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After Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) threatened to destroy the Black Lives Memorial Garden in October, the department made good on their promise, wiping out one of the last physical relics of the historic 2020 Black Lives Matter protests and CHOP/CHAZ early Wednesday morning.

SPR wrote in an email that Mayor Bruce Harrell and the City will partner with the Black Farmers Collective and other Black community leaders to plan a new commemorative garden in Cal Anderson. Black Star Farmers, the group that stewards the now demolished garden, said the Citys actions dont encourage any sort of collaboration. But, Black Star Farmers Marcus Henderson said, We must continue to organize communities to reconnect to the land and build solidarity. Black Star Farmers plan to reactivate a community garden in NewHolly next year.

The garden survived three-and-a-half years of the City wanting to move it or mow it over. To be so real, theres no reason to hate on the Black Lives Memorial Gardensince the summer of 2020, highly trained, sustainable agriculture experts at Black Star Farmers (and anyone who wanted to help) grew native plants that produced free food and herbal medicine for the community. But given the public comments SPR collected about the garden, it seems that the people who didnt like the garden were whites who imagined a BIPOC-led garden must be racist. Like, dude, so many white people defended that garden, so if you, as a white person, didnt feel welcome, maybe it's because you have bad vibes. Just a thought.

In the latest attempt to push the garden out, SPR offered the Black Star Farmers a new location behind the Rainier Community Center earlier this year, though offer is kinda a weird word choice on my part considering Black Star Farmers did not want to move an inch, let alone five miles from their original location. To move because the City told them to would go against the spirit of the garden, which continues the legacy of the occupied protest it sprung from.

Black Star Farmers declined the new location, because duh, and the City decided it would not take no for an answer. Also because duh.

So on October 4, SPR emailed Black Star Farmers to give them a heads up that they would rip their roots out of the ground starting October 13 so the department could restore the turf and return the space to its intended use as a natural amphitheater.

In more recent messaging, SPR started to lean on arguments against public drug use and camping, implying that ridding the park of the community-led garden, and replacing it with one that Harrell can take credit for, would somehow cure addiction and make people un-homeless. Hmm.

As Black Star Farmers wrote in a press statement, The conditions of the garden expose the reality of the people who actively care for and use the space. The state has claimed that they were removing the garden because of public health and safety, but the garden did not create the conditions for the unhoused crisis and drug epidemic. Removing the garden is a theatrical and reactionary response to systemic issues designed to placate the landlords, bosses, and politicians intent on extracting labor from poor and working-class people.

After SPRs announcement, Black Star Farmers sent an email blast to their supporters, hoping to build a campaign to save the garden. The group made headlines, earned sympathy from people with half a heart online, and mobilized dozens of people to physically defend the garden when the City showed up several mornings in the past two months.

Some organizers speculated that their large presence scared off SPR, particularly on October 24 when SPR came to Cal Anderson with a CAT vehicle.

A few garden supporters even joked that SPRs best bet would be to swoop in on a day when everyone went to a protest for Palestine. Now, some speculate that SPR took advantage of the infamously disorienting period between Christmas and New Years to destroy the garden in front of a smaller audience. SPR did not respond to my question about timing.

Even though they could not stop SPR Wednesday morning, Black Star Farmers and the garden supporters arent admitting defeat. In a press release, Black Star Farmers said, This pattern of violence only continues to show that we as people need to stand up together to resist the oppression we all face. We ask that all of you reading this pay critical attention to the policies and practices of the City and join us in organizing for resolutions that truly address the needs of our communities.

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The City of Seattle Destroyed the Black Lives Memorial Garden - The Stranger

Mayor Bruce Harrell held a press conference Friday morning to welcome the five City Councilmembers-elect to City Hall in advance of the Jan. 2 swearing-in ceremony.

Councilmembers-elect Rob Saka, District 1; Joy Hollingsworth, District 3; Maritza Rivera, District 4; Cathy Moore, District 5; and Bob Kettle, District 7 stood with Harrell on the seventh floor of City Hall to emphasize their commitment to collaboration and transparency.

We have some excitement and some energy on the kinds of things we want to do together, said Harrell. And I trust that they will lead with integrity, with passion, with intelligence.

In his remarks, Harrell said that he expects to work with the new Councilmembers on public safety, homelessness, affordable housing and basics like constituent services and fixing potholes.

All five incoming Councilmembers ran on platforms that largely aligned with Harrells priorities, especially when it comes to public safety, where they promised to hire more police, expand the newly launched dual dispatch pilot program, address the drug crisis and more. Harrell endorsed Saka, Hollingsworth, Rivera and Moore in the general election.

The Councilmembers-elect also benefited from the backing of business and real estate in the greater Seattle area, which spent more than $1 million on their campaigns through independent political committees.

Each Councilmember-elect gave brief remarks Friday morning.

Saka re-emphasized his public safety goals and noted the historic moment theyre a part of with such high turnover on the Council. According to the City Archivist, the last turnover of five Councilmembers in a single election in the bodys modern history happened in 1970. There were larger turnovers between 1886 and 1910, but the Councils size and term lengths were different, making it an apples-to-oranges comparison.

Hollingsworth said shes been meeting with community and public safety groups in her district, City Hall staff and others to get up to speed before shes sworn in. We know that this process will take time. We know that everyone wants a sense of urgency. But we also understand that its a process.

Rivera said she was humbled by her election and that she is looking forward to getting this city back to the vibrant state so our kids are really thriving here, as well as all of us.

Moore said shes been working on assembling her team, recognizing the role that Council staffers play in Councilmembers success. She said one of her top goals is to get sidewalks in every neighborhood, a particularly pressing issue for her North Seattle district.

Kettle reiterated the message of collaboration and his goals to foster it within the Council body and with the mayor. Ultimately, its about leading with compassion, but then also wisdom and having balance. Balance is, like, my new favorite word, and Im looking forward to leading with that balance.

The five electees join District 2 Councilmember Tammy Morales and District 6 Councilmember Dan Strauss, who were reelected to second terms in November along with at-large Councilmember Sara Nelson, whose first term ends in 2025.

One of their first tasks in January will be to appoint a replacement for at-large Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who was elected to the King County Council in November and begins that new role at the start of January.

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Seattle removes Black Lives Matter garden from Cal Anderson Park - Crosscut

Seattle's Black Lives Matter garden is no more, despite efforts to save it, including an online petition that garnered over 5,000 signatures.

Some supporters were on hand for Wednesday morning's demolition operation, approved by the city's Parks and Recreation Department.

Established by community organizers and demonstrators during the summer of 2020, the Black Lives Matter garden was intended to memorialize those individuals of color who've been killed by police bullets.

Initially, the garden was to be razed in October. But the project was delayed, as workers faced off with garden supporters and organizers from the Black Star Farmers.

Police closed off the roads around the park, and construction vehicles were brought into to remove the community garden in Cal Anderson Park, located within the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Officials said the garden had become unsafe as people had started setting up camp and using drugs publicly, The Seattle Times reported.

The park's restrooms were also vandalized.The city has vowed to "conceptualize" a new garden elsewhere at the park.

More than 5,000 people signed anonline petition to save the garden, calling it "an ongoing, occupied protest space."

Supporters described the unsanctioned garden as memorializing Black and Indigenous people killed by police, while also providing joy and healing to Capitol Hill community members who didnt have much access to green space.

Garden supporters told the paper volunteers received no notice of the removal, but word got around, and people rushed to the scene to save some of the plants.

City officials plan to reseed the area and restore turf there. The city also removed, for the 76th time this year, tent encampments from Cal Anderson Wednesday morning.

Black Live Matter leaders backed the garden's removal, after receiving assurances a better memorial would replace it.

Community leader Jim Buchanan, speaking on behalf of King County Equity Now, said he wants the new garden to be protected, so it doesn't become a refuge "for drug use and activity, and a hangout spot."

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Seattle Supporters Watch Black Lives Matter Garden Leveled After It Was Overrun by Drug Users, Homeless - The Messenger

A federal judge is set to finalize a $4.8 million payout on Tuesday of $21,500 each to hundreds of protestors who claimed in a lawsuit that they were trapped by police and attacked with batons and pepper spray during a 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in the Bronx.

The payout is one of several lawsuits that triggered a proposed settlement brought by Attorney General Letitia James, the Legal Aid Society, the New York Civil Liberties Union and protesters who say police brutalized them in the Mott Haven protest that sparked widespread outrage.

These are tough cases and theyre fraught, U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon said in court on Tuesday morning. This is an excellent settlement. Im very pleased.

Several plaintiffs gathered outside the Southern District federal courthouse in Lower Manhattan after McMahon hit her gavel pleased with the outcome of the case but plagued by their memories of the protest.

Alex Gutierrez, a 32-year-old Bronx native, said he was detained for about 21 hours after peacefully protesting that day. He was one of roughly 250 people arrested by police.

There was an individual in my cell who was bleeding from the head His whole face just gushed and he was in his cell for hours before they released him, Gutierrez said.

Anytime you asked for water [the officers] would go and grab a water bottle out of your bag and drink it in front of you.

Gutierrez and roughly 200 other plaintiffs will receive what is believed to be the largest-ever per-person payout for a mass arrest, Alison Frick, an attorney for the named plaintiffs, told Gothamist. The settlement does not include an admission of wrongdoing by the NYPD.

In response to the related proposed settlement from the attorney general, NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said in a press release last month that the 2020 protests posed unique challenges for police. Patrick Hendry, president of the Police Benevolent Union, the citys largest police union, has said that the proposed settlement could encourage future violence against officers, 400 of whom he said were injured during the 2020 protests.

Photojournalist Josh Pacheco, another co-plaintiff in the case, said police officers pulled out their phones to pose for a photo with them and other arrested protesters.

I find that even more disgusting than the bloodshed and the violence, Pacheco said. We were just trophies to them

This story has been updated with new information.

Link:
City finalizes $4.8M payout to protestors trapped by NYPD during 2020 BLM protest - Gothamist

Jason Aldean has quietly removed Black Lives Matter (BLM) protest footage from the music video for his song Try That In A Small Town.

As reported by TMZ, the video for the country singers track is shorter by six seconds compared to its original upload. The short missing clip is footage from a BLM rally in Georgia, which is projected on a Tennessee courthouse where a Black teenager was lynched in 1927. The original clip was shot by Fox 5 Atlanta.

According to Consequence of Sound, Aldean had previously claimed that there wasnt a single video clip that isnt real news footage within the Try That In A Small Town video. The music video and song have received backlash with many believing they are promoting racism and gun violence.

Lyrics such as:You cross that line, it wont take long/ For you to find out, I recommend you dont / Try that in a small town, and Got a gun that my granddad gave me / They say one day theyre gonna round up / Well, that shit might fly in the city, good luck are featured within the song, adding to concerns about the tracks true meaning.

Despite the backlash, Try That In A Small Town has become the singers biggest song to date. At his show on Friday, July 21, at Cincinnatis Riverbend Music Center in Ohio,Aldean claimed that the uproar around the song was due to cancel culture.

Its been a long week, and Ive seen a lot of stuff. Ive seen a lot of stuff suggesting Im this, suggesting Im that, he told the crowd. Heres the thing, heres one thing I feel: I feel like everybodys entitled to their opinion. You can think something all you want to. It doesnt mean its true, right?

He added What I am is a proud American. Im proud to be from here. I love our country. I want to see it restored to what it once was before all this bullshit started happening to us. I love my country, I love my family, and I will do anything to protect that, I can tell you that right now.

Despite artists such as Sheryl Crow and Jason Isbell speaking out against the song and video, the track went onto achieve the biggest sales week for a country song in over 10 years. It earned the Number Two spot behind BTS JungKooks first solo Number One Seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

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Jason Aldean removes Black Lives Matter protest footage from 'Try That In A Small Town' video - NME