More than a month ago Mayor Mike McGinn announced a new public-safety initiative focused solely on Belltown. The mayor says it’s a pro-nightlife effort, but others say it amounts to a private police force and favoritism for a single neighborhood, while the needs of other neighborhoods go unmet. Here’s why.
At a time when, according to the mayor, Seattle can’t afford to hire more cops desperately needed to patrol all neighborhoods, the city announced it would immediately redirect no fewer than 20 officers to target crime in Belltown. There will also be a stronger presence from members of the Seattle Police Department’s SWAT team, Gang Unit, Anti-Crime Team and undercover police.
The mayor and new police chief say the added police presence is needed and expected in community policing. They said it’s vital to respond quickly “where crime happens.”
At the same time, Chief John Diaz said one of his most important jobs as Seattle’s new chief is to “reach out” to communities and neighborhoods of color in the wake of videos that have surfaced in recent weeks; one showing a white officer punching a 17-year-old black girl, and the other showing a white officer screaming racial threats at a Latino man in his custody.
Those videos, Diaz said, have damaged relationships and increased racial tension and resentment in certain parts of the city like the South End and the Central Area, and he’s right. Except, I doubt those minority communities are waiting for Diaz to “reach out” — action, of course, would be nice, too.
Pee, puke and poop vs. violence
Belltown gets 20 extra cops for an undetermined length of time, but South Seattle — where crime is rampant and is notoriously under-policed — gets nothing. Why is that, Mr. Mayor?
As if it’s not infuriating enough, when the city really doesn’t respond to crime when and where it happens to the degree it is for Belltown, McGinn recently announced yet another city-funded plan of exclusive support for the trendy neighborhood. Starting in October, Belltown will have its own rapid-response poop-cleanup team, which will respond to resident complaints called in to a special hotline number.
The crews won’t work in other parts of the city, because, according to the Mayor’s Office, they don’t have the same kind of nighttime activity leaving Belltown with people puking, peeing or crapping in the streets.
Residents of Belltown couldn’t be more thrilled over the unparalleled responsiveness they’ve been getting from the Mayor’s Office. Other neighborhoods aren’t so impressed.
Yes, Belltown may have a disproportionate number of incidents of street feculence, but lest we forget, the Central Area, the South End and West Seattle have a disproportionate number of incidents of youth and gang violence. Is there a special hotline number for that? No.
The mayor insists that the best and most effective way to deal with youth and family issues is to spend a year having meetings, town halls, caucuses and congresses before any recommendations or actions are taken.
It is absolutely one of the greatest failures of his administration to date.
Which communities’ needs?
The mayor is in an executive role to make executive decisions. His job is to move on the issues that touch residents the most as an entire city.
In less than a year, McGinn has shown that his focus is on his own sacred cows and supporting special-interests groups. The mayor is making things happen for Belltown, transit and light-rail interests groups, developers and the downtown business community.
Not only is he making decisions and taking action for them, he has no problem overstepping his authority and jurisdiction, ticking off everyone from the governor to members of the Seattle City Council, to King County officials and oversight bodies like the state Liquor Control Board — all in the name of being responsive to community needs.
But youth and families? Not worth immediate action. Instead, the mayor puts their needs back on the community to identify fixes for problems, using the same inadequate pool of resources those communities have put up with for years.
We’re talking actual human suffering, violent crime and death — this, compared to human waste. We’re talking communities that have no resources and no inside relationships with city hall. These, compared to a single neighborhood that considers itself so special, its residents won’t even take out some hoses and spray down their own sidewalks and alleyways.
When is the mayor going to take action to reduce the knifings, shootings and fisticuffs? What about the violent sexual assaults against women in South Seattle? How about the street robberies, vandalisms, car thefts and break-ins, or the selling and using of drugs in public places?
The longer the city puts off dealing with the devastating impact of issues like youth violence and public safety across the entire city, the more senseless death and harm will occur. It’s time for the mayor to stop playing favorites and to stop ignoring our youths.
McGinn is busy keeping crap off his shoes, but one day, he’s going to look up and wonder how he wound up with blood on his hands.
SABLE VERITY provides social commentary for FreshXpress.com: The Pulse of Young Black America, KBCS Radio and many other outlets.[[In-content Ad]]