The Boston City Council passed a resolution in support of a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas War, with members stating that the moment compelled them to call for an end to human suffering despite having no influence in foreign affairs.
The resolution, approved Wednesday via an 11-2 vote, was the Council’s third attempt to declare its support for a cease-fire in Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel that sparked war in the region and continues to reverberate across the local political spectrum.
It drew criticism, however, from prominent Jewish groups that called it out for being “one-sided” and failing to condemn the terror attack that led to the many deaths on both sides of the conflict.
“Our message is simple: All life is precious,” said the resolution’s sponsor, Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson. “The time has come for us to stand up and call for an end to this senseless violence.”
Fernandes Anderson, a Muslim who has been outspoken in her support of the Palestinian movement, was visibly emotional and fought back tears as it became clear that the majority of her colleagues planned to support her call for a cease-fire.
With the day’s vote, the City Council, per the resolution, agreed to call for “immediate and permanent cease-fire in Israel and Palestine, an end to the bombing of Gaza, the freeing of all hostages from Hamas and the freeing of all administrative detainees held by Israel.”
The measure also advocates for “lifting all barriers to humanitarian aid, the rebuilding of structures destroyed in the conflict such as hospitals, and for reconciliation including the advancement of safety and dignity for all Israelis and Palestinians,” per a statement from Fernandes Anderson’s office.
While symbolic in nature, given that the Council has no purview over foreign affairs, a copy of the resolution will be shared with the state’s Congressional delegation, “with the call for them to act in accordance” with its language.
It already has the support of U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, who has consistently called for a cease-fire in the war and issued a statement after the vote praising the Council’s “courage and solidarity.”
“We cannot let this cycle of violence continue,” City Council Ruthzee Louijeune said in a statement. “This resolution is not only a call to action on a global scale, but also a response to the deep sentiments of the people of Boston.
“While we recognize that foreign policy is not the domain of the Boston City Council, we are nonetheless moved to call for a cease-fire to end human suffering.”
Similar remarks were made by other councilors, including Sharon Durkan who said that while her previous stance was that the Council should instead focus its attention on city matters that directly affect residents, she felt compelled to vote in favor of a cease-fire after seeing that this “means a lot to my colleagues.”
Two other councilors, Ed Flynn and Erin Murphy, opted to vote against the resolution for similar reasons, in terms of its irrelevance to city affairs. Both said they had considered blocking a vote.
“I still believe that the City Council is not the right body to address this,” Flynn said. “We have critical issues facing the city — the budget, public safety challenges, getting our economy back on track, neighborhood services.”
The resolution was toned down considerably from what Fernandes Anderson was initially planning to file, according to an initial draft obtained by the Herald that featured incendiary language that stated Israel was committing “apartheid” and “genocide” against Palestinians in Gaza.
The language was similar to a resolution Fernandes Anderson put forward last October, which was criticized for referring to the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack as a “massive military operation.”
While the final language was more neutral, it was criticized by prominent Jewish groups for being “one-sided” and failing to condemn the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, acknowledge that it sparked the war, or identify Hamas as a terrorist organization.
Although the body approved language with those omissions, several councilors including Louijeune condemned the Hamas terror attack in their remarks.
“We are disappointed with the Boston City Council’s passage of a one-sided cease-fire resolution today that will only further divide an already polarized community and have no impact on the war in Gaza,” Rabbi Ron Fish, interim regional director of the Anti-Defamation League New England, said in a statement.
Benjamin Weber, the lone Jewish councilor, had put forward a cease-fire resolution in February but later withdrew it based on feedback that it may cause more “divisions.” He voted in favor of the day’s measure.
“While this resolution was not perfect, it represents an important step towards reconciliation and shared acknowledgment within both the Jewish and Palestinian communities here in Boston,” Weber said.
