west seattle mutual aid party

We want to acknowledge that we are on the traditional land of the first people of Seattle, the Duwamish People past and present and honor with gratitude the land itself and the Duwamish Tribe.

West Seattle Mutual Aid Party is a self-organized network dedicated to developing relationships with vulnerable neighbors, currently focused in and around the Delridge corridor in West Seattle. We approach our work with the mindset and intention of engaging in mutual aid rather than charity, meaning that we recognize we are neither “saving” nor “serving” anybody but instead are simply acting in solidarity with others. This in turn opens up a world of possibilities for learning, growing, and new opportunities for all parties involved.

Our work began during the week-long snow and subsequent deep-freeze at the beginning of 2022 when we met each other while working to quickly collect and distribute warm clothes and supplies to those still outside in the elements during the storm. From there, the project has quickly taken shape and we are currently focusing on meeting and distributing supplies to several encampments that vary in size because of the city's inhumane sweeps that destroy our friends' belongings and take away what little stability they have been able to create for themselves. Between 30 - 60 people take supplies for themselves and their households during our visits. We slowly build relationships with those that we see and foster partnerships with local businesses that support our work through donations.

We have successfully connected with other mutual aid groups in the region along with a variety of other projects to develop an infrastructure that thus far includes a weekly propane swap for the encampment along with food, medical, hygiene, and harm reduction supplies. In turn, as we slowly build trust with more community members they are introducing us to more of their friends, thus allowing us to expand our reach and impact.

By supporting the needs of folks living in West Seattle who are in unstable housing conditions, we want to build up together a strong and resilient community and show up however we can and wherever we can.

Any amount you can give will go directly into purchasing propane, food, water, and other basic needs.

"Why West Seattle?" Despite having so many communities, West Seattle doesn't have hardly any of the homeless services offered in other neighborhoods and districts. We've been forgotten even before the West Seattle Bridge broke and isolated us even more. Outreach teams don't come across the bridges, and if they do, it's infrequent government workers or teams preparing for sweeps. Folks that have started building relationships with us have talked about this fact. With so few ways to get off this peninsula, and so few resources for the population out here, why aren't there more folks out here supporting each other? How do we make that happen? [Hint: all it takes is you, but friends help too!]

"Why not just give to a shelter or nonprofit?" Do that too if ya want! From working nonprofits, including shelters in this city, to doing outreach and case management, there is a lot out there already, and everyone has their niche. However, what ends up getting lost or burnt up in the Nonprofit Industrial Complex (NPIC) is a lot of the heart of not only why some of us enter the field of homeless services, but also accountability to each other, including those we are here to build alongside, creative means of survival and support, and a radical love for all our neighbors where they are at. Stick enough folks who have or do work in the homeless sector of the NPIC in a room and you can hear it in folks - burnout, frustration, inaction/passivity, and sometimes a callous jadedness towards those we say we work to help. It is a system that grinds on people, both who need those services and those who provide those services directly. Even outreach-based nonprofits don't always show up correct to the people they serve, but still wanna be seen as beacons of the way things ought to be done. We see the limitations, hear the complaints about inexperienced and uncaring outreachers, horror stories about many shelters, and disillusionment of working with case managers. Can't say they're wrong - these entities are necessary at this moment, but we ask: "What else can we do? How can we be better? Why don't we scrap the way things currently happen with something else? Something more horizontal, community for community like? Something...different?"

That's where mutual aid efforts like ours and the networks we have come in. Sure, we don't have the budget, space, staffing, rigid structure, etc. like a nonprofit does, but what we do have is each other: care for each other, and also our networks are meant to be grown together with folks we are here to foster relationships alongside. We all have things to bring to the party: whether it be special skills, material goods, or your time and energy.

We aren't here to be saviors; we're here to be community, and be in solidarity with all of us out here trying to survive together.