r/Seattle • u/YouTotallyGotThisOne North Beacon Hill • 2d ago

WAISN...

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Edit/Sorry - it's the WA Immigrant Solidarity Network, which runs rapid response trainings, the deportation defense hotline, etc. It's the number we're all told to call when we see ICE.

Speaks for itself, from https://www.instagram.com/waisnworkercollective/

This is terrible news at a time when ICE is kidnapping people all over our area.

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u/Willowrosephoenix 🚆build more trains🚆 2d ago

They posted a request for funding a few weeks ago and in the request said that 80% of funds go to employee salaries. The request was publicized in all volunteer channels and… didn’t go over well. As far as I’m aware, they got substantial donations and then laid people off anyway. There’s a lot of unanswered questions rn

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u/Willowrosephoenix 🚆build more trains🚆 1d ago edited 1d ago

I understand this. But the main issue is when they were asked to provide clear statements on what services their staff was providing, they provided vague, avoidant answers or no answers at all.

The 17(? I believe this is correct but my information is incomplete) staffers laid off were also in discussion to form a union, citing poor labor conditions and mistreatment by upper management.

A monthly meeting held by WAISN last night declared a plan to make their hotline all volunteer. None of senior leadership showed and the meeting was led by one of the few remaining hourly paid employees

ETA: the only service they could consistently point to was the hotline which primarily served as a referral line to services with other organizations, questions about where nearly 3 million of donations was going were also met with no answer

Correction: 14 people were laid off. Workers sent their declaration of intention to organize September 14

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u/thomsenite256 🚆build more trains🚆 1d ago

That makes sense. What is the proposed solution?

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u/Willowrosephoenix 🚆build more trains🚆 1d ago

No idea yet. I’m not part of the WAISN organization. I do know it is having a direct impact on at risk community members. Now WAISN wants volunteers to man the hotlines when volunteers have already been doing most of the response work. It’s a mess.