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Seattle Reacts to CBP Killing of Alex Pretti

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered on Saturday night downtown to protest the Border Patrol killing of a 37-year-old ICU nurse in Minneapolis named Alex Pretti. Protesters marched to the federal building, chanting “Say it once, say it twice, Seattle doesn’t fuck with ICE.” Earlier on Saturday, hundreds also gathered in Seattle’s Hiawatha Playfield in West Seattle for a pre-planned protest, where demonstrators learned of Pretti’s killing and spoke about it live. [Seattle Times]

• Protestors Call for Shutting Off Surveillance Cameras: While Mayor Wilson and Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell as well as Rep. Pramila Jayapal spoke out against Alex Pretti’s killing, protestors called for further action. They asked for Seattle’s Automated License Plate Readers to be shut down along with the Real Time Crime Center systems to prevent surveillance data being misused.
• Report From UW Center For Human Rights Shows ICE Use of DOL Data: Last week on the podcast 🎧 we spoke to UWCHR Director Angelina Godoy to discuss the report, which found at least 7 cases in which Washington license plate information was used to carry out immigration enforcement, leading to arrest or deportation in civil cases.

New Washington Apple Just Dropped 🍎

Well sort of. WSU’s new Sunflare varietal won’t be on shelves until 2030, after the 2029 harvest. But, community members got to taste it for the first time. The Sunflare is described as a ‘crunchy, firm and juicy apple’ with a ‘balanced sweet and tart flavor.’ It’s a hybrid derived from Cripps Pink and Honeycrisp and when it does hit shelves, it’s ready for harvest earlier than most, is disease-resistant and hardier in long-term storage. [Seattle Times]

Amazon Is Doing Layoffs…Again 👩🏼‍💻

Amazon is doing another round of layoffs this week. This appears to be the second half of the planned 30,000 cuts, which started back in October and is expected to begin again Tuesday. The cuts are expected to largely focus on corporate employees. The planned layoffs come roughly a week before the company reports financial results for 2025. CEO Andy Jassy says these cuts are related to ‘culture’ rather than AI or profits. [Reuters]

New Bill Could Help Farmworkers 👨🏽‍🌾

As climate change contributes to more extreme working conditions for WA farmworkers, a new bill would give farmworkers collective bargaining rights under the umbrella of the Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC). Farmworkers would be joining two other types of private employees: the strange bedfellows of symphony musicians and agricultural cannabis workers. [The Stranger]

Dems Want To Bar ICE Agents From Becoming Police 🧊

In addition to a bill banning facial coverings on law enforcement, Washington Democrats are bringing forward a bill that would bar ICE agents who were hired after January 20, 2025, from becoming law enforcement officers in the state. Bremerton Rep. Tarra Simmons told the Times this is because of the way those agents have been trained. A similar proposal has been introduced in Maryland. [Seattle Times]