Get Engaged 2016-17 Cohort

Young adults bringing a new voice to City of Seattle boards & commissions

December 27, 2016

Dear County Executive Dow Constantine, Mayor Ed Murray, and County Council,
We are a group of civically minded young adults advocating for our future in this city. We are
people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, people with disabilities, representatives of
low-income communities, and allies of traditionally marginalized and underrepresented groups.
Our cohort of city commission and board members is writing you today to ask you to take all
available actions to stop the construction of the $209 million Children and Family Justice Center
more popularly known as the King County Youth Jail. We are asking Mayor Murray to deny the
permit as well as asking the King County Council and County Executives to take action to
terminate the project and reapportion the funds.
We have seen first hand the negative consequences that comes with policies that reinforce an
agenda of punitive measures and incarceration. There is growing evidence that youth detention
makes detainees more likely to reoffend and disproportionately impacts people of color.
Instead of using a high volume of taxpayer dollars to perpetuate the discriminatory school-toprison pipeline, we urge you to focus resources on solutions that promote rehabilitation and
restorative justice. Solutions like:

After School Programs

Apprenticeship Programs

County Mental Health Services

De-Escalation Training for Police

Affordable Housing Initiatives

These are programs for which the $209 million slated for this project could make a measurable
impact on the lives of youth in our communities.

Get Engaged Accelerator YMCA Young Adult Services 2100 24th Avenue South, Suite 250 Seattle, Washington 98144

In addition to the financial implications, we ask you to consider the disproportionate negative
impact the detention center will have on communities of color. In King County, only eight percent
of the youth population is black, yet they account for roughly half of the young people detained
and incarcerated.
King County and the City of Seattle have the opportunity to put the values of equity and inclusion
into practice and be leaders in finding alternative approaches to incarceration. King County and
the City of Seattle should seize this opportunity and invest in solutions that create alternatives,
provide opportunities, and promote equality for our at risk youth.

Sincerely,
Matthew B. Kanter

Seattle Commission for People with

Disabilities

Marlon Herrera

Seattle Board of Park Commissioners

Eliab Sisay

Community Technology Adviosry BoardSeattle

Emily Vyhanek

Keiko Budech

Pauline Alvarado

Alexey Kuznetsov

Christa Wood

Jacquee Kurdas

Terique Scott

Caitlin A. Molenaar

Hannah Johnson

Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board

Seattle Immigrant and Refugee

Commission

Seattle Bicycle Board

Seattle Planning Commission

Seattle Center Advisory Committee

Pioneer Square Preservation Board

Seattle Human Rights Commission

Seattle Womens Commission

Seattle LGBTQ Commission

Get Engaged is a partnership between the Mayors Office and Accelerator YMCA that
appoints eighteen young adults to City boards and commissions. Ages 18-28, this cohort
brings a new voice to City government. The current cohort was confirmed by the Seattle
City Council in September 2016, serving a one-year term. The views expressed here are
those of the cohort solely, not endorsed by the City of Seattle, its Boards and
Commissions, or the YMCA.

Get Engaged 2016-2017 Cohort