Item Number:      7a 
Meeting Date:   May 12, 2020 

PROCLAMATION 
OF THE PORT OF SEATTLE COMMISSION 
WHEREAS, King County  is home to diverse communities and has been for many
generations; and 
WHEREAS, We are disturbed and alarmed by the severity and frequency of hate crimes and
race-based  harassment  against  Asians  and  the  Asian  Pacific  Islander
Communities associated with COVID-19 in King County and throughout the
world; and 
WHEREAS, Language that evokes xenophobia endangers our communities who are
experiencing heightened discrimination; and 
WHEREAS, Our community has long benefited from the rich diversity of our immigrant
population  including  rich  cultural  traditions,  political  and  economic
contributions; and 
WHEREAS, The Port of Seattle values the relationships we have built with all our trading
partners including those in Asia first affected by COVID-19; and 
WHEREAS, Seattle has a history that includes support for racial and social justice for all
communities; and 
WHEREAS, We are pledged to not repeating the egregious acts of discrimination committed
in King County in recent history including the incarceration of Japanese during
World War II and the exclusion of Chinese in the 1880s; and 
WHEREAS, No race, nationality or ethnicity is responsible for COVID-19; and 
WHEREAS, having Chinese ancestry or any other ancestrydoes not make a person more
vulnerable to COVID-19; and 
WHEREAS, Ignorance is the lifeblood of conspiracies that hamper our ability to fight the
pandemic and endanger the most vulnerable; and 
WHEREAS, The Port of Seattle recognizes the negative impact of institutional and structural
racism,  past  and  present  and  responded  by  creating  an  office  of  Equity,
Diversity and Inclusion to address these issues; and 
WHEREAS, An insensitive minority have vilified our Asian communities in response to the
COVID-19 virus, inflaming racism and inciting xenophobia in countries across
the globe; and

NOW, THEREFORE, the Port of Seattle Commission hereby proclaims that racism against
Asians and Asian Americans shall not be tolerated in any form, AND we stand in support of
individuals and communities targeted by association with Covid-19, AND we urge everyone to
interrupt instances of racisms and intolerance by speaking up in support of equity, justice, and
inclusion. 
We urge everyone to report instances of racism and intolerance to The Washington State Human
Rights Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission. Port of Seattle
employees are encouraged to report all instances of discrimination on the job to the Port's Office
of Workplace Responsibility. 
Proclaimed by the Port of Seattle Commission this 12th Day of May 2020. 



Port of Seattle Commission