History of Seattle Weather Collective in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: May 1, 2026

The Weather Underground, also known as the Weather Underground Organization (WUO), was a radical left militant organization active in the late 1960s and 1970s. They formed collectives across the US to challenge the government, expressing solidarity with Third World liberation movements such as the Black Power movement and the Vietnamese. The collectives aimed to organize the white working class against imperialism. Their tactics included militant demonstrations and acts of property damage.

October 1969: Seattle collective organizes for the Days of Rage

In October 1969, the Seattle Weather Collective focused on organizing for the Days of Rage in Chicago. Members produced pamphlets to raise awareness and encourage participation.

1969: Formation of the Seattle Weathermen core during the Ave Riots

From August 10–14, 1969, women participating in the Ave Riots in Seattle's University District bonded and formed "the core of the Seattle Weathermen." These riots, protesting the Vietnam War and police brutality, led to the formation of the Seattle Weather Collective less than a week later in 1969.

May 1970: Protests against Reserve Officers' Training Corps centers

In May 1970, thirty Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) buildings were either burned or bombed. National Guard units were mobilized on twenty-one campuses in sixteen states. Weather Underground protested these offices in 1970, as they prepared officers for war, protesting an "empire [that] feeds on war."