Published 11:58 IST, June 12th 2020
Seattle Mayor hits back at Trump, says use of military against protesters is 'illegal'
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan hit back at Donald Trump for proposing the use of military against the Black Lives Matter protesters and called him "distraction".
Advertisement
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan hit back at US President Donald Trump for proposing the use of the military against the Black Lives Matter protesters and called him a “distraction” on June 12. Trump had criticised the “radical left” Seattle Governor Jay Inslee and Durkan and said that they are currently being “taunted and played” at a level which the United States has never seen before. US President urged the authorities in Seattle to take back the command on the city and added that “if you don’t do it, I will”. However, this did not sit well with Durkan who said that one of the things Trump “will not understand” is that lending an ear to the community is “not weakness” but strength.
As the US President took on Twitter to attack Seattle, Durkan did the same by going on a Twitter spree starting off by saying she is working with chief of city’s police Carmen Best and also listening to the community, in a bid to develop trust between both. She further added that “it’s clear” that Trump does not understand what is going on in Seattle which has been a place for “free speech, community, and self-expression”. Moreover, Durkan restated publicly yet again that sending the military to the city would be “unconstitutional and illegal” and assured that the authorities “will not let that happen”.
One of the things the President will never understand, is that listening to community is not a weakness, it is a strength.
— Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) June 11, 2020
I also want to be clear as I have stated publicly previously – it is unconstitutional and illegal to send the military to Seattle. We will not allow this to happen.
— Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) June 11, 2020
'A real leader'
Since all major cities across the United States are rocked with the protests triggered by the death of 46-year-old African American George Floyd in police custody, Seattle Mayor noted that “a real leader” would see the demonstrations fueled by several hundred years of “immense grief” that communities of minorities have felt. Durkan says the demonstrations are a call to build a society where racism does not exist and a leader would see the unrest as an “opportunity” to make a better nation. Seattle Mayor pledged to not let President be a “distraction” and urged the people to work together to create the city as a model for the entire US.
A real leader would see nation-wide protests - borne from hundreds of years of immense grief of our Black community, communities of color, and so many others - and the call to become an anti-racist society, as an opportunity to build a better nation.
— Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) June 11, 2020
We will not let this president be a distraction.
— Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) June 11, 2020
Centuries of slavery and systemic racism won’t be dismantled overnight, but I believe that Seattle can be a model for our country. We must work to make progress together, and it is clear that Seattle is ready to act.
11:58 IST, June 12th 2020