So you want to be a sanctuary city? Seattle cannot be a sanctuary city while perpetrating state violence against its residents.

“Where the president sows diversion and widespread mistrust, Americans and Seattleites are building unity and community. Where the president is slamming doors and building walls, Americans and Seattleties are spreading our arms open and opening our hearts. Where the president scapegoats and discriminates, Americans and Seattelites celebrate our differences and draw strength from diversity. Where the president withdraws from the global effort to protect future generations, Americans and Seattelites are building alliances to fight climate change.The next four years will be a battle for the soul of America. Already we are seeing a surge of activism across the nation not seen for decades — with the epicenter right here in Seattle, including the 170,000 people at the historic Women’s March in January — offering hope that the people, not the president, will have the final word.”[1]

These were Seattle Mayor Ed Murray’s words this February at the 2017 State of the City Address, speaking inside the Idris Mosque. In his speech, he vowed that Seattle would remain a sanctuary city, standing in opposition to the harmful rhetoric and policy from the executive branch.

But what does “sanctuary city” truly mean? Mere miles from Seattle the DACA “dreamer” Daniel Ramirez remains imprisoned in the immigration jail. He’s been there for over a month — separated from his young son and family — with no end in sight. Mayor Murray responded to the arrest of Mr. Ramirez with a statement lauding DACA and again emphasizing Seattle’s supposed sanctuary city status.[2] The statement did not condemn the arrest, nor call for Mr. Ramirez’s release from jail.

He clarified what he means by sanctuary city: “No City of Seattle official will ever ask about your immigration status. And the Seattle Police Department will not help ICE detain and deport immigrants who are doing nothing more than raising their families and contributing to the vibrant culture and successful economy of our city. However, please also know that ICE officials still have the power and jurisdiction to enter into the boundaries of Seattle and conduct these harmful actions without notifying the City. If you are an immigrant, we advise that you review two online video presentations produced by our partners Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and Colectiva Legal del Pueblo. These have important Know Your Rights information that you should understand during this uncertain time”

Does that definition disappoint you? It should. Sanctuary should mean safety. A refuge. A place of protection where you are safe. A sanctuary city should vow to protect its residents — immigrants or not — from unjust violence and oppression.

Sitting back while ICE imprisons residents and spreads fear in your community is not providing a sanctuary. It’s not doing much at all. At a February 17 rally held in opposition to ICE raids and the taking of Mr. Gutierrez, Seattle City Councilwoman Kshama Sawant argued that residents should “demand that the mayor not use Seattle Police to repress peaceful anti-Trump protests. Let’s demand that he use Seattle Police instead to block ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] from seizing human beings.”[3] This statement of leftist agitprop succeeded in forcing Murray to reveal the hollowness of his own stance on ideas of sanctuary. He called Sawant’s statement “irresponsible and dangerous.”[4]

For material evidence of how the City of Seattle views its vulnerable residents — just see the eviction of Nickelsville and the numerous sweeps of homeless encampments.[5] Just last month two homeless women, represented by the ACLU, sued the City of Seattle over the violation of human rights during such sweeps.[6] The lawsuit states that there have been more than 1,000 sweeps in the past two years.

A sanctuary city that lives up to a radical definition of that name needs to provide safety and protection for all residents. A city like Seattle that perpetrates and perpetuates state and police violence against residents is the opposite of a sanctuary.

Yesterday, a 71-year-old black man, Omari Tahir-Garrett was forcibly removed from his home in the central district. He had lived in the neighborhood his entire life, and is well known in the community for his activism. Just one example is his role in the founding of the African American museum in Seattle. In the 1980s he was part of the group that occupied the Colman school in Seattle for eight years — in what has been called the longest act of civil disobedience in the country. This activism eventually resulted in the City of Seattle agreeing to build the Northwest African American History Museum.[7]

In the face of the eviction, community members poured into the street in front of his house and organized two days of protests. King County Sheriff facilitated the eviction, ordering his belongings removed from his house and placed in a dumpster, boarding up the windows and doors of his house, and erecting a fence. The community organized to block trucks that were involved in the eviction. These people were mostly youth of color, and involved in the block the bunker movement. They linked arms and joined in chants such as “This is what gentrification looks like” and the classic “no justice no peace no racist police.”

King County Sheriff responded by calling in Seattle Police to “keep the peace.” Legally, King County Sheriff can enforce evictions, but Seattle Police cannot. Seattle Police nonetheless were unmistakably there to support the eviction, and to plow down the community members gathered there.

The SPD employed their infamous bike tactics,[8] using their bikes as weapons to force the community out of the way of the evictors. They used violence to allow the eviction to further gentrification. They didn’t stop there — they also arrested two people — one a black trans high school student. They slammed her to the pavement and stepped on her.

This is just one example of the City of Seattle, through their police force, using physical violence to perpetuate the ongoing violence of displacement, gentrification and cultural erasure. The rhetoric of sanctuary must correlate to actual protection from the city. These protections should apply to all — especially the black and brown residents who are routinely over policed and made to feel unwelcome in this rapidly gentrifying city.[9] At this point the residents of Seattle should know that the Mayor’s office and (especially) the police will not protect them. Instead, we must stop celebrating the empty rhetoric of sanctuary cities and build mass movements that demand actual compassion and protection for all residents.

[1] https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3469242-2017-State-of-the-City.html

[2] http://murray.seattle.gov/mayor-murray-councilmember-gonzalez-statement-daca-arrest/

[3] http://www.thestranger.com/slog/2017/02/17/24879790/mayor-calls-kshama-sawants-suggestion-that-seattle-police-block-ice-irresponsible-and-dangerous

[4] Ibid.

[5] http://www.thestranger.com/slog/2016/03/11/23697898/the-city-of-seattle-just-evicted-residents-of-the-nickelsville-dearborn-homeless-encampment

[6] http://komonews.com/news/local/city-of-seattle-sued-over-homeless-encampment-sweeps

[7] http://www.historylink.org/File/8602

[8] http://ipmba.org/blog/comments/police-bicycle-use-in-crowd-control-situations and http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/seattles-may-day-protest-prepared-clevelands-300-bicycle-cops-for-rnc/

[9] http://www.essence.com/news/politics/sanctuary-cities-black-families-immigrants