After a protest at City Hall, asylum-seekers in Seattle wonder what's next

A dramatic scene unfolded at Seattle City Hall Tuesday that ended in the arrest of six protesters for disrupting a City Council meeting. The protesters demanded more support for hundreds of migrants from countries including Venezuela, Angola, and Congo who have been sheltering at a Tukwila church and elsewhere in King County.

On the Seattle City Council's agenda was honoring the late state Sen. George Fleming for his achievements in launching programs like the Housing Trust Fund. After the council's public comment period ended, protestors began causing a disruption.

Council President Sara Nelson called multiple recesses, asking for the chamber to be cleared. When protesters didn’t leave, police were called, and six people were arrested. Outside the hall, more protesters banged on chamber windows and chanted. At that point, Councilmember Cathy Moore said she felt unsafe.

"More than loud, it is a physical threat to the safety of each of us on this council. And it is a threat to the operation of our civic institution. And I want the record to be clear that I physically feel threatened," Moore said.

The protesters were calling for more support for migrants in King County, some of whom have secured temporary housing in hotels. Others have taken shelter in tents outdoors at the Riverton Park United Methodist Church in Tukwila.

RELATED: Time, money runs low for asylum-seekers sheltering at Seattle area hotels

At Seattle City Hall, protestors called for funds to be reallocated from proposed gunshot detection technology — commonly called "ShotSpotter," after a prominent brand — and used instead to house asylum-seekers.

In an interview with Soundside host Libby Denkmann, Council President Nelson said the issue was outside Seattle's purview.

"We really have to prioritize the people that are sleeping on our very own streets," Nelson said. "There might be a role, but the state and the county already have the resources, and more of the jurisdictional authority, to respond to what the protesters say they're focusing on."

Nelson clarified that funding a program like ShotSpotter was possible because of unspent salaries sourced from vacant Seattle Police positions. The city also allocated $200,000 in early February for asylum-seeker housing at a hotel in Kent, and Nelson said that money has been spent as intended.

"If we cannot continue with the items on our agenda, with the business that we're supposed to get done, then I have to step in and clear chambers," Nelson said in response to the arrests of six protestors. "We were in close consultation with our legal scholars whose priority is ensuring that we respect everybody's first amendment rights, but also are able to fulfill our rights as elected officials to conduct a meeting."

More than 800 people have taken shelter at the Tukwila church since December 2022. With supportive funding from a variety of government and community groups, roughly 200 people have been able to move into rooms at hotels in the area.

RELATED: For these asylum-seekers, a Tukwila church offers temporary comfort and refuge

For those lucky enough to have temporary hotel shelter, money is running out to keep them housed, and migrants could be evicted as soon as Monday, March 4.

"When I arrived, it was overpopulated," said Adriana Figueira, who came to King County from Venezuela in November.

Figueira said she arrived at the Tukwila church after journeying through Texas, Tennessee, and Colorado. She's now staying at a Quality Inn in Kent and working as a community organizer for Comunidad sin Fronteras, a mutual aid group.

She's currently working on her asylum application.

"We need support from the government so that we can follow through on our plans," Figueira said in Spanish. "We need to apply for asylum, we need to find jobs, but when you don't have housing stability then it's difficult to follow through with your plans."

Rosario Lopez is a community organizer with Super Familia, a mutual aid group led by undocumented and unaccompanied youth. She was one of the six people arrested at Tuesday's Seattle City Council meeting.

"What will be ideal is for folks to have housing long term, and for them to be able to apply for a work permit," she said. "There are a lot of professionals — you have doctors, you have dentists, you have tattoo artists, you have people who know how to fix cars. You have so much potential, but it's not being used."

Lopez said the disruption at the City Hall meeting was driven by repeated calls for help from officials without any response. The urgency for housing became especially dire in December, when asylum-seekers living outside had to endure below-freezing temperatures.

"We get temporary solutions like one week of housing, two more weeks of housing... and then after that, if we don't continue to show up in person, our City Council officials and the King County officials end up ignoring us," Lopez said.

RELATED: 6 protesters arrested after descending on Seattle City Hall to demand support for refugees

In opposition to statements from Council President Nelson that migrant housing is not a Seattle issue, Lopez said her organization has helped place 16 people in an Airbnb in the city. Funds for that housing are set to expire in one month, and Lopez said she repeatedly reached out to the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs (OIRA) for help, with no response.

Through email, the office said they have "had a direct line of contact with the group of migrants and asylum seekers staying at the Sleep-Inn hotel in Seatac over the past several weeks, however, to our knowledge, we have not received communication from Rosario Lopez regarding a separate group housed in independently-funded housing in Seattle."

Advocates are hopeful the state Legislature will approve funding through the state budget to keep shelters and hotels available for asylum-seekers. Gov. Jay Inslee requested more than $8 million, and the state House and Senate have each proposed sums to be split between OIRA, King County, and Tukwila. However, even if approved, that money won't be accessible until July, leaving short-term hotel costs unaddressed.

"We have tried public comments, emails, making calls, having community petitions — and none of that is working," Lopez said. "We really want support. And yes, we don't know what to do."

Listen to the full hour of coverage from Soundside by clicking play on the audio icon at the top of this story.