U.S. News
Activists take over hotel with hatchets, demand shelter for homeless
The activist group had purchased a room at the hotel Saturday night and moved in 33 homeless people.
Armed with hatchets and knives, homeless activists in Washington state’s capital city forcibly occupied the lobby and 17 rooms at a Red Lion Hotel, demanding it house people afflicted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Amid the occupation Sunday by a group called Oly Housing Now, at least one employee was assaulted, according to the Olympia Police Department, reported the local paper, the Olympian.
At least seven people were taken into custody.
SWAT teams and other law enforcement officers closed off the nearby roadway and went through the hotel floor by floor after employees fled to the basement. The activist group had purchased a room at the hotel Saturday night and moved in 33 homeless people. On Sunday, at least 35 members of the group assembled in the lobby and outside the hotel.
Videos on social media showed a crowd chanting and harassing police officers.