Seattle council members reveal ‘bombardment of threats’

The five members of the Seattle City Council who voted against vacating a SoDo street for a proposed sports arena knew it would disappoint people. What they didn’t know was just how much flak they would receive.

In an op-ed for The Seattle Times, the five people who voted against the street vacation explained the”bombardment of threats” they received after the vote. The members of the council who vetoed the plan on May 3 have since experienced: “threats, of sexual and other physical violence,” “hateful language,” racist rhetoric,” and “accusations of incompetence rooted in our gender identity.”

Related: Mayor calls for end of ‘misogynistic’ vitriol after Seattle arena vote

Some expected the effort to bring an NBA team back to Seattle — along with an NHL team — to be a longshot, and the vote against the street vacation made it even more so. The Sustainability and Transportation Committee had debated for months over whether to vacate Occidental Avenue south of Safeco Field before voting 4-1 in favor of the action. This despite the Port of Seattle, Seattle Mariners, and other businesses airing their concerns over the plan, mainly due to the extra traffic it would create.

The council members who voted against vacating the SoDo street were Sally Bagshaw, Lorena Gonzalez, Lisa Herbold, Debora Juarez and Kshama Sawant. In their co-authored op-ed, they write how surprised they were by, not only the public’s reaction, but also how the media characterized the vote as “boys-versus-girls.”

“To belittle our votes and policy considerations as ’emotional and naive’ is not only an insult to women, it impacts our community,” they write. It also sends a dangerous message: “Elected women in Seattle do not deserve the respect necessary to make tough decision without the fear of violence and racially and sexually charged retaliation.”

The five women, however, are “not deterred.” They write that most Seattle residents understand those who have sent hateful rhetoric are using “fear and shame to silence and control.”

Since the vote, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray has shown his displeasure with those who have chosen to criticize the council members with angry rhetoric. Below is one of the more clean examples of what those who voted against vacating the street have received.

This is an example of the garbage @SeattleCouncil is getting today…

Be better #Seattle. pic.twitter.com/iSwDaPsOJP

— Chris Daniels (@ChrisDaniels5) May 3, 2016

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