 Click the image to read KIRO's coverage of the DHS motion
Last week, we saw another tragic, preventable death at the hands of federal immigration agents in Minnesota. We must not accept the deaths of innocent civilians exercising their constitutional rights.
As someone who has worked in law enforcement and law enforcement oversight, it is clear to me that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is a badly-managed organization, with both Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents creating dangerous situations. The violence and chaos these agencies are perpetrating in Minnesota is horrifying and, unfortunately, a completely predictable outcome when a massive surge of poorly-trained federal agents undertake a poorly thought-out, unnecessary escalation of force in otherwise peaceful communities.
That’s why on Tuesday, I joined my colleagues in sponsoring and unanimously passing a motion calling for Congress to put guardrails on funding for DHS, which includes ICE and Customs and Border Protection.
With this motion, the King County Council calls for agencies to follow due process and for agents to be properly identified and to meet the standards that we require of our own local law enforcement. It calls for investigation and accountability after critical incidents, like we do with our own local law enforcement. What’s happening now is a disgrace to our nation and it must stop, immediately.
Yesterday, I was honored to join the Summit on Crime Survivors to discuss commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) and how to support healing, accountability, and prevention in King County. CSE, which is a form of human trafficking, is a profound violation of dignity, safety, and autonomy. It also disproportionately affects Black women and girls and their experiences are too often ignored, minimized, or erased in policy conversations.
Addressing CSE is especially urgent in King County, with Seattle identified as one of the top cities in the country for trafficking and CSE, Major events, like the upcoming FIFA World Cup, are shown to increase instances of CSE.
We have made important progress locally, thanks to the advocacy of survivors and their supporters, including additional funding to support survivors and an effort to create a more coordinated, survivor-centered plan of action in King County. Hearing the stories of survivors at the summit made clear to me that we still have so much work to do and I am committed to doing it.
If you or someone you know is experiencing CSE, help is available:
The City of Redmond invites high school students to apply for the position of youth advisor on their Planning Commission! Redmond developed this new position to ensure youth voices were represented in response to the Redmond 2050 Comprehensive Plan update, which focused on creating a welcoming and inclusive community.
One seat is available to high school students who either live or attend school in Redmond. They will serve as a nonvoting member of the commission but will otherwise participate fully in all discussions. The youth advisor will be expected to attend commission meetings from September through June. Applications are due by 5:00 PM on Sunday, March 1.
As your councilmember on the King County Council, I need to know what’s important to you. Please consider taking a short survey to share your priorities and your ideas about how we can work together to make King County a safe, welcoming place for all.
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