Faith Responses to Homelessness
We are deeply troubled by the news last week that the City of Seattle budget will result in the loss of 300 shelter beds, transitional housing, and support services, even as we enter year two of the declared homeless state of emergency—see news articles from Crosscut and KUOW for some of the story. We honor faith communities who for decades have opened their doors, their parking lots and their hearts to provide survival services for those impacted by homelessness, often in conjunction with SHARE/WHEEL, Catholic Community Services, Compass Housing, and other community partners. We want to make sure your voices are included in response to this crisis.
The Church Council of Greater Seattle, in coordination with social services agencies across Seattle, is organizing a meeting on Wednesday, December 6 at 10 AM at Plymouth United Church of Christ, 1217 6th Avenue. This meeting will be an opportunity for faith communities, impacted folks, and service providers to come together and strategically coordinate a united response. While FAN staff will be at the Budget and Policy Center conference that morning, FAN Governing Board chair Rabbi Aaron Meyer of Temple de Hirsch Sinai, which has hosted a shelter for decades, will join the meeting. Please email Erica West at ewest@thechurchcouncil.org with any questions about the meeting. Budgets at the local, state and federal levels all have moral implications.
After the meeting, attendees are encouraged to join the Women in Black vigil at 12 noon at the Seattle Justice Center (5th & Cherry). Women in Black (men are welcome) will stand silent vigil for the nine outdoor/violent homeless deaths in our community in November alone. With these deaths, the 2017 outdoor/violent death count—at 87—far outstrips the number of deaths during any other calendar year. We encourage you to reach out to the mayor and your city council members in support of shelter.
Stand Together against Muslim Ban
Also this Wednesday, Dec 6, we encourage you to join a rally outside the U.S. Courthouse (1010 5th Ave, Seattle) beginning at 1 PM, as the Muslim Ban continues to work its way through our court system. The State of Hawaii filed for another temporary restraining order against the third version of The Muslim Ban, and the case will be heard on Wednesday at 2:00 PM at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, William K. Nakamura Courthouse. This is particularly important given yesterday's news of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to lift the injunctions and let the travel ban take effect (see NY Times article).
Please join us to hear testimonials of those impacted by the ban. Faith leaders are especially welcome to wear their clerical garb and stand in unity and support. A group reading of portions of the constitution is also planned. Show your support for the Muslim community and a vibrant, diverse America where all are welcome!
Protect Hotel Workers from Harassment
With our friends at Unite Here Local 8:
As the current moment sheds light on the pervasiveness of sexual harassment and assault throughout countless professions, we join together in solidarity and with shared experience to support the women of Seattle’s hospitality industry.
Hotel housekeepers are predominantly immigrant women and women of color who work for low wages at great risk: in Seattle, 53 percent have reported experiencing sexual harassment or assault on the job. Through their leadership, voters passed an initiative in November 2016 to combat through law exactly the types of behavior now garnering national attention and outcry. The Seattle Hotel Employees Health and Safety Ordinance shows that it is possible to craft public policies that support women, embrace our values, and offer workers genuine recourse to respond to harassment and assault.
Unfortunately, these policies are disputed, and employers have attacked Seattle’s law. The Seattle hotel industry has publicly taken the side of those accused of harassment, arguing on their behalf in court and asserting that the stakes for the accused are greater and more important than those of victims. It has been a year since Seattle made history with the passage of Initiative 124. We cannot go backwards.
Please take action and sign Unite Here Local 8's petition: #MeToo: I Stand with Hotel Housekeepers.
Support I-940 to De-Escalate Washington!
FAN has supported I-940 from the beginning, and we want to help De-Escalate Washington to reach the finish line! Contact fan@fanwa.org and we’ll send you petitions to collect signatures at your holiday events and in your faith communities. Here are a few updates from the campaign:
- The I-940 Campaign has now collected over 261,000 signatures, surpassing the amount needed to submit to the Secretary of State. In order to assure qualification, we need about 89,000 more—now under 21,000 signatures needed from volunteers. Keep up the good work! Make sure all your friends, neighbors, family, and co-workers have signed it, and return your filled petition as soon as you can.
- Initiative 940 is very much needed in our state. The total amount of Washingtonians killed by law enforcement this year is 36 — Washington now rates the 6th highest in the country of loved-ones killed by police in 2017. By comparison, Massachusetts—the state closest to ours in population—has had five deaths this year through violent interactions with police.
- U.S. Senator Patty Murray recently endorsed I-940! She also sent an email to her supporters requesting I-940 assistance—the first time this has been done for an initiative campaign! Leaders throughout our state have endorsed De-Escalate Washington's common-sense policy change.
You are appreciated! Together, we will change the law to make everyone safer in Washington.
FAN is honored to be listed by Seattle Met Magazine as one of 20 Great Nonprofits to Give to in 2017 and Beyond. Help FAN the Flames for justice year-round; support FAN with a donation:
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