Remove shoes: Mayor Murray to give State-of-City address at Idris Mosque



less Flanked by city council president Bruce Harrell (left), Seattle Mayor Ed Murray delivers his 2016 State of the City address in the council chambers, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. Murray has moved this week's speech to the Idris Mosque near Northgate. Flanked by city council president Bruce Harrell (left), Seattle Mayor Ed Murray delivers his 2016 State of the City address in the council chambers, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. Murray has moved this week's speech ... more Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Remove shoes: Mayor Murray to give State-of-City address at Idris Mosque 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Those arriving to watch Seattle Mayor Ed Murray's deliver his State-of-the-City speech next week will need to remove their shoes upon entering, or wear a shoe cover provided at the entrance.

Murray is making a statement a week before his speech. Instead of the Seattle City Council chambers, State-of-the-City will be delivered at the Idris Mosque near Northgate.

The Arabesque-style mosque, competed in 1981, has already served as a place where Seattle made a statement about its opposition to bigotry and commitment to multiculturalism.

In the days following the 9/11 attacks, after a minor incident of vandalism, volunteers organized by the Church Council of Greater Seattle stood vigils of protection outside the mosque, a precursor to the city declaring itself a "Hate Free Zone."

"Both the city and Idris Mosque are committed to the American ideal of separation of church and state," said a statement from the Mayor's office. "With this address, Mayor Murray and Council are standing with Seattle's Muslim community in their house of worship as we fight state sanctioned discrimination by the Trump administration."

Murray has used State-of-the-City speeches to espouse, proudly and without equivocation, his commitment to social justice and activist government.

The Mayor introduced listeners, a year ago, to Sen. Robert Kennedy's great 1968 Indianapolis speech, delivered to a largely African-American audience hours after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The theme central to the 2016 speech was racism and measures the city can take, especially in the education and support of young people, toward its eradication.

The speech this year will likely highlight contributions of immigrants who have sought out the prospering, technology-driven city -- even though often hard-pressed to afford it.

Murray has implemented such policies as the Seattle Police Department not asking residents about their immigration status. Major Seattle churches and synagogues are moving toward offering sanctuary to the targets of federal raids, if and when they begin here.

The Trump travel crackdown is generating the biggest mass protest movement America has seen since the 1960's anti-war protests. And such politicians as Murray and Gov. Jay Inslee are products of that era.

Inslee appeared at a post-Ramadan event in a Redmond mosque last year, and spoke last week at a Tukwila mosque.

The Governor is talking like an insurgent, and acting like a politician.

"Washington is leading the resistance and it's working -- starting with blocking Trump's discriminatory travel ban," the Governor said Monday on his Facebook page. Readers were invited to "Sign on to oppose Trump's travel ban." By signing, they can expect a nonstop barrage of Inslee fundraising emails.

The Murray speech will be delivered on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 9:30 at Idris Mosque, as part of a special meeting of the Seattle City Council. Seating will be on a first-come, first served basis, including an overflow space downstairs.

The speech will be live-streamed on the Seattle Channel.

King County Metro routes 73, 75, 77 and 373 all serve the corner of 15th Ave. NE and NE Northgate Way.