VIDEO: Protest, arrests on Harbor Island

(WSB photo, substituted for original phone photo)

6:50 PM: For the past two hours we’ve been just outside Terminal 18 on Harbor Island, where protesters and police have been in a standoff since mid-afternoon. It’s a replication of the current Middle East flashpoint, the Israel/Palestine conflict. An Israeli-owned ship, the Zim San Diego, docked at Terminal 18 on Saturday after a week at anchor in Elliott Bay. The protesters, supporters of Palestine, want to prevent the ship from being unloaded. They’ve been marching and chanting in intersections at/near 13th SW/SW Florida just west of T-18.

(WSB photo, substituted for original phone photo)

A sizable deployment of Seattle and Port police warned them repeatedly to get out of the road or face arrest. As of our departure about 15 minutes ago, they had yet to arrest anyone, but as we wrote this, SPD tweeted that they’ve just made 10 arrests. Several vehicles turned around just short of the protest after protesters approached the drivers to talk to them, although police warned the demonstrators not to do that. There were roughly 100 demonstrators when we arrived; the number fluctuated as they switched intersections and at one point sat in the street. Police used the LRAD speaker to warn them; adding to the clamor are several evangelical Christian counter-demonstrators with a loudspeaker. (Added: You can hear them in the background of this short clip when bicycle officers moved in at one point; no arrests resulted that time.)

Other groups of protesters have led similar demonstrations at other West Coast ports including Oakland and Prince Rupert, B.C.

9:39 PM: The Northwest Seaport Alliance has published a statement saying port and city police are “are providing a safe zone for protesters to ensure individual expression is protected and port operations are not impeded.” There’s been no word of further arrests, nor whether the ship is being unloaded.

45 Replies to "VIDEO: Protest, arrests on Harbor Island"

  • D June 17, 2021 (7:30 pm)

    Children throwing temper tantrums…

    • WSB June 17, 2021 (7:48 pm)

      Actually the ages of those we saw spanned a pretty wide range, including at least one guy who looked to be in his senior years.

      • WW Resident June 18, 2021 (5:53 am)

        Uh yeah, pretty sure they were talking about their mentality rather than their chronological age

        • Jansen June 18, 2021 (10:49 am)

          He’s wrong there too. It’s not childish to protest. Calling it childish is suppression of the working class and right to free speech.

      • Rick June 18, 2021 (6:10 am)

        I’m pretty sure you know what D means.

    • Derek June 18, 2021 (8:38 am)

      This is a bad, severely misguided comment. 

    • ally cat June 18, 2021 (9:57 am)

      More like adults finding a moment to speak up against Palestinian children being killed.

      ‘Sometimes I sit down to dinner with people and I realize there is a massive military machine surrounding us, trying to kill the people I’m having dinner with.’ – Rachel Corrie

      https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/05/26/world/middleeast/gaza-israel-children.html

      Peace and equal rights for Palestine 💛

  • Brian June 17, 2021 (7:37 pm)

    Heck yes this rules. The protestors are getting it right. 

    • Jennifer June 18, 2021 (3:52 pm)

      Actually they aren’t. While it is an Israel owned ship, the cargo came from Germany. Had nothing to do with Israel or Palestine. 

  • TJ June 17, 2021 (8:05 pm)

    An Israeli owned ship, or Israeli flagged ship? Doesn’t really matter though as it isn’t owned by the Israeli government and is by a private company so this is just a stupid waste of time. Get a hobby 

    • WSB June 17, 2021 (8:59 pm)

      Zim is headquartered in Israel. This particular ship is registered in Liberia.

    • Derek June 18, 2021 (8:37 am)

      Protesting for freedom is a nice hobby, I think. Perhaps you should consider a hobby that’s different than commenting on protesting?

      • Jort June 23, 2021 (12:47 pm)

        Perhaps devloping a hobby like “repeatedly promising to move to Arizona” but still choosing to comment on Seattle issues? Oh wait.

  • Flo B June 17, 2021 (8:53 pm)

    Brian. Ship wasn’t coming from the middle east. It was coming from China. If you, and all these protesters want to make a point STOP ordering anything from Amazon, and Target and every other online retailer. THAT will stop most all these pesky ships from coming here. Reality: while the owners are Israeli NOT A SINGLE crewman on board is.   

    • Brian June 17, 2021 (11:54 pm)

      A) already doing that and B) irrelevant as heck to protesting Israel

      • Pessoa June 18, 2021 (7:03 am)

        Thank you for not patronizing Amazon.  There are issues many of us may disagree on, sometimes passionately, but a corporation with the clout of Amazon in the marketplace should concern all of us regardless of political stripe.  By the way, Powell’s in Portland made a principled stand of not making their book inventory available on Amazon.  

  • StopCuttingDownTrees June 17, 2021 (8:59 pm)

    I support Israel and free trade 110%. Glad to hear POSP and SPD made significant arrests.

    • Mark June 17, 2021 (11:21 pm)

      I totally agree and am disgusted by anti semitism in our neighborhood. 

      • Scubafrog June 18, 2021 (2:53 am)

        Protesting Israel isn’t anti-Semitic.  Israel isn’t a Jewish nation, it’s made up of Christians, Jews, atheists, Muslims, agnostics et al.  Now, if they were protesting Judaism, they’d certainly be anti-Semitic.  Your ignorance is staggering and hurtful to the International Jewish Community.

      • Jewishbutnotisraeli June 18, 2021 (5:54 am)

        Not supporting Israel and their war crimes is not antisemitism. The government of Israel has nothing to do with the agency of Jews. Denying the Holocaust, or comparing mask mandates to it, however, is.

      • Joe June 18, 2021 (5:56 am)

        The only thing antisemitic here is you linking Judaism with loyalty to Israel. Israel is a foreign country and people can protest its behaviors without it being about Jews.

      • Reed June 18, 2021 (6:56 am)

        Disagreeing with Israel’s terrorist human rights violation policies isn’t anti-Semitism. 

      • Melissa June 18, 2021 (8:37 am)

        Good gracious, Mark. Opposition to the Israeli government and Israeli exclusivity isn’t antisemitism. You may disagree with the protestors and some of them may well be antisemitic, but their protest is not inherently antisemitic.

        • Pessoa June 18, 2021 (10:46 am)

          Agreed.  And thank you for not using the pretext of correcting a categorical error – albeit a grievous error – to make simplistic and inflammatory statements about a complex political situation.  

      • MrsT June 18, 2021 (8:40 am)

        Interesting take. I personally find it extremely easy to not support Israel’s slaughter of Palestinians and also not be antisemitic. Keep up the good work protesters! 

      • Pessoa June 18, 2021 (9:01 am)

        This is an outrageous charge.  It is no different than labeling everyone who has a problem with the tactics of Black Lives Matter as a racist.   

      • Robert June 18, 2021 (11:03 am)

        The Palestinian people do need a state of their own. They need to be treated with more respect. But it’s hard to understand those of you that are so anti-Israel and supposedly pro Palestinian, have nothing to say about the anti-democratic governments in Gaza and the West Bank. Nor do you say anything about their commitment to destroy the state of Israel. You want to claim that criticizing Israel isn’t being antisemitic. Yet you support groups that are clearly anti-semitic and would destroy a Jewish homeland.

    • Pessoa June 18, 2021 (8:30 am)

      You are putting 110% in support of a myth – free trade.  Governments intervene in markets all over the world, including the United States. 

    • Derek June 18, 2021 (8:39 am)

      Supporting Palestine is not anti-semetic so try not to gaslight. Thanks.

      Maybe Israel can stop bombing a country into oblivion if you want to see more support for their state.

    • WS RESIDENT June 18, 2021 (9:12 am)

      STOPCUTTINGDOWNTREES & MARK.. I hate to break this to you but being against the Israel government’s disgusting treatment of Palestinians is not being anti-Semitic. This is like saying that being opposed to the KKK’s lynching of black people is being anti white…  The rise of antisemitism  is truly disgusting and many pro-Palestinian supporters have voiced their disgust at the recent hate crimes against Jews. Unfortunately, there are white supremacists using this human rights crisis to promote their disgusting agenda. Hundreds of thousands of Jews and those living in occupied Palestine (Israel) have voiced their opposition to the Israeli government’s actions, and hundreds of Orthodox Jews have marched with Palestinians in dozens of cities nation wide, so you’re saying these people are self hating Jews? 

  • Joe June 18, 2021 (5:51 am)

    For those saying it does not matter- your tax dollars are completely financing the Israeli economy and military. Your personal income, taken from you at your paycheck is funding the existence of this boat.  How do you feel about paying for the security and crew benefits for some foreign kingpin’s business? Even if you dont care a lick about the endless churn in the middle east surely you are sick of your tax payer dollars going to non-Americans in countries you dont get a vote in?

  • Mark47n June 18, 2021 (7:38 am)

    Protesting the actions of Israel is not anti-Semitism, it’s protesting a political body. Anti-Semitism is being against Jews, a people with a distinct cultural/ethnic identity. Israel, as a body politic didn’t exist until 1947. Zionists often encourage the conflation of the two despite the fact that many American and European Jews aren’t thrilled with Israel. It furthers the Zionists political aims and paints the Palestinians, who lived there prior to 1947 (when it was Palestine) as bad guys while white washing the actions of the Israeli government and the ultra-orthodox communities that occupy the West Bank and Gaza illegally while displacing those that had lived there.This doesn’t excuse the actions of the various terrorist organizations but to let Israel off the hook is bollocks.

  • Michael Walod June 18, 2021 (8:09 am)

    MARK- it is not  antisemitism to be against the Israel government policies. I was against the trump administration policies but that doesn’t make me anti American.

  • Derek June 18, 2021 (8:36 am)

    I LOVE this! The power of protesting is a beautiful thing.Free Palestine!

  • Antizionist June 18, 2021 (9:08 am)

    Free Palestine!! For those you don’t understand what’s happening in the Middle East just take a look at how Israel’s boarder lines have changed over the last few decades. The map doesn’t lie. https://www.palestineportal.org/learn-teach/israelpalestine-the-basics/maps/maps-loss-of-land/

  • Ant June 18, 2021 (9:44 am)

    Wow, I seemed to stumble on the hamas fan club page.

    • mark47n June 18, 2021 (10:22 am)

      Protesting the rampant violence that Israel perpetrates on the Palestinians is not inherently supporting Hamas. We seem to have hit a point in this country where we exist in polar states and cannot make use of nuance when considering complex situations  or hold mixed opinions. There is also a fatal lack of understanding of styles of government and a false equivalence to systems of economy.But I digress. You are one who refuses to accept that there may be more at work here than being pro/anti Israel and you equate one of these states as being equivalent to being pro Hamas.  To imply that being Palestinian means inherent support for Hamas is like saying that because I’m white means I support the KKK. Both of these are the same in that they are both bollocks.One thing is plain, though: you are an ‘in for a penny, in for pound’ sort of guy. a world of complex viewpoints is not for you.

    • Derek June 18, 2021 (10:41 am)

      Netanyahu is responsible for far more deaths than Hamas. Educate yourself. 

    • Jansen June 18, 2021 (10:52 am)

      This is such a disingenuous comment 

    • Scubafrog June 18, 2021 (3:11 pm)

      That’s such an absurd, extremist, bombastic comment, it deserves no substantive reply.  The nerve to malign peaceful protesters with terrorists.  Just abhorrent – and that’s where you lose all credibility.

  • Rick June 18, 2021 (12:25 pm)

    Isn’t there a way to make this Trumps fault? That seems to be the norm.

  • wscommuter June 18, 2021 (1:18 pm)

    It is a complex and messy problem.  I have  great difficulty supporting the Israeli government’s treatment of the Palestinians … but I also recognize the truth that Hamas, Hezbollah and other extremists are inextricably interwoven with the  Palestinian people, often with the support and encouragement of some (many) Palestinians.  I’d like to think the same folks here who are fairly criticizing Israel’s often draconian and cruel policies would spare the same consideration for the  vile terrorism committed by Hamas and Hezbollah, which are committed to Israel’s destruction.  There are victims aplenty on both sides of this tragic situation.  

  • L June 18, 2021 (1:44 pm)

    misguided rage spills over in the T18 parking lot. It’s a ship (not a boat) coming with goods from China on an Israeli owned ship…something that’s been going on for who knows how long.  Of all the things worth protesting, this seems like a pretty low priority. 

  • Pessoa June 18, 2021 (5:16 pm)

    Palestinians voted Hamas into power.  There certainly isn’t any secret what the aims of Hamas are and what they are willing to do to achieve those objectives, including firing missiles into Israel to maim or kills as many Israeli’s are possible.  My point? Everyone has blood on their hands in that part of the world.  

  • Flo B June 18, 2021 (7:31 pm)

    Question for the “pro” protesters. If their “protest” had blocked ALL access to the low bridge-no bikes, busses, emergency vehicles allowed through PLEASE tell us why you would be applauding their “peaceful protest” and why it would have been “the right thing to do”

Sorry, comment time is over.