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Two bad laws are currently before the City Council, and will be up for a vote at the Public Safety Committee at 9:30 am on Tuesday, September 10th, and will likely have a final vote at the City Council meeting on Tuesday, September 17th at 2:00 pm.
UPDATE (9/9): Proposed amendments would add new SODA zones in Belltown, Capitol Hill, and Pioneer Square. If you live in those areas - let your councilmembers know you don't want a SODA in your area.
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The first piece of proposed legislation would create two large “stay out of drug areas” (SODAs) in Downtown Seattle and the International District, and the other would reinstate Seattle’s old prostitution loitering law and create a “stay out of area prostitution” (SOAP) zone on Aurora Ave. Seattle used to have similar drug loitering and prostitution loitering laws, but those were unanimously repealed in 2020 because they disproportionately harmed people of color.
Both of these new laws would exclude people who have been accused of drug or prostitution-related crimes from those parts of the city, even if they live, work, or access certain services there. The SOAP law would also make it a crime to engage in "prostitution loitering" (essentially looking or acting like you might be a prostitute). Violating a SODA/SOAP order is a gross misdemeanor and can carry up to 364 days in jail or a $5,000 fine, even if the person has not yet been convicted of the underlying drug or prostitution crime.
Both pieces of legislation will disproportionately target and punish people experiencing homelessness, low-income people, and people of color. These bad laws do NOT include additional resources for real solutions like housing or shelter, addiction or mental health treatment, or helping people get stable, sufficient income. These laws won't increase public safety, and they will only make it harder for people to secure stable housing, income, and services that they need to be safe and healthy.
Take Action!
1. Fill out the form on this page to send a letter to YOUR Seattle City Councilmembers & Mayor Bruce Harrell.
2. Click here to double your impact and take action again with our friends at Strippers are Workers, who have an action alert focused on the SOAP law.
Your voice is powerful - thank you for speaking up!
However, since we know that housing and homelessness are regional issues, we encourage people who live outside of Seattle to stay involved. If you work in Seattle, use your work address and customize your email to let city councilmembers know you work in the County.
Keep Speaking Up with the Coalition on Homelessness!
Please sign up for our email action alerts to find out when we have other actions for you to take part in. We do advocacy in King County, Seattle, and Washington State.
Thank you for speaking up!
Please share this action with anyone else who might be interested in lending their voice.
Keep Speaking Up with the Coalition on Homelessness!
Please sign up for our email action alerts to find out when we have other actions for you to take part in. We do advocacy in King County, Seattle, and Washington State.