Without police presence, the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) is filling up with peaceful protesters painting the streets with art and music.
The six-block area has been plastered with murals, has hosted its own town halls, and has even held movie nights featuring documentaries that feature stories of Black lives.
Here’s a look at some of the artwork:
If you want to know what the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone is like, it’s beautiful. #CHAZ pic.twitter.com/v61ECgi7Yv
— Sarah Johnson (@sarahjohnson572) June 11, 2020
Took a visit to the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone #CHAZ
1. No, idiot, no one was asking to see ID upon entry
2. Free food and drinks, bathrooms, sanitation, tents, and medical services provided by volunteers
3. Sign up for Night Watch
4. Local businesses are open (and thriving) pic.twitter.com/ImMStifdYf— Villager Rights Activist 🌳 (@deathcab4booty) June 11, 2020
after an 8 day standoff, law enforcement has abandoned the east precinct. this is what it looks like now!a whole neighborhood without police. music, free food, memorials and looots of love. does this look unsafe to you? #CHAZ #seattleprotests power to the mf people!! 💖🏙 pic.twitter.com/O6f6cRtgVB
— cam 🦋كاميرون (@suburban_cam) June 11, 2020
Amazing vibes tonight in the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone #CHAZ #seattleprotests #seattleprotest pic.twitter.com/U5RFNi2Kqi
— nbd123 (@nbd1232) June 10, 2020
SEATTLE, rise up and counter online misinformation being spread in the MISSPELLED hashtag #CapitalHillAutonomousZone.
(C’mon, it’s #CapitOLhillAutonomousZone. Get it right, nerds.)
This is what it actually looks like. #seattleprotest pic.twitter.com/eAdxCGkb5J
— Zoë Starkiller (@obnoxiousone) June 11, 2020
Update to this spray painted mural from yesterday.
It was finished throughout the evening and is an incredibly stunning piece of work. #CapitalHillAutonomousZone #CapitolHillAutonomousZone pic.twitter.com/oSxVydFSKV— Alexander Haynes (@ACLHaynes) June 11, 2020
Eversince the cops retreated from this area, #CapitalHillAutonomousZone has been the most peaceful and safe area for the people there. So far, It has been educational, respectful, and not at all what is being portrayed in the media. pic.twitter.com/VXBebIrqk1
— rue ♀︎ (@rruwidaa) June 11, 2020
4AM shots of the finished mural <3 #blacklivesmatter #seattle #seattleprotests #CHAZ #CapitalHillAutonomousZone pic.twitter.com/Dl3yFsA5Vu
— Gabe C Herbertson (@GHerbertson) June 11, 2020
cap hill THIS morning: Seattle PEOPLE Department, view from inside the East Precinct, fist bump mural, new barricade decorations. #BlackLivesMatter #seattleprotests #DefundSPD pic.twitter.com/DUOKc3CAIE
— Amelia Bertozzi-Villa (@abertozz) June 9, 2020
- See also:
The Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, also known as CHAZ, and formerly known as Free Capitol Hill, is a six-block space with no current police presence.
On June 8, after days of violent protests, the Seattle Police Department packed up their stuff, removed their barricades, and left the protesters to police themselves.
According to Reddit user houseplantshustla, who started a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” about CHAZ, no single person has stepped up and claimed the neighborhood. “People just gave it the name CHAZ after the Police left… it’s just a protest area that the Police left, then Twitter named it CHAZ after a few signs got put up.”
Seattle protestors have created an entire zone called “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone” after cops evacuated the east precinct and left it for protestors. Since the police left, there has been no violence or conflict. Everything has remained completely peaceful. #seattleprotest pic.twitter.com/cO8IaMB1En
— manda moon crochet (@mmooncrochet) June 10, 2020
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