Posted on 03/01/2024 12:02:21 PM PST by Twotone
A city council meeting in Seattle became so unruly with far-left activists that councilmembers had to take several recesses and a handful of people wound up in handcuffs.
On Tuesday, hundreds of activists, many of them wearing face masks, marched outside Seattle City Hall and flooded the chamber inside, demanding that local leaders allocate more resources toward immigrant housing rather than fund "racist" police equipment. The protestors included members of far-left groups such as Stop the Sweeps Seattle and Comunidad Sin Fronteras.
"We need housing now!" they chanted in unison before one ringleader, believed to be Rosario Lopez Hernandez, rattled off a speech in Spanish to rile up the crowd.
As the council attempted to conduct business — such as honoring Washington's first black state senator — activists continued to disrupt the proceedings, shouting loudly and banging on the windows with such force that some feared they might break.
"It is a physical threat to the safety of each of us on this council. And it is a physical, it is a threat to the operation of our civic institution. And I want the record to be clear that I physically feel threatened," said Councilmember Cathy Moore. "... We are shutting down the work of our democracy because of a mob action, and it is not to be tolerated."
Just before 3 p.m., Seattle police received a call about the disturbance. Though they warned demonstrators to leave or face arrest, several apparently refused, and officers then arrested six individuals.
Five of the six arrestees, including Ms. Hernandez, were charged with criminal trespass and booked into custody. They were then subsequently bailed out by the Northwest Community Bail Fund, a notoriously anti-police fund dedicated to assisting "non-white and non-cisgender people." The other arrestee was reportedly released before charges were filed.
Jonathan Choe of Discovery Institute reported that none of the arrestees are "migrants." However, Hernandez seemed to indicate during her speech that she is "undocumented." "There's not a special card that says, 'You are undocumented, Rosario. You don't get to pay taxes,'" she yelled in the council chamber.
Following the incident, the city council released a statement, reiterating that immigrants were not to blame for the ruckus. "To be clear – that disturbance was caused by a group of protesters and not refugees, who the City of Seattle has been working with to provide shelter," the statement read in part (emphasis not added).
The office of Democratic Mayor Bruce Harrell told Choe that the city "will pay for a temporary stay of three additional weeks ... at a hotel in response to the homeless migrants that requested assistance in Seattle."
King County has already spent $3 million to house 350 illegal immigrants through June and has offered an additional million for immigrant-related costs, though officials want to consult with a nonprofit to determine the best way to spend it. Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee has likewise proposed budgeting an additional $5 million for the Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance and $3 million in grants earmarked for counties to spend on immigrant services.
Wisdom for these people is as fearful as a cobra.
Reap the whirlwind
Leftists always devolve into a circular firing squad.
The business that have not fled Seattle need to do so immediately.
Lady, the mob IS democracy in action. Reap what you sowed.
Texas should send 10,000 more!
One can easily live in a tent in Seattle. The problem is finding a good, level patch of sidewalk.
To paraphrase Jordan Peterson, the fringe will eventually eat the fringe.
I think we need to go to Seattle and protest for free stuff.
They'll be released on 'no bail' because liberal thugs are above the law. If the protesters had been conservatives one of the cops could have shot one and he'd get a promotion.
So, now the Homeless Industrial Complex has to compete with the Illegal Trespassers & Invaders Complex.
The Seattle Homeless Industrial Complex is huuuuge. This could start a major feud between Complexes. The Complexity of the multiple Complexes will confound most democRATS, and they will just fall back on “we need more investment” (taxpayer $$$).
Apparently, the Lefties thought getting arrested only happens to Rightists, especially in Seattle...
Only 350?
Governor Abbott needs to bless Seattle and send 10's of thousands more illegals; Seattle is a sanctuary city and just loves their illegal criminals!
Keep 'em coming, Guv!
“...shutting down the work of our democracy...”
Are you listening Greg Abbott?
Time to send them to Seattle by the tens of thousands. Flood the zone! They are clamoring for many more!
Okaaaay... sounds good to me - give them housing... with bars!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.