Lessons from Venezuela: Working Class Solidarity vs. Imperialist Violence
Rae Lee is a regular at my workplace, a friend of a friend, and an anti-imperialist organizer. Given the US’ January attack on Venezuela’s sovereignty, I became curious about Rae’s recent trip there in early December, convened by Simón Bolivar Institute for Peace and Solidarity Among Peoples.
Age Verification HB-2112: Who Will it Truly Protect?
HB-2112, or the “Keep Our Children Safe Act,” is currently in committee in the Washington State House of Representatives. Its stated mission is “establishing an age minimum to access certain adult content online.” This argument certainly makes a lot of sense in the abstract. After all, we have age restrictions for adult stores and entertainment venues. Still, it is less the intent and more the execution of these laws that makes them so dangerous.
Solidarity Power: Strikes Gain Momentum as Leaders Fail Us
Over the past decade, the means of resistance and the analysis and knowledge behind it has visibly shifted. Instead of posting a black box on social media to project discontent, US-ians have learned to hit their targets where it hurts—in their wallets. We are riding the tailwinds of 2023’s Hot Labor Summer, advancing in the momentum of the BDS movement, and recalling the effectiveness of the Tesla Takedown. We are witnessing the rebirth of a generalized United States labor movement.
Letter from the Editor
Friends and Comrades,
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Resistance. What it means, what it looks like, and how it sticks. What is its staying power? What keeps it going?
Trans* Talk: Academic Freedom
Over the holidays, I was alerted to an unfolding story about a Transgender Oklahoman instructor at the University of Oklahoma who was fired after giving a failing grade to a student. At first glance, this story seemed cut-and-dry—a teaching assistant ousted unfairly due to a bigoted student. But the more I learned, the more that the alarm bells rang.
![The Divided Line: Caleb [Part 2]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/65456cf1d440cc19dd37c744/1768679138016-TR85VKJ6LQ6MWL6EYJSD/graham-holtshausen-galaxy%2Bwith%2Bjean-riot-police%2B-%2BCalista%2BRobbins.jpg)
The Divided Line: Caleb [Part 2]
Caleb knew it was only a matter of time before the stalemate broke, before the soldiers realized that this fever of theirs would neither extinguish silently nor dissipate without action.
The energy that’d surged through the mourners as the night encroached had unleashed a sort of choreomania set in a new dark age, dancing and keening the only reprieve to the grief of so much devastation.
And maybe that was what the soldiers and their regime feared the most—this mania.
Tanggol Migrante Maintains Support of Filipino Migrants as US Mourns Renee Good
The new year came out swinging. The newspapers covering yet another US-backed coup in Venezuela barely cooled from printing when ICE officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed legal observer Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. As ICE activities escalate and continue unchecked, so too does the number of casualties. Grief and rage march hand-in-hand in the streets.
Food Security is Food Justice (and a Climate Solution)
“People on food stamps are lazy!” A phrase I and many others have heard too often. In the summer of 2019, I was in my 2nd year at the Seattle Aquarium, managing a little over 400 community partnerships, serving on several boards and committees, and I had just become the newest member of the Washington State Environmental Justice Task Force.
I was also on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits. Food stamps.
Trans* Talk: Bathroom Bills
I began following a case titled Doe v. State of South Carolina, in which an anonymous transgender teenager (referred to only as John Doe) is challenging South Carolina’s state law which prohibits students of the opposite sex to enter changing rooms, restrooms, and other private facilities of one sex. This law, South Carolina’s Proviso 1.120, affects all students in public Pre-K through high schools, denying Trans* students the right to use the bathroom that corresponds to their identity. John Doe, who is entering 9th grade this year, has rallied the support of his family and the Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA), a local LGBTQ+ advocacy group.
Trans* Talk: Current Events
This week, I wanted to provide an update on current and relevant Trans* and Queer news from the past month. Legislation is moving quickly, and it can be difficult to keep track of important Trans* rulings that can keep you and/or your loved ones safe.
Letter from The Editor
I joined The Echo because I see the same spark and desire in everyone who creates with us. When one of our writers interviews someone with important, silly, or beautiful things to say about their work or life, we all shine. When another writer pours their thoughts and emotions into a piece of narrative or poetry, someone’s cup is filled for the day. Or when still another Creative captures a salient scene with their camera, Truth regains a beacon.
Federal Cuts to Public Media May Bring Devastating Consequences
The true value in community media is in the way it forges local connection and identity, providing spaces for diverse voices—something that is often lost in conglomerate media, who tend to cite the same sources (often one another), parrot the same talking points, and create an overwhelming agenda on behalf of their owners or investors.
Iconic Convos: Saint Rat
Nicole Bearden (NB): You’ll find our next guest nestled in an arched niche of the Cal Anderson Gatehouse. Saint Rat is the talk of the town this summer—Hot Rat Summer, that is. Welcome to Iconic Convos, Saint Rat. I’m thrilled to finally connect.
Saint Rat (SR): Blessings of the Season, my child.
NB: You are having a bit of a moment. How are you dealing with your newfound notoriety?
SAAFF Opening Night Welcomes Community, Calls to Action
The 2025 Seattle Asian American Film Festival (SAAFF) kicked off its two days of in-person screenings on June 20 and continues virtually through June 29. The opening night screened Reflections & Legacies, a feature-length compilation of films focused on stories of refugees and immigrants of Southeast Asian communities into the United States. While only a few hours of programming in a shorter-than-usual SAAFF, the evening captured a deeper sense of meaning and community than its schedule would suggest.
Whole Washington Gala Amasses Huge Support for Universal Healthcare
Whole Washington hosted their first philanthropy event to raise money and support toward universal health care. Many health professionals and volunteers joined recognizable political and nonprofit community leaders at The Historic Mt. Baker Community Center on May 17.
“Let It Not Happen Again”: History’s Lessons at BIJAEM
On December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor marked the start of the United States’ involvement in World War II. It also started a wave of fear and unrest throughout the country, leading to an overwhelming prejudice against Japanese Americans. “Most of us had no ties to Japan,” Lilly Kodama, a survivor, explained. “We had never been there. We had never even seen it.” Similar to the reactionary racism and prejudice against Arab Americans following 9/11, the discrimination against Japanese Americans had no true basis in fact, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order only created more harm and prejudice against an already vulnerable community.
Trans* Talk: Welcome!
When I brought the idea of beginning a new series to my managing editor, I had the intention to create an informative column. I would look at the news and digest it as best I could, making a one-stop place for Trans News. But, as I’ve said, the news is changing rapidly, court decisions are made every day, and new propositions and bills are entering the floors of city, state, and federal chambers at breakneck speeds. There’s too much to break down and others work tirelessly to update the community on a national scale, so I’ve shifted the focus of our column to advice, local news, and uplifting stories for Trans, Nonbinary, and Gender Non-Conforming people in the Puget Sound region.
Puget Sound Takes Down Tesla to Resist Oligarchy
The Tesla Takedown protests began in February 2025, shortly after the inauguration of Donald Trump, who was flanked by tech billionaires Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerburg, Jeff Bezos, and Sundar Pichai. But the Musk/Trump alliance became apparent earlier than that at an election victory party where the Tesla CEO sieg-heiled on stage. Soon after the inauguration, Musk wasted no time ingratiating himself and planting his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a taskforce created by Donald Trump after Elon Musk floated the idea in an interview with the president-elect.
Proud & Queer: Izzy
In the second month of 2023, I started taking testosterone injections once a week. There had been several years of hand-wringing and self-doubt up to that point. Was this the right decision? What if I regretted it (although few actually do)? What if I drowned in ass hair?
Proud & Queer: Zach
That date, three days before my 28th birthday, is when the US Supreme Court handed down the decision in Obergefell v. Hodges that ensured same-sex couples the right to marry. I remember crying as I read the news and saw the videos. I was so ebullient in fact that I took to Facebook, started a post with a link to the news story and wrote out, "Now that I can marry anyone I want, I should get going on this whole dating thing," and clicked Post.
