Protesters demanding $15 minimum wage arrested in Bellevue after blocking intersection (PHOTOS)



BELLEVUE -- First, it was SeaTac. Then it was Seattle. Now Bellevue is the target of activists who want to see the minimum wage raised to $15 an hour.

Dozens of demonstrators marched across the I-90 bridge from Seattle to Bellevue and, for the first time, rallied in front of fast-food restaurants on the Eastside.

“The grass-roots movement that happened in Seattle will catch on in Bellevue and hopefully infect all of the Northwest,” said Austin Welsch, a supporter of the group 'Working Washington.'

Seattle enacted a $15 minimum wage ordinance, spurred by City Councilwoman Kshama Sawant and with the backing of Mayor Ed Murray. But Bellevue has never put the topic on the city’s agenda.

“We need to understand the big picture before we jump in and make a specific decision,” said Emily Christensen, a spokeswoman for the city of Bellevue.



Demonstrators are hoping to push that agenda with their voice and actions. After crossing I-90 and gathering outside several fast-food restaurants, they marched to the major intersection of NE 10th and Bellevue Way in downtown Bellevue where they stopped traffic.

Eight protesters sat in the middle of the intersection until they were arrested.

Bellevue police sent several officers to the scene in riot gear but the arrests were peaceful, and the rest of the group moved on, though they vowed this won’t be the last time they rally for $15 an hour in the Bellevue area.