media, on Zoom calls, and over outdoor happy hour snacks we asked, “Who are you voting for?” or “Can you believe so-and-so is voting for so-and-so?” The end of Act Two revealed who were the players representing minor, though no less important, voices but no longer primary participants in the current play. We also learned whose dramatic arcs would move forward to the next act.

Here I sit, in the lobby, looking around at my fellow voters, wondering what they were thinking.

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Voices

OPINION: Embracing Complexity Politics

August 1, 2021 Editor Leave a comment

by Boting Zhang

As an immigrant from an increasingly oppressive state, make no mistake — I love getting to have elections.

But I sure hate election season.

I used to feel ignorant when pundits confidently dissected policy points. Over time, I grew frustrated as experience showed me that the pundits are often oversimplifying. This year, a new emotion is joining the mix: longing.

What if choosing leaders felt more like the sacred collective experience it could be? Less like patriotic duty and more like a patriotic harvest?

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Voices

King County Democrats Launch a New Project to Recruit PCOs for Powerful Change

May 13, 2020 Editor Leave a comment

by Melia LaCour, columnist

Now is the time for urgent action. As we see COVID-19 rampage communities of color and watch the video of Ahmaud Arbery’s senseless murder, we seek leaders who will release their grip on “returning us to normal” and instead move us toward racial justice at every level.

What if that leader could be you?

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News

City Council Weighs Funding Sources for Big Business Tax

May 1, 2020 Editor 2 Comments

by Chetanya Robinson

Seattle City Councilmembers Tammy Morales (District 2: South Seattle and Chinatown-International District) and Kshama Sawant (District 3: Central Area) say their proposed tax on two percent of the largest businesses in Seattle is intended to address a triple emergency facing the city: homelessness, housing affordability, and now the COVID-19 pandemic, which threatens to bring about an economic depression.

“I don’t think any of us have the luxury of not knowing somebody who’s deeply impacted by this crisis,” Morales said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s visceral and it is affecting our neighbors and our friends and our families, and the point of this bill is to try to address some of that suffering.”

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News

Morales, New City Council Members Sworn In, Offering New Visions for Seattle and the South End

January 7, 2020 Editor Leave a comment

by Chetanya Robinson

A new Seattle City Council was sworn in Monday, bringing four new faces behind the dais, three members returning for new terms, and with them, perhaps, a more progressive direction for Seattle politics. Continue reading Morales, New City Council Members Sworn In, Offering New Visions for Seattle and the South End →

Politics

Groups square off over affirmative action, ahead of November vote

November 1, 2019 Editor Leave a comment

By Bunthay Cheam

In November, voters will get to decide the fate of affirmative action, which has been at issue in Washington State since the late 1990s.

This past April, the Washington State legislature approved Initiative 1000. Its implementation would repeal Initiative 200, which has banned affirmative action in the state since its passage in 1998. Anti-tax activist Tim Eyman helped bring I-200 to the ballot and more than half of Washington State voters approved it, adding language that prohibited government hiring, contracting, and admissions to universities to use race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in its process.

Two groups have emerged with different interpretations of how I-1000 would be implemented, if passed: Let People Vote, which opposes I-1000, and the Washington Fairness Campaign, which supports it.

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Community

Q&A: District 4 candidate Shaun Scott discusses democratic socialism and campaigning while Black

October 3, 2019 Editor Leave a comment

by Carla Bell

The Emerald sat down with Democratic Socialist candidate Shaun Scott who recounted his advancement in the King County Primary Election for District 4, edging out competitors Cathy Tuttle and Emily Myers in August. This is his first run for public office, which he said was funded substantially by democracy vouchers, a taxpayer-funded citywide program that allows voters to give up to $100 to their candidates of choice. Before running for election, Scott worked for U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal’s campaign, as well as Jon Grant’s 2017 run for Seattle City Council, and other campaigns.

Scott will run with Alex Pederson in November’s General Election on a platform that includes public housing, a Seattle Green New Deal, a new tax code, a Freelancer’s Bill of Rights, and other issues.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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