Public Comment

I do not support the apartheid state that Israel has become; nor the genocide/ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people by the Israeli military. The USA should not be funding a theocratic state’s genocide against an indigenous people. However, the USA is currently funding war crimes and the genocide of Palestinian people. This is not only a serious human rights violation but contributes to the climate crises we are currently facing. This is not a matter of religion. It’s a matter of supremacy culture which is being proliferated by the USA and the actions of the Israeli government. The USA should not be contributing aid to the Israeli government/military nor should we be contributing to the propaganda which promotes anti-Arab/anti Palestinian sentiments. It’s wrong, we know better. We’ve seen this behavior before, and it’s disgusting. The laws which restrict boycotting Israeli defense forces are truly disgusting as well. The people do not support this, but our government has been complicit in these atrocities. I will not be voting for any elected officials who support this genocide. Free Palestine. Ceasefire now. Stop funding genocide. (The amount of funding being used for Israeli military aid could completely eradicate hunger in the USA approximately 3 times over. It is ridiculous. We cannot afford to fund this genocide. It needs to stop now)

Israelis supporters often brings up the idea that "Hamas beheads babies," even though this has been refuted numerous times. Palestine gives the whole world evidence to what israel does to the children and peoples homes time after time. When we have people who defend Israel, they never fail to bring up the October 7, 2023 attack. They can only go back to that point. Palestine can go back all the way back to 75 years ago when occupation started. Families are torn from their homes for decades and children are dying. We have the United states funding a genoicde! They let israel send more bombs to Gaza way. A question I have for you is Why is Israel killing children and removing people from their homes if its primary goal was to counter Hamas' attack on Oct 7 2023? I don't know how many times people need to say this but killing children is not self defense... Israel became a country by stealing land and killing people ‼️

FREE PALESTINE

Over 5,000 people in Gaza have been killed since October 7th. Half of Gaza’s population is children- under 18 years old. Funding Israeli airstrikes is funding the massacre of children and over 5,000 innocent civilians. Please stop.

I urge the City of Cleveland to condemn the U.S.-sponsored genocide in Gaza. I also urge Mayor Bibb and Council President Griffin to retract their support for Zionist occupation. Popular opinion dictates that the public will not vote in this upcoming election for politicians who support the genocide in Gaza. Our tax dollars should not support international imperialism and genocide.

On Saturday I had the privilege of marching with hundreds of fellow Cleveland residents. I wish it was under better circumstances that I got to be among those lovely people, but instead we were brought together by a genocide funded by the US and supported by our own city government. I'm not Arab, muslim, or Palestinian. I'm just another white girl that has lived in Cleveland most of my life. But I am so deeply angered and hurt by the events in the news. I'm appalled that this is how my representatives are representing me. How dare you as ellected officials support the illegal occupation and extermination of Palestinian people. And how dare you use your elected power to committ these acts. This is not a representation of me or my city. Anything other than calls for peace and a ceasefire is an abuse of power that the people of this city have allowed you to have. You must condemn the violence and stop the slaughter of the thousands of innocent Palestinian children and civilians. As we chanted on Saturday, the people united cannot be defeated, and the people stand with Palestine even if our government won't.

Cleveland needs to stand beside the people of Gaza as they are facing unfathomable violence funded by US dollars. As a person who frequents Cleveland’s various businesses and places of public interest, I want to see a city I identify with so closely act for good. Humanitarian aid is not reaching survivors in Gaza due to Israel’s ceaseless attacks, and people will continue to die if we stand by. Please hear the people. Also, to make sure my statements are not misconstrued, know that my support of Palestine does not indicate any animosity toward Cleveland’s Jewish community, and I stand against antisemitism. My issues are with the government of Israel and those who fund its military.

End public funding of an apartheid state and support of genocide

Northeast Ohio and our area has a large Arab/Muslim/Middle Eastern community. Supporting the evil acts of Israel against an indigenous people, without proper context, and dehumanizing them and their right to resistance (PER UN GUIDELINES) against an illegally occupying state. Israel is not an official country. Palestine is. None of the city, community, state, COUNTRY’s money should be going towards the funding of war crimes. It is despicable. A human rights violation before our very eyes. Don’t be cowards in this matter. See and hear the pain of the Palestinian community and all that they have lost. Have heart for those with nothing. Against one of the richest states in the WORLD, they do NOT need Ohioan or American tax dollars to continue to terrorize native people on their land.

It is with great disappointment that I see Cleveland’s City Council not reconsidering its position on the events taking place in Gaza, Palestine. I urge them to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This is the very least they can do. At most, they should condemn Israel and call for an end to Israeli occupation. Condemning Israel is not antisemitism as condemning black crime is not anti-black racism. As a black Muslim woman, it is unfortunate to see that those with my same background have not clearly understood the context of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Israel is an illegal apartheid state founded on stolen Palestinian soil. The Holocaust was a grave tragedy that happened in human history. But how many African ingenious groups had a UN to give them land after Europeans flattened them? What about the Rwandan genocide or the Cambodian genocide? The civilians who survived were rewarded with living amongst those who had killed their family members and not the UN or another body handing them secure land and a protected status. The same people many of the councilmen would look up to as heroes such as Malcolm X (a Muslim) and Desmond Tutu, outwardly condemned the state of Israel. Tutu even claiming some tactics used against the Palestinians were worse than South African apartheid. Thus, any act that Palestinians engage in against Israel is ultimately self-defense. The disproportionate story telling and centering of Israel in the media do not match the disproportionate number of innocent Palestinians killed just for existing. If you believe that Muslim or Arab life is of less importance than Israeli or Jewish life, then you must renounce Malcolm X MLK and other black leaders as figures you look up to. It is sad to see that the billion dollars wasted funding this state of terror could be used to fund reparations for African-Americans, which would have a dramatic affect on Cleveland - a majority black city. As well, it is unfortunate that party plantation politics will have one standing on the wrong side of history while Palestinians have showed their solidarity with black life e.g. George Floyd and all the fallen black people who were killed just for existing. Not to mention, many police in highly militarized American cities are trained by Israeli officers. I hope you can truly have a change in heart and understand that Palestinian liberation is our liberation. Join us in stopping the heinous acts of Israel and liberating Palestine.