New Orleans residents rebuke sham ‘Peace Statement,’ demand Gaza ceasefire resolution

New Orleans, LA – On August 6, at 9:30 a.m., nearly 100 local activists and community organizations converged onto New Orleans City Hall. They gathered to stand against the New Orleans City Council adopting a “Statement of Peace,” and demanded instead a resolution for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

The so-called “Statement of Peace” was sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, an openly Zionist organization. It calls for peace while conveniently omitting Palestine or Palestinians, ignores local victims of Israeli genocidal violence such as Tawfic Abdeljabbar, and implies that local anti-genocide protests are “calls for violence.” After only a few weeks in circulation, the statement has been put forth on the council agenda.

The wider New Orleans community has been in City Hall chambers multiple times over the past half year, demanding that a ceasefire resolution be put on the agenda. A ceasefire resolution would call for a permanent and immediate ceasefire and an end to U.S. aid to Israel. It would also include condolences for Israel’s killing of New Orleanian Tawfic Abdeljabbar and kidnapping of local grandmother Samaher Ismail.

Less than ten people, not including city council members, showed up to support the “Peace Statement.”

“There is no peace in this statement when you leave the name and word Palestinian out of the statement,” said Reverend Manning, a local religious leader, in his public comment. “I see what you’re trying to do, but it’s not going to work, because these same people have been standing here month after month asking you for a ceasefire resolution. You have said to them in private meetings and beyond ‘We don’t weigh in on international issues.’ Yes, you do. Yes, you do,” continued Rev. Manning.

This was in reference to the council’s long history of taking a stance on global issues, from divesting from Apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, to supporting Ukraine and putting out a statement in solidarity with Israel in October 2023. The “Statement of Peace” could also be considered “weighing in on global issues.”

“In 2006, Palestinian refugees in both Gaza and the West Bank in Palestine collectively raised $10,000 to donate to Katrina victims. The Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said that while the donation was small, having come from the poorest among Palestinians, the Palestinians felt it was important to show our concern for the people of New Orleans since Palestinians know all too well the pain and hardship caused by being a refugee,” said Jack Reno Sweeney, co-chair of New Orleans Democratic Socialists of America and member of the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee.

“Those refugee camps, where that humble donation was raised, have since been wiped off the map by Israeli bombs paid for by the U.S. with our tax dollars,” Sweeney continued.

All council members voted in favor of the “Statement of Peace,” except for Oliver Thomas, who left the room.

Additionally, the statement indirectly condemns local anti-war protests as “calls for violence and conflict in New Orleans.” These protests had enormous public support in the New Orleans area and are some of the largest ones seen locally in decades.

Organizations that planned the day of action included Masjid Omar, New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP), and Jewish Voices for Peace.

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