In 2021, Washington’s state Legislature welcomed a Record-breaking number of legislatorsThere were a record number Black legislators who were all Democrats, and this included a record number of Black lawmakers. State Rep. Kirsten Harris Talley from south Seattle was one of them. She described it as an exciting moment.
I was one of four Black women who came in to join two Black women already here. Harris-Talley recently recalled that she saw many people who looked like her, which is always a welcome sign.
But that wasn’t all. Washington Democrats saw an unusual opportunity to quickly make major changes in 2021 after George Floyd was shot and killed by a Minneapolis police officer. They seized the opportunity and passed several police accountability laws, along with other racial equity legislation. It was described by Washington’s Black Lives Matter Alliance as a spectacular session. Harris-Talley added her own superlative: historic.
Harris-Talley felt that the door to change that had opened in 2021 seemed closed in 2022. She felt Democrats were turning around and undoing the work they did on police accountability in the preceding year.
This is not progress. Harris-Talley said that this is not my calling.
Harris-Talley was elected to the House of Representatives following the 2022 legislative session. An op-ed was written by.This was a nearly 2500-word resignation note in the South Seattle Emerald. Harris-Talley stated that she would not seek reelection in the South Seattle Emerald and described the Legislature’s “toxic work environment” in it.
She wrote that I recognize the signs that leadership is looking to prop you up or find a place for you to shut up. Those kinds of things began very early.
A rash retirement
Harris-Talley is not the only Black member to resign after a single term. So is Democratic State Rep. Jesse JohnsonFederal Way, one among the architects of the reform agenda in police force. He Cited family reasonsJohnson has a family, including a baby at home and a wife studying medicine. Johnson also stated that, while his experience was different from Harris-Talleys’, it was still a good experience in the Legislature.
Johnson said that if you are working on bold, progressive issues, you need a support system to keep you motivated. In an interviewTVWs Inside Olympia program. I was threatened with death by the police reform. I received many nasty emails.
Also, if you have served one term in the Legislature, you can retire from it. Sen. Mona Das Kent, an Indian American. In a Facebook postDas said that she was proud to have worked on equity and environment issues. However, she stated that financial and family considerations prevented her from running for reelection.
“I don’t spend enough time with my family. Das also stated that it was difficult for him to meet his financial obligations regarding his State Senator salary.
Washington legislators currently earn $56,881 per year, plus per diem when the Legislature meets. Although the job is part-time and the Legislature meets only for a few months each year, many lawmakers claim that the job is all-consuming.
Harris-Talley and Johnson, as well as Das, are just a few of the roughly twenty-six state legislators, both Democrats and Republicans, who have said they won’t be running for reelection in this year’s election or are seeking another office. McClatchy reports.
In 2022, all members of the House and approximately half of the state senators will be up for reelection.
While not uncommon, the sheer number of departures has attracted the attention of House Republican Leader, a legislative leader. J.T. WilcoxHe claimed that his caucus was “losing an uncommon number of members” this fiscal year.
One reason for the retirements could be the challenge of legislating mostly remotely during the COVID epidemic. Some of the newer legislators have never been to a non-pandemic session.
Johnson, who was first elected to the Legislature in 2020, described legislating through Zoom from his condo as a lonely feeling.
Washington’s current state legislature is home to about 20% of its 147 members of color. This is a historic high. Johnson said it is important to be aware that the departure of three members of color from statehouse does not necessarily indicate a trend.
Johnson said that while I wouldn’t consider it alarming, I do believe that there is something going on. There are people who want to be part of a system that makes change happen. We learned that politics is slow and it is a grind-itout process.
Johnson stated that he believes that the Legislature needs to do more to support legislators of color, as well as members of minority communities who see urgent need in their communities. However Johnson also said that it must navigate a system which slows down change.
A tearful speech
For Laurie Jinkins, Speaker of the HouseLawmaking is cyclical according to a lawmaker who has been in the Legislature for 12 years. She said that while there are some big achievements, it is possible to achieve them in the long-term. However, the incremental nature and efficiency of legislating will return.
Jinkins said that police accountability is the key to where we are today: big things get done, then you spend years tweaking and balancing.
Harris-Talley describes herself as a Black, queer and activist. She said that some of this tweaking and balance felt like giving in and to the pressures of law enforcement and those opposed to the 2021 reforms. Harris-Talley stated that she would support some changes, such as clarifying which less-lethal weapons police can use and ensuring officers are available to take care of community calls. However, other proposals were not accepted.
She gave the example for a new Police force use billShe felt that it was equivalent to creating a “new stop and frisk” standard in Washington. Harris-Talley made a statement in February when the bill was up for a vote. Tearful speechOn the House floor, he predicted that the change would lead to more deadly encounters between police and civilians.
Harris-Talley stated during her speech that this law is too close to the point where excessive force by an officer can cause a loved one not to return home.
Families of the police officers who were killed Also, the bill was opposed. Rep. Johnson opposed it. He was informed by police that 2021 changes had taken away their ability use reasonable force to detain suspects of a crime. This was before probable cause had been established.
[Police]Johnson stated in the TVW interview that there were people with reasonable suspicion of a crime who were literally running away or walking away from their investigation and could not continue their investigation.
A sense of betrayal
Harris-Talley said that House Democratic leadership pressured Harris to withdraw two proposed amendments for the use of force bill in return for a promise to not bring up another police-related bill regarding high-speed pursuits. Harris-Talley stated that she did withdraw her amendments but that the House Democratic leadership refused to honor the agreement and brought up the matter. pursuit billYou can still vote.
Harris-Talley wrote, “That was the day that I learned that integrity wasn’t part of the culture in this caucus.”
She described feeling betrayed and othered, as well as being dismissed and ignored.
I’ve been in many workplaces where my colleagues have sabotaged me. In an interview, she stated that I had also left those workplaces.
When Jinkins was asked to address Harris-Talley’s accusations about betrayal, Jinkins did not directly respond. Jinkins said it was a lesson in “how people perceive things differently.”
Jinkins stated that I need to take the criticism and commentary in and then find a way to help us improve.
Jinkins, the state’s first openly lesbian Speaker, said that her caucus was committed to equity and diversity issues. She stated that the majority of Democrats in the Legislator passed racial justice bills and equity bills this year, and she also wrote a supplemental budget which relied on an equity tool for guiding state spending.
The Legislative Black Caucus, which Harris-Talley vice chaired, was inaugurated at the 2022 session. 15 priority resolutions and bills were identified. Seven of them passed, and eight failed.
Rep. Jamila TAYLOR, the chairperson of the caucus released statements praising both lawmakers, as two of the LBC’s ten members have left the Legislature.
It was an honor to be able to lead the LBC with Rep. Harris-Talley. Together, we strive to ensure that the experiences, needs, and solutions of Black people in our state are represented, prioritized, and made real in our legislative processes and policies. Taylor.
In a Separate statementTaylor praised Johnson, her 30th Legislative District seatmate, for having worked diligently not only to pass historic police accountability legislation but also to place victims of police violence in discussions in order to ensure that laws met the goal of rebuilding trust among communities.
Johnson is open to running again for public office or returning to the state Legislature. Given the state’s size and complexity, Johnson would like to see Washington adopt a full time legislature like California or Michigan. However, this could prove to be difficult to sell to voters. It would require a constitutional amend.
Johnson said that if not, Johnson believes we need to allocate money and time for support systems.
Boosting legislative pay
Until then, Democratic Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck Recently,He plans to push for a substantial increase in the salaries of legislators to compensate for the time commitments and responsibility state lawmakers have.
Heck stated that it was fair and just. These 147 people are part of the $60 billion plus corporation’s board of directors. They serve our interests in everything, from roads and education to social services for the poor.
Heck stated that a higher salary would likely lead to a wider range of candidates being able afford to serve in the Legislature.
Washington legislators are paid by a citizen salary commission.
However, Wilcox, the House Republican Leader, pointed out that Washington already pays lawmakers More than the majority of statesHe said that his caucus is wary about salary increases.
Wilcox said that while it can be difficult to get a job as a House Republican, you will hear that it can be very rewarding.
A call for transformation
Harris-Talley expressed her disapproval of the legislative environment in her op ed. She said that she felt “blessed” to have served during the most progressive moment in state politics that she can recall and gave praise for several of her legislator colleagues of color.
She wrote that “many individuals are pushing for changes in the culture of the Legislature, and let’s be clear, the people leading that work are women and people who have one’s back,”
Harris-Talley urged House Democratic Caucus staff to support the LBC, and to replace Pat Sullivan (longtime House Majority Leader) with a leader from color to bring about the “long-overdue transformation.”
“This is an opportunity for Democrats to see massive changes that should not be ignored,” she wrote. “And with that, leadership must make some decisions to meet this moment in order to move forward.”
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