from
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2023/10/25/after-hours-of-debate-richmond-becomes-first-u-s-city-to-declare-support-for-palestinians-amid-israel-hamas-war/

Richmond becomes first U.S. city to declare support for Palestinians
amid Israel-Hamas war
Nearly five hours of public testimony preceded the 5-1 vote Tuesday night
The Richmond City Council chambers overflowed with attendees on Tuesday,
Oct. 24, 2023 as residents came out to express their opinion on the Gaza
Resolution to be voted on by the city council in Richmond, Calif. Nearly
five hours of public testimony was recorded from scores of community
leaders and local residents representing all sides of the war that has
already claimed more than 6,500 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis. (Photo
by Don Gosney)

Katie Lauer is a reporter for the Bay Area News Group
By KATIE LAUER | klauer@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: October 25, 2023 at 5:13 p.m. | UPDATED: October 26, 2023 at
5:24 a.m.

RICHMOND — When officials in this city of only 115,000 people announced
they would be voting on a resolution to support Palestinians living in
Gaza amid the worst outbreak of violence between Israel and Hamas in
decades, it drew hundreds of people to Tuesday’s city council meeting.

The Richmond City Council cleared its entire Tuesday night schedule to
discuss the controversial stance, which protests what the resolution
characterizes as an ongoing campaign of ethnic cleansing, collective
punishment and war crimes by the state of Israel. A vote approving the
lengthy resolution wasn’t tallied until just after 1 a.m. Wednesday —
establishing what appears to be the first of its kind in the nation.

Nearly five hours of public testimony was delivered by scores of
community leaders and local residents on all sides of the conflict,
which has already claimed the lives of more than 6,500 Palestinians and
1,400 Israelis.

Richmond’s elected officials patiently listened to the hundreds of
people who packed City Hall’s chambers to capacity, overflowed to the
auditorium lobby next door and tuned into one of the meeting’s
livestreams. At one point, the Zoom room maxed out its limit of 500
participants and more than 300 people were following along on YouTube,
while at least an additional 150 written public comments were submitted
virtually.

Attendees — who were given only 60 seconds to speak — collectively
represented a cacophony of anger, grief, fear, hope and solidarity that
overwhelmingly pleaded for a shared future of peace and the sanctity of
innocent lives. More than half of the comments supported the resolution.

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Numerous people described accounts of personal family members being
caught in the crossfire in both Gaza and Israel. Others focused on death
tolls of the most recent attacks, or recounted historic milestones of
the decades-long conflict. Some Jewish speakers said the resolution made
them fear for their safety living in Richmond.
But despite a handful of impassioned speeches that boiled over into
divisive, accusatory attacks against city leaders, the meeting never
devolved into utter chaos or more than a few minutes of delay.

“That is the beauty of Richmond,” said Councilmember Doria Robinson,
“that we can hold that kind of space, and we can actually hear each
other, even if we don’t agree. I think it is important — as we lean into
justice, as we lean into being courageous — that we make sure not to
forget any part of our humanity and remember that people are hurting.”

People filled the overflow space outside the the Richmond City Council
chambers on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023 showing up to express their opinion
on the Gaza Resolution to be voted on by the city council in Richmond,
Calif. Nearly five hours of public testimony was recorded from scores of
community leaders and local residents representing all sides of the war
that has already claimed more than 6,500 Palestinians and 1,400
Israelis.(Photo by Don Gosney)
An amended version of the resolution was approved in a 5-1 vote.
Councilmember Cesar Zepeda voted no after his short list of additional
amendments and clarifications was rejected, and Councilmember Claudia
Jimenez was absent on medical leave.

Last-minute amendments that were approved included condemnation of
Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack and called for the release of Israeli hostages;
they were added following an immense outcry from largely Jewish
community organizations and other residents leading up to Tuesday’s meeting.

The final approved resolution proclaimed, in part, that Palestinians in
Gaza “are currently facing a campaign of ethnic cleansing and collective
punishment by the state of Israel; and whereas, collective punishment is
considered a war crime under international law.”

Additionally, the final resolution criticized Palestinians’ lack of
access to electricity, food, water, medical care and aid — calling for
an immediate ceasefire and substantial humanitarian aid to Gaza, in
addition to “an end to Israeli apartheid in the occupation and blockade
of Palestinian land.”

Elected officials said that with the resolution, they aimed to amplify
Palestinian narratives that they felt were being excluded from
mainstream news.

While Robinson said that the last-minute changes were made possible
through dialogue and understanding, she criticized the hateful rhetoric
that targeted the city’s resolution, comparing it to a history of
pushback against similar efforts during the civil rights, South African
apartheid and the U.S. abolitionist movement.

“It was not popular, it was not comfortable, there were wars fought to
stop those things, and it was divisive, but at some point, somebody has
to say, ‘I love you, and what you’re doing is wrong,’” Robinson said. “I
think we’re at that point in Richmond. I hope we’re at that point in
Richmond.”

People filled the overflow space outside the the Richmond City Council
chambers on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023 showing up to express their opinion
on the Gaza Resolution to be voted on by the city council in Richmond,
Calif. Nearly five hours of public testimony was recorded from scores of
community leaders and local residents representing all sides of the war
that has already claimed more than 6,500 Palestinians and 1,400
Israelis. (Photo by Don Gosney)
Yet, dozens of people at the meeting called for rejection or even a
delay of the vote — arguing that it would only sow more division.

“It appears to me like the city councilmembers that wrote the resolution
are using the tragic situation in Palestine and Israel, both of which
are thousands of miles away from Richmond, to gain politically from it,”
said Richmond resident Theresa Russell. “That doesn’t sit well with me.”

Others felt the resolution was antisemitic, including Beth Seidman, a
37-year Richmond resident who said it was full of “half-truths,
inaccuracies and distortions.” She said it was a “resolution to create
hatred toward Jews and divisiveness in our community.”

Meanwhile, Mayor Eduardo Martinez, who co-sponsored the resolution, said
society has historically been slow to openly recognize issues like
apartheid and war crimes. Rather than avoid controversy or divisiveness,
he said he can simultaneously denounce burgeoning antisemitic rhetoric,
while uplifting decades of Palestinian oppression.

“If (the resolution) sounds one-sided, it’s because it voices a
narrative that has been ignored,” Martinez said, later doubling down on
the notion that none of the approved language was hostile against Jewish
people. “How many times when we read history have we asked, ‘Why didn’t
anyone do something sooner?’ Do we say something when the bloodshed is
over? This proclamation chooses human lives over politics.”

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