Contractors May Never Recover from the Shutdown. We asked one government contractor about the shutdown and they weighed in: Contractors are rarely, if ever, given back pay after a shutdown, and this one can’t be blamed on Trump. It’s due to the way that contractors are paid and how funding is allocated (and how the… Read more »
Dispatches
The latest on local issues, education on class struggle, chapter news, and actions.
The Hellhole – Week of 1/28
We Need Public Housing at Fort Lawton. Show up Monday, February 11. Fort Lawton was a massive return of federally occupied lands to (at least) municipal control. No strings attached. With rampant speculation in Seattle, this is a shot to build dense, much needed housing near the city’s largest park and within miles of downtown.… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 1/21
Peace for our elders King County could build housing for miles. Instead, we’re reduced to a fight for inches. Bakaro Mall may be displaced by cops. 12th Ave. Ethiopian restaurant Saba is being kicked out. Displacement and gentrification robs communities and the people whose labor powers these streets. The fight for Halcyon Mobile Home Park… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 1/14
Issaquah Paraeducators Vote on First-Ever Strike The Office Professionals of Issaquah and Paraeducators of SEIU Local 925 voted to strike, with over 90% of their members in support. In a region that has taken for granted its drivers, cooks, janitors, nurses, secretaries and more, this is especially dank. Educators may also vote to strike in… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 1/7
Federal workers stand up against the Federal Shutdown 78% of workers are live paycheck to paycheck. The current federal shutdown magnifies this. There are 75,525 federal workers in Washington. Many outside this figure are contractors, a process exacerbated by the Bush administration, where private employees do work that would otherwise be done (and protected under… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 12/17
This week: Gov. Inslee’s office extols prison labor, SDOT has a love-in with rideshare apps, the “Justice” Department sues to stop Washington from helping sick workers, EMTs and Facebook workers fight the boss, and Durkan-Constantine go full Seattle Process. Editor’s Note: The Hellhole will be taking 2 scheduled weeks off to celebrate Saturnalia, look for the next edition… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 12/10
Seattle Releases Neighborhoods for All Report Single-family housing, in urban/suburban contexts, was always a racist, classist tactic by liberals like FDR and Truman who were scared of things like communists building housing for all in Russia or Mao giving landlords and feudal-patriarchy a full-nelson or even positive reforms under Red Vienna social housing mechanisms. The… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 11/26
Rising tides won’t lift all boats California just contained its worst fire ever. As global climate refugees resettle in King County, the future shows that we’ll have the fires around us to deal with first, then the climate flood. It’s disgusting that countless lives will be lost on coasts and islands globally — especially with… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 11/19
Seattle-Tacoma Leads Nation in Missing and Violence Against Native Womxn (CW) The Urban Indian Health Institute in a new report found that the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area comprises the highest number of missing and murdered indigenous womxn. Seattle leads the nation with 21% more murders and disappearances than the next worst city, Albuquerque. There’s no one… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 11/12
This week, we’re proud and upset at our Representative, Amazon is in the news for some reason, hate crime is up, cops get what they want, renters get a lawyer, and how do people afford to live here? Enter the Hellhole… Rep. Jayapal Gut Checks Co-Sponsors of Medicare for All Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D WA-7)… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 11/5
Mayor Durkan’s One Weird Budget Trick: You’ll Hate It! The Seattle Mayor’s office has announced over $90 million in funding around homelessness next year. Notice the “around” and not “for” our unhoused neighbors. Early into her administration, Durkan promised to give a small cut of publicly-owned land in South Lake Union to Vulcan and handouts… Read more »
The Hellhole – Week of 10/29
The spectre of socialism is haunting Seattle. Capitalism is a wraith sucking our city dry. Spectre > wraith. This week we have a story about the U.N., immigration, a potential city tax change, billionaire’s buckaroos, a shady D6 candidate, and the Google walkout. Enter the Hellhole …. Peasants Rights Declaration Passes! The United Nations General… Read more »