By Tim Clifford

Nearly a hundred protesters marched from the Burien transit center to the Burien City Hall and Library at 7 p.m. on Feb. 23 to speak out against city ordinance 606. Homeless citizens marched with members from S.A.F.E., the A.C.L.U., and numerous other activist organizations to address councilmembers during a study session for the Burien City Council.

“Burien City Council you can’t hide! We can see your greed inside!” shouted S.A.F.E.’s Joshua Farris from a bullhorn as the line of protesters wound their way into city hall.

Some homeless citizens brought their dogs. One man even brought his pet rat “Link” and introduced him to a few police officers standing near the entrance. As he put it while petting Link “it’s not just people that can be homeless.”

The vast majority of those gathered in the council chambers were there to speak out against the ordinance with only a handful of local business owners attending to support it. Filling the chambers to capacity demonstrators began chanting and calling out for the councilmembers to come down from the second level and begin the meeting.

“I think that anyone who isn’t a tax paying citizen should have to go outside,” said local business owner Darla Green.

Multiple speakers who addressed the council would later apologize for their reactions to Green’s comments before the meeting began. Green found herself surrounded by demonstrators angered at her support of the ordinance, with “mic check” being shouted in unison any time she would attempt to argue the point.

Once the councilmembers arrived and the meeting was started the speaking times for each presenter was reduced from five minutes to one minute.

“Ordinance 606 is legislation passed specifically for the sole purpose of dehumanizing and criminalizing human beings who have no place else to go. The legislation is clearly written in a manner that allows discretionary enforcement based upon vague terms such as “unreasonably disruptive” or “boisterous”, “bodily hygiene” or “scents that is unreasonably offensive to others” and so on,” read Gabriella Duncan, of Changhomelessness.com, from a letter to the councilmembers.

During the time that Duncan had the microphone protesters were gathered around and behind her with toothbrushes and shower caps to show defiance to the hygiene provisions within the ordinance.
“The Burien Police already have an ugly reputation for harassing the homeless and even cutting up tents and sleeping bags with knives in the middle of the night. It is clear who these laws are meant to affect and displace,” Duncan continued.

Once she was done speaking demonstrators began sounding off and filing out of the chambers to protest in front of city hall. Many who had signed up to speak missed their turn by going outside at this time.

For those who remained the conversation with councilmembers was no less passionate for both sides.
“While I might be the minority tonight I represent the quiet majority, the people who elect you (points to council). This is not about being homeless, this about criminal behavior,” said Darla Green while addressing the council. A small round of applause was heard after each of Green’s talking points.

Supporters of the ordinance cited the amount of drug use that takes place in public bathrooms and parks very close to city hall. Green even mentioned that she would no longer take her children to certain public spaces because of these problems.

One speaker, a homeless woman in a wheelchair, expressed concerns that under the noise provisions of the ordinance her mentally challenged sons could be subject to trespass notices. For other speakers who are homeless the ordinance only further marginalizes them at a tough time in their life. The minimum wage debate was also referenced throughout.

“Not all homeless are drug users, and not all drug users are homeless,” said the last speaker, a young man who had recently gotten out of being homeless.

“If you want people to be clean please provide them with the tools to get themselves clean,” he pleaded to the council, suggesting that wash facilities be made available around the city for the public use.

What is Ordinance 606?
Last year on Aug. 18 the Burien City Council passed Ordinance 606, also known as the “trespass ordinance”. According to 606 the police would be given authority to issue trespassing notices, or tickets, to persons deemed a public nuisance. These notices would prohibit the offender from returning to and using public spaces such as parks or libraries.

The first notice would prohibit the person from using the public space for seven days; a second notice would be 30 days. While an exact number was not given there would be a point where multiple notices would lead to an arrest.

The measure was drafted last year with the support of the King County Library system whose Burien location shares the same building with city hall. 5 of the 6 councilmembers voted the ordinance in and have continued to support it. Councilmember Lauren Berkowitz has opposed since the beginning and was live tweeting her support of the protesters on Feb. 23.

According to the ordinance, which was updated on Jan. 15, ticket worthy offenses would include threatening or dangerous behavior, sexual misconduct, drug or alcohol offenses and, most controversially, “bodily hygiene or scent that is unreasonably offensive to others”.

Essentially tickets would be given for smelling bad.

An Officer Howard with Burien PD was on hand prior to the march to City Hall to hand out copies of the revised ordinance to protesters with the section concerning smells removed. However on the city’s website the ordinance is still presented with those provisions intact. No comment was given as to when the city’s website would be updated.

“We’ve trespassed 20 people since October. And all 20 people were engaged in illegal behavior, and in all 20 cases this was in lieu of arresting,” said Officer Howard. As he explained it the ordinance was created to reduce the amount of arrests that Burien PD was making.

This officer refuted the idea that the homeless were being singled out by the measure.