A line of women – dressed in black -- stood in front of the Seattle Justice Center on Wednesday, Aug. 30. 

They were silent, carrying flyers that read “Housing and shelter for all – Stop the Sweeps!”

The Women in Black are a special project of the Women’s Housing, Equality and Enhancement League (WHEEL), a non-profit group of homeless and formerly homeless women working on a major goal -- ending homelessness for women.  

They stand in a silent vigil whenever a homeless person dies outside or from a violent act in King County.  

So far, in 2017, the group has counted 51 outdoor or violent deaths. 

This week, they gathered to honor Martin Anthony “Tony” Hudson, 67, a fixture in the Ballard neighborhood. His body was found in the waters in Salmon Bay on Aug. 9.

The Women in Black were also remembering Anthoney Moss, 31, who was shot to death in a SODO pop-up encampment on Aug. 22. Police are still searching for the suspects. 

Rev. Pat Simpson, pastor of University Temple United Methodist Church, joined the vigil. 

She knew Hudson as a regular attendee at her church’s Friday Feast, which provides free meals for those in need. 

“Tony was almost always here,” she said. “Ballard was really his home, but everyone knew him at the Friday Feast.”

Simpson said Hudson had a presence. “He carried himself with dignity,” she said. “He didn’t let his circumstances take that away from him.”

She said he served in the military and worked in the fishing industry before losing his sight. 

A couple of weeks ago, Simpson learned about Hudson’s death from another person at the Friday Feast. 

The reports were confirmed by the Medical Examiner’s Office.

“Without a door to close, you’re really vulnerable,” Simpson said. “People think of the bad conditions and the weather, but violence and accidents – that happens too.”

She hopes the vigil will call attention to the dangers of living on the streets.

Anitra Freeman wants the passerby to consider ways to take action.

“This reminds people of our common humanity, and that’s what makes people act,” she said. “I hope this helps people get motivated.”

Freeman has been a member of Women’s Housing, Equality and Enhancement League since 1995. 

“In the late 1990s, we had several really heartbreaking deaths in our homeless community,” she said. “What was even more heartbreaking was the way they were handled in the media. If they were mentioned at all, it was like about the death of a transient. The emphasis was on addiction, not the person.”

Women in Black was created in 2000 to give dignity to those who die on the streets. 

The group decided to pay special tribute to those who die from a violent act or outdoors. “Those are the most easily forgotten or the most easily denigrated,” Freeman said. 

The Homeless Remembrance Project grew out of this effort, she added.

“We wanted to do something more permanent,” she said. 

Since there were no public places to honor and remember homeless people who have died, the group worked with church and community leaders for eight years to eventually install a sculpture entitled “Tree of Life” at Victor Steinbrueck Park near Pike Place Market. 

“Leaves of Remembrance” -- bearing the names of those have departed  -- are now placed along the sidewalks in Seattle. A web site – www.fallenleaves.org -- was also established to keep the memories of these individuals alive.    

“For those who are left behind, it does matter that there is some physical memory of the person who died,” Freeman said. “We need that.”

She said the city also needs more shelter and housing options. 

“Stop the sweeps until we have real solutions,” she said. “It’s terrible to react to Anthoney’s shooting by sweeping the camp in SODO. That’s not helping anyone. The sweeps just make things worse. They increase stress and tension, which makes violence more likely.”

Qween B is another regular member of Women in Black. She was homeless for a time and then active in under-the-freeway ministries. 

“When I came here, I had never seen homelessness like this,” she said. “I cried a lot and prayed and asked God to help this situation.”

Qween B said her goal is help others recognize that homeless individuals should be treated with respect. 

“A lot of people think people are homeless because they’re addicts,” she said. “I became homeless, because I left an abusive relationship. You never know what’s going on in a person’s life.”

Qween B added that the city can only do so much to help. She believes that it’s up to residents to join forces to help the homeless. 

“A kind word and a smile go a long way,” she said. 

For email notification of vigils, write wheelorg@yahoo.com. 

For more information about the Women in Black, visit www.sharewheel.org/Home/wheel.