Seattle's protest legacy: From strikes to CHOP

Driving the news: Seattle's May Day events kick off at noon with a rally at Cal Anderson Park, followed by a march advocating for workers' and immigrants' rights.

• Similar demonstrations are planned across Washington state, including in Tacoma, Yakima and five Kitsap County cities.

Catch up quick: Seattle's protest history started more than a century ago.

1919 general strike: 65,000 workers walked off the job in the first citywide general strike in U.S. history.

1934 waterfront strike: Longshoremen shut down West Coast ports for 83 days, demanding union recognition and better working conditions.

Civil rights movements of the late '60s and '70s: Students marched against the Vietnam War, the local Black Panther Party demonstrated for racial justice, and Indigenous activists led the Fort Lawton occupation, demanding land and cultural recognition and eventually securing the Daybreak Star Cultural Center.

1999 WTO protests: Tens of thousands disrupted the World Trade Organization summit, drawing global attention and prompting a significant police response in one of the largest protests seen in Seattle.

2000-2016 May Day marches: Annual immigrant rights demonstrations were sometimes joined by black-clad anarchists, with some years marked by property damage and arrests. ​

• In recent years, the marches have been largely peaceful.

2020 racial justice uprisings: Protests following the murder of George Floyd — many aligned with the Black Lives Matter movement — led to the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) zone and citywide debates over policing and equity.

Go deeper: What to know about anti-Trump May Day protests