Tag Archives: Socialist Alternative

News

Seattle City Council Passes Sawant Plan to Fund Lawyers for Tenants Facing Eviction

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by Jake Goldstein-Street

(This article was originally published on Capitol Hill Seattle Blog and has been reprinted with permission.)

The Seattle City Council unanimously approved “right to counsel” legislation Monday that will entitle residential tenants facing eviction to an attorney at no cost.

The vote on this legislation, sponsored by District 3 Councilmember Kshama Sawant, was originally scheduled for two weeks ago but was delayed via Council vote to sort out possible legal concerns. The original bill could have faced a lawsuit since it looked to give everyone the right to legal counsel regardless of income. Washington’s State constitution prohibits cities from giving money to people “except for the necessary support of the poor and infirm.”

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Opinion

OPINION: The Socialist Alternative and the 37th District Democrats at endorsement meeting Monday

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by Amy Hagopian

On Monday, May 20, the 37th District Democratic Party organization will hold its primary endorsement meeting to decide which candidates to back in the Seattle City Council races for the ballots due on August 6, 2019.

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Opinion

Fighting for the City We Need

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by Kshama Sawant, Violet Lavatai, Zoe Schurman, David Parsons, Nickelsville Central Committee, Matt Remle, Juan Jose Bocanegra, Tim Harris, Shaun Scott, and Kailyn Nicholson

The notice on her door was jolting: You have to move because the apartment building is being demolished to make way for more a profitable housing development. It was the fourth time that Esther “Little Dove” John, a retired psychology professor and long-time Beacon Hill resident, has been “demovicted” in Seattle — forced out of her home by big developers.

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Commentary, Politics

Is Socialist Win in Seattle an Anomoly or Harbinger?

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by Jonathan Rosenblum

When Vanessa Patricelli first heard Kshama Sawant speak, she thought the socialist was nuts.

It was November 2013. Sawant had just been elected to the Seattle City Council as a member of the Socialist Alternative party. And Boeing was threatening to cut thousands of jobs if its machinists didn’t give up their pensions and Washington State didn’t hand the company $8.7 billion in tax breaks. Continue reading Is Socialist Win in Seattle an Anomoly or Harbinger? →