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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
We are certainly living in historic times. The power of people’s voices has led to a nationwide re-examination of our nation’s past, of policing, and of the ongoing impacts of racism on the health and well-being of black and brown people and, really, of our society.
Meanwhile, the cases of Coronavirus are growing across the nation, and across Washington state (particularly in parts of eastern Washington). See below for information on numbers of positive cases and deaths statewide.
Here in King County, there have been discussions going on about applying for Phase 2 re-opening. But our Chief Public Health Officer Jeff Duchin has recommended doing so, and at about 5 p.m. today I voted with all members present at the meeting of the County Board of Health to approve the County’s application for doing so. You can read more in The Seattle Times about the County's applying for Phase 2 by clicking here.
We should hear from the State whether our application will be approved in a day or two. If it turns out we have a significant surge of positive cases tested, Dr. Duchin can amend his directive. The material from today’s meeting is available here.
The rest of this e-newsletter is meant to provide you with an update on some of the other issues on which I’ve been working as well as helpful information related to the COVID-19 crisis. You can read previous updates I sent out on an archive page so you can find any information you may have missed. I have been sending updates every day since March 1 (sometimes more than one in a day). However, I have now transitioned starting today to sending updates on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays unless there are major developments. Click here to visit the archive page.
As always, I would like to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to contact my office if you have any questions or comments. You can call me at 206-477-1004 or you can reach me by email at jeanne.kohl-welles@kingcounty.gov.
All the best,
What is the future of policing?
The Seattle Times has just begun a series of articles on how policing is changing, and how it might look in the future. Yesterday’s article, "Seattle protest leaders call for defunding and dismantling police. What would that look like?", examines options being discussed for reforming – and even “dismantling” – the police department here in Seattle and across the country.
Today’s article, "After pouring money into police budget, Seattle faces a new reckoning,” discusses how the Seattle Police Department’s budget has “swelled by more than $100 million over the last five years, a 36% increase, even as the number of police officers barely budged.”
How the Black Lives Matter street mural came together in Seattle
 Photo: Seattle Times
 Photo: CNN
It took the work of scores of artists, donors and volunteers. See the story here from CNN, and this article from The Seattle Times.
King County Sheriff makes use-of-force data public
See this story on KIRO news about data that are now available to the public on the use-of-force methods employed within the last six years in the King County Sheriff’s Office. You can access the use-of-force data here. As I mentioned in Friday’s e-newsletter, King County Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht briefed the County Council’s Law and Justice Committee on Friday. The materials from that meeting can be found here. Video from the meeting will be available soon and we will post the link in the next e-newsletter.
County Executive Constantine takes steps to move forward with police accountability
King County Executive Dow Constantine today issued a revised Executive Order on inquests of officer-involved deaths, and called on suburban cities to drop legal opposition so that inquests may proceed. Inquests have been on hold in King County for two years, frustrating families and making it harder for witnesses to recall details. "Now is the time for action and accountability,” he said. “We want the governments that have filed litigation to block inquests to step aside so we can move forward and get to the truth."
This year, 2020, is the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment. KCTS is hosting a virtual discussion focusing on Black women involved in the women's suffrage movement
The discussion will be moderated by Crosscut Now host Starla Sampaco and will take place virtually on June 23 at 5:30 p.m. Panelists will include President of the K.D. Hall Foundation KD Hall, community organizer and attorney Nikkita Oliver and Executive Director of Amplifier Cleo Barnett. KCTS is encouraging the public to send in questions for the panel ahead of time to hsteele@kcts9.org. You can watch or stream on the channel.
Live Q&A from The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: Racism and COVID-19: Inequities and Policing - This Thursday at noon ET/ 9 a.m. PT
A Facebook Live Q&A will be presented with David Harris, Managing Director, Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice, Harvard Law School. This Q&A will stream on Facebook and on The Forum website. Questions for the Q&A can be posted to: @ForumHSPH or @pritheworld
For more information email: theforum@hsph.harvard.edu
This Friday is Juneteenth. What is the history of this holiday?
There is a very thorough – though a few years old – article by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. on how Juneteenth came to be. Even more background is available from the National Museum of African American History and Culture. See this NMAAHC article on tumblr, and see this video featuring the Museum's Founding Director Lonnie Bunch III.
Happy Pride Month: Celebrate this landmark Supreme Court ruling!
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits various forms of discrimination, applies to discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In other words, LGBTQ people are now protected from discrimination on the job. See The Seattle Times story here.
A few resources for our friends and allies in the LGBTQ community:
- COVID related LGBTQ resources
- Talking about pronouns in the workplace
- How to be an “awesome ally”
Supreme Court lets California's "sanctuary" law stand
In another significant action, the U.S. Supreme Court also declined to take up California’s “sanctuary” law, which protects undocumented workers. According to this article in The Washington Post, California’s law “forbids local law enforcement in most cases from cooperating with aggressive federal action to identify and deport undocumented immigrants.”
“The court let stand the law passed after President Trump took office and challenged by his administration. The most significant measure limits police from sharing information unless the immigrants have been convicted of violent or serious crimes.”
This bodes well for King County, which is a “sanctuary county.”
COVID-19 Updates
Latest numbers from Public Health
Public Health is reporting 46 new positive cases of COVID-19 in King County today (8,797 total) and 0 new COVID-19-related deaths (574 total).
Here are the changes over the weekend:
Saturday:
56 new positive cases (total 8644)
3 deaths (total 574)
Sunday:
51 new positive cases (total 8751)
0 deaths (total 574)
Today (7:59 a.m.)
46 new positive cases)
0 deaths (total 574)
Today state health officials confirmed 324 new COVID-19 cases statewide, as well as four additional deaths. The update brings the state’s totals to 26,158 cases and 1,221 deaths, meaning about 4.7% of people diagnosed in Washington have died, according to the state Department of Health’s (DOH) data dashboard.
Detailed information about demographics of those who died from COVID-19, as well as on rates of hospitalization, is available on Public Health’s data dashboard. And, interestingly, you can click on your zip code to learn of the number of “positive” cases and fatalities where you reside.
Also, and again, here is an excellent website that offers real-time COVID-19 data in clear formats, broken down by country and state:https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries
Lastly, here is an updated list of places open for COVID-19 testing: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/news/2020/May/~/media/depts/health/communicable-diseases/documents/C19/community-health-center-testing-locations.ashx
King County’s COVID-19 dashboard shows 46 new cases and 0 additional deaths today.
(These graphs are based solely on the daily announced totals from Public Health, and do not reflect that daily announced cases are typically diagnosed on several previous days. Corrections or adjustments by Public Health that change daily totals are not reflected.)
   
How risky is it to….
Doctors in Michigan have ranked 36 activities according to the risk of contracting the Coronavirus. According to the article on MLive.com, “The doctors pointed to five factors, when considering how risky a given activity might be: Whether it’s inside or outside; proximity to others; exposure time; likelihood of compliance; and personal risk level.” The ranking considers 36 common activities, including playing basketball, going to the dentist, eating at a restaurant, grocery shopping, and many more. It’s quite thought-provoking. And keep in mind the article came out a week ago so the rankings and risks may have changed as more areas re-open.
Telemedicine: The new normal?
Many of us have had our first experiences with telemedicine over the past two months. This article in The Seattle Times explains some of the regulatory challenges facing the wide adoption of telemedicine. However, despite difficulties, one doctor interviewed stated, “The genie is definitely out of the bottle.”
COVID-19 testing at long-term care facilities
According to this article on Friday in The Seattle Times, Washington state is not meeting our goals for COVID testing staff and residents at nursing homes. The article cites a shortage of testing supplies and medical protective equipment as the primary issues.
Additional helpful and informative links
- Must-read books for learning about Black history, racism and social justice – The Seattle Times
- Seattle occupations that worked: Daybreak Star and El Centro de la Raza - Seattlepi.com
- Despite army of workers, coronavirus contact tracing in Washington state is challenging – The Seattle Times
- Does rain wash away COVID-19? Forbes
- Washington DOH concerned over recent increase in COVID-19 cases – mynorthwest.com
- Coronavirus updates: King County food banks preparing for volunteer gap – king5.com
Today's moment of enjoyment
Over the last week and this past weekend, artists and community members in the Chinatown-International District have been painting murals in support of the Black Lives Matter movement on plywood at businesses that had been boarded up because of the coronavirus. View photos of the murals – and the artists at work – here.
Keep in touch
Thank you again for taking the time to read my update. You can expect these to continue being sent out now three times a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays – but sometimes more than once in a given day. And, if the need arises, I will send them out on a Tuesday or Thursday as well. Feel free to forward them to others who can subscribe by clicking here.
Finally, to prevent these updates from going straight to spam or junk folders, I encourage you to mark this email address as a “safe sender” by adding the email address to your contacts or address book. And be sure to check your spam folder if you think you may have missed an update.
And please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns and, most importantly, be well.
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