Protesters in a Seattle neighborhood have seized control of the streets and changed the name of the abandoned police station. (Photo: KOMO News Screen Shot)
On Tuesday, for the second straight night, barricades lined the Capitol Hill streets surrounding the East Precinct of the Seattle Police Department.
Midway through the evening, protestors hung a banner on the East Precinct that read, “Property of the People.” There were signs and graffiti lining the streets that read "Welcome to Free Capitol Hill" and "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone."
“Super safe, super peaceful, great vibe. It’s just a community coming together,” said Raz Simone, a community leader who said he’s simply a voice of the protestors. "The people recognize that this building is the people's. We paid for it with our taxes. We just want to make sure it’s used for the right reasons.”
SPD Chief Carmen Best met with Simone and other protestors earlier on Tuesday as part of an effort to negotiate.
“They were asking for open streets, we opened them,” Best told KOMO. “That’s what we were doing. They’re not open right now, and maybe this negotiation can help with that.”
While no police were visible for a second straight night, a spokesperson for the Seattle Police Department said they are responding to 911 calls to the East Precinct.
When asked what SPD’s next move was when it comes to re-occupying the East Precinct, a spokesperson said they do not provide tactics or operations information to ongoing incidents.
