Vote harder: I’m gonna start with a brief disclaimer. I am in a mood. And it is not a mood that tolerates fuckery. Today President Joe Biden met with some Democratic governors, including our man, Jay Inslee. Biden, who has been an elected official for like two of my lifetimes combined, is out here not just begging for votes, but making threats. If we don’t vote for Democrats, apparently Republicans will pass a federal ban on abortion. Looking back to recent history, it seems we are screwed either way. We voted for Democrats. We’ve been voting for Democrats. And yet, so many people do not have abortion access. 

In case we don’t vote hard enough once again: We can do this ourselves. 

We can have meaningful access to abortion whether the Supreme Court likes it or not. Here’s how: https://t.co/NQXK15VVcl

— Hannah Krieg (@hannahkrieg) July 1, 2022

NEW OPENINGS AND RETURNS

Bar Sur Mer
FlintCreek Cattle Co. chef Eric Donnelly's highly anticipated tapas bar, inspired by a trip to San Sebastian, is set to open sometime this week. You can look forward to a seafood-focused menu of small plates, plus Spanish wines, sparkling wine, and jamon iberico.
Greenwood
Dine-in

Un-fun fact: The number of all-women instrumental bands in the rock sphere is small. For any such group to sell out gigs in North America and perform live on KEXP is extraordinary, though I wish it were more common. Anyway, London-based quartet Los Bitchos are accruing buzz via their live performances and excellent new debut album, and it's all justified. Their sold-out show at the Tractor Tavern last night inspired roars of approval that one imagines the Bangles received in the '80s.

Los Bitchos—whose members hail from four continents, if you include guest American guitarist Ryan Fitzgibbon—triumphantly closed this tour in support of their Alex Kapranos-produced LP, Let the Festivities Begin! (released this year on UK indie label City Slang).

Well, that’ll just about do it for Pride month … except no, it won’t, because even though the corporations took the rainbows out of their logos, Pride doesn’t end until we say so, which is never. Enjoy July, which you may think of as “Second Pride” if you like, or “Wrath Month”–whatever suits. We’ve got some marvelous queer reading to do in this week’s new comic releases, so let’s get to it.

Thanks as always to Phoenix for sorting through the new releases with us!

Hey folks! Back at it this week after a short hiatus. What did I miss? Just kidding. Let’s check in on how our labor movement is doing amidst all these brand new fires – and, please, no more fires. 

Real Change is unionizing! The newspaper’s union announced the good news late Thursday via Twitter. Real Change staff reporter Guy Oron says, “As a grassroots journalist covering issues affecting our communities, staying in Seattle is becoming harder than ever. That's why I'm super excited to have the support of IBEW 89 and the broader labor movement to ensure workers like me can afford to live and work in the city.” Great job to these folks, and hopefully I’ll soon be able to report on them winning their first contract.

Your long weekend won't be complete without consulting our cheap and easy guide, with events from Amazon Seafair Summer Fourth to Volunteer Park Amphitheater Grand Opening and from Kim Kelly to Reproductive Rights Now. For more holiday fun, check out our guide to Fourth of July food specials and the biggest Fourth of July events.

FRIDAY

ACTIVISM & SOCIAL JUSTICE

Kim Kelly
Kim Kelly, journalist, organizer, and labor columnist for Teen Vogue, is no stranger to the issues American workers currently face. Her timely book, Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor, reveals the hidden histories of marginalized workers whose struggles helped secure today's worker rights. Labor discourse is inescapable right now—Starbucks locations are rapidly unionizing, and Amazon's exploited workers are fed up. Fight Like Hell offers a path forward, casting an eye toward what's possible for American workers with the right organizational tools.
(Elliott Bay Book Company, Capitol Hill, free)

Whether July makes you think of hot dogs and fireworks, air-conditioned movie theaters, outdoor concerts and performances, or ice-cold beers, you'll find tons of things to do this month that will allow you to soak up that coveted Seattle sunshine (or stay cool) now that summer is in full effect. As we do every month, we've compiled the biggest events you need to know about in every genre, from the Ballard SeafoodFest to the Alaska Airlines Seafair Torchlight Parade, from the Seattle Outdoor Theater Festival to the Seattle Art Fair, and from Capitol Hill Block Party to ODESZA: The Return. Plus, don't forget to check out our Fourth of July calendar.

LIVE MUSIC

Ani DiFranco
New York-hailing singer-songwriter and folk-rock icon Ani DiFranco will return to town to play songs from her 20th studio album, Revolutionary Love. The album addresses both the personal and the political, learning to process her anger and frustrations through love and compassion. Fort Worth-based folk-soul artist Abraham Alexander will start the evening.
Neptune Theatre, University District (Fri July 1)

In Bertrand Tavernier’s Round Midnight, legendary musician Dexter Gordon—in his first acting role, mind you—plays a brilliant and alcoholic saxophonist, Dale Turner. Based on the jazz greats Bud Powell and Lester Young, Dale is freer to do as he pleases as a Black man in Europe, escaping the prejudices of bookers back in the United States. But he mostly slumps around the streets of post-war Paris drinking, gallivanting, and somehow managing to make it to his gigs on time. Dale’s life changes, however, when a passionate French fan and single dad Francis (played by Dustin Hoffman’s Gallic twin, François Cluzet), takes him under his wing and cares for him in a totally not-at-all homoerotic way.

In response to the right-wing radicals on the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade last Friday, Governor Inslee issued an executive order on Thursday prohibiting the Washington State Patrol from cooperating with “investigatory requests” from law enforcement agencies or prosecutors’ offices in states that prohibit abortion. 

His order will shield abortion providers and out-of-state abortion patients who seek care in Washington from having their health records turned over to prosecutors in states where abortion is banned. It also directs law enforcement to refuse to cooperate with private parties who seek to enforce a prohibition against abortion under the bounty-hunting scheme Texas pioneered last year, where the state offers private individuals a $10,000 reward for successful civil suits against abortion providers or anyone who assists a pregnant person in getting an abortion.

The executive order is a necessary move in the uncertain legal environment the Supreme Court unleashed with its decision to overturn Roe. But it also lays the groundwork for a constitutional crisis not seen since the Civil War.

The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade ended the constitutional right to an abortion, but it will not end abortions. In fact, advocates and doctors say, it doesn’t have to end safe abortions, either. 

“This decision from the Supreme Court needs to be met with absolute defiance from an enormous number of people,” said Amelia Bonow, the founding director of Shout Your Abortion, a campaign with the goal of normalizing abortion.

Bonow said the power to end pregnancies does not ultimately rest with the Supreme Court. That power remains vested in the people. She knows this because organizers in Texas already proved it.

Seriously, Tacoma? The City of Tacoma joined a motion from several of its police officers to prevent the Attorney General from obtaining unredacted copies of interviews those officers gave to an internal investigation into Manuel Ellis's death. In what the AG's court filing called an "extreme position," the City joined the officers in asking the Court to prioritize the 5th Amendment rights of officers who are not currently facing any criminal charges over the AG's ability to conduct a complete investigation. Is there literally anything a cop can do that their employer won't bend over backwards to defend? We'll find out when a judge rules on the motion today.

This is not police accountability: The Office of Police Accountability is proving every abolitionist's point by investigating the leak of a memo about SPD's lack of staffing in its sexual assault and child abuse unit. Kill someone with the gun the state gave you? No problem. Leak a memo about a boss misallocating resources so that cops can't investigate new adult sexual assault allegations? That's unacceptable. Good to know the OPA's priorities are in order. 

As if things weren't bad enough, today the Supreme Court agreed to hear Moore v. Harper in October, a case from purple North Carolina. The basic idea is this: The North Carolina General Assembly, which has a Republican majority, attempted to impose on the state a voting map that brazenly benefited the GOP. (We call this, of course, gerrymandering). The state's Supreme Court, which has a Dem majority, blocked it, claiming the map broke a law that protected North Carolinians' right to vote. The Supreme Court will, of course, rule in favor of the Republicans, and ultimately increase the power of state legislatures in matters concerning  maps and voting rules during federal elections. Recall what happened in Pennsylvania in 2020. SCOTUSblog:

We’re totally freaking out—the lineup for the 10th annual Freakout Festival has dropped, highlighting Latin and femme-fronted acts, plus some favorites from past festivals. This summer, 12s can watch the Seahawks prep for the 2022 season at their training camp. Plus, the NBA returns to Seattle this fall when the Portland Trail Blazers take on the LA Clippers in the first-ever Rain City Showcase. (Give us our Sonics back already, you cowards!) Read on for details on those and other newly announced events, plus some news you can use.

ON SALE FRIDAY, JULY 1

MUSIC

Amenra & Liturgy
Neumos (Sun Aug 28)

Best Sticker I've Seen All Week

If having babies is so fucking important, why aren't we listening to them? They are probably the chillest contingent ever. Like, all they wanna do is suck boobs, poop, and cry. As recent womb residents, of course they don't give a shit about what a person does with their body. Get fuckin' real.