In Tacoma, an ICE detainee’s hunger strike tops 100 days

Real Change
Vendors and vaccines

by Samira George | April 14th, 2021

On the Friday morning of April 2, charge nurse Carie Whitton with Harborview Medical Center unfolds chairs and then pulls on new, purple gloves. Her goal that day is to administer 165 COVID-19 vaccines into the arms of vulnerable community members, with 11 of those people being Real Change vendors.

Parked outside the Real Change Vendor Center, on a South Main Street quieted by quarantine, Whitton urges newly vaccinated people to return to this exact location in four weeks.
Read more in the Apr. 14-20, 2021 issue.
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Real Change
Community groups oppose slated change to Duwamish River cleanup

by Christy Carley | April 14th, 2021

In late January, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a change to the cleanup plan for the Lower Duwamish River, one of the nation’s most polluted waterways which was declared a Superfund site in 2001. The proposal — which would allow for higher levels of certain pollutants to remain in the river sediment — generated frustration amongst community groups in South Seattle, who called for an extension of a public comment period on the change. Public comment now lasts until April 21.
Read more in the Apr. 14-20, 2021 issue.
- Read more about Community groups oppose slated change to Duwamish River cleanup
Real Change
SDOT opens applications for increased access to West Seattle Swing Bridge

by Samira George | April 14th, 2021

The Seattle Department of Transportation announced Thursday that it is easing restrictions and allowing more motorists to cross the West Seattle swing bridge. For the past year, commuters to central Seattle have needed to take detours to cross the Duwamish River via the First Avenue South Bridge, leading to high congestion and stop-and-go traffic, often adding 30 to 45 minutes to travel times.
Read more in the Apr. 14-20, 2021 issue.
- Read more about SDOT opens applications for increased access to West Seattle Swing Bridge
Real Change
The Seattle Times Company rebuffs journalists’ proposals for better working conditions and living wages

by Christy Carley | April 7th, 2021

“We don’t aspire to pay living wages.”

That’s what a representative of The Seattle Times Company said in a collective bargaining session last week, according to the Seattle Times Digital Union. The union posted the statement on Twitter Friday, April 2, generating ire from local journalists and subscribers alike. The union also quoted management as saying that journalism is “not a path that is highly rewarding early in your career” and that “it’s not uncommon to struggle.” The union said that the company rejected all of their proposals at the end of the meeting.
Read more in the Apr. 7-13, 2021 issue.
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Real Change
50 tiny homes for U-District | 102 ‘vaccine breakthrough’ cases in Washington

by Samira George | April 7th, 2021

50 tiny homes for U-District

A new tiny house village is expected to open sometime in May 2021 in Seattle’s University District. The village, Rosie’s Tiny House Village, will be at 1000 NE 45th Street and will provide shelter and case management for its occupants.

Single adults, couples and people with pets currently living unsheltered are eligible for a spot. The village is designed to act as an interim while permanent housing is being secured, and occupants will have access to on-site services, such as hot meals delivered daily.
Read more in the Apr. 7-13, 2021 issue.
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Real Change
Anti-poverty bills moving through the Washington legislature

by Henry Behrens and Nancy Pickett | March 31st, 2021

While the Washington legislature handles hundreds of proposals each session, 2021 has seen a clear focus on bills targeting poverty, in response not only to the COVID-19 pandemic but also ongoing structural concerns. Through lenses as varied as climate concerns, means taxes and housing, Washington legislators have been working hard to consider multiple options to combat poverty in the state.

Here are 11 Senate and 11 House bills that we believe would work against poverty, if passed.
Read more in the Mar. 31 - Apr. 6, 2021 issue.
- Read more about Anti-poverty bills moving through the Washington legislature
Real Change
More deaths of unsheltered people than prior winters | Fans in the stands for the first time after a long year

by Samira George | March 31st, 2021

More deaths of unsheltered people than prior winters

Early reports from the King County Medical Examiner’s Office indicated that this winter was even harder on people experiencing homelessness than winters past. According to the report, 29 people presumed to be homeless died in December — the highest count in one month since mid-2018.
Read more in the Mar. 31 - Apr. 6, 2021 issue.
- Read more about More deaths of unsheltered people than prior winters | Fans in the stands for the first time after a long year
Real Change
Kids versus racism

by Susan Fried | March 24th, 2021

Seattle youth organize rally to support the Asian American Pacific Islander community

Read more in the Mar. 24-30, 2021 issue.
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Real Change
Amazon union drive in Alabama ignites hope nationwide, including in Seattle

by Christy Carley | March 24th, 2021

Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, have made headlines in recent weeks as they vote in a historic unionization election set to end March 29. Should the employees choose to unionize, they will be the first Amazon workers to do so in the United States — a possibility that could have ripple effects across the country.
Read more in the Mar. 24-30, 2021 issue.
- Read more about Amazon union drive in Alabama ignites hope nationwide, including in Seattle
Real Change
In Tacoma, an ICE detainee’s hunger strike tops 100 days

by Paula Cornell | March 24th, 2021

Victor Fonseca is one of three detainees making great sacrifices to protest the conditions forced on them. ICE officials deny the strikes are taking place.

Advocates say that on March 1, Victor Fonseca, a detainee at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Northwest Processing Center – formerly known as the Northwest Detention Center but rebranded — reached his 100th day of a hunger strike in protest of COVID-19 policies.
Read more in the Mar. 24-30, 2021 issue.
- Read more about In Tacoma, an ICE detainee’s hunger strike tops 100 days

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