She wants to overthrow the 'racist, sexist, violent, utterly bankrupt system of capitalism'
A group of Seattle residents are trying to recall a far left socialist member of the city council for her efforts in helping Black Lives Matter protests, and a judge decided on Wednesday that they could proceed.
Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant is a self-proclaimed socialist who has called for the destruction of capitalism.
Residents argued that she had violated her oath of office when she aided the protests in numerous instances, including one where she spoke at a protest in front of Mayor Jenny Durkan's house. In another incident, she used her passkey to let demonstrators into City Hall.
Sawant's attorney, Dmitri Iglitzin, argued that the residents were simply attempting to undo the results of the election because they disagreed with Sawant's politics.
"We have elections in this state and in this city, and those elections are where the decision as to who is holding this office is supposed to be determined," he said. "This is on its face, by any fair reading, a political screed against Council member Sawant."
King County Superior Court Judge Jim Rogers found that four of the six charges against Sawant met the standard to allow the recall process to continue.
"The petitioner has shown actual knowledge of facts indicating that the council member intended to commit an unlawful act," said Rogers.
Among the charges that he said were unfounded was a claim that Sawant had helped create the storied CHOP, or Capitol Hill Occupation Protest zone.
Organizers need to collect 10,000 signatures in order to put the recall effort on the ballot.
Sawant said that she planned to appeal the ruling.
In July, Sawant appeared on a video where she excoriated capitalism and vowed to replace it with socialism.
"We are coming to dismantle this deeply oppressive, racist, sexist, violent, utterly bankrupt system of capitalism. This police state. We cannot and will not stop until we overthrow it, and replace it with a world based, instead, on solidarity, genuine democracy, and equality: a socialist world," said Sawant.
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