Palestinian supporters to press supes for Gaza ceasefire resolution next week in SF
Bay City News
Sat, January 6, 2024
(BCN) — A resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza will come before the San Francisco Board of Supervisors for a committee hearing Monday, one day before a potential final vote by the full board.
On Dec. 5, hundreds of Palestinian supporters spoke in support of the resolution at its introduction. A public comment period will be open again Monday at a Rules Committee hearing.
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The ceasefire resolution could be brought before the full board at its regular meeting on Tuesday.
If approved, San Francisco would join the cities of Oakland and Richmond in publicly condemning the genocidal war on the Palestinian people.\
The resolution calls for a sustained ceasefire, an influx of humanitarian aid, the release of all hostages and the condemnation of antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian hate.
Since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, which resulted in the death of more than 1,200 Israelis, more than 22,500 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
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LaMonica Peters
Thu, January 4, 2024
LOS ALTOS, Calif. - Some residents of Silicon Valley gathered at a town hall in Los Gatos to publicly call for U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo (D) to support a ceasefire in Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry estimates nearly 22,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war since Oct. 7.
Organizers say they invited Representative Anna Eshoo to Thursday's town hall, but she did not attend. They want her to call for an end to the war in Gaza, and they say they’ll continue asking for her support until it happens.
"You can't be neutral. You’ve got to take a side and Anna Eshoo has to take a side," said one of the guest speakers.
Dozens of people from throughout Silicon Valley gathered for the town hall. The group says their goal is to make their voices and concerns heard by their local Representative Anna Eshoo. One man says he came to the town hall because dozens of his relatives are struggling to survive in Gaza.
"Knowing that my tax dollars go to fund this, going to fund the bombs that are dropped indiscriminately on civilians, hospitals, ambulances, schools, etc. It makes me feel unheard, unseen. It makes me feel alienated as a Palestinian, as a Muslim and as an American citizen," said Omar, of San Jose.
The Health Ministry in Gaza says as of Jan. 1, 21,968 Palestinians have been killed; 70% of them women and children. Displayed at the town hall, a banner lists the names of Palestinian children killed during the first three weeks of the war in Gaza.
"We just sent another lump sum of money, and we’re giving them the weapons and access to our weapons stores in Israel. This is ridiculous. She needs to call for an end to that right now," said Nickolas Saba, a resident of Silicon Valley.
Eshoo’s constituents also spoke about repeatedly calling and emailing Eshoo’s office and asking for meetings. They say they’ve met with Eshoo’s staffers and Eshoo sent this letter to the group Thursday, saying from the beginning, she’s called on Israel to show restraint and minimize civilian harm. She also said in November she called on Israel to implement a humanitarian pause in Gaza. Still, the group says they’re not satisfied with Eshoo’s response.
"Also, just debunking some of the content we’ve been seeing in her statements, which to be honest, has not been enough for the community to hear. We are tired, we’re exhausted, we’re in pain and Representative Eshoo is not representing us today," said Nadine, of San Jose.
The group says after the town hall, they’ll continue gathering, strategizing, and putting pressure on Eshoo to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
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