Seattle Government Ignores Suffering of Chinatown

Each day, Asian American grandmas have to walk through this gauntlet of drug addicts and maneuver around the black market of stolen goods on King Street.

“The police here just kind of chase them away, and like, two hours later, they come back,” says one resident.

Right across the street is Ho Mai Park. Instead of laughter coming from children, it’s overrun by men and women smoking fentanyl.

“And who’s gonna bring their families out on the weekends to hang out and make good memories?” asks another resident of the overrun park.

“You look around, we are surrounded by fencing and barbed wire,” says Tanya Woo.

Community activist Tanya Woo says Seattle leaders are intentionally pushing the crime and addiction crisis into the Chinatown-International District.

“People are just being moved around,” she says.

But Woo says they’re now done sitting passively on the sidelines while watching businesses and long-time residents leave.

“And I think this is the year where many of us have committed to being the squeaky wheel and we are speaking up,” continues Woo.

Her community coalition is putting Mayor Bruce Harrell on blast for the second time this year after more public safety failures in this predominantly Asian American neighborhood.

“When’s the last time you saw Mayor Bruce Harrell walk here in Chinatown-ID with the community?” I ask Woo.

Woo turns to supporters around her, who all shake their heads. “Do you guys know when you have last seen the mayor here walking around? Oh, the opening of the park, a year ago.”

She also says Governor Bob Ferguson, King County Executive Shannon Braddock, and District 2 Councilmember Mark Solomon are ignoring their pleas for help.

“We made a direct request and we have not yet met or heard from any of them,” Woo explains.

No one from their offices responded to my requests for comment.

“We are often ignored. We don’t have that political power,” says Woo.

Woo acknowledges the city has tried to make changes to the CID. A few months ago, the problematic Navigation Center shelter was forced to leave after years of shootings, assaults, and drug overdose deaths outside its doors.

And regular city hose downs of the sidewalks have cleared the notorious 12th Ave and Jackson Street drug den.

But those efforts have simply moved the addicts down the block.

“We are worried about our small businesses, our residents, our family and friends,” says Woo.

Woo says the mayor’s had nearly four years to activate and help the CID. Now it appears to be getting even worse under his watch.

“And we don’t want to see a resurgence of what happened last year with violence and frankly all of the deaths.”