HOBBY LOBBY takes over old K-Mart in Seattle.

[freshwest]

Saw the disgusting sign of this infamous bunch as I was driving, looking for a store today. They have a sign posted in front of the Aurora Avenue location where the K-Mart store was located a little south of 145th Street, just north of the Albertson's store.

So the Fundies will make trouble here. I've seen protests against the KFC in the same area to protest the plight of chickens in their facilities.

Will Seattle protest this RW storefront who has taken their fight to deny women choice national?

[sheshe2]

1. OMG!

Damn! Hobby Lobby in Seattle.

Screw them and there hateful treatment of women and their choice. Enough! I am tired and this is enough!

Thanks for keeping us informed freshwest. I sure hope that Seattle will protest this.

[freshwest]

10. Thanks, sheshe!

[ismnotwasm]

2. I live in Seattle and I had no idea

I know exactly where this is I'm on the other side of the city.

I think it's time to meet up with my girls and see if we can't get some action going. This is bullshit.

[House of Roberts]

3. K-Mart to Hobby Lobby

Sounds like you traded sideways.

[ismnotwasm]

6. That Kmart was older than dirt

One of the last holdouts on a dying nasty company. But Hobby Lobby? Newer Assholes extraordinaire

[House of Roberts]

7. KMart would have bit the dust if not for Sears.

I still have a single KMart. Never go in there or Sears anymore.

I try to shop at JC Penneys for what I can't get at Target.

[Cha]

4. I'm betting Seattle will, fresh! Good Luck to

you~

Mahalo for the heads-up.

[freshwest]

9. Thanks, Cha. This needs to be debated and protested. They are a lousy to workers, too, most likely.

[Cha]

11. Kick!

[ismnotwasm]

5. I just looked and can't find a single protest organized

They do NOT get away with this. I have the next few days off, to make some calls. I'm completely appalled.

[freshwest]

8. Thank you very much! The RW will use this presence against us here.

[sheshe2]

13. Thank you ismnotwasm! nt

[mntleo2]

20. Seattelite Here Ready to protest!

I will PM you with my email and phone number. I am an activist and board member for a non-profit called POWER for low income folks. POWER is based in Olympia but used to be called WROC, which was based in Seattle. Our website is: http://www.mamapower.org.

Women in poverty especially need the right to access for women's health needs. I will take this concern to the board, we are meeting in Oly today.

Good lord all we need is that wingnut business in our midst. We have fought off allowing WalMart within the Seattle city limits and won, now it is time to put the kabash on those "Christian" hypocrites. If it can be done with WalMart, it can be done with them. Also perhaps it is time to take this to the city council and let them know allowing those people within our city limits will hurt the women in this area. Right across Aurora is a large low income community housing apartment highrise,that houses many low income people. Perhaps it is time to let them know about it as well since it would impact many in that building.

My 2 cents,

Cat in Seattle

[freshwest]

23. Thank you so much. The sight of that sign and the inroads they want to make here make my heart hurt.

Last edited Sun Jun 8, 2014, 06:53 PM - Edit history (1)

One of our state senate members has talked about bringing more business to our area, as the K-Mart store and a beautiful large store to the north have been sitting vacant for months.

I don't know who to encourage to make use of these properties, but I bet the vultures are ready to pounce on them.

We don't need more GOP, fundie Hobby Lobby politics. I wish I'd taken a picture of the sign but I was driving someone around and couldn't stop. It would be hard to get a snapshot from the street as it's very busy there.

[mntleo2]

35. Seattle Politics about Business Opportunities

Well the best place to start find out about why they are allowing Hobby Lobby is the Seattle zoning people. They are the ones who pretty much OK the business applications to occupy properties. If Sears owned it (who own KMart) it's CEO is a wingnut himself who is running KMart and Sears into the ground because he is trying to make Sears a property management/owning company. I suspect the politics here is about money, as usual. But I may be wrong ~ I have just learned as an unpaid lobbyist that money is usually in there somewhere.

Just my 2 cents

Cat in Seattle

[sheshe2]

12. Kick and Hell yes Recommend!

[AtheistCrusader]

14. There's a couple in the greater seattle area.

I'm a little surprised that people shop there.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

24. One in Everett and one in Lynnwood

The old Cost Cutter store on Everett Mall Way and the G.I. Joes on 99 and 196th are now Hobby Lobby stores.

[AtheistCrusader]

25. Anothe near Mountlake Terrace, about halfway between

Everett and Downtown Seattle.

I walked in to see what they had. Didn't look much different from a michaels and a Jo Ann fabric munged together. Couldn't find anything not made in china.

Walked out. Store looked mostly unoccupied.

[MFM008]

15. they did the same here in Lakewood, Wa

My mom worked at the store off 100th in Lakewood for 20 years, My dad had his first job there at KMart after he retired from USAF in 1974 before he got a 20 year job at the VA.
Then these asses come in and take over the building we went to for 40 years.
Sickening. I will die without setting foot in the place.
There is a Michaels down the street I will continue to go to. Hobby Lobby wont miss me but Ill feel better.

[freshwest]

16. Thanks.

[Flying Squirrel]

17. I live less than a mile away

My girlfriend was very sad to hear that everyone in the house (me, her mom and aunt) would have to disown her if she shops there when it opens

Nah, we won't go that far, we'll just give her heck. lol

[eridani]

18. I'm in the south end--is the Hobby Lobby now within the city limits?

If so, they'll be paying $15/hr in a few years.

[freshwest]

19. Yes, that's in the city limits. No doubt they'll contribute to anti-choice, anti-ACA candidates, too

[factsarenotfair]

21. From the one visit I made to a Hobby Lobby, it looked like ANTI-HOBBY Lobby to me.

Their stores have tons of crap made in China by exploited workers, some of it made to look like it was made by crafters in America!!! Is HL part of some plot to stop Americans from participating in hobbies and crafts???

[jmowreader]

46. I really don't know why they let them get away with calling it HOBBY Lobby

There's one close to Coeur d'Alene, and it's full of home decor items and Christian gifts. You could take their entire "hobby" section out and still have 85 percent of the merchandise remaining.

[factsarenotfair]

47. I'm too lazy to measure, but I've looked at some HL floor plans and the Hobby section looks like

about 5%. What's up with that?

[jmowreader]

48. They sell what sells

It's obvious their customer base wants two things: anything that's seriously Christian in nature, and the kind of home-decor stuff you get at Pier 1 Imports or a flea market but without having to smell incense. Hence, that's what the Mullah Omar of OKC has filled his stores with.

[sheshe2]

22. Kick!

[Rhiannon12866]

26. Not only did Hobby Lobby just open a huge new store in the building where I worked for years

But they bought the beautiful campus where I went to boarding school in Massachusetts, graduated from high school there. It's been there since 1879.

[freshwest]

27. That is sad. All their money from selling cheap stuff from China is allowing them more buying power.

Conservafives are buying up all kinds of things, schools, media, park land, roads, everything.

It reduces diverstiy and freedom for others as the more monopoly power they get in an area, the more aggressive they are in pushing their views.

[Rhiannon12866]

28. My school was in a small town and the locals are up in arms since they didn't do anything with it.

I didn't exactly love boarding school, but the campus is beautiful and has such a long history. I agree and feel personally insulted.

[freshwest]

32. They have plans for the campus, if this the same place mentioned here:

In January 2013, Hobby Lobby issued a press release announcing its gift of a former prep school campus in Northfield, Mass., to the fund. The fund reports it is “giving away” the campus and is accepting applicants. (“Large Christian ministries, schools, seminaries and think tanks will most likely be the best potential recipients,” says an NCF website.)

http://www.salon.com/2014/03/27/hobby_lobbys_secret_agenda_how_its_secretly_funding_a_vast_right_wing_movement/

They will be pushing to turn MA into a red state.

[Rhiannon12866]

34. Yes, that was my school.

It was started as a girls' school in 1879 and was originally known as Northfield Seminary, but that was about a century before I went there. Selling this property has upset a lot of alumnae, especially the older ones. Northfield finally went co-ed in the '70s, joined with its "brother" school, Mount Hermon, across the river. Because of financial issues, they decided to downsize and sell one of the campuses a few years back and they chose the girls' school since it was larger. Thanks so much for the article...

[montanacowboy]

29. I think they are still working on it

and it's not open yet; when I saw that sign I almost wrecked - it's HUGE, and you can't miss it. I wondered what was going to go in there and it couldn't be worse. I wonder how much the general public even know about them.

[freshwest]

30. Thanks, I had the same response but since I was driving someone I couldn't react to it at all.

I doubt anyone who doesn't follow politics closely has a clue at to what this group does.

[freshwest]

31. What Hobby Lobby Can Mean for the LGBT Community

Posted: 03-25-2014
Updated: 05/25/2014

HOBBY LOBBY BIRTH CONTROL

Today, March 25, 2014, the Supreme Court will hear argument in yet another case that could dramatically affect LGBT people, but this time it's not about marriage equality. In Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., a for-profit business is challenging its obligation under the Affordable Care Act to provide employees with access to birth control. If accepted by the Court, the arguments Hobby Lobby is advancing may pose a serious threat to anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people...

Understandably, this case is receiving significant attention in the reproductive rights movement. However, the LGBT community should be equally invested in the outcome given the considerable intersections between these movements. The LGBT and reproductive rights movements have a shared legal past and continue to be linked in legal discourse. Many of the initial LGBT legal successes built on the legal successes of the reproductive rights movement. Both movements are strongly based on the principle that individuals have a constitutionally protected right to control their sexual lives without interference by the government. The same arguments used to attack reproductive freedom are often used to undermine protections against sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination. And even more fundamentally, access to safe and affordable abortions and contraception are critically important to lesbian and bisexual women and to transgender people. Because of these tangible intersections, the Hobby Lobby case has the potential to harm the LGBT community in a number of significant ways.

Perhaps most obviously, a Supreme Court decision allowing employers to restrict employee contraceptive coverage would directly harm many queer women and families. Many members of our community engage in sexual activity that can lead to unintended pregnancy and are also, tragically, sometimes targeted for sexual assault and rape, which can result in unwanted pregnancy. Some studies even suggest that LGBT youth are at a higher risk for teen pregnancy than their heterosexual counterparts. These segments of our community urgently need the access to contraceptive coverage that the ACA requires.

But the Hobby Lobby case threatens LGBT people's reproductive rights in other, perhaps less obvious ways. LGBT people already face disproportionate discrimination in accessing health care services, including denials for treatment. This is especially true for reproductive health care and access to reproductive health technologies. These barriers almost certainly would be exacerbated if employers are able to pick and choose which services are covered based on discriminatory factors. For example, citing religious objections, employers could refuse to cover reproductive health care for transgender individuals or fertility services for same-sex couples.

A negative outcome in the case could also roll back crucial victories for LGBT equality at the state and local level. While federal laws expressly prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people in employment, housing, and public accommodations have yet to be enacted, several states and localities have enacted such measures. However, because those laws exempt religious organizations, a Supreme Court ruling in favor of Hobby Lobby could open the door for businesses to argue that they must be given similar leeway to violate state and local anti-discrimination laws...

More at the link:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ashland-johnson/what-hobby-lobby-can-mean-for-the-lgbt-community_b_5028592.html

Won't be decided until late this momth, according to this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebelius_v._Hobby_Lobby#Opinion_of_the_Court

More effects from the political activism of Hobby Lobby:

What The Christian Right Hopes To Gain From the Hobby Lobby Case

http://purpleunions.com/blog/tag/hobby-lobby

Why gay rights groups care about a Supreme Court birth control case

http://news.yahoo.com/why-gay-rights-groups-care-about-a-supreme-court-birth-control-case-211337519.html

Why LGBT Groups Should Be Paying Attention to the Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Cases

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/03/21/lgbt-groups-paying-attention-hobby-lobby-conestoga-wood-cases/

Arizona’s Anti-Gay Bill Lives on in Hobby Lobby

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2014/03/arizonas-anti-gay-bill-lives-on-in-hobby-lobby.html

And this tidbit:

Hobby Lobby slammed over alleged anti-Semitism

http://www.wisconsingazette.com/breaking-news/hobby-lobby-slammed-over-alleged-anti-semitism.html

MOST IMPORTANT IS THIS from Salon:

Hobby Lobby’s secret agenda: How it’s quietly funding a vast right-wing movement
Exclusive: How entities related to the company are quietly pumping tens of millions into a mélange of fringe causes

http://www.salon.com/2014/03/27/hobby_lobbys_secret_agenda_how_its_secretly_funding_a_vast_right_wing_movement/

This is not representative of the people of Seattle and will set this region back. There is a lot of money being funneled here to fight liberal and progressive causes here and they've taken over most media as well.

[ismnotwasm]

37. Pride day in Seattle is June 19th

I bet we could get a boycott Hobby Lobby banner going at the parade. I'll ask through FB

[freshwest]

33. Hobby Lobby’s secret agenda: How it’s quietly funding a vast right-wing movement

Exclusive: How entities related to the company are quietly pumping tens of millions into a mélange of fringe causes

Mar 27, 2014

http://www.salon.com/2014/03/27/hobby_lobbys_secret_agenda_how_its_secretly_funding_a_vast_right_wing_movement/

Sorry, there is so much there it was impossible for me to pick which paragraphs to post. I hope DUers will take the time to read the entire thing. Anyone feel free to post any of these links where they think it will do the most good. It's horrible what they're doing with their billions.

[Rhiannon12866]

36. Thanks for posting this!

Everybody should read it...

[ismnotwasm]

38. Hobby Lobby: God's own corporation

Let’s see a show of hands: How many of you would shop at a dry goods store that blasts heavy metal madness through its speakers, features products catering to the occult, and urges its employees to worship Satan as their Lord and Master? Okay, not so many hands. Now, how about a store that plays Middle Eastern or Asian music, prominently displays crafts with an Islamic or Hindu theme, and encourages its employees to take time to pray to Allah or Vishnu? Oh, a few more hands!
Now, supposing you found yourself shopping at a craft store that discouraged religious diversity in both its products and workers, was chockablock with Christian themes (including the background music) and yet operated as a non-religious for-profit corporation? Looks like a whole bunch of arms just shot up.
After all, this is America, where discrimination is officially frowned upon, unless it’s supported by evangelical Christianity. Then it’s okay.
Welcome to Hobby Lobby, the overtly Christian company disguised as a typical corporation.
If, as the bizarre Supreme Court decision known as “Citizens United” is correct and corporations are persons, then Hobby Lobby is a preacher. Which begs the question, aren’t preachers and their churches (in this case, Mount Vernon, Wash., where a new Hobby Lobby just opened its doors) legally supposed to be non-profit enterprises?
Our founding fathers and mothers must be spinning, sewing, and crocheting in their graves. America was born out of a desire to be free from religious oppression and persecution. And here we have a corporate chain of businesses whose sole purpose (other than to make tons of money off of folks who like to create cool stuff with their hands and imagination) would appear to be promoting the Gospel of their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Or, more precisely, the twisted teachings of the Apostle Paul and utterly bewildering strictures of the Old Testament. According to the Hobby Lobby translation, of course.
Reports from around the country have poured in about Hobby Lobby’s aversion to gay patrons, non-Christians, and generally questionable types. Such intolerance might be tolerated in a private club or narrowly defined non-profit group. But in an official corporation registered in the Land of the Free?
That’s a notion that America shouldn’t buy.
What to do?
• Boycott Hobby Lobby.
• Contact local government officials to begin the process of revoking Hobby Lobby’s corporate charter.
• Work to overturn the disastrous “Citizens United” decision.
The American flag is being unraveled by the very same sort of religious zealots that our ancestors fled from. Let’s not repair it at the expense of our spiritual freedom.

http://www.examiner.com/article/hobby-lobby-god-s-own-corporation

[ismnotwasm]

39. Got this off of "Boycott Hobby Lobby" Facebook

[ismnotwasm]

40. So for people with Facebook

There is a boycott Hobby Lobby page, and however one feels about FB, it does help with organization. Anyway, I'm going to email state Rep Jim McDermott-- one of the last liberal Lions-- to see if he has any suggestions. Also Senator Patty Murray.


Jim McDermott services page
http://mcdermott.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=460&Itemid=4

Contact page for Patty Murray
http://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contactme


(And a very long shot, my husband knows a couple of people from KIRO)

[ismnotwasm]

41. One more thing the demographics of the building,

The site asks to contact the broker-- which you can't do from this link without signing in to something. I'm not sure how useful this will be, But it's kind of interesting


http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/17871439/13200-Aurora-Ave-N-Seattle-WA/?LinkCode=10850&SourceCode=1lww2t006a00001&

It LOOKs as though the primary sales company is DPG Distribution, I have to wade through a bunch of stuff to verify.

[freshwest]

42. Protest at this location, Sun. July 13, 5:00 p.m.:

Join the week of action to protest the Hobby Lobby decision & attacks on women's rights: July 3rd - July 13th.

Join WORD--Women Organized to Resist and Defend

Event listings:

Seattle, WA.

Sun. July 13, 5:00 p.m.

Future Hobby Lobby site, Aurora Ave N at N. 130th

Info:

[email protected]

or 206-568-1661

Part of national actions, more at this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5186889

Please pass the word!

[ismnotwasm]

43. Cool.

[tavalon]

45. How about at the one that's been open for two years?

Or is this the same one. It seems to be in the same place I remember the other one being at. Problem being that if it's open, they own the sidewalks. I don't think they own the parking lot.

This is the one I'm talking about:

19310 60th Ave W
Lynnwood, WA 98036

My husband's girlfriend helped open it.

[tavalon]

44. Hobby Lobby has been in Seattle for 2 years

I know this because the woman who took my husband works there. Now, don't get me wrong, he was as wrong as her and with it being 18 months ago, I don't much care, but it would amuse me to carry a sign there. Let's get something going. Funny thing, I know there are at least two gays working there. I won't out them but it does show that Hobby Lobby is hypocritical or just damn blind.

OTOH, this ruling is having unexpected benefits to the detainees of Guantanamo. I bet they never considered that.