A picture. A thousand words. You know the phrase. And there have been so many pictures lately, especially of signs. I’ve overheard the conversations about “my favorite sign” from the late protest against all things Donald Trump. The convulsion of anxiety and emotion and protest is unlike anything I’ve seen in quite awhile. Usually this kind of upset precedes a military action, at least over the last 25 years. There is the deadline, the build up, the protests, the action, and then the resolution. Heads are spinning in Seattle, especially over the President’s actions on immigration.

What I find interesting and peculiar about the meltdown in Seattle is how the outrage is coupled with excitement. Elected officials scurry from place to place, set up microphones, and then attempt to outdo each other in their condemnation of the immigration orders. Many words are said, pictures are taken, promises are made, and the cheers and sense of pride and self-satisfaction fill the room and the airwaves. I find very little distinction between the kind of emotional energy surrounding these protests or the sense of pride that people here had when Obama was elected and a marriage equality initiative passed and the enthusiasm people here expressed when the Seahawks won the Super Bowl.

Notwithstanding the very real chaos unfolding as one regime replaces another in our nations capitol, I find all this disturbing for a few reasons. First, while the Mayor and Council do their best to emote and quote and ambulate around all manner of totems, they have encouraged and supported moves over things they actually control that are in direct contradiction to the sentiments they express in their performances about immigration. Right here, in our own land use and building codes are all manner of limits and restrictions to housing for people — all kinds of people — who want to live in Seattle.

Second, I find it ironic if not just plain hypocritical, that the same Mayor and Council who claim Seattle to be a “sanctuary city” think nothing of debating sweeping homeless people out from under bridges and other public areas. As I’ve said before, what are homeless people but domestic refugees. Yet, our local policy is as fearful and xenophobic as anything Trump said while campaigning or in the last week as President.

Finally, I know that many people who have the signs against upzones in the U District were in the streets last week. I know that the person who has the sign about “Love is Love” very likely would oppose a microhousing project if it were going in next door, or down the street. I know that the sentimentality for far off refugees or people being held in airports or facing deportation or the uncertainty of the next months ahead is not shared for new workers and people moving to Seattle who need a place to live. I know what they’ll say: “Oh c’mon! It’s different. It’s different.” Of course. You know. Parking. Views. Height. Bulk. Scale.

I’m still trying to figure out how it’s different. How is it different from the President’s actions to slam the door to new housing projects that will benefit many people coming here, including people from other countries who have found employment here. How is it different from the President’s actions to actively campaign against people who are living in tents and in cars because they have no money, are struggling with addiction, or simply have no other options left. What if all these refugees we’re supposed to provide sanctuary actually show up. Where are they supposed to live? Where will they park? Won’t they block your view of the Space Needle? I’ve seen this all before. High and mighty rhetoric for the television cameras and the national press, opposition to wars and foreign adventures, but right around the corner, well, “It’s different.” Those people in are “in my space.”