Thank you to all of the community members who came out to support Earl on Monday. Thanks to community support, no conditions were placed on Earl ahead of trial.

The judge even acknowledged that “there’s clearly more to this case” then was found in the police report, an acknowledgment that is being interpreted as recognition that Earl’s arrest was clearly political.

He’s still charged with 1st degree criminal trespass even though he didn’t go inside the building, damage the premises in any way, or harm anyone. That’s right, he’s charged with 1st degree criminal trespass simply for sitting in his wheelchair and painting outside of the Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) building where he’s celebrated for his role, alongside fellow elder Omari Tahir and others, in winning the Colman School building for the community.

The NAAM Scam’s own website names Earl as a community hero, …

… while they have him arrested for painting outside of the building they celebrate him for helping to win. Earl, Omari and others lived inside the Colman School for years without water or electricity as its very first artist-in-residence — from 1985 until 1998 when the activists were raided and dispossessed by an SPD SWAT team — enduring so much so that the building might become a world renowned African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center, complete with an instrument library and programming to develop the talent and skills of young community artists and keep youth off of the streets.

NAAM Scam and the Urban League colluded with the Gates Family, Norm Rice, the City of Seattle and the FBI to steal the Colman School from the activists whose vision, dedication and sacrifice over the course of 13 years won them a signed purchase and sale agreement with the Seattle School Board for the property. The Seattle School Board publicly accepted their down payment for the building at a public meeting documented by the Seattle Times, only to later return it.

The first director of the NAAM Scam is a proud FBI agent Carver Gayton (whose son is the policy advisor for King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay). Bill Gates’ mother Mimi Gates and former Seattle Mayor Norm Rice are both founding and current board members of NAAM.

Elders Earl and Baba Omari, supported by a younger generation of revolutionary black activists and their native, brown and white accomplices, began reoccupying the premises outside of the Colman School on Juneteenth 2020 in the wake of the George Floyd Uprising. It is long overdue that the City and the Urban League correct past injustices and pass the building on debt-free with a programming budget to the new generation of grassroots black activists and their accomplices who are the rightful inheritors of our courageous elders’ legacy of revolution and resistance to create a real African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center for today’s youth.

Come support Earl and the African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center at Earl’s next hearing on Oct 19, 10:30 am, Seattle Superior Court, Courtroom 1002

On the afternoon of June 3rd, 2022, 74-year-old black elder and renowned artist Earl Debnam was arrested while painting outside of the building where he served as artist-in-residence of the African American Heritage Museum & Cultural Center from 1985-1998 in the longest occupation of a public building in US History.

The City Attorney is pressing charges against our elder for 1st degree criminal trespass!

He has a hearing scheduled in Seattle Municipal Court

September 19, 2022 at 9am

Courtroom 903

You can support by writing to the City Attorney, posting on social media, sending words of encouragement to Earl, and showing up to his hearing on Monday September 19th.

More About the Arrest:

Documents from the arrest indicate that NAAM is contracting with apartheid mercenaries!

The Northwest African American Museum founded with intervention by the FBI and backed by the Gates Foundation and the City of Seattle appears to have contracted with Allied Security Services, the same private security firm that is not only patrolling Seattle Police HQ, the downtown courts, and City Hall, but is also providing security for foreign oil corporations in Iraq, has a share of ownership in training the Israeli police and is involved in the transportation and deportation of immigrants from the UK to the US. Last year, Allied Universal acquired the notorious G4S.

A worker with Allied Security identified themself as patrolling the “Northwest African American Museum” in a 911 call when they called the police to remove Earl from the premises.

From the police report:

“W/CH works for Allied Security and was conducting her rounds and checking on the African Museum. She walked over to the fenced area securing the main entrance and saw the entry gate unlocked and opened. It appeared that someone had removed a padlock that had been in place the night prior. She observed a male sitting in a wheelchair at the main doorway. She contacted him and he identified him self as Debman, Earl C. 12/23/1947. She advised him that he was not allowed to be on the property and that he needed to leave. S/Debman refused and stated that he had rights to the property and would not leave. W/CH could not convince him to leave and called 911.

“Officers were aware that S/ Debman was a member of a Omari Garretts s activist group which has ongoing court issues with the African Museum / Urban League Village. There is a valid and served King County Motion for Summary Judgement and Issuing Writ Restitution (order # 21-2-04082-5). The order prohibits members of the activist group from coming within 2000 ft of the property.

“Officers contacted S/ Debnam, Earl C. 12/23/1947 who was sitting at the front entrance. He presented a large laminated letter listing Omari Garrett, along with his name and others. The letter claimed that he had right to the property.”