As fentanyl addicts and the mentally ill continue to languish and die on our streets, Mayor Bruce Harrell’s administration has decided that what downtown Seattle really needs are sidewalk murals. Because nothing says “we’re tackling the root causes of homelessness” quite like ensuring that when a drug addict passes out, they do so on a vibrant, city-commissioned work of art.
The sidewalk murals align with Harrell’s uninspired Downtown Activation Plan. One of the action steps? “Create more murals and other art installations throughout Downtown and activate street corners, parks, and transit stations with buskers and other forms of entertainment to create a more beautiful and welcoming environment, mitigating the impact of graffiti and street disorder.” Harrell, via a spokesperson, said this particular project was sponsored by the Downtown Seattle Association.
The logic, if you can call it that, seems to be that if we make the scenery prettier, the human suffering playing out against it will somehow be less tragic. It’s a continuation of the same tired, ineffective, and lazy approach we’ve seen countless times from our city’s leadership. Harrell is a master of the performative gesture, the symbolic act that accomplishes nothing but allows the mayor to pat himself on the back for a job well done…