Mayor Ed Murray Reaffirms Commitment to Continue as a Sanctuary City: Mayor Ed Murray signed an executive order yesterday stating all city services will be available to all residents and city employees will not ask residents about their immigration status. The city will also spend $250,000 to support undocumented immigrant students in Seattle Public Schools. A new group of city officials from various departments, the “Inclusive and Equitable City Cabinet,” will decide how to spend the money. Here’s the message the mayor delivered yesterday to announce the order:
Expect a Parade and Protests Downtown Today: The parade begins at 9 am and the star lighting at 5 pm. A Black Lives Matter protest is scheduled to start at 1 pm at Westlake and will likely continue through the star lighting.
Russia Helped Spread Fake News During this Election Cycle: The Washington Post reports that “Two teams of independent researchers found that the Russians exploited American-made technology platforms to attack U.S. democracy at a particularly vulnerable moment, as an insurgent candidate harnessed a wide range of grievances to claim the White House.” Throughout the election, Russian trolls, bots, websites, and social media accounts promoted stories about Hillary Clinton’s alleged health problems and other conspiracy theories, helping elevate those stories, the Post reports.
What Will Trump’s Education Secretary Pick Mean for Washington? Donald Trump has nominated charter school supporter Betsy DeVos to oversee education. Newly elected Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal says that creates big questions for Washington. “We’ll figure out which Donald Trump philosophy emerges: The candidate who wanted the smaller role for the feds or the transition team who wants a big aggressive school privatization agenda,” Reykdal told KUOW.
Seattle Doctor Visits Standing Rock: “Pretty Much Everyone Had a Concussion.” Seattle doctor Robie Sterling recently traveled to the standoff in North Dakota and was in the medic tent Sunday when police started using rubber bullets, water, and tear gas on water protectors in freezing temperatures. Some people had sheets of ice hanging off them, he says. “Seeing that degree of violence inflicted upon unarmed Americans who are exercising their freedom of speech was really shocking,” Sterling told KUOW. “And that it was done by police officers was all the more appalling. So that’s what’s been on my mind most since coming back.”
Thousands in Seattle Lost Power at Prime Cooking Time Yesterday: Power went out in about 4,500 homes around 11:40 am yesterday, the Seattle Times reports. About 29 homes in Shoreline were still without power this morning.
Tons of Seattleites Live with Roommates: Gene Balk crunches the numbers and finds that, as Seattle living costs have increased, the city has become the number one city for living with other people. About 12.5 percent of the adult population lives with a roommate or significant other.
