SEATTLE'S COP-FREE DEBACLE
In an instant mimicry of the former Soviet Union’s long breadlines and empty store shelves, Seattle’s nascent utopia almost starved within the first week. Then, there was the meteoric rise of Raz Simone. At one point, this hip-hop artist was dubbed the “warlord” of CHOP. How did he suddenly rise to this lofty position? The guns. Probably the guns. Simone was seen on camera patrolling the area with a semi-automatic long rifle and another firearm secured to his leg. What’s more, he was filmed handing out an “assault rifle” to an underage kid like they were playing a game of laser tag. “Someone over the age of 18 know how to use a gun?” Simone inquired, as he popped open the trunk of a Tesla. “Eighteen,” a dude responded, raising his hand, and Simone gave him the hardware. In Washington State, a person must be 21 years old to own a semi- automatic rifle, and he must pass both a state and federal background check before
acquiring one by purchase or gift. Raz Simone committed multiple firearm felonies on video. Small-dollar reparations were also a theme in this progressive paradise. “White people, I see you. I see every one of you, and I remember your faces. You find that African-American person, and you give them $10,” declared a bandanna-wearing speaker at one gathering. Venmo was suggested as an option for those not walking around with cash. Or how about the racial hierarchy of the P-Patch community garden? Attempts were made at the local park to grow fruits and vegetables, but participation was restricted, as the all-caps sign indicated: “THIS GARDEN IS FOR BLACK AND INDIGENOUS FOLKS AND THEIR PLANT ALLIES.” What are “plant allies”? How do interested parties become “plant allies”? CHOP organizers didn’t say, even though obtaining one’s ration of tomatoes and kale would, one supposes, depend on the answers to those questions. ‘ALL I KNOW IS MY SON GOT KILLED UP THERE’ Predictably, the establishment media decided to romanticize CHOP. The New York Times described this hostile takeover of public and private property as “an experiment in life without the police – part street festival, part commune. Hundreds have gathered to hear speeches, poetry, and music.” The Seattle Times focused on the delightful odors permeating the area: “The streets smelled like the Fourth of July, as people seared hot dogs on curbside grills.” And
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July 2020
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