Through the Static

by Hannah Saunders

TtS published five pieces from Oct. 19-25, including an upcoming event that will feature a quilted seed blanket, the push for local art over generative AI, Cal Anderson Park sweeps and more. Catch up below!

Revolutionary Grains event to feature quilted seed blanket and celebrate Indigenous grains over industrial food system

The past two years for Revolutionary Grains, an organization dedicated to building an alternative supply chain for the industrial food system, has been partially spent weaving together 16 stories from Washington’s Indigenous seed keepers into a quilt, “Engrained Is Our Story.” Revolutionary Grains will display the quilt at an art event on Nov. 7, which will consist of dances, songs, oral story-telling, and a feast. Attendees will also have the opportunity to create the final borders of the blanket.

“One of the goals of this project is narrative change through the cloth itself,” Fatema Boxwala, operations director, told TtS. “We also want to convert that into policy change, and based on what we’ve heard from our storytellers, really figure out the barriers at the city, county, and state level here in Washington that make it so easy for industrial modern wheat and agriculture to thrive.”

Revolutionary Grains is seeking to connect consumers with storytellers and seed keepers, Boxwala noted. During times of human migration— and oppression— Indigenous grain keepers, particularly women, braided or sewed seeds into cross fabric, Simren Kaur Rai, founder, said, allowing them to bring their culturally-diverse foods with them.

Read the full article here.

“Solidarity is Not Scary” art auction and fundraiser hosted by Seattle Art Museum VSO union taking place Oct. 23

The Seattle Art Museum VSO [Visitor Service Officers] Union held a “Solidarity is Not Scary” art auction and fundraiser on Oct. 23 from 6-9 p.m. at Parnassus, marking the third annual event. The union, which represents the facility’s security guards, is preparing for the end of its first contract in June of 2027.

“In order to get our first contract back in 2024, we had to go on strike for 12 days,” a member told TtS. “If management does the right thing and agrees to a fair contract, we may not have to strike this time, but we want to be prepared to do whatever is needed in order to get the contract our members need to survive and thrive in Seattle.”

Click here to learn more.

Looking for creatives? Seattle’s Barn Sour Artists Collective pushes for local artists over AI-generated art

Barn Sour Artists Collective, a Seattle-based group that publishes a free comics newspaper and connects artists with those looking for creative work with a focus on advocacy and education, is pushing for businesses, venues, organizations, and mutual aid groups to work with local creatives instead of using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for promotional materials.

“We’ve seen way too many businesses, venues, and mutual aid groups using generative AI for flyers and social media posts to promote local events,” Barn Sour told TtS. “We want to help connect the people who need art with the people who want to do the art.”

Click here to read more.

Seattle targets Transgender people in Cal Anderson Park in new set of sweeps

Transgender community members who regularly provide mutual aid in Cal Anderson Park, which rests in the heart of Seattle’s historically LGBTQ+ neighborhood, came under attack by city workers during sweeps that began on Oct. 22.

Kareem Jenkins, who serves as a field coordinator of the Unified Care Team (UCT), allegedly told Cree that city workers would be showing up four times per day to conduct sweeps.

“This is so targeted against the Trans community, it’s just not funny, and it’s targeted against us as a mutual aid group, because we are trying to get things done,” Elle Cree of the Mutal Aid Network for Trans and Intersex Individuals (MANTIS) told TtS.

Cree noted how there was a line of tents along the soccer field, and police started to approach her and Jenkins, and she questioned why they were focused on only one side of the park— the Kitty Perch near the pump house, where Trans people go at night to find community, and where a memorial for Trans lives lost is.

Read the full article here.

Photos: Red Panda Muay Thai’s “Spooktacular Halloween Costume Party” raises funds for Trans refugees

Fighters took to the ring at Red Panda Muay Thai’s annual “Spooktacular Halloween Costume Party” on Oct. 24, to raise funds for the Kawaguchi O’Connor Initiative (KOI), a Washington-based organization that provides material support to Trans people fleeing states with hostile legislation.

The event, “Mutual Aid vs. The World,” featured boxing, Muay Thai, grappling, HEMA fencing, a costume contest, karaoke, candy, and snacks, with a suggested $20 donation.

Click here to view more photos.

And that’s it! If our reporting has kept you informed or mattered to you, please consider donating today to help us keep reporting.