Judging from e-mails sent out to members of the city's Citizen Task Force on racial profiling last week, the police have elbowed their way onto the 20-person panel. As the task force tackles tough questions--like whether or not to recommend that cops record their badge numbers when documenting the race of drivers they pull over--police representatives have weighed in via e-mail. Their digital comments are in addition to vocal remarks made at the task force's meetings, where cops often sit right at the table even though they aren't officially part of the task force.

"It's amazing how much [police] dominate the dialogue," says Dustin Washington of the People's Coalition for Justice, an activist group that has been present at the meetings.

On August 31, the morning after the task force narrowly passed a motion in favor of police identification (which the cops opposed), Captain Nick Metz of the East Precinct sent out an e-mail to the task force. Metz learned that one task force member was confused about her vote, and he recommended that the task force revote, "in hopes of rectifying this serious error." AMY JENNIGES

Alive for Now

Home Alive--the local nonprofit organization that for the last eight years has provided low-cost self-defense classes and violence-prevention education--is laying off both full-time staff members so they can pay rent.

"I think it's just the climate; all these nonprofits are having to do layoffs," explains Home Alive's now-unemployed executive director, founding member Cristien Storm.

Home Alive's annual budget of $160,000 is funded through a combination of individual donations, benefit arts and music events, and small grants. Some instructors will still schedule classes on a volunteer basis to keep the group going while the group looks at its long-term sustainability.

"Right now our biggest hurdle is to raise the money to keep our office space through the end of the year," Storm says. The group needs to raise about $50,000. HANNAH LEVIN

Port Protestation

Sparking protests, the Port of Seattle Commission is debating whether to privatize the Port's crane management operations. Crane workers are protesting the potential loss of jobs that would accompany privatization, while other groups--citing the Port's claim that privatization would save money--are protesting the Port's multi-million-dollar budget surplus. Though the September 11 commission meeting was canceled, human services organizations, economic justice groups, and labor groups plan to attend the next meeting, to be held in two weeks. AMY JENNIGES