Community members rose and applauded after Harrisonburg City Council made a decision on Tuesday evening that was long-awaited by some.
Harrisonburg City Council unanimously approved a resolution for the Biden administration, U.S. Representative Ben Cline, and Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine to call for a ceasefire in Gaza on Tuesday. At the meeting, Mayor Deanna Reed said she would deliver copies of the resolution to the Senators when she visited Washington on Wednesday.
The resolution, which was written by Vice Mayor Laura Dent and Councilwoman Monica Robinson, also implores the Federal Government to send and facilitate humanitarian aid to Gaza and negotiate the release of hostages.
The decision was made after council members held discussions with members of the local Jewish and Palestinian communities, and followed protests on Court Square and outside Cline’s office.
MuAwia DaMes, a Harrisonburg resident of Palestinian descent, attended the meeting. He thanked the council for their efforts in a press release.
“As a member of the community coalition for cease-fire, we would like to recognize Council Members Monica Robinson, Laura Dent, and Mayor Deanna Reed for their courageous vote standing up for peace and justice in the region,” said DaMes in the release. “This resolution is important to me personally, as I have a cousin in Gaza who was sheltering near al Nasser hospital that was attacked by the Israeli army last week and was buried under the rubble for five days.”
At the meeting, Vice Mayor Dent said she drew on her experience as a technical writer to help shape the document. She said that, while the primary audience, the national legislature in Washington, was important, the secondary audience – the Harrisonburg community – was also top of mind when writing the resolution.
Vice Mayor Dent also said she used elements from draft resolutions submitted by the community organization Friendly City 4 Palestine as well as resolutions passed by other municipalities across the country.
Similarly, Councilwoman Robinson said she used community feedback to further shape the resolution. She said she kept in mind the values and wants of the community members to create a resolution that spoke to the entire community. She said that, in the forefront of her mind, were the words, “Stop killing people. Killing is wrong.”
The council members also said they took care to avoid blaming either of the sides in the conflict, which began last October.
Avi Stein, a James Madison University student and founder of the campus group Judaism on Our Terms, spoke during the public comment period at the Feb. 13 council meeting, calling for the council to create and approve a resolution.
“Being a Jewish resident of Harrisonburg and student, this resolution is important to me because people are saying that the justification of this genocide is happening to protect my safety,” Stein said. “Safety does not come from the oppression of other people.”
