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Agenda Item
1 23-0935 Subject: Affirming Oakland's Support For The Congressional And Worldwide Calls For Immediate Ceasefire In Gaza
From: Councilmember Fife
Recommendation: Adopt A Resolution Affirming Oakland's Love Life Commitment And Support For The Congressional And Worldwide Calls For An Immediate Ceasefire In Gaza
I am a resident of Oakland living in District 2 and I urge Oakland City Council to pass the resolution calling for an immediate, permanent CEASEFIRE in Palestine. I disappointed that Oakland did not swiftly follow the City of Richmond in passing a resolution, but I was happy to see my Councilmember, Nikki Fortunato Bas be the first (in Oakland City Council) to publicly call for a ceasefire. Since this last meeting, the number of Palestinians who have been murdered has grown to over 14,000 people, with at least 5,500 of these being children. These numbers don't include those buried under the rubble, or who will continue to face death due to injuries, starvation or disease.
None of us are free until all of us are free and we the people of Oakland can not stand idly by while a genocide is taking place in Palestine.
Furthermore, Oakland's elected leaders have a duty to advocate how our tax dollars are spent by the state. We do not support using our city's taxes to fund death and destruction especially while Oakland Public Schools are not receiving adequate funding and our houseless neighbors do not have safe and dignified places to live. A Ceasefire does not go far enough to end the conflict in Gaza and ensure justice or peace, but it is a necessary action and I implore you to take a stand now!
As your constituent I’m urging the council to pass this resolution calling for a ceasefire now. End the occupation!! Free Palestine! lets do what we can to stop this genocide!!
My name is Kai Lynch and I am a resident of Oakland living in District 5. I urge the Oakland City Council members to pass the resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine. The City of Richmond & the Alameda County Democratic National Committee have already paved the way and set this precedent - I urge the city of Oakland to practice courage and join them in being on the right side of history.
With each day that passes, our city's continued silence is an act of complicity in the ongoing genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. When the City of Oakland Council last met and decided to remove this resolution from the agenda & a vote, the number of Palestinians who had been murdered was 10,000. Since this last meeting, the number of Palestinians who have been murdered has grown to over 14,000 people, with at least 5,500 of these being children. These numbers don't include those buried under the rubble, or who will continue to face death due to injuries & starvation. And these numbers will continue to grow if we continue to remain silent & complicit. I urge our city to call for an immediate & permanent ceasefire, and to condemn Israel's acts of war crimes & ethnic cleansing. Each resolution calling for this has power to make a difference, & I urge our city to practice humanity and be on the right side of history.
As a resident of Oakland, I urge the city council to support permanent ceasefire in Palestine. It is the absolute least we can do to stop this genocide.
I am a resident of Oakland and I support an immediate permanent ceasefire in Gaza. I’m disappointed that it’s taken Oakland this long to take a stance against the genocide that is being committed in Palestine and has resulted in thousands of lost lives and hundreds of injured civilians. There shouldn’t be a temporary ceasefire because this has gone on for far too long and the violence needs to stop. What the Israeli government is doing and the US is supporting is inhumane and unjustifiable. I support this resolution in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
I am a lifelong Oakland resident, and a Jewish constituent. I am urging my City leaders to take a principled stand and call for a ceasefire and end of violence in Gaza. It is incredibly important for as many people, cities and NGO’s to speak up on the side of peace. The world is watching the U.S. and waiting for us to stop this genocide, so as much pressure as we can exert we need to do for humanity. My heart aches for the children and families in Gaza, as I do for many of our communities at home as well. We must show our solidarity and do every thing we can to show our support to ending violence everywhere. A ceasefire is the bare minimum we can ask for to prevent any further deaths, followed by an International effort to find a lasting Peace for Palestinians and Israelis. Thank you.
I am an Oakland resident in District 1 - I urge the council to pass the resolution in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, who are being subject to ethnic cleansing and genocide by the Israeli state backed by the United States, and to demand a CEASEFIRE NOW. Already, over 14000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army, with more than 5000 of them being children.
I hope to proudly share that Oakland stands against genocide - thank you for your work on this vital legislation
As an Oakland resident who is Jewish, I am writing to call upon the rich history of resistance and activism that our beloved city of Oakland proudly embodies, urging you to 1) draft and pass a formal resolution in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, who are being subject to ethnic cleansing and genocide by the Israeli state backed by the United States, and to 2) demand a CEASEFIRE NOW. Already, over 14,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes, with more than half of these being women and children.
As you may have heard, on Tuesday, October 24, Richmond City Council boldly passed a resolution standing against genocide in Gaza, making it the first U.S. city to stand on the right side of history on this critical issue. We are now calling upon Oakland to carry out the anti-apartheid legacy it already has and once again take a firm stance against a genocidal apartheid regime. We can set a powerful precedent to hopefully lead a wave of solidarity across the nation.
I am an Oakland resident and have been for the past 22 years. Currently I am a resident of District 4. Standing with Palestine, calling for a ceasefire to the genocide in Gaza, and offering aid to those being harmed in Gaza are the only ways to represent the people of Oakland in this matter. I urge you to listen to the voices of your constituents and vote for a ceasefire. Oakland has been silent for far too long in this matter. We must join the calls for peace and protection of Palestinian life.
I am an Oakland resident and I support a permanent ceasefire and implore our city leadership to do the same. We must have the courage to stand against this ongoing violence, bombardment and occupation that is making us all less safe.
I am a Taiwanese-American resident of Berkeley. We need Oakland city council leadership to express solidarity for Palestinians experiencing extreme violence (the energy of two atomic bombs have besieged Gaza since Oct. 7, while the occupied West Bank erupts with illegal Israeli settler violence & Israeli military abuse of Palestinians).
The Israeli right-wingers are indiscriminately bombing millions of civilians in Gaza to claim a high "terrorists eliminated" count on right-wing TV, while innocent Gazans families are crushed to death in their bombed multistory homes, have hospitals with no anesthesia (e.g. pregnant women experience C-sections & amputations without painkillers), the worst timelines continue daily until ceasefire is called! I have been devastated that American leadership (Biden) has promoted disinformation & gaslit Palestinians just like the Israeli hasbara propaganda machine.
I have volunteered in Gaza for a startup bootcamp many years ago, & fondly remember Gazans as warm, funny humans. It breaks my heart daily to see Gazans falsely conflated with Hamas militants & our tax dollars helping Israel bomb 2.2 million civilians in Gaza as collective punishment for Hamas atrocities.
I am an Oakland resident and support the resolution as a starting point.
The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times (amongst others) have reported that the government of Israel deliberately fostered, funded, and favored Hamas over its secular leftist rivals. Citations below. The goal of dividing Palestinians against one another and delegitimizing their struggle for independence has been disturbingly successful. The strategy has been ongoing. In 2019, Netanyahu emphasized the importance of maintaining the division between Hamas and the PLO, with the goal of preventing a free Palestine.
Leaders of Israel have made genocidal remarks as they carry out "a textbook case of genocide".
The people of Oakland, including children, medical professionals, the working class, and folks from all different background and denominations have made it abundantly clear that anything less than a call for ceasefire from our elected officials would be complete and utter failure by our representatives. Support the call for ceasefire.
I am a resident of Oakland District 2 and I'm writing to implore Councilmember Bas and all members of Oakland City Council to vote yes on this resolution to support an immediate Ceasefire to protect further loss of life in Gaza. I appreciate Councilmember Bas' expressions of support for a Ceasefire and expect her to demonstrate that support in action with a yes vote on this resolution. The safety, livelihood and liberation of residents of our city is inherently tied to the safety, livelihood and liberation of innocent Palestinians currently held under siege in Gaza. Residents of Oakland are not safe or free in a world that allows occupation and genocide to go unchecked anywhere. Furthermore, Oakland's elected leaders have a duty to stand up for how our tax dollars are spent by the state, and your constituents do not support using our city's taxes to fund the destruction of communities and the infrastructure that families need to survive. A Ceasefire does not go far enough to end the conflict in Gaza and ensure justice or peace, but it is a necessary action.
I am a Jewish resident of District 3 in strong support of the resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. I am the granddaughter of Jewish organizers who faced violence and persecution for their work in labor and civil rights movements in the McCarthy Era. They taught me that our Jewish faith and heritage demands that we work to end injustice anywhere. It is in their memory, and the memory of millions of Jews who have fought oppression over centuries, that I demand an end to US support for the occupation of Palestine and the genocide in Gaza. We did not survive and fight against centuries of oppression and genocide to perpetrate it against others.
Speaking out and passing a resolution is the absolute least we can all do as decent human beings in the face of a live-streamed genocide. Before our eyes, we have watch more than 11,000 innocent civilians slaughtered, half of whom are children. Hospitals, refugee camps, supposed humanitarian corridors, places of worship, water, food, infrastructure have all been obliterated. Disease and starvation are setting in as the western powers have continued to fund genocide for over a month.
It is worth noting Chevron, one of the largest polluters of the East Bay, is being awarded contracts in the territory Israel is illegally and violently seizing from Palestine today.
This resolution is not enough and too late, yet it is crucial. I promise Oakland will remember where you stood during the most morally urgent time.
I am a resident of District 2 in strong support of the resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. I am an immigration attorney who serves asylum seekers and refugees and Oakland and the Bay Area. I am also a member and volunteer at Asian Prisoner Support Committee in Oakland. Every day I see the devastating consequences of US imperialism and US funded genocide on colonized peoples around the world. Oakland has the chance now to send a strong message to the world and to Palestinians in Gaza that we firmly oppose the genocide and ethnic cleansing Israel is committing against Palestinians, and strongly oppose this country's role in this genocide. The numbers of 11,000 killed in the resolution is already outdated, Israel has now killed more than 13,000 people in Gaza. Every day without a ceasefire means hundreds more Palestinians die. We must do everything in our power to call for a ceasefire now.
I strongly support this resolution calling for an immediate Ceasefire in Gaza. As taxpayers in the country that provides billions of dollars of military and other aid to Israel, we have a responsibility to use our voice in defense of human rights. We must use every portal of communication to call on the President and U.S. leadership to do all in his power to end the genocide happening in Gaza and allow humanitarian aid to all who need it there.
The people will remember whether you displayed moral courage during this critical moment in history. Your political future depends on the way you vote in this resolution. Do the right thing. Voting yes is the bare minimum you can do to end the senseless loss of life occurring in Gaza.
I am a resident of Oakland living in District 2 and I urge Oakland City Council to pass the resolution calling for an immediate, permanent CEASEFIRE in Palestine. I disappointed that Oakland did not swiftly follow the City of Richmond in passing a resolution, but I was happy to see my Councilmember, Nikki Fortunato Bas be the first (in Oakland City Council) to publicly call for a ceasefire. Since this last meeting, the number of Palestinians who have been murdered has grown to over 14,000 people, with at least 5,500 of these being children. These numbers don't include those buried under the rubble, or who will continue to face death due to injuries, starvation or disease.
None of us are free until all of us are free and we the people of Oakland can not stand idly by while a genocide is taking place in Palestine.
Furthermore, Oakland's elected leaders have a duty to advocate how our tax dollars are spent by the state. We do not support using our city's taxes to fund death and destruction especially while Oakland Public Schools are not receiving adequate funding and our houseless neighbors do not have safe and dignified places to live. A Ceasefire does not go far enough to end the conflict in Gaza and ensure justice or peace, but it is a necessary action and I implore you to take a stand now!
As your constituent I’m urging the council to pass this resolution calling for a ceasefire now. End the occupation!! Free Palestine! lets do what we can to stop this genocide!!
To the Oakland City Council,
My name is Kai Lynch and I am a resident of Oakland living in District 5. I urge the Oakland City Council members to pass the resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine. The City of Richmond & the Alameda County Democratic National Committee have already paved the way and set this precedent - I urge the city of Oakland to practice courage and join them in being on the right side of history.
With each day that passes, our city's continued silence is an act of complicity in the ongoing genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. When the City of Oakland Council last met and decided to remove this resolution from the agenda & a vote, the number of Palestinians who had been murdered was 10,000. Since this last meeting, the number of Palestinians who have been murdered has grown to over 14,000 people, with at least 5,500 of these being children. These numbers don't include those buried under the rubble, or who will continue to face death due to injuries & starvation. And these numbers will continue to grow if we continue to remain silent & complicit. I urge our city to call for an immediate & permanent ceasefire, and to condemn Israel's acts of war crimes & ethnic cleansing. Each resolution calling for this has power to make a difference, & I urge our city to practice humanity and be on the right side of history.
Thank you for your time & commitment,
Kai Lynch
As a resident of Oakland, I urge the city council to support permanent ceasefire in Palestine. It is the absolute least we can do to stop this genocide.
I am a resident of Oakland and I support an immediate permanent ceasefire in Gaza. I’m disappointed that it’s taken Oakland this long to take a stance against the genocide that is being committed in Palestine and has resulted in thousands of lost lives and hundreds of injured civilians. There shouldn’t be a temporary ceasefire because this has gone on for far too long and the violence needs to stop. What the Israeli government is doing and the US is supporting is inhumane and unjustifiable. I support this resolution in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
I’m a Jewish resident of Oakland, an OUSD teacher, and I support this resolution.
I am a lifelong Oakland resident, and a Jewish constituent. I am urging my City leaders to take a principled stand and call for a ceasefire and end of violence in Gaza. It is incredibly important for as many people, cities and NGO’s to speak up on the side of peace. The world is watching the U.S. and waiting for us to stop this genocide, so as much pressure as we can exert we need to do for humanity. My heart aches for the children and families in Gaza, as I do for many of our communities at home as well. We must show our solidarity and do every thing we can to show our support to ending violence everywhere. A ceasefire is the bare minimum we can ask for to prevent any further deaths, followed by an International effort to find a lasting Peace for Palestinians and Israelis. Thank you.
I am an Oakland resident in District 1 - I urge the council to pass the resolution in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, who are being subject to ethnic cleansing and genocide by the Israeli state backed by the United States, and to demand a CEASEFIRE NOW. Already, over 14000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army, with more than 5000 of them being children.
I hope to proudly share that Oakland stands against genocide - thank you for your work on this vital legislation
As an Oakland resident who is Jewish, I am writing to call upon the rich history of resistance and activism that our beloved city of Oakland proudly embodies, urging you to 1) draft and pass a formal resolution in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, who are being subject to ethnic cleansing and genocide by the Israeli state backed by the United States, and to 2) demand a CEASEFIRE NOW. Already, over 14,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes, with more than half of these being women and children.
As you may have heard, on Tuesday, October 24, Richmond City Council boldly passed a resolution standing against genocide in Gaza, making it the first U.S. city to stand on the right side of history on this critical issue. We are now calling upon Oakland to carry out the anti-apartheid legacy it already has and once again take a firm stance against a genocidal apartheid regime. We can set a powerful precedent to hopefully lead a wave of solidarity across the nation.
I am an Oakland resident and have been for the past 22 years. Currently I am a resident of District 4. Standing with Palestine, calling for a ceasefire to the genocide in Gaza, and offering aid to those being harmed in Gaza are the only ways to represent the people of Oakland in this matter. I urge you to listen to the voices of your constituents and vote for a ceasefire. Oakland has been silent for far too long in this matter. We must join the calls for peace and protection of Palestinian life.
I am an Oakland resident and I support a permanent ceasefire and implore our city leadership to do the same. We must have the courage to stand against this ongoing violence, bombardment and occupation that is making us all less safe.
I am a Taiwanese-American resident of Berkeley. We need Oakland city council leadership to express solidarity for Palestinians experiencing extreme violence (the energy of two atomic bombs have besieged Gaza since Oct. 7, while the occupied West Bank erupts with illegal Israeli settler violence & Israeli military abuse of Palestinians).
The Israeli right-wingers are indiscriminately bombing millions of civilians in Gaza to claim a high "terrorists eliminated" count on right-wing TV, while innocent Gazans families are crushed to death in their bombed multistory homes, have hospitals with no anesthesia (e.g. pregnant women experience C-sections & amputations without painkillers), the worst timelines continue daily until ceasefire is called! I have been devastated that American leadership (Biden) has promoted disinformation & gaslit Palestinians just like the Israeli hasbara propaganda machine.
I have volunteered in Gaza for a startup bootcamp many years ago, & fondly remember Gazans as warm, funny humans. It breaks my heart daily to see Gazans falsely conflated with Hamas militants & our tax dollars helping Israel bomb 2.2 million civilians in Gaza as collective punishment for Hamas atrocities.
https://thisgirlangie.medium.com/gazan-women-in-tech-meeting-wordpress-developer-rola-zaqout-who-moonlights-with-bzzra-a-2a027cd7d140
https://theintercept.com/2023/11/15/intercepted-gaza-biden-netanyahu
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2022/02/israels-system-of-apartheid
I am an Oakland resident and support the resolution as a starting point.
The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times (amongst others) have reported that the government of Israel deliberately fostered, funded, and favored Hamas over its secular leftist rivals. Citations below. The goal of dividing Palestinians against one another and delegitimizing their struggle for independence has been disturbingly successful. The strategy has been ongoing. In 2019, Netanyahu emphasized the importance of maintaining the division between Hamas and the PLO, with the goal of preventing a free Palestine.
Leaders of Israel have made genocidal remarks as they carry out "a textbook case of genocide".
Thank you for your work and please stay strong.
https://www.nytimes.com/1981/03/28/world/under-gaza-s-calm-surface-death-drugs-intrigue.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/17/opinion/letters/israel-gaza-palestinians.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20090926212507/http:/online.wsj.com/article/SB123275572295011847.html
https://jewishcurrents.org/a-textbook-case-of-genocide
The people of Oakland, including children, medical professionals, the working class, and folks from all different background and denominations have made it abundantly clear that anything less than a call for ceasefire from our elected officials would be complete and utter failure by our representatives. Support the call for ceasefire.
I am a resident of Oakland District 2 and I'm writing to implore Councilmember Bas and all members of Oakland City Council to vote yes on this resolution to support an immediate Ceasefire to protect further loss of life in Gaza. I appreciate Councilmember Bas' expressions of support for a Ceasefire and expect her to demonstrate that support in action with a yes vote on this resolution. The safety, livelihood and liberation of residents of our city is inherently tied to the safety, livelihood and liberation of innocent Palestinians currently held under siege in Gaza. Residents of Oakland are not safe or free in a world that allows occupation and genocide to go unchecked anywhere. Furthermore, Oakland's elected leaders have a duty to stand up for how our tax dollars are spent by the state, and your constituents do not support using our city's taxes to fund the destruction of communities and the infrastructure that families need to survive. A Ceasefire does not go far enough to end the conflict in Gaza and ensure justice or peace, but it is a necessary action.
I am a Jewish resident of District 3 in strong support of the resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. I am the granddaughter of Jewish organizers who faced violence and persecution for their work in labor and civil rights movements in the McCarthy Era. They taught me that our Jewish faith and heritage demands that we work to end injustice anywhere. It is in their memory, and the memory of millions of Jews who have fought oppression over centuries, that I demand an end to US support for the occupation of Palestine and the genocide in Gaza. We did not survive and fight against centuries of oppression and genocide to perpetrate it against others.
Speaking out and passing a resolution is the absolute least we can all do as decent human beings in the face of a live-streamed genocide. Before our eyes, we have watch more than 11,000 innocent civilians slaughtered, half of whom are children. Hospitals, refugee camps, supposed humanitarian corridors, places of worship, water, food, infrastructure have all been obliterated. Disease and starvation are setting in as the western powers have continued to fund genocide for over a month.
It is worth noting Chevron, one of the largest polluters of the East Bay, is being awarded contracts in the territory Israel is illegally and violently seizing from Palestine today.
This resolution is not enough and too late, yet it is crucial. I promise Oakland will remember where you stood during the most morally urgent time.
I am a resident of District 2 in strong support of the resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. I am an immigration attorney who serves asylum seekers and refugees and Oakland and the Bay Area. I am also a member and volunteer at Asian Prisoner Support Committee in Oakland. Every day I see the devastating consequences of US imperialism and US funded genocide on colonized peoples around the world. Oakland has the chance now to send a strong message to the world and to Palestinians in Gaza that we firmly oppose the genocide and ethnic cleansing Israel is committing against Palestinians, and strongly oppose this country's role in this genocide. The numbers of 11,000 killed in the resolution is already outdated, Israel has now killed more than 13,000 people in Gaza. Every day without a ceasefire means hundreds more Palestinians die. We must do everything in our power to call for a ceasefire now.
I strongly support this resolution calling for an immediate Ceasefire in Gaza. As taxpayers in the country that provides billions of dollars of military and other aid to Israel, we have a responsibility to use our voice in defense of human rights. We must use every portal of communication to call on the President and U.S. leadership to do all in his power to end the genocide happening in Gaza and allow humanitarian aid to all who need it there.
Oakland District 2 resident in support of this resolution.
The people will remember whether you displayed moral courage during this critical moment in history. Your political future depends on the way you vote in this resolution. Do the right thing. Voting yes is the bare minimum you can do to end the senseless loss of life occurring in Gaza.