According to court filings, Seattle will reimburse business owners $3,650,000 for damages incurred during the BLM and Antifa riots of 2020. Far-left protestors and activists occupied a 16-block section of the city, which they called the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ), from June to July 2020. During the area's almost one-month-long operation, instigators wreaked havoc on local businesses, causing millions of dollars of damage due to the city's negligent handling of the situation. At the time, then-mayor Jenny Durkan insisted the CHAZ was a peaceful protest, but as protestors solidified their power and attempted to create a leftist safe haven in the heart of Seattle, crime escalated, and shootings occurred almost nightly with rapes, robberies, and murders increasing by 250 percent. The city's payout to businesses may seem substantial, but in reality, it’s a drop in the bucket, as insurance agencies report the protests of 2020 caused up to $2 billion in property damage.
