anonymous submissions –
(At approximately 6PM a police scanner reported sabotage at a police precinct, the gas line was opened causing the firetrucks and police backup to arrive.)
On February 18th at 6PM about 150 people converged on Westlake in downtown Seattle for the third time this week in response to the county prosecutor’s decision not to prosecute Ian Birk, the cop who killed John T Williams, Seattle resident & Ditidaht member of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations. The rally began as boring as before with the RCP whining over megaphones, while others voiced their outrage against the police to the crowd. Anarchists in black gathered at the side to the rally, holding banners that read “Cops=Murderers, Judges=Executioners” & “Police Violence is Not An Accident, All Cops Are Bastards”. About 30 black flags were seen waving in the wind.
The rally quickly turned to the streets heading around downtown Seattle. Thousands of different fliers were thrown into the air*. A black bloc was formed flanked by the two banners mentioned above. Chants were heard from the bloc ranging from the old favorites, “Cops, Pigs, Murderers” & Rage, Rage, Rage, the Rage inside of Me, All Cops Are Bastards, A-C-A-B” to others such as, “FTP, Fuck, Fuck the Police, Cops Are the Enemy, A-C-A-B” and “Cops and Judges We Don’t Need ‘Em, All We Want is Total Freedom!”.
There was a heightened sense of tension in the air compared to February 16th’s protest, where there were more people but as the mainstream news said of last night, “protesters were decidedly angry this time”. People in the street ranged from young to old, but there was clear presence of young teenagers ready to throw down. Compared to the last two protests this week, more and more people, unassociated with the black bloc, were seen covering their faces with scarves, t-shirts, and masks. Black flags were seen throughout the whole crowd. Flares were ignited, sparking up the night with colors and flames. Skirmishes with undercover cops within the demo erupted periodically. A few mainstream news cameras were damaged along the way as well.
The march weaved between oncoming traffic many times before turning one corner where an occupied cop car was stuck in traffic; at this point the back window of the cruiser was smashed out. In a move of pure brilliance, the cop put the car in neutral, ran out in a frenzy, leaving his car to roll flat into the police van in front of him.
Chaos ensued after this, people were seen banging on storefronts with sticks and other objects, the horse cops stampeded in trampling some people’s feet, cops began to unleash pepper spray on multiple people, and a smoke bomb was lit and thrown at the cops landing under the horse’s feet.
One person was surrounded by cops after having fell in the commotion. An angry crowd surrounded him yelling “Cops, Pigs, Murderers” & “Let Him Go!”. He was released back into the crowd. People scattered onto the sidewalk during the mayhem but quickly took back into the streets. Around the corner rocks were seen flying at stores, but failed to break anything (it seems). The march continued up the street heading towards the jail.
At this point many people began to disperse. One person leaving the march was detained and arrested. Two others were stopped as well, but were released, in large part to the march stopping and surrounding the cops. They are calling the arrestee the “window smasher”. They are currently being held in the King County Jail with no bail. Expected to be released later today.
The march stopped for awhile, engaging in an impromptu small noise demo outside the jail. People made short speeches and tensions still ran high. The march continued up to Capitol Hill, lasting still a couple hours after, numbering about 50-75 people at that point.
There were reports of a cop being pissed on in an alley and many more people pepper sprayed.
The RCP people was also called out for the authoritarian organization that it is, many people in black and others not in black, were seen in the face of one RCP member. At another point the same person was shouted down with “Boring Leader!” from the crowd.
According to the mainstream news many hours after the demonstration ended a Central District police drop-in center was attacked with fire.
————————————————–
A Second Report Back
————————————————–
This is a very short, incomplete recap of the most recent events in Seattle. It concerns only the anarchists, not the protests organized by the family of the deceased. Undoubtedly, someone else will write a more thorough analysis for those of you who don’t live in Seattle.
FIRST NIGHT
On the night of Tuesday, February 15, the media began reporting that the City Prosecutor had decided not to prosecute police officer Ian Birk for the murder of John T. Williams. Soon after, an event appeared on Facebook, calling for people to meet at 6pm on Wednesday, February 16, for a night of protest at Westlake Plaza, a busy shopping district in the heart of Downtown Seattle. The next day, anarchists leafletted for the demonstration throughout Capitol Hill and into downtown. The first protest brought 600-700 people into the street, all marching without a permit. The crowd marched up to Capitol Hill and met a line of riot police guarding the East Precinct. The crowd was angry and volatile but there were no major incidents that evening, and the march was unable/unwilling to break the police line.
SECOND NIGHT
Another Facebook event appeared that night, urging further action despite Ian Birk’s resignation from the police force. The second protest, on Friday, February 18th, brought a fluctuating group of about 150 people out onto the streets, most of whom marched behind anarchist banners and some of whom held black flags.
Once again, the march took off without a permit. Thousands (literally) of anarchist leaflets were thrown into the air. Chants such as “An eye for an eye, the pigs gotta die” and “Cops and judges, we don’t need ’em, all we want is TOTAL FREEDOM!” were yelled at the police.
Meanwhile, it was overheard on the police scanner that at around 6 PM, the West Precinct’s outside gas line was disconnected and the entire building had to be evacuated. It is unknown whether this was related, or if it is true.
The anarchist block numbered about 50. There were perhaps 15 RCP acolytes, but they remained marginal throughout the protest (at one point, the chant “boring leader” was directed at them by the crowd). Most of the crowd was supportive and gravitated towards the anarchist block. The dozens of flags on wooden poles that were passed out by the anarchists were gladly accepted, as were stacks of leaflets to be thrown into the air.
The anarchist block pushed out the media when they tried to get inside their space during the beginning of the march. Road flares illuminated the march as it wound through the Belltown district. At one point, a Bank Of America had one of its windows smashed out. When the march reached Downtown again, the crowd had grown to just over 200. After the march took a turn into oncoming traffic, the rear window of a police cruiser was smashed out. The pig inside got out of the car but forgot to put it in park. The cruiser then smashed into the police van ahead of it, making the crowd go wild in applause and jubilation. In a panic, the police flooded the area and began to pepperspray people and back them up with their horses. Multiple cops were observed getting hit by objects and fists from the crowd. In one notable instance, undercover cops were outed by the crowd and then one was hit in the skull with the butt of a flag pole. A smoke bomb was thrown at the horse cops, causing even more confusion. At this point, the crowd in the area left and resumed the march.
Later, as the march continued, one person was arrested for (according to mainstream media reports) allegedly breaking the cruiser window. The march went to the jail and about 70 people held a noise demo for the people inside. After that, the marchers proceeded to Pioneer Square where they broke through a police line, fought with the police, and then marched up to Capitol Hill. There, it circled the streets and drew people out of the bars with chants of “Out of the bars, into the streets!”. The march again went to the East Precinct, the place where a police cruiser had been smashed a week earlier in a smaller march. The precinct had been under siege and guarded by 60 riot police for the entire evening from 6 until at least midnight. When the march arrived, they yelled and threw objects at the police. After this, they left and continued onward. It is unclear when it ended, exactly.
The composition of the crowd that began the demo at 6 PM differed considerably from the crowd that confronted the police at the precinct at 10:30 PM, meaning that many hundreds of people participated in the march. The only things that remained consistent were the black flags, the anger, and the determination. The march functioned autonomously for 6 hours, drawing in members of the population who, at this point, do not hesitate to chant “What do we want? DEAD PIGS! When do we want them? NOW!”
Later that night, at 3:30 AM, the mainstream media reported that a community police station had been set on fire.
anonymous submissions –
(At approximately 6PM a police scanner reported sabotage at a police precinct, the gas line was opened causing the firetrucks and police backup to arrive.)
On February 18th at 6PM about 150 people converged on Westlake in downtown Seattle for the third time this week in response to the county prosecutor’s decision not to prosecute Ian Birk, the cop who killed John T Williams, Seattle resident & Ditidaht member of the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations. The rally began as boring as before with the RCP whining over megaphones, while others voiced their outrage against the police to the crowd. Anarchists in black gathered at the side to the rally, holding banners that read “Cops=Murderers, Judges=Executioners” & “Police Violence is Not An Accident, All Cops Are Bastards”. About 30 black flags were seen waving in the wind.
The rally quickly turned to the streets heading around downtown Seattle. Thousands of different fliers were thrown into the air*. A black bloc was formed flanked by the two banners mentioned above. Chants were heard from the bloc ranging from the old favorites, “Cops, Pigs, Murderers” & Rage, Rage, Rage, the Rage inside of Me, All Cops Are Bastards, A-C-A-B” to others such as, “FTP, Fuck, Fuck the Police, Cops Are the Enemy, A-C-A-B” and “Cops and Judges We Don’t Need ‘Em, All We Want is Total Freedom!”.
There was a heightened sense of tension in the air compared to February 16th’s protest, where there were more people but as the mainstream news said of last night, “protesters were decidedly angry this time”. People in the street ranged from young to old, but there was clear presence of young teenagers ready to throw down. Compared to the last two protests this week, more and more people, unassociated with the black bloc, were seen covering their faces with scarves, t-shirts, and masks. Black flags were seen throughout the whole crowd. Flares were ignited, sparking up the night with colors and flames. Skirmishes with undercover cops within the demo erupted periodically. A few mainstream news cameras were damaged along the way as well.
The march weaved between oncoming traffic many times before turning one corner where an occupied cop car was stuck in traffic; at this point the back window of the cruiser was smashed out. In a move of pure brilliance, the cop put the car in neutral, ran out in a frenzy, leaving his car to roll flat into the police van in front of him.
Chaos ensued after this, people were seen banging on storefronts with sticks and other objects, the horse cops stampeded in trampling some people’s feet, cops began to unleash pepper spray on multiple people, and a smoke bomb was lit and thrown at the cops landing under the horse’s feet.
One person was surrounded by cops after having fell in the commotion. An angry crowd surrounded him yelling “Cops, Pigs, Murderers” & “Let Him Go!”. He was released back into the crowd. People scattered onto the sidewalk during the mayhem but quickly took back into the streets. Around the corner rocks were seen flying at stores, but failed to break anything (it seems). The march continued up the street heading towards the jail.
At this point many people began to disperse. One person leaving the march was detained and arrested. Two others were stopped as well, but were released, in large part to the march stopping and surrounding the cops. They are calling the arrestee the “window smasher”. They are currently being held in the King County Jail with no bail. Expected to be released later today.
The march stopped for awhile, engaging in an impromptu small noise demo outside the jail. People made short speeches and tensions still ran high. The march continued up to Capitol Hill, lasting still a couple hours after, numbering about 50-75 people at that point.
There were reports of a cop being pissed on in an alley and many more people pepper sprayed.
The RCP people was also called out for the authoritarian organization that it is, many people in black and others not in black, were seen in the face of one RCP member. At another point the same person was shouted down with “Boring Leader!” from the crowd.
According to the mainstream news many hours after the demonstration ended a Central District police drop-in center was attacked with fire.
————————————————–
A Second Report Back
————————————————–
This is a very short, incomplete recap of the most recent events in Seattle. It concerns only the anarchists, not the protests organized by the family of the deceased. Undoubtedly, someone else will write a more thorough analysis for those of you who don’t live in Seattle.
FIRST NIGHT
On the night of Tuesday, February 15, the media began reporting that the City Prosecutor had decided not to prosecute police officer Ian Birk for the murder of John T. Williams. Soon after, an event appeared on Facebook, calling for people to meet at 6pm on Wednesday, February 16, for a night of protest at Westlake Plaza, a busy shopping district in the heart of Downtown Seattle. The next day, anarchists leafletted for the demonstration throughout Capitol Hill and into downtown. The first protest brought 600-700 people into the street, all marching without a permit. The crowd marched up to Capitol Hill and met a line of riot police guarding the East Precinct. The crowd was angry and volatile but there were no major incidents that evening, and the march was unable/unwilling to break the police line.
SECOND NIGHT
Another Facebook event appeared that night, urging further action despite Ian Birk’s resignation from the police force. The second protest, on Friday, February 18th, brought a fluctuating group of about 150 people out onto the streets, most of whom marched behind anarchist banners and some of whom held black flags.
Once again, the march took off without a permit. Thousands (literally) of anarchist leaflets were thrown into the air. Chants such as “An eye for an eye, the pigs gotta die” and “Cops and judges, we don’t need ’em, all we want is TOTAL FREEDOM!” were yelled at the police.
Meanwhile, it was overheard on the police scanner that at around 6 PM, the West Precinct’s outside gas line was disconnected and the entire building had to be evacuated. It is unknown whether this was related, or if it is true.
The anarchist block numbered about 50. There were perhaps 15 RCP acolytes, but they remained marginal throughout the protest (at one point, the chant “boring leader” was directed at them by the crowd). Most of the crowd was supportive and gravitated towards the anarchist block. The dozens of flags on wooden poles that were passed out by the anarchists were gladly accepted, as were stacks of leaflets to be thrown into the air.
The anarchist block pushed out the media when they tried to get inside their space during the beginning of the march. Road flares illuminated the march as it wound through the Belltown district. At one point, a Bank Of America had one of its windows smashed out. When the march reached Downtown again, the crowd had grown to just over 200. After the march took a turn into oncoming traffic, the rear window of a police cruiser was smashed out. The pig inside got out of the car but forgot to put it in park. The cruiser then smashed into the police van ahead of it, making the crowd go wild in applause and jubilation. In a panic, the police flooded the area and began to pepperspray people and back them up with their horses. Multiple cops were observed getting hit by objects and fists from the crowd. In one notable instance, undercover cops were outed by the crowd and then one was hit in the skull with the butt of a flag pole. A smoke bomb was thrown at the horse cops, causing even more confusion. At this point, the crowd in the area left and resumed the march.
Later, as the march continued, one person was arrested for (according to mainstream media reports) allegedly breaking the cruiser window. The march went to the jail and about 70 people held a noise demo for the people inside. After that, the marchers proceeded to Pioneer Square where they broke through a police line, fought with the police, and then marched up to Capitol Hill. There, it circled the streets and drew people out of the bars with chants of “Out of the bars, into the streets!”. The march again went to the East Precinct, the place where a police cruiser had been smashed a week earlier in a smaller march. The precinct had been under siege and guarded by 60 riot police for the entire evening from 6 until at least midnight. When the march arrived, they yelled and threw objects at the police. After this, they left and continued onward. It is unclear when it ended, exactly.
The composition of the crowd that began the demo at 6 PM differed considerably from the crowd that confronted the police at the precinct at 10:30 PM, meaning that many hundreds of people participated in the march. The only things that remained consistent were the black flags, the anger, and the determination. The march functioned autonomously for 6 hours, drawing in members of the population who, at this point, do not hesitate to chant “What do we want? DEAD PIGS! When do we want them? NOW!”
Later that night, at 3:30 AM, the mainstream media reported that a community police station had been set on fire.