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WFSE Local 1488 Workers At University Of Washington Rally

September 14, 2024 Fight Back! News. , , , ,
Seattle, WA – On Tuesday, September 10, over 100 members of WFSE Local 1488 walked out ahead of their current contract expiring in a few weeks. The union, representing food service, custodial, maintenance and other workers at the University of Washington, has been bargaining since the beginning of June for a strong contract, with university administration stalling. Workers rallied in front of the administration building on Red Square, as well as at a picket line in front of the University of Washington Medical Center. The walkouts at the University of Washington were part of a larger, coordinated walkout by WFSE members across the state of Washington, with thousands walking out in total.

Seattle Is Walking Back Its Promises On Community-Led Anti-Displacement

July 23, 2024 Quynh Pham, Ryan Curren and Ben Palmquist, Next City. , , , ,
When it launched a first-in-the-nation anti-displacement fund in 2016, Seattle established itself as a leader in racial equity. But a new attack on the City’s Equitable Development Initiative (EDI), part of a national backlash against government efforts to address systemic racism and inequality, threatens that progress. The EDI finances the construction of community cultural and commercial space developed by community-of-color organizations in Seattle, often co-located with affordable housing. As of March of this year, the fund had provided over $100 million in grants for 56 different community-led projects that are helping create an inclusive, multiracial city.

Low Voltage Electricians Live To Strike Another Day

June 22, 2024 Jorge Torres, Labor Notes. , , , , ,
Two months into an unprecedented strike, the 1,023 members of the limited energy construction unit of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 46 in Seattle voted overwhelmingly June 11 and again June 15 to stay out. But the union announced June 17 that it had agreed to end the strike. Members would be voting on a third offer that barely differed from the latest rejected one—the raise had increased by 50 cents. In an emotional meeting, members were told the strike was ending regardless, and if they didn’t accept this latest deal, with no leverage they would likely end up with something worse. They voted it up by 85 percent. One big win, though: the union will live to strike another day.

ʔÁLʔAL A Place For Connection, Healing, And Growth

June 17, 2024 Rae Rose, Last Real Indians. , , ,
The Chief Seattle Club, CSC, has long since tended to and nurtured the seeds for growth, sowing opportunities, and holding space for healing. It is an important center we need for our Indigenous communities to survive and hopefully thrive in this urban Coast Salish territory of Seattle Washington. For me CSC has always stood as a place our Indigenous Urban community can find resources, give support, and or/ just be, no façade or mask necessary. This is CSC’s foundation, a place for us Urban Indians to connect or reconnect in an otherwise isolating urban setting. My own memories here at CSC go back decades, sitting in talking circles, filming, and learning from amazing indigenous teachers.

A Seattle Urban Garden Models What Community Input Should Look Like

June 13, 2024 Jennifer Caddick, Next City. , , , , , ,
More than 20 parks across Seattle support urban gardens developed and managed in partnership with local communities. From small community garden plots to large orchards, the gardens provide fresh, healthy food to community members across the city. Seattle Parks and Recreation, through itsUrban Food Systems Program, provides the land and the infrastructure for these projects. But community members are at the heart of each project, determining what to grow and how to plant and manage their gardens. One such project — the Rainier Community Center’s new urban garden — has received the2024 Toro Urban Park Innovation Award.

We Want A Labor Law That Protects All Farm Workers

June 8, 2024 Sarah Tucker, The Stand. , , ,
Seattle - Farm workers at Windmill Mushroom traveled to Seattle on Wednesday to shed light on their years-long struggle for dignity and respect – and to urge lawmakers to pass legislation to ensure farmworker labor rights. Accompanied by United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero and joined by state legislators, farm workers spoke passionately about their fight to unionize and the need for labor laws that protect all farm workers, organized or not. The workers have been organizing together for more than two years at Windmill Farms – formerly Ostrom – fighting back against intense pressure and retaliation from the boss.

‘River To The Sea’ Walk In Seattle

June 7, 2024 Jim McMahan, Workers' World. , , , ,
A 25-mile “From the River to the Sea” walk for Gaza was held May 26 in Seattle.  Hundreds marched the distance with signs and banners as Gazans fight against genocide perpetrated by Israel using U.S.-supplied weapons. Participants denounced the brutal assault and bombings of Rafah and the rest of Gaza and Palestine, chanting and singing most of the way. Along the route, many people joined those who walked the entire distance. The demonstration started at a park near Sea-Tac airport and marched all the way through downtown Seattle to the Salish Sea (aka Puget Sound) in the north end.

What Cities Can Learn From Seattle’s Racial And Social Justice Law

May 6, 2024 Serin Houston and Dan Trudeau, Next City. , , , , ,
The right-wing political campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion policies taking place in several states across the U.S. has called into question the nation’s commitment to achieving racial equality. In this landscape, Seattle is marking a milestone of sorts – the first anniversary of adopting its Race and Social Justice Initiative ordinance. This ordinance, signed into law in April 2023, places the Race and Social Justice Initiative under the Seattle Office of Civil Rights and states that all departments in city government are responsible for “implementing change toward ending institutional racism,” which is defined in Seattle as “policies, practices, procedures, and culture of an institution or system that work better for white people and cause harm to people of color, often inadvertently or unintentionally.”

Real-Time Video Offers A Glimpse Of America’s Deportation Flights

March 11, 2024 McKenzie Funk, ProPublica. , , ,
A closed-circuit video camera zoomed in on the tarmac of Seattle's Boeing Field one recent afternoon, buffeted by 30-mile-an-hour gusts as it captured the arrival of a charter jet. The jet rolled to a stop alongside two buses. Behind their tinted windows, still invisible to the camera, were people waiting to be deported from the United States. "Windy," muttered a woman watching the video feed on a projector screen. Struggling to make out the plane’s tail number from the shaky image, she stood up for a closer look. On the screen, a stairway was wheeled over, and a cluster of men in bright yellow jackets descended from the plane.

Amid Union-Busting, Starbucks Workers Just Keep Organizing

February 6, 2024 The Stand. , , , ,
If Starbucks executives thought the company’s aggressive and illegal anti-union efforts would eventually wear down employees and that enthusiasm would wane for joining together in a union, they were wrong. On Monday, employees at yet another local Starbucks store in Renton Village demanded a union election, saying “business has repeatedly been prioritized over partners’ physical and mental health.” Amid management’s union-busting campaign, Starbucks workers just keep organizing. There are now 483 Starbucks stores in 46 states that have filed to unionize. Of those, 385 Starbucks stores in 43 states have won union elections, a nearly 80 percent win rate.

Seattle Shuts Down I-5 To Say No Business As Usual During Genocide!

January 11, 2024 Fight Back News!. , , , , ,
Seattle, WA – On Saturday, January 6, around 1000 activists and community members joined together for a rally and march that began at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery on Seattle in Capitol Hill. Starbucks has continued to attack its workers organizing unions across the company and attacked Starbucks Workers United for showing solidarity with the people of Palestine. In a rousing speech, organizers condemned the union busting activities of Starbucks and the role corporate America plays in supporting the U.S.-back Israeli genocide of Palestinians. However, they also made it clear that this movement’s primary focus should be on the weapons manufacturers, politicians, and others that materially fund the ongoing attack on Gaza – and to shut down business as usual until Palestine is free.

Seattle Activists Win Resolution Calling For Cease-Fire In Gaza

November 22, 2023 Bia Lacombe, Popular Resistance. , , , , ,
Seattle -Councilmember Kshama Sawant (District 3, Central Seattle), working people, and anti-war activists have won a historic victory in forcing Democrats on the Seattle City Council to pass a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza, humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, and release of all hostages. The vote was 6 yes, 0 no, and 3 abstentions. “This victory is a testament to the growing strength of the global anti-war movement,” Sawant said. “In the last weeks, millions have demonstrated in solidarity with the Palestinians and against the brutal Israeli state. In addition to huge and growing street demonstrations, workers have refused to handle Israeli war materiel in the ports of Barcelona, Spain; Salerno, Italy; and in Belgium.

Seattle’s Urban Animal Debuts Veterinary Worker Cooperative

October 9, 2023 DVM 360. , , ,
Urban Animal, a Seattle-based veterinary network, has announced it will become the first worker cooperative veterinary practice in the US this fall. This will enable its 110 employees to share in the governance and profits of the company with more than 50,000 clients.1 Urban Animal joins about 30 worker cooperative-based businesses in Washington. By introducing the limited cooperative association (LCA), Urban Animal founder Cherri Trusheim, DVM, will gift a portion of the company to seed it, striving to become a completely employee-owned worker co-op over time. With the influx of veterinary corporatization, Trusheim aims to empower employees and ensure the practices stay locally owned and community minded while offering the best care.

Antiwar Forces March On Boeing

April 9, 2023 Jim McMahan, Workers World. , , , ,
Seattle, Washington — University of Washington students, supporters and youths of oppressed nationalities targeted by U.S. imperialism marched on the Seattle Boeing plant on March 26. The march by 150 chanting demonstrators protested on the 20-year anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Boeing is the Pentagon’s second largest war contractor. Boeing produces the F-15, F-18, B-52 bombers, Apache and Chinook Helicopters, K-46 mid-air refuelers, cruise missiles, and Boeing is a major subcontractor on the B-1 and B-2 bombers. But that’s not all.

Chris Hedges Report: Kshama Sawant’s New ‘Workers Strike Back’ Coalition

March 11, 2023 Chris Hedges, The Real News Network. , , ,
After a decade on Seattle City Council, socialist Kshama Sawant is declining to seek reelection and will instead launch a new national coalition called Workers Strike Back this March in cities around the US. The goal of Workers Strike Back is to build an independent workers’ movement that fights for the interests of the working class, rather than the agenda of either corporate party. This coalition will organize for a $ 25 an hour minimum wage, build grassroots labor unions, fight for a clean energy transition, battle anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ legislation, and more.
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