#Seattle protesters march on city hall to demand Mayor Durkan’s resignation

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A group of protesters occupy Seattle City Hall.
Reuters

Hundreds of protesters swarmed city hall in Seattle Tuesday night to demand Mayor Jenny Durkan’s resignation.

The crowd chanted “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Jenny Durkan’s got to go!” during the roughly hour-long takeover, led by Councilwoman Kshama Sawant.

Some protesters carried “Black Lives Matter” and “Durkan must go” signs, according to the Seattle Times.

“When you talk about black rights, you can’t leave out the horrific gentrification in Seattle,” Sawant told the newspaper.

She placed the blame on Amazon, which is headquartered in Seattle.

“Taxing Amazon is absolutely a part of black rights … It’s about actually putting dollars on the table to address inequities affecting the black community,” Sawant said.

The councilwoman also addressed the crowd, which overtook city hall’s lobby and steps, saying the council would soon take up legislation “banning chemical weapons and chokeholds.” She also cheered Seattle’s $15 minimum wage and pushed for better political representation that “grabs power for ordinary people.”

The protesters left peacefully around 10 p.m., with some convening on Capitol Hill — in an area dubbed “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone” or CHAZ — outside the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct. A screen that was set up played the movie “13th,” the Seattle Times reported.

On Tuesday, a Black Lives Matter group sued the Seattle Police Department to stop violent tactics cops have used to break up protests. Officers used tear gas on protesters in Capitol Hill Saturday night — just one day after Durkan announced a 30-day ban on the chemical weapon, KOMO News reported.

Seattle has seen 12 consecutive nights of protests in wake of George Floyd’s police-involved death in Minneapolis.

Durkan released a lengthy statement Tuesday night that read, in part, “The City has so much healing and work to do — that is where Mayor Durkan will continue to spend her focus in the coming days, weeks and months ahead.

“At this pivotal moment, we cannot fan division when we need to come together to make actual steps on policing, invest in community, safely reopen our city to get workers back to work, and address the inequities in every system, including in education, housing, access to wealth building jobs and the criminal justice system.”