In April, ACLU Analytics and researchers from Washington State University, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Tennessee predicted that if the United States continued to operate jails and prisons as usual and refused to reduce the number of people incarcerated, estimated fatalities from the coronavirus would double. That same month, in Washington state, Gov. Jay Inslee authorized the release of approximately 1,100 individuals nearing the end of their sentences, but organizations like Human Rights Watch believe that this is far too few. Currently, Washington state prisons have been exposed to COVID-19. Washington State Immigrant Detention Centers have been exposed to COVID-19. And now, the Federal Detention Center (FDC), SeaTac has been exposed.
In the weeks since a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd, millions have taken to the streets with a clear rallying cry: Stop propping up the failed systems that hurt Black and Brown communities, and start prioritizing the things that allow us all to live safely, joyously, and free.
This is not a vague demand. It is a direct call to action for lawmakers at every level of government to take a long, hard look at their budgets and to harness the power of their office to begin to make meaningful change.
A King County judge has dismissed a lawsuit by business owners from SeaTac Center, a commercial complex in in the city of SeaTac that is set to be sold and redeveloped, displacing a business community made up of Muslim immigrant populations, predominately people of color.
(This article originally appeared on Patch.com and has been republished with permission.)
The SeaTac City Council on Jan. 14 during a special meeting picked a replacement for former councilwoman Amina Ahmed, who died in a car crash in December. Some members of the local immigrant community were surprised by the pick, saying it wasn’t supposed to happen until February – and that Ahmed’s replacement does not represent SeaTac’s large immigrant community.
SeaTac Center, the two-story strip mall that takes up a slanted lot between 154th St and 152nd St, is a hub of commerce and culture. The shops that now occupy the location of a former casino and warehouse offer a place for East African, Latino, and Southeast Asian immigrants to gather, shop, eat, and establish their own cultural space in South King County.
The untimely and tragic death of Amina Ahmed, SeaTac City Councilmember and longtime immigrant and refugee advocate, shocked a community that had invested much hope in her tenure as a way to battle displacement and gentrification. Ahmed died in a car accident in the afternoon of December 8 at the intersection of South 188th Avenue and 16th Avenue South in SeaTac. She was only seven weeks into her council appointment.
Under a clear blue afternoon sky on October 13, a crowd of about 40 people — including representatives from the Seattle City Council, the King County Working Families Party, and the Firs Mobile Home Community — gathered outside SeaTac City Hall to show support for the appointment of Takele Gobena to the Council’s vacant fifth seat.
