Seattle is declared an autonomous region

Seattle is declared an autonomous region

Protesters spray-painted the "Seattle People's Department" on a police building. Photo: Reuters

Activists of the Black Lives Matter movement in Seattle, USA, have declared a certain area as autonomous. On June 6, protesters vacated the Seattle Police East Precinct building and occupied it. They spray-painted the building with the words, "Seattle People's Department." Last Friday, protesters declared six blocks in the vicinity of the Seattle Police East Precinct building as "autonomous" areas.

Protests erupted across the United States in protest of the May 25 assassination of George Floyd. The anti-apartheid movement was quick to speak out against police brutality. At the same time, there was a demand to stop the funding of the police. Meanwhile, protesters in Seattle have declared a certain area autonomous, declaring the police there "undesirable".

Police and protesters clashed in Seattle's Capitol Hill area last week, U.S. media reported. The confrontation ended several days later when Seattle police moved out of their East Precinct building. The protesters later occupied the building and declared themselves an autonomous region with six surrounding blocks. They call it the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone or Chase.

This autonomous region is reminiscent of New York's Jukoti Park. With the slogan 'We are 99 percent' and the 'Occupy Wall Street Movement' that took place in 2011, the activists also declared a region as their own. Seattle was one of the centers of the movement that began in Zukoti Park. As before, this festival of songs, poems, and paintings is going on in this autonomous region of Seattle. Agitators Food is coming from different individuals and organizations, there are volunteers for medical services. They are painting the streets with various pictures, slogans, and protest words.

Originally the work had already begun to occupy the place. There is continuous violence. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. Attempts were made to quell the protests by throwing tear gas shells or sound bombs. But then the police restrained themselves a bit. Throughout the week in this situation

Police left the scene at the end of the confrontation. They moved away so as not to create more tensions with the protesters.

A woman named Tracy Stewart came to the autonomous region on Sunday and joined like everyone else. "Why are black bodies lying on the streets?" He told USA Today. Not everyone who has come here is aware of the reason for this gathering. But they are all driven by the feeling of freedom. ' Meanwhile, the festive situation in the autonomous region has raised the question in the minds of many black activists as to whether all whites who have joined the movement understand the importance of the 'Black Lives Matter' movement.

According to USA TODAY, 75 percent of Seattle residents are white. Only 6 percent are black. Seattle has been accused of discriminating against black people against the police. In 2012, the administration of former President Barack Obama took steps to closely monitor the activities of the Seattle police. This reduced the incidence of the police force by 60 percent. In early May, the city administration asked a federal judge to lift the ban on Seattle police. The argument was, Seattle police are no longer racist. But 18 days later, George happened in Minneapolis Floyd's murder. The killings sparked a wave of anti-apartheid movements not only in the United States but around the world. Seattle also burned.

The main slogan of the movement is 'Black Lives Matter' written in large letters on the streets of the declared autonomous region. Photo: Reuters

The massive movement began on May 30 in Seattle. As the violence, looting, etc. continued, a video was released at the same time, showing a Seattle police officer kneeling on a man's neck. As a result, it did not take long for the movement to gain momentum. It goes on like this. Finally, on June 6, the police withdrew from East Precinct. Protesters stormed the Precinct building and wrote the "Seattle People's Department" with spray paint.

So far, the police have not made any attempt to regain control of the area. So far, officials of various departments including the mayor of the city have visited the place more than once to take care of various aspects including waste management in the area. In an interview, Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best told local TV channel King-Five that it was not immediately clear when the area would be brought back under control. The date cannot be fixed in advance in this regard.

At least in Seattle, the Black Lives Matter movement is expected to take the form of an anti-discrimination movement. Because financial restructuring has already been called for. Just as there is a reduction in funding in the police sector, there is also an imposition of an obligation on the very rich, like Jeff Bezos, to spend more behind the local community. Simply put, "this movement is about the question of equal rights."

Seattle Mayor Jenny Darkan welcomed the move, saying, "Now is not the time to talk. There has been a lot of talks. Now is the time to work. People will see what I am doing on the issue of black rights. '

Donald Trump is very upset with the position of the mayor of Seattle. "People are burning our city, and they think it's great," Trump wrote in a related tweet last Friday.