Be kind to one another. Were in this together.
Be kind to one another. We're in this together. xoxo The Stranger

Love Is Dead: Just kidding! Happy Valentine's Day to those of you who celebrate it—especially this sexually liberated octopus! Still scrambling to figure out dinner plans? Tobias Coughlin-Bouge has you covered. Blanking on date ideas? Here are some things to do. If you're going out, remember: Fuck first. Think dating is garbage? We feel you. Did you submit a Stranger reader Valentine? Search for yours here.

A V-Day Gift from the Universe: White House National Security Advisor Michael Flynn resigned last night.

And Then the Universe Flipped Us the Bird: In a vote of 53 to 47, the Senate confirmed former Goldman Sachs banker and Suicide Squad executive producer Steve Mnuchin as U.S. Treasury secretary yesterday evening, The New York Times reports.

But at Least We Have This? From Washington State Attorney General/Stranger Crush™ Bob Ferguson:


Mercer Island Family Files Lawsuit Against the Seattle Police Department for Alleged Racially-Motivated Arrest: In 2015, Sean Perryman, who is Black, tried to break up a scuffle outside of The Rhino Room in Capitol Hill. He was later arrested for alleged assault. From Capitol Hill Seattle: "In his lawsuit, Perryman alleges the club violated his civil rights that night by not giving him the same wristband allowing re-entry to the club that his two white counterparts received that night. It as that issue of re-entry that sparked the fighting outside the club and Perryman was arrested even though he acted as a 'peace-maker' during the ensuing melee, the lawsuit contends." The Seattle PI provided an in-depth play-by-play of the night's events here.

Speaking of Mercer Island, Its City Council Plans to Sue Sound Transit and WSDOT to Block Light Rail: I wish I was kidding. From The Seattle Transit Blog:

The city’s motion will seek an initial 6-month moratorium on East Link permitting, seeking to bring the parties back to the negotiating table. The city also implied that further suits to delay the project are on the table, with CM Dan Grausz saying, “The public has been asking for lawsuits. You’re going to get them in spades.” To fund the additional $600,000 in expected legal fees for this first stage, Mayor Bruce Bassett told the crowd that the city would defer public projects on things like ballfields and public boat docks. Other councilmembers also solicited donations from the crowd, noting that they are tax deductible.

Erica C. Barnett—Bless Her—Live-Tweeted from the Meeting: What the actual hell?




If you know how critical light rail is and live on Mercer Island or have family that does, get yourself to these meetings.

State of the City Address to Be Delivered at a North Seattle Mosque: Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and City Council President Bruce Harrell will speak at Northgate's Idriss Mosque on February 21 at 9:30 a.m. (Mosque volunteer Hisham Farajallah told Seattle Met that this meeting shows "the support we have at all levels. ... Because we are all in this together.") This will be Murray's first time delivering the State of the City outside of City Hall. The mayor's office wrote in a statement:

Both the City and Idris Mosque are committed to the American ideal of separation of church and state. With this address Mayor Murray and Council are standing with Seattle’s Muslim community in their house of worship as we fight state sanctioned discrimination by the Trump Administration. Throughout its history Seattle has stood with communities facing persecution from the government, including during the civil rights era at Black churches.


Tacoma Father in ICE Custody After Being Rear-Ended on I-5: Armando Chavez Corona was detained by Immigration & Customs Enforcement officers on Feb. 9. "When his driver’s license was checked, the Washington State Patrol found a notification request by the Immigration & Customs Enforcement for a felony drug case," KOMO reports. Now Chavez Corona, a father of three who is married to a U.S. citizen, but has no green card, could face deportation back to Mexico. "I don't know if they send my dad back to Mexico. ... I don't know if I'll ever see him again," said his daughter, Elizabeth Chavez, 17.

The Number of Immigrants Detained by the Department of Homeland Security Last Week: Six hundred eighty. The Associated Press notes: "The figure is far below the totals of similar raids conducted under the Obama administration."