Over the Weekend: McGinn Makes Nice With Occupy Seattle Protesters

Only a few days after Seattle Police dismantled protesters' tents at Westlake Park and left occupiers to spend a cold, rainy night on the concrete, Mayor McGinn's administration seems to have changed their stance on the demonstration to if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. After a week of protests marked by disagreement between City officials and activists, the Mayor's office has released a flurry of cautiously supportive statements, and McGinn himself making a visit to Westlake, bearing coffee as a token of contrition. He also took his charm campaign to an outlet that has been instrumental in organizing Occupy Seattle: Facebook, loading up the Mayor's page with messages of support, and photos of his visit to Westlake.

It is still the City's position that camping cannot be allowed at Westlake, and protesters looking to pitch tents should head to City Hall Plaza, but a permit is being worked out that would allow round-the-clock occupation of Westlake, and one "organizing tent," provided the occupiers allow city employees to clean the park, protect park property, accommodate scheduled events, and refrain from blocking the entrances to local businesses. The permit for camping at City Hall Plaza will last for two more weeks.

Despite the Mayor's overtures, little has changed but tone. The police will still be cracking down on motorists sounding their horns in support of the movement, umbrellas will still be considered "structures" to be banned from Westlake, and the government will continue to push the universally rejected City Hall Plaza campsite on protesters.

One of the Mayor's statements read in part:

That we are discussing honking, tents and umbrellas is in some way a sign of success. Yes, there have been disagreements, but they are modest in scale. I am proud of both the event participants and the police.

True enough, despite some unpleasantness, there haven't been the violent confrontations with police that have marred protests in New York. Fewer than a dozen Seattleites have actually been arrested during the protests. Whatever his sins last week, the Mayor seems to be working to avoid a repetition of such incidents