I want to express my support for Mayor Khan and Councilman Agran’s stance on calling for a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza. I am extremely concerned about the ongoing death and destruction in Gaza leading to the death of over 20,000 Palestinians, of whom 70% are women and children, and the displacement of 1.8 million people—more than five times the population of Irvine—who are currently homeless and without access to food and water.

We have reached the point of no return on this issue. I urgently ask you to join your colleagues on the council and introduce a resolution to the Jan. 9, 2024, agenda that calls for a ceasefire on behalf of the City of Irvine.

This is an issue that affects your Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, and Jewish constituents deeply, as well as their allies, including every race and creed. Earlier this week, three Israeli hostages were killed by the Israeli Defense Force despite their waving of a white flag—an international symbol of surrender. It is impossible to negotiate a safe release of the remaining hostages while the Israeli military continues to view every person in Gaza as a suspected combatant. The only way to preserve life is for both sides to lay down their arms and come to the negotiating table. That is what a permanent ceasefire will accomplish—it is crucial to move us towards peace.

CAIR-LA has received nearly 200 hate incidents since the Oct. 7 attacks—three times the number that CAIR-LA received during the same period in the previous year. The incidents are overwhelmingly connected to showing solidarity with Palestine, which has led to school bullying, hate speech, loss of employment, doxing, and directly infringing on their free speech rights, putting many of your constituents in an extremely vulnerable position. On Nov. 25, three students in Vermont were shot for speaking Arabic and wearing keffiyehs, the traditional scarf worn by Palestinians. These tragic incidents are a direct result of the dehumanizing rhetoric the perpetrators have internalized.

Irvine is home to one of the largest Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) and Jewish populations in Southern California. As our representative, you have a duty to keep us all safe. In times of crisis, that requires public statements and resolutions that reiterate the values that make Irvine one of California’s greatest cities and affirm that Irvine will always be a champion for peace and understanding. Please rise to the occasion of this moment, as hundreds of Irvine residents have been asking you to do by bringing forth and passing a ceasefire resolution on Jan. 9, 2024.