Category: Seattle, Washington Local News

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Alki Elementary School will be one of two Seattle Public Schools for Highly Capable (HC) elementary sites beginning in the 2026–27 school year. 

Artist rendering of Alki Elementary.

Seattle Public Schools (SPS)  officially proposed at the end of January that the newly rebuilt Alki Elementary serve as the new Southwest Region site for its Highly Capable (HC) “cohort pathway” model. While the district aims to expand access through this regional hub, the transition is being met with scrutiny from families navigating a revamped identification process and questioning the consistency of services offered outside these dedicated cohorts.

SEE THE LETTER TO FAMILIES HERE

 

The Alki Proposal: Expanded Capacity and Regional Busing

The proposal, announced at a January 2026 School Board meeting, leverages the significantly increased capacity of the new Alki Elementary building, which is nearly double the size of the old school.

If approved, Alki would host a dedicated HC cohort for students in grades 2 through 5 from across the Southwest region. These students receive accelerated instruction, including math two years ahead of grade level and reading one year ahead. To facilitate this regional model, the district has committed to providing bus transportation to Alki for any qualifying student in West Seattle who opts into the program. The new Superintendent Benjamin “Ben” Shuldiner apparently had no role in this to date.

Terminology Shift to Align with State Law

In a move to align with Washington state law (WAC 392-170), the district has officially retired the term “Advanced Learning”. The department and its offerings are now exclusively referred to as Highly Capable (HC) Services. The previous “Advanced Learning” designation for students is now defunct.

Criticism of the “Confusing” Identification Process

Despite the district’s stated goal of “equitable access,” some sources describe the newly rolled-out identification process as “unnecessarily confusing”. Critics argue that the updated criteria have left out many students who would have qualified under previous standards.

Furthermore, while SPS maintains that HC services—such as differentiated instruction and support from specialists—are available in neighborhood schools, some advocates call this claim “misleading”. They argue that neighborhood services have been inconsistent for years, often relying on volunteer-run or PTA-funded supplemental programs rather than the consistent, all-day instruction provided by a dedicated cohort teacher.

Still it’s worth noting that less than a year ago, SPS was planning on sunsetting HC cohorts  altogether, so reversing that decision AND opening new HC cohort sites is clearly progress and a positive step in the right direction for Seattle students.

Critical Deadlines and Resources for Families

Families believe the district has not yet reached everyone affected by these changes, making the following deadlines critical:

• February 20, 2026: The final deadline to submit an appeal for HC status. Families are encouraged to appeal if they believe their student was unfairly excluded by the new evaluation process.

• March 31, 2026: The final deadline to provide consent for HC services for the 2026-27 school year.

SPS has provided specific links for families to sign up or give consent:

• Current HC Families: https://tinyurl.com/4p2s446k

• New HC Families: https://tinyurl.com/ha7ajucm

For families needing assistance navigating these changes, the local non-profit HC Seattle (https://hcseattle.org/) offers resources to help understand and navigate the district’s HC landscape.

Alki Elementary School will be one of two Seattle Public Schools for Highly Capable (HC) elementary sites beginning in the 2026–27 school year. 

Artist rendering of Alki Elementary.

Seattle Public Schools (SPS)  officially proposed at the end of January that the newly rebuilt Alki Elementary serve as the new Southwest Region site for its Highly Capable (HC) “cohort pathway” model. While the district aims to expand access through this regional hub, the transition is being met with scrutiny from families navigating a revamped identification process and questioning the consistency of services offered outside these dedicated cohorts.

SEE THE LETTER TO FAMILIES HERE

 

The Alki Proposal: Expanded Capacity and Regional Busing

The proposal, announced at a January 2026 School Board meeting, leverages the significantly increased capacity of the new Alki Elementary building, which is nearly double the size of the old school.

If approved, Alki would host a dedicated HC cohort for students in grades 2 through 5 from across the Southwest region. These students receive accelerated instruction, including math two years ahead of grade level and reading one year ahead. To facilitate this regional model, the district has committed to providing bus transportation to Alki for any qualifying student in West Seattle who opts into the program. The new Superintendent Benjamin “Ben” Shuldiner apparently had no role in this to date.

Terminology Shift to Align with State Law

In a move to align with Washington state law (WAC 392-170), the district has officially retired the term “Advanced Learning”. The department and its offerings are now exclusively referred to as Highly Capable (HC) Services. The previous “Advanced Learning” designation for students is now defunct.

Criticism of the “Confusing” Identification Process

Despite the district’s stated goal of “equitable access,” some sources describe the newly rolled-out identification process as “unnecessarily confusing”. Critics argue that the updated criteria have left out many students who would have qualified under previous standards.

Furthermore, while SPS maintains that HC services—such as differentiated instruction and support from specialists—are available in neighborhood schools, some advocates call this claim “misleading”. They argue that neighborhood services have been inconsistent for years, often relying on volunteer-run or PTA-funded supplemental programs rather than the consistent, all-day instruction provided by a dedicated cohort teacher.

Still it’s worth noting that less than a year ago, SPS was planning on sunsetting HC cohorts  altogether, so reversing that decision AND opening new HC cohort sites is clearly progress and a positive step in the right direction for Seattle students.

Critical Deadlines and Resources for Families

Families believe the district has not yet reached everyone affected by these changes, making the following deadlines critical:

• February 20, 2026: The final deadline to submit an appeal for HC status. Families are encouraged to appeal if they believe their student was unfairly excluded by the new evaluation process.

• March 31, 2026: The final deadline to provide consent for HC services for the 2026-27 school year.

SPS has provided specific links for families to sign up or give consent:

• Current HC Families: https://tinyurl.com/4p2s446k

• New HC Families: https://tinyurl.com/ha7ajucm

For families needing assistance navigating these changes, the local non-profit HC Seattle (https://hcseattle.org/) offers resources to help understand and navigate the district’s HC landscape.

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I enter Cal Anderson Park. It’s 10:15 a.m. The sky is bright blue with long and high clouds. The sun is low. And a seagull stands on top of the city’s best fountain. What’s on its mind? On the concrete rim that circles the fountain’s pooled water, someone wrote with a spray can: “Death to AmeriKKK!” Now that’s on my mind. US fascism. 

Unbeknownst to me, Councilmember Eddie Lin is also in the park, also near the fountain. In November 2025, he won District 2’s special election by nearly 40 points. On December 2, he was sworn in. Today, we are meeting at The Stranger’s office for a quick check-in. How is it going so far? Is he working on his promises? Is the job harder than he expected? That sort of thing. While talking on the phone about some community matter, Lin spots me. Does he also notice the contemplative seagull on the fountain or the anti-fascist graffiti?

At 10:35, we are in The Stranger’s conference room. It has a view of the rainbow crosswalk next to the Wildrose and, in the distance, two towers that will soon have the repurposed corpse of a Boeing 747 near the ground floors between them. I was introduced to Eddie Lin in this conference room in June of 2025 for the SECB endorsement meeting for the primaries. The former assistant attorney for the Seattle City Attorney’s Office easily won our endorsement. His big message? Seattle needs more housing, and from all sectors: private, parastatal, social. 

“I saw you in the park,” Lin says to me as he places his phone on the conference table. “Funny you should bring that up,” I say. “I was thinking about facism in the US while crossing the park. And [you] being not only a person of color but the one who represents the most diverse district in Seattle, I want to begin by talking about ICE. When they come, they are coming for us. Is there really anything that can be done?” I also live in District 2.

Lin explains that he and Erika Evans, the new city attorney, are looking at the options closely and working with immigrant professionals and activists to prepare and protect all of the members of the community, many of whom are from Somalia, from what’s happening in Minneapolis. But, I say, ICE still just breaks the law. They break into homes without warrants. We saw this happen to an American citizen, ChongLy Thao. ICE just disregarded the law. Treated the Hmong American with no record like a criminal. Trump has made it loud and clear that this agency operates outside of conventional law. They can use excessive force and even act as if they can kill people with impunity. How can Seattle prepare for a federal organization that’s operating like a street gang? 

After a moment’s thought, Lin puts on his lawyer hat and says it like it is: “There are a couple things for me. One: There are certain crimes committed [by ICE agents] that are not just federal crimes. They’re also state crimes. Murder is a state crime that does not [in Washington] have a statute of limitation. And it can’t be pardoned by the president, and so, you know, I think, these federal agents need to be worried about that. The president is trying to send this message that he will protect them and pardon them. He can’t pardon a state crime. So, he’s going to be out of office someday. [And] Republicans will not be in control forever. They can’t protect these people forever. So, I think we need to make these agents understand this. Yes, the statute of limitations for excessive force is something like five years. Yes, I would like it to be longer. But that is the way I’m looking at it. You are not protected from state crimes.”

When I ask about how things have been since he took office, he brightens a little and explains that, to be honest, not much has happened. He was sworn in. He made the transition, and he is now settling in. Then I ask about his top priority: affordable housing. Any new developments in that direction? 

He is honest. Not much has happened in the immediate sense because housing is always a long-term commitment. “Even if we change zoning rules,” he says, “it’s still going to take years to see the results. The kind of housing crisis we are in now was caused many years ago. … But we still have to deal with the homeless crisis. That has to be done right now. … So, I support things like the tiny home villages or [other forms of] transitional housing. I’m supportive of [Mayor Katie Wilson’s] focus on that and want to do what I can to support her. Whether it’s with resources, finding locations, or permitting, or land-use issues. But I think the whole city should be a part of transitional housing. Not just South Seattle.”

I bring up the fact that, though he’s considered a progressive, some think he is a touch soft on cops. He seems a little surprised by this, but it was mentioned in The Stranger’s 2025 primary endorsement. In response, Lin brings up that he, along with Alexis Mercedes Rinck and Rob Saka, voted against the police guild contract because it was woefully inadequate when it came to police accountability. Lin leaves it at that. Action counts more than words.

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Mullet 4 Mullet at the Ice Protest: Revolutionary Eye Contact

You: pink/purple curly mullet cutie carrying a long sign Me: gray/black mullet w boot sign. We locked eyes many a time, let’s go on a date? FUCK ICE!

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Southcenter skate claw machine

You: short masc in a hat. Me: red jacket zombie shirt. You watched me win a prize for my friend’s birthday. I should have won you one too! Forgive me?

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Benbow 80’s Nohjty

You’re Lisa charming smile in black shoulder length hair, my name is Stanton dark hair wearing black with a Debra Harry Blonde t shirt coffee?

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Say She She @ Showbox, 1/31

You: sleepy eyes, strong nose, beanie. Me: glittery earrings, glasses, strappy top. Smiled at you again as I left with my (platonic) pal. Coffee?

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yoga on 1/21..more than just the sauna making me sweat

You warned me about the faulty bathroom lock..I eavesdropped on your conversation about dating shows..let me be a contender? 🙂

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SIFF Uptown 2025

You used to work in the ticket booth. You looked like Chad Michael Murray with Kurt Cobain hair. Where did you go!

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Best Bangs at Macrina Bakery

You’re the stunning tall beauty with bangs and a great smile at Macrina Bakery in Maple Leaf. We talked about movies. I’d love to continue the convo!

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Goth Cutie outside of Corner Pocket

We talked for a little bit about music, but I was too nervous to ask about your number. Give me a chance to make up for my slip.

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Is it a match? Leave a comment here or on our Instagram post to connect!

Did you see someone? Say something! Submit your own I Saw U message here and maybe we’ll include it in the next roundup!

I think anyone who has read Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights can agree that it’s a challenging read. Perspectives change chapter to chapter, Joseph the servant’s dialogue is basically unreadable, and most of Heathcliff and Cathy’s love story is played out through the next generation after—spoiler alert—Cathy dies during childbirth. In Emerald Fennell’s adaptation, she focuses on the most engaging elements of the book: Heathcliff and Cathy’s love, passion, and mutual destruction. 

The film never claimed to be a perfect mirror of the book. Fennell herself said, when explaining the quotes around the title of her adaption: “What I can say is I’m making a version of [the book]. There’s a version that I remembered reading that isn’t quite real. And there’s a version [where] I wanted stuff to happen that never happened. And so it is Wuthering Heights, and it isn’t.” 

With this in mind, she was successful. Each character felt like a doll Fennell uses to play out her version of the story—the obsessive childhood bond between Heathcliff and Cathy at Wuthering Heights (Cathy’s family home), Cathy’s eventual choice of social status over love, her early death, and Heathcliff’s lifelong spiral into revenge. A literal doll motif continuously shows up in the film, too, beginning with a young Cathy, who watches a man being hanged while tightly clutching her doll. Again, when Cathy marries the wealthy suitor Linton (Shazad Latif), and her new sister-in-law, Isabella (Alison Oliver), gifts her a handmade doll made using Cathy’s own collected hair. And, most notably, in the large dollhouse replica of Thrushcross Grange, the Linton estate, that stands looming behind the dining-room table. So, who better to play the starring role than Barbie herself, Margot Robbie? 

At first, I was highly skeptical of the casting choices. Jacob Elordi was not at all how I imagined the scrappy, tortured, and probably-not-white orphan boy Heathcliff. But the longer I sit with the film, the more I can accept that he’s one of the only actors who could make this complex character work on screen. Brontë’s Heathcliff is cruel, insensitive, and brooding, and throughout the novel, I thought, why in the world are these women lusting after such an unlikable brute? But Elordi as Heathcliff—sweaty, grinning, and aroused—makes it make sense. You, too, would fold under the spell of his dark eyes with his fingers in your mouth. And, although Fennell’s interpretation of Linton is far more likable than Brontë’s, the choice is clear: Heathcliff eats Cathy out and licks the tears from her cheeks. Linton rails her in missionary while she dissociates.

Perhaps the most surprising element (and what I anticipate being the most controversial) is the innocent Isabella’s consent to Heathcliff’s cruel treatment of her. In the film, Heathcliff seduces Isabella (and later asks for her hand in marriage) only to punish Cathy, which he says explicitly. “Do you want me to stop?” he asks, several times, while taking off her nightgown. Isabella shakes her head no. After they marry, Nelly (Cathy’s companion, played by Hong Chau) stops by to see the newlyweds, only to find Isabella sporting a dog collar and chained up on her hands and knees, literally eating out of Heathcliff’s hands. Nelly, horrified, attempts to free her, only to realize that the chains are not attached to anything—Isabella is a willing participant in this sadistic relationship. (Believe it or not, this is not how things go in Brontë’s 1847 novel.)

Elordi has managed to become the internet’s boyfriend through playing frightening men (see: Euphoria, Priscilla, Frankenstein). I would absolutely let that man be mean to me, and that’s what makes this film an alluring dollhouse to play inside. 

Many people, including myself, were outraged upon the trailer’s release due to the not-period-accurate costumes. How silly I feel about that now! While living at Wuthering Heights, Cathy dresses in tattered cotton skirts and billowing linen blouses. Once she marries Linton, everything turns synthetic—iridescent lamé dresses, tight corsets, gaudy costume jewelry, and rhinestones glued to her cheeks—essentially, the wardrobe I would have dreamed up for myself as a 5-year-old who was obsessed with princesses and pop stars. The costuming plays a larger role in the film to show that Cathy is actually restricted by Linton, despite his wealth and status, and can only breathe in the arms of Heathcliff. To sum it up, the costumes are, as Aretha Franklin once said so eloquently: “great gowns, beautiful gowns.” Fun to look at, but not so fun to be trapped inside of.

This contrast between organic and synthetic is also present in Charli XCX’s soundtrack, which is equal parts epic string score and moody electronic pop. It isn’t as jarring in this period piece as you might imagine it to be. 

As other critics have already noted, this is an extremely wet movie, soaked in uncooked egg, blood, spit, tears, snail slime, cooking oil, and rain, which adds a visceral quality to the film. Its lush, tactile visuals evoke whimsical movies of the past like the arthouse pornography of Polish director Walerian Borowczyk, surrealist stop-motion master Jan Švankmajer, the later films of Ingmar Bergman (Cries and Whispers, Fanny and Alexander), and Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette. All things I suggest watching if you find yourself enjoying this decadently horny movie. 

Look, I didn’t want to like it. I walked into the theater as a skeptic, but left feeling enraptured by Fennell’s vision. I give it four out of five broken eggs (see the movie and you’ll understand). 

This morning, Seattle City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck announced legislation to bar new or expanded detention facilities from being built within city limits. At the same time, Seattle Port Commissioner Toshiko Hasegawa announced an order that would bar any expansion of immigration activity on Port land, and a second that provides civil rights education to anyone working on Port property.

Their announcement follows an anti-ICE-filled week. On Tuesday, City Council’s public safety committee passed a bill from Councilmember Maritza Rivera that struck dated language from the Municipal Code requiring city employees to “cooperate with, not hinder” immigration enforcement. On the same day, the Port Commission unanimously passed an order requiring that Port police clearly identify themselves so the public is less likely to confuse them with immigration enforcement. And yesterday, the County took action: County Executive Girmay Zahilay signed an executive order barring ICE from non-public spaces on King County-owned properties (like Mayor Katie Wilson did in Seattle last month), and County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda introduced a bill to codify his order into law. 

None of this can stop ICE from operating in Seattle. But it can impede the agency.

The Detention Moratorium 

As of last month, ICE was holding more than 73,000 people in detention across the country—a record high—and they expanded into 104 new detention facilities, almost doubling from the previous year. ICE is not releasing people on bail, so that number will continue to multiply. So, too, will the number of detention facilities. Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill accounted for that. He set aside $45 billion, enough funding to to imprison another 135,000 people in new facilities by 2029, according to the American Immigration Council.

The closest ICE detention facility to Seattle is the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) in Tacoma. But in December, the federal government posted a pre-solicitation notice from the Department of Homeland Security and ICE, putting local contractors on notice that they were looking to build a facility about the same size as the NWDC, able to detain 1,600 people. 

Rinck’s emergency legislation would block the construction of that facility or any other within city limits for the next year, giving City Council time to explore more permanent restrictions on ICE expansion. SeaTac actually beat her to the punch, passing their own detention moratorium this week.

The bill treats the threat of an ICE detention center as a bureaucratic land use issue, arguing that the city needs time to address any “mitigation measures” needed to build a facility in “Seattle’s dense urban environment.” 

“We need to be using every tool at our disposal to be really ensuring that we’re not eating this administration’s unconstitutional work and lawless agenda, and even if that means looking to land use as a tool,” Rinck tells The Stranger.

Rinck says she plans to share her bill with the Local Progress network, so other cities can copy her homework. 

Rinck’s office says that Council President Joy Hollingsworth has agreed to allow the bill to skip the Land Use Committee, and instead be heard by the full council on Tuesday. Council could pass the bill as soon as February 24. 

The Port’s Anti-ICE Agenda

Earlier this week, the Port Commission passed an order that helps make ICE clearly identifiable to the public—requiring that Port police are clearly identifiable, and can’t be confused with immigration enforcement. 

Port Commissioner Hasegawa also plans to introduce two orders to regulate how ICE can interact with the Port, both of which will be introduced on February 24. The first order provides Know Your Rights education to anyone that’s working in the airport or other Port property, like the shops and restaurants at SeaTac. Immigration enforcement unavoidably operates in those areas, Hasegawa told The Stranger, and this order gives those workers the best chance to protect themselves and their colleagues. 

The second mirrors the orders from Mayor Wilson and County Executive Zahilay: banning immigration enforcement from expanding their use of Port land for their operations. The presence of immigration at the Port is, again, unavoidable, Hasegawa acknowledges, but “the use of Port properties is narrow, and that it has to have an industrial purpose for one of our industries, our industry is not the prison industrial complex,” she says. 

The commission could vote on both orders the day they’re introduced, and Hasegawa says she’s confident they’ll pass. 

The Ban from County Property

Mosqueda’s bill would lock Zahilay’s executive order into law, blocking ICE from entering (without a warrant) non-public areas of buildings, parking lots, garages, and vacant lots. They also can’t be used as an ICE staging area, or to process detainees. The bill would also require that County Executive Zahilay identify properties that ICE is likely to try to commandeer, and to preemptively plan for better security measures. 

Mosqueda also accounted for private land. One whole section of the bill is dedicated to designing a template that reads: 

“This property is a Stand Together King County partner.  No agent of the federal government, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), may enter these premises for purposes of civil immigration enforcement, absent a valid judicial warrant or court order.  This property may not be used for civil immigration enforcement operations, including as a staging area, processing location, or operations base.”

You can also just write that on your door with some printer paper and a Sharpie, as we saw all over Minneapolis in the last few weeks. 

Protect and Serve? Last summer’s May Day USA event, the right-wing Christian extremist event held in Cal Anderson, was a clusterfuck largely because of the Seattle Police Department’s biases against the people of this city, a new report found. SPD apparently didn’t see what the big deal was about holding an anti-LGBT rally in the park—they “weren’t familiar with the neighborhood’s history,” according to PubliCola. They viewed May Day USA as a “church group” and the counterprotesters as “antifa.” They entered the event with a “anticipatory defensiveness” toward the counterprotesters—who they started referring to as “transtifa” after hearing May Day USA security use the term. SPD—which is largely made up of people who do not live in Seattle—also shared information with May Day USA security. This big mess of bias and animosity toward the people SPD is supposed to protect caused an aggressive police response and 23 arrests of counterprotesters. 

Impeached: The Federal Way City Council voted 4-3 to remove Martin Moore from his post as council president. Moore posted on his official Facebook page in support of the anti-ICE student walkouts. The rest of the council did not like this. Despite public commenters speaking largely in favor of Moore’s actions at a meeting Tuesday, the council sided against him. He’ll still stay on council, but he’s lost his presidential role. 

The Weather: Say goodbye to dry skies. The rain is back. In case you’re wondering if we’ll get any more wintery weather, the Seattle Times has the answer: There is no hope for Seattle snow this year. 

Well, what about ICE? In his first executive order, King County Executive Girmay Zahilay banned Immigration and Customs Enforcement from doing anything on nonpublic county-owned land. This includes “parking lots, vacant lots, buildings, and garages and prevents them from being used for staging areas, processing or operations bases.” The executive order won’t stop ICE if those gooners have a judicial warrant. Zahilay’s order also directs $2 million to immigrant communities for “emergency food, housing, and legal aid” and steers the King County Sheriff’s Department to make a plan for dealing with ICE, including how to identify undercover agents and how to respond if ICE and the public get into conflict.  

Hey, get off of there! A person in Spokane hitched a ride on an ambulance, clinging to the back of the emergency vehicle on eastbound Interstate 90. That’s not the suggested way to get to the hospital. 

The EPA Is Done Regulating Greenhouse Gases: Hahaha. We are so boned. On Thursday, Donald Trump repealed the bedrock scientific finding that greenhouse gases endanger human life, thus ending our government’s capacity to legally control pollution. This sweeping move means the Environmental Protection Agency can no longer regulate emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gases. It’s a rejection of science and an absolutely dismal backslide as the US faces the realities of climate change: more intense storms, wildfires, droughts, and natural disasters. This, of course, is only good for “billionaire polluters,” reports The Guardian.

“Jayapal Pramila Search History”: Attorney General Pam Bondi had a piece of paper titled “Jayapal Pramila Search History” detailing the un-redacted Epstein files Washington state Rep. Pramila Jayapal accessed in her review of the documents. This outraged House members since it showcased the Department of Justice’s alleged betrayal of the separation of powers. The DOJ confirmed it is keeping tabs on what searches lawmakers are doing in the disgusting pit that is the trove of Epstein files.”It is an outrage that [the justice department] is tracking members’ investigative steps,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin. He plans to open an inquiry into this “abuse of power.” 

Antitrust Dust Up: Gail Slater, the head of the Justice Department’s antitrust unit, announced her resignation. This shake-up comes as the DOJ is set to deal with corporate mergers like the tug-of-war battle between Netflix and Paramount Skydance over ownership of Warner Bros. Discovery. Slater’s deputy in the antitrust unit also left this week. 

DHS Shutdown Imminent: With Democrats saying they won’t approve more funding for DHS, funding for the department is expected to run out on Saturday. Democrats are holding out until Republicans agree to implement more stringent restrictions on ICE. Agencies under DHS like ICE and TSA could be affected. Will the Gestappo work for free?

Honoring the Dead Is Politics: Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified from the Winter Olympics because he insisted on wearing a helmet honoring the athletes killed during Russia’s war in Ukraine. His tribute apparently violated the Olympics’ athlete expression guidelines. “I believe I am right in this case,” Heraskevych told NBC News. “For me to back down is betraying [the people pictured on the helmet].”

Ukrainian skeleton slider withdrawn from Olympics after insisting on wearing helmet honoring dead athletes killed in Ukraine https://cnn.it/3ZtrjXN

[image or embed]

— CNN (@cnn.com) February 12, 2026 at 12:47 AM

Blood Moon on the Rise: A big, red Blood Moon—which is not just a fun way of saying having your period—will gush all over Washington night skies on March 3. 

Oh Deer: The Michigan town of Iron Mountain has a deer problem. One of its parks has had a deer enclosure for 75 years. This is an odd choice since wild deer are prevalent. It’s not like these people are lacking access to deer. Anyway, the enclosure is in dire need of upgrades. Like, $22,000 in one-time fixes and $16,000 in annual upkeep. The city council voted to close the pen. But, what to do with the deer? They are inbred, stupid, and diseased. They cannot be freed. So, they must be shot and killed. The people do not like this. Can’t they save the deer? Probably not. 

Good for Them: The Winter Olympic village ran out of condoms in three days. More are on the way. 

A Long Read for Your Friday: You liked that Atlantic deep dive on Attorney General Pam Bondi? Then you’ll love this Wall Street Journal story about what craven ghouls Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and her advisor Corey Lewandowski are. A tidbit: Noem fired a US Coast Guard pilot after he left her blanket on a plane, but reinstated him when she realized there was no one else to fly her home. Plus, Lewandowski has been really trying to get someone to issue him a gun. 

Happy Almost Valentine’s Day: Here is a date idea. If you’re looking for gifts, or a gesture, I recommend heading to Salmonberry Goods Green Grocer in Crown Heights and buying some of their handmade Valentine’s Day pastries. Also, buy a bouquet while you’re there. 

A Song for All You Lovers: 

Each week on The Newsfeed, host Paris Jackson and a team of veteran journalists dive deep into one topic and provide impactful reporting, interviews and community insights from sources you can trust. Each day this week, this post will be updated with a new story from the team.

A plan to combat the opioid crisis in Seattle

During her campaign for Seattle City Attorney, Erika Evans was vocal about her priority to divert low-level drug cases to LEAD, which has sparked controversy. We used our one-on-one conversation with Evans to learn more about her plans to take on this major issue in Seattle. 

Paris Jackson, Cascade PBS: What is your position on combating the opioid crisis? 

Evans: “Yeah, 80% of the cases right now that officers encounter with folks dealing with, substance use disorder, they are already getting diverted into LEAD. It’s just the 20%. Maybe this is a new officer that wasn’t trained on, hey, this is the policy that ends up into this office. And all we’re saying is we’re going to just make sure that those cases that do come, that we’re having a lens and an eye to make sure if some of these folks, some of them are young folks, that they have the opportunity to get connected to services and treatment. We do reserve the right to prosecute. If this person is not making meaningful progress, or they’re not engaging with the services provided.” 

Jackson: Your office works in tandem with LEAD. Will your office have a different approach than your predecessor? 
 
“I think the biggest, different approach really is the experience that I’m bringing to this role. I’ve been a city prosecutor and a federal prosecutor. I’ve gotten close to a million fentanyl pills off our streets, unlawful firearms off our streets. This is work that I’ve done, boots on the ground that I’ve done in trial, gone toe-to-toe with high-level, serious drug traffickers. I think that perspective matters in a role like this, when we’re talking about a population that is not the traffickers, because those are felonies, our office doesn’t do that. It’s the misdemeanors. And a lot of these folks with the drugs are the ones that are dealing with the addiction.”  

“Plus, the perspective of working on these cases before and seeing the need that these cases with folks dealing with addiction, you know, need to get connected with treatment. We can see clearly, the evidence is in our street of how what’s been happening these last few years is not working. It is very clear. We can go to different areas in parts in our city, and we can see how what was happening; it’s not working. And our failed policies.” 

Staying along the same lines, The King County Department of Public Defense, they had a report, that found 215 criminal prosecutions over the last two years, under the drug diversion program, only six people were connected to treatment. You’ve called that a failure.  
 
“Yeah, and In that report as well, it found that black people were four times more likely to be criminally charged for using, than non-black people. That is a failure.” 

One thing you campaigned on was expediting the process of DUI, domestic violence, the backlog of those cases. Now that you’re in office, what are some of the ways in which that you’ll be able to address that?  
 
“We’ve been going to Olympia to work on a bill, that will allow us to address the backlog with the DUIs that we currently have. Right now, today, if someone gets into an accident here in Seattle for driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, it’s going to take 22 months for us to be able to get the toxicology report back, to be able to charge that case, and that is unacceptable. People, in the meantime, will get another DUI as they await to have any conditions imposed on them. And so this bill is going to allow us to use accredited private toxicology labs to be able to get those tests run quicker. So we’re doing what is necessary to keep the public safe. And I’m really grateful for the bipartisan support we’ve had on this bill, and it’s moving forward. And we’re really hopeful that it will get through this legislative session.” 

Evans says one of the first major changes she has planned is to re-establish a community court in collaboration with the city’s municipal court and public defenders. 

The court was a place for those accused of low-level offenses to access social services without pleading guilty to a crime.  

The Seattle community court was dissolved in 2023 when then-city attorney, Ann Davison, announced her office would no longer participate.  

It was the city’s third attempt in 12 years at creating a court like this. In making a 4th attempt, Evans says she’s looking at other Washington cities with active community courts. 

“Community court. I think the biggest thing that’s great about it, it’s it deals with misdemeanors and it deals with nonviolent misdemeanors. It allows folks that are committing quality of life crimes say, you know, a minor theft or someone that’s unhoused. It allows them to get connected with treatment and service providers so they don’t get out and reoffend. And it allows them to get connected and their case gets diverted,” Evans said. 

“And that’s what we all want at the end of the day for folks not to get out and reoffend. So it provides that as a catalyst to allow that to happen. I’ve gone and looked at models across our state in Tacoma, Redmond, even in Bellevue, and they are community courts that are thriving and they’re allowing folks to get what they need. So they’re not getting right back out and reoffending. And that is inherent on us as leaders to be creative and think outside the box to make sure we’re keeping community safe, while also making sure people are having what they need so they don’t reoffend, Evans said. 

We asked Evans what the biggest challenges will be in this process. 

“We have already met with the court. We have had the Department of Defense at the table. They were part of our transition team as well. People are ready to have a new reimagined community court. I think the biggest thing is really just leaning in to the importance of that collaboration from the court, from the Department of Public Defense and from our office, because all three of us are key players to making sure one gets created, and that it’s one that is going to work,” Evans said. 

Evans vows to defend Seattle against federal threats

President Trump has repeatedly threatened to pull federal funding from Seattle and other cities across the country over sanctuary policies. Evans vows to take on the federal government to protect the rights of Seattle residents. 

She says what’s happening nationwide is unacceptable, and that the President is violating constitutional rights and breaking the law. She says her office is ready if a large immigration enforcement presence comes to town.  

“It is heartbreaking. The killings we’ve seen happen in Minnesota and the unlawful surge of ICE agents, essentially coming out like the military against our communities. We are proactively partnering and working with our mayor, Katie Wilson, with our council and with other elected leaders in our city and in our state, and other cities across the nation to proactively be ready on day one, if that were to happen,” Evans said. 

She says her previous experience makes the severity of what’s happening even more clear. 

“When I left the Department of Justice, I was working in civil rights. Our unit was the one that would hold federal officers accountable when they break the law. That’s not happening right now in this Department of Justice. However, I do want to make clear that I believe there will be a Department of Justice one day that will return to prosecuting those cases. So while some ICE agents and federal officials right now feel that they have immunity, there will be a reckoning one day when we have a new Department of Justice that is acting in the interest of justice, not what we’re seeing right now.” Evans said. 

Evans says leaders in Seattle fight back with urgency and courage, and her office is doing that.  

“We will file at contempt motion against Trump. We already have a pending, lawsuit for his threats on cutting funding for us being a welcoming and sanctuary city. So we are proactively preparing to be ready to go if that is going to happen here in Seattle, because that’s what we do,” Evans said. 

Late last month, Washington Governor Bob Ferguson and Attorney General Nick Brown held a joint press conference condemning ICE’s tactics and the killings in Minnesota.   

Ferguson said the actions by immigration agents, snatching people from the streets and breaking into people’s homes without judicial warrants, are “most certainly unconstitutional”.   

Major change planned in approach to drug prosecution

In her first day on the job, Evans directed her criminal division to refer misdemeanor public drug use cases to an internal team of prosecutors that will consider diversion rather than pressing charges. Evans told us the prosecution of low-level drug offenders, will be focused on diversion, but also will be case-by-case.  

She caught some criticism for this decision. Evans has said her intent has been to follow the original aim of a 2023 ordinance passed by the Seattle City Council – which for her office means strongly encouraging people arrested for public drug use to be diverted, rather than charged. 

“I believe that folks that are dealing with substance use disorder, not the traffickers, but the folks that are dealing with addiction should be connected to treatment, not just put in jail. And then they’re right back out in a couple days, not addressing the underlying root causes. We can see the evidence is clear in our streets of how what’s been happening in the prior administration of this office is not currently working. It is vital as public servants to make sure we are being good stewards of public safety and our public dollars,” Evans said.  

“What we’re doing is making sure that folks that are dealing with addiction, you know, young folks that are in our streets right now dealing with this unprecedented fentanyl crisis, that they have an opportunity if they want to get into treatment, that they can. And we are providing them with that option for diversion. However, we do retain the right if folks are not making meaningful progress to do traditional prosecution,” Evans said. 

Evans says on this, and many other issues, working cooperatively with police will be key.  

Seattle City Attorney Erika Evans Shares Her Vision for the Office 

This week, we’re taking a look at the historic leadership change inside the Seattle City Attorney’s Office.  

Seattle’s new City Attorney, Erika Evans, is the first Black person and African American woman to lead the office. She now manages a staff of about 200 that includes about 130 attorneys. 

We sat down with her to discuss her vision for the office.  

She says her priorities include reimagining Community Court, fighting back against federal overreach, and at the top of the list: public safety.  

“When I think of Seattle, this is my home. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, I want Seattle to be a place that feels safe,” Evans said. 

Evans most recently was a federal prosecutor, and before that, worked under former City Attorney Pete Holmes. Now, she’s taking over as the city’s top lawyer, as the city navigates an opioid and homelessness crisis.  

“Another big thing is making sure our communities can thrive. I want to see Little Saigon being a place that’s thriving. We see what’s currently happening in our streets right now, and some of the failed policies that have really displaced folks and caused areas that are not, you know, doing good in public safety and in our communities,” Evans said. 

We asked about how she plans to build trust with the community, Evans says it is to be in community. 
 
“That has been something that has always been at the forefront of everything I do… making sure that we ensure our office is accessible and that we are setting good examples of what you know, a Seattle we believe, should be and look like is important,” Evans said. 

All this week, we’ll bring you more from our one-on-one with Evans. 

King County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda has introduced an ordinance that would restrict federal authorities from using county-owned and controlled property for civil immigration enforcement. The legislation, drafted in early 2026, aims to establish “safer spaces” by preventing county land from being used as logistical hubs for operations conducted by agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The proposed ordinance contains several specific mandates and restrictions:

• Prohibition of Property Use: The core of the legislation states that property owned and controlled by the county, including parking lots, garages, vacant lots, and nonpublic areas of buildings, cannot be used as a staging area, processing location, or operations base for civil immigration enforcement.

• Civil vs. Criminal Enforcement: The restrictions apply specifically to civil immigration enforcement operations, which include activities like the identification, apprehension, or removal of individuals for immigration law violations. The ordinance does not restrict the execution of lawful judicial warrants, court orders, or the enforcement of criminal law.

• Physical Barriers and Signage: The county executive would be directed to design clear signage for county properties stating that the land is not to be used for immigration enforcement. Furthermore, county agencies are instructed to use physical barriers, such as locked gates, to limit access to these properties whenever appropriate and as resources allow.

• Employee Reporting Requirements: Any county employee who becomes aware of federal agents attempting to use or actually using county property for civil immigration enforcement must immediately report the incident to their department director, who will then notify the executive.

• Support for Private Property Owners: The legislation includes a “Stand Together King County” partner initiative. Under this program, the executive will provide signage templates for private businesses, nonprofits, and faith institutions to post, declaring that federal agents may not enter their premises for civil immigration enforcement without a valid judicial warrant.

Councilmember Mosqueda noted that this legislation draws from similar ordinances enacted in jurisdictions like Alameda County and San Jose. In a statement, she described the measure as a “last line of defense” for the safety of the community against federal overreach. The ordinance also specifies that it will not interfere with existing leases or concession agreements to which the county is already a party.

Valentine’s weekend strikes horror into the hearts of many — whether couples trying to achieve the ultimate romantic experience or singles who feel suffocated by so many pink hearts. But people in both groups can find an appealing alternative in an all-you-can-sniff buffet, courtesy of the new Scent Lending Library in Georgetown. 

You’re reading Art x NW, a weekly arts and culture newsletter from Cascade PBS. Read past issues and subscribe for more.

Housed in a deep storefront window at Fogue Gallery on Airport Way South, the Scent Lending Library is part art installation, part science lab and part interactive olfactory lesson. 

It’s the brainchild (nosechild?) of Australian olfactory artist Donna Lipowitz, a former filmmaker who has turned her attention to “sharing stories in other sensory forms,” as she says on her website. 

Lipowitz began studying perfumery in 2019, and during my recent visit to the Scent Lending Library explained that the shared collection is her way of replicating the joy she experienced in the beginning of her studies — when she got to smell everything out there. 

Hence: You’ll find some 140 scents, dabbed on little cotton balls inside apothecary bottles, all free for the sniffing. If you sign up for a library card, you can check out up to three scents for two weeks (bonus: you get to stamp your own old-school Due Date card).

Some of the scents are already existing fragrances from larger perfume companies, such as Chanel No. 5 (all checked out), Beautiful (which I thought smelled like aerosol hairspray) and American Psycho (which I found troublingly appealing). 

Some bottles contain scent “molecules,” which are the basic building blocks used to make fragrances. Others hold scents Lipowitz has concocted herself, including God’s Sweat (divine), Lost Luggage (slight hint of vinyl), Pencil Case (nostalgic memory of lead shavings) and It’ll Be Okay (amorphous sense of calm; I checked it out). 

Lipowitz (who is now based in Seattle) deliberately does not label the scents with their components, to allow for creative and personal interpretation. “Whatever you think it smells like, you’re right,” she said. But she is very good at naming: Warm Bulb smells hot and slightly smoky; Home Garage is giving fresh tires. 

Several people were sniffing scents and sharing impressions when I was there, and the cozy, artsy space does have the communal feeling of a library. Lipowitz said it tends to get crowded on Saturdays, “But just sniff what you can. You can always speed-sniff.” 

The storefront window space will stay in place through March (open Thurs-Sun, noon-5 p.m.) — after which, Lipowitz told me, the Scent Lending Library will move to a permanent location further inside Fogue gallery. Which is good news for noses.

Legendary martial artist Bruce Lee will be honored with a new USPS Forever stamp, which will be mailbox-ready next week. Designed by Brooklyn artist Kam Mak, who created an original egg-tempera painting based on historic photos, the image depicts the Chinese American actor and athlete mid-air while executing his trademark flying kick. 

The first-day-of-issue ceremony takes place at Seattle’s Nippon Kan Theater (Feb. 18, 2 p.m.), just a few blocks away from the Wing Luke Museum — where you can learn about Lee’s extensive Seattle connections in the permanent exhibit Be Water, My Friend: The Teachings of Bruce Lee. 

And adding to the local Bruce Lee bonanza is Young Dragon: A Bruce Lee Story, the new play by acclaimed Seattle playwright Keiko Green (at Seattle Children’s Theater, Feb. 19 – Mar. 22). Combining biographical details with moments of surreal staging, the story (ages 8+) focuses on Lee’s early life as an immigrant in Seattle, where he began honing his martial art teachings and personal philosophy. 

As I reported in a recent newsletter, the play was previously scheduled for a run at the Kennedy Center, which SCT has cancelled. Many performers have canceled appearances at the Washington D.C. venue since President Trump’s board takeover; last week the Kennedy Center announced a sudden two-year closure for renovations.

Seattle stages, on the other hand, are buzzing with performance — some of which are astutely aligned with the (Hallmark designated) season of love. 

Opening on Valentine’s Day at Union Arts Center (formerly ACT Theatre), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Feb. 14 – Mar. 8) is one of the original rom-coms, courtesy of the Bard himself. Led by veteran Shakespeare director Desdemona Chiang, the play is full of star-crossed lovers, mistaken identity hijinks and (spoiler alert from the 17th century) a triple wedding.

Taproot Theatre is taking us even further back, presenting the myth of Cupid and Psyche: Till We Have Faces (through Feb. 28). Based on C.S. Lewis’s retelling, as adapted by Taproot artistic director Karen Lund, the ages-old story is told from the perspective of Psyche’s sister Orual. On the docket: jealousy, faith, doubt and of course love — be it selfish, selfless or divine.

Speaking of complicated sibling relationships… On the Boards is hosting the West Coast premiere of Rose: You Are Who You Eat (Feb. 19-21), a cabaret-style “musical shrine” to a twin consumed in utero. Philadelphia-based performer Rose Jarboe combines songs, video projections, clever wordplay and gruesome description of in-utero cannibalism in this campy exploration of gender origins. 

At Town Hall, a threesome of fearsome Seattle actors offers Letters Aloud: Love Me or Leave Me (Feb. 14). In this series, presenters read actual — and often cringey — letters written by famous folks, from Frida Kahlo to Marlon Brando. On stage for this lovelorn edition: Basil Harris, Jen Taylor, Paul Morgan Stetler and accordionist Jamie Maschler.

And coming soon to Seattle Opera is Fellow Travelers (Feb. 21-28), based on the 2007 historical-fiction novel by Thomas Mallon. Set during the McCarthy Era’s “lavender scare,” the story follows two men who spark a romance while working for the federal government. Their love burns brightly (Seattle Opera gives it an R-rating for onstage nudity), but is threatened by rampant homophobia. Having premiered 10 years ago, the story’s politics, paranoia and persecution resonate loud and clear. 

Finally, there’s Anima Mundi (Feb. 14 at The Moore Theatre), the new multimedia piece by longtime Seattle performance art collective Degenerate Art Ensemble. Featuring avant garde dance (by Haruko Crow Nishimura), live electronic music (by Joshua Kohl), film projection and morphing sculptures, the piece is a sort of haunted love letter to the natural world, so often jilted by humans.

As the federal government continues to sow chaos and force unprecedented cuts that threaten our communities in need, the work we do at the local level to provide stability and support is more critical than ever. But with limited local revenue tools, our county and city resources are already failing to keep up with growing community needs. 

We cannot keep our communities housed, fed, and safe without new tools for revenue at the state and local level—and we cannot possibly fill the gaps left by looming federal funding cuts, which will leave cities and counties like ours (and its population of 2.4 million) without the money for  basic community and infrastructure needs, like roads, sidewalks, childcare, food assistance, affordable housing, and other critical services. That is why state and local elected officials have been desperately asking the state legislature for new revenue options. 

Furthermore, despite our state having among the highest concentrations of wealthy individuals and corporations in the country, our notoriously upside-down tax policies place an unfair burden on the backs of working families who have the least. This was true even before the Trump tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy were passed last year. This fundamental inequity is reflected in our local economic reality: massive wealth among a few and thriving large corporations alongside an affordability crisis and widening disparities between the haves and have-nots.

I join faith leaders, social service and housing providers, small businesses, and union members in calling for a Millionaires Tax. Senate Bill 6346, currently under consideration in Olympia, is a 9.9% tax on the few wealthy individuals earning $1 million or more that would take effect in 2028; with revenue coming in 2029, it would bring in over $3 billion for schools, child care, community colleges and higher education, health care and other essential services. It would also expand the Working Families Tax Credit and dedicate funding to county public defense services, a vital component of our justice system. This will help add balance to our regressive tax code and create a long-term funding source for community needs we know will only become more acute under the current federal administration. It is past time to pass this law. 

It’s a critical step now in fixing our upside-down tax code and finding sustainable and equitable revenue sources for state and local services. 

We are a region of abundance, rich in resources, with remarkable workers, small businesses and communities. We resist and reject federal attacks on fundamental rights and essential federal funding. We believe in shared responsibility, opportunity for all, and a level playing field. We believe in everyone doing their part. And this bill is one part of how we fight back and act locally to protect Washington residents.  

Teresa Mosqueda is a King County Councilmember representing District 8, from Downtown Seattle to Vashon Island and beyond. Mosqueda has led on housing, health and worker protections in her time on King County and previously Seattle City Council, along with passing JumpStart in Seattle in 2020 to respond to growing needs and the pandemic.