It.
Has overstayed her two minute bathroom break.
It is now time for the regular meeting of the Richmond City Council.
We'll begin with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Jesus. To the.
One nation with liberty and justice for all.
Liberty and justice for all.
Are we ready for roll call?
Yes. Roll call, please. Council member Ghana. Here.
Council member Brown. Here. Council member Jimenez.
Presente. Council member Robinson. Here. Council member Wilson.
Here. Vice Mayor Zepeda. Here. And Mayor Martinez.
Presente. Okay,
our next item is statement of conflict of interest. Are there any none
hearing? None. Item J was
left on the agenda by mistake.
It should go to the January 20th agenda.
So item J has
been withdrawn from the agenda.
Okay. We're under agenda review. Item P1 has
been continued to February 3rd and
that's by staff's request. We have
two. Oh, okay. We want me to
announce we have two emergency items. Yep. I was going to bring
forward an emergency item. Is this the right time?
I'm sorry. P1 was moved to when?
February 3rd.
Council member Wilson. Is 03A
still on the agenda for the SS readout victory?
I'd like to take that off. Consent. Okay, hold on one second.
Okay, so is this the item where you were speaking with.
Okay, so that's the item. I'm sorry, P1. Yeah.
I remain with your MP1 tonight. I was hoping to have.
Have 03A continued. Yeah,
03A is continued to February 3rd. Okay.
That's the item. You got that? Correction. So does that mean that P.
P1 is. P1 is still on the agenda. Okay, thank you.
Okay, then we have two. I would like to bring
up a emergency agenda item and
then this. I'll need some assistance from our city attorney.
Bringing in an item and I think everyone has a
copy of it which is a censorship item. As the emergency
item, per Government Code Section 549542 A2
of the Brown act, which states that the need for action arose after
the agenda was published. And in fact the agenda was published one
day before the post controversy came to light. And waiting until
next meeting will continue to cause harm to our community. Many of our Richland residents
feel unsafe by the mayor's actions. And also we have a lot of people here
to speak on the. The item potentially.
So I'm asking of a legal. Does it meet the requirements
for an emergency item? I can give you the leg standard,
but it's up to you all to make the determination. And there's a vote
needed, 2/3 majority vote to add an
item on which is an exception to the Brown Act. And I
can re articulate the exception or the exception now if that would be helpful.
The first prong of this immediate
action exception is that the need for the action
arose after the agenda was published. And my
understanding is the agenda was published for the January 6th meeting on
Wednesday.
You can clarify that it was published on Friday,
December 19th. Okay, Friday, December 19th.
And there is a need for immediate action.
Immediate action is required because
of undue harm. And it would be required to act now
instead of on the regular regularly scheduled
next meeting, which would be January 20th. I can articulate
the standard, but it's up to you all to make. To make a vote and
to make that determination.
Okay, thank you. So I also. An emergency
it. We. We should do them one at a time.
Okay. Okay. So emotion part of
that request as well will be to hear this agenda item because there's a lot
of people here, I'm assuming, to. To speak on it one side or the other,
that this item be heard above any other agenda items tonight
so that there would be. The motion is to accept this agenda
item of censorship as the emergency item before
any other items. Okay. I want a clarification.
Are you saying before consent calendar? Yes.
I'd like to make a friendly amendment that we,
if this passes, that we do consent calendar first because it's
items that are essential to the movement of the city forward.
I can take that. Okay. Do we have a second? I Second.
Yes. Are we doing this? Not yet.
We need to vote.
Do we discuss whether to put it. To put it on emergency?
Yeah. Is that a discussion? Yes, because I'm ready to discuss that.
So there's a standard for putting last minute items.
So for those of you who aren't policy. City council
policy nerds. We are governed by what's called the Brown
act, which. Which are the rules for open and transparent meetings.
And the idea is that the public should have a
chance to know what's on an agenda before it reaches
an agenda. And certainly those of us on the city council should have an
opportunity to know what's on an agenda more than 72 hours
before we're asked to make a decision on it.
And there are certain cases in which
so there's some emergency or some extreme harm that's
going to come from us following those rules.
I want to say that while I want to acknowledge that
I know that there is a lot of anger and frustration
on every side of this issue, I do think it's
really important that we properly agendize council
items. I have not read this censure
proposal, this emergency. I know some of you it's circulated in the community.
Some people are telling me what's in it. I have never seen it before.
And so to ask me right now to make a decision on it, I think
is bad public policy. I don't think that it rises.
So I think it's important that I, as a council member and the
public have a chance to see it on an agenda and review it before
a decision is made. And upholding these sort of Brown act
standards for transparency. It's important even when there's
a group of people waiting to speak and even when we're feeling pressured. I would
actually say it's more important to uphold these standards when
people are here putting pressure on us to just toss them aside and throw something
on the agenda because they want to talk about it. I could say more,
but I'm going to stop there. I just want folks to realize that. That I
don't think it rises to the standard of an emergency item. I don't think
there's harm that will come from waiting two weeks to have
it on a proper agenda item on a city council meeting.
So I'm going to vote no on the emergency item.
Yeah. Thank you, Council member Wilson, for.
I think I feel like there is a lot of other harm
that had happened. Louder. There's a lot
of harm that had happened in our community for many, many reasons. And it doesn't
get to this point of putting it on our agenda.
And I feel like we cannot just
rule by political reasons in a
way that divide our community.
I feel like if this agenda item
can be a discussion and it can
be putting into an agenda item for another
time with the proper rules and procedures
that we follow, and that could be
the way that we can do it in the community
that is here, can speak in open forum.
It's not like we are censoring what you are going to
say, whether one or another. But I feel like bringing
something that it doesn't meet
all the standards of an emergency item,
then it put us in a situation where everything could be an
emergency in many ways.
So I feel like it's important that
this issue is discussed.
There is different opinions. I am not going to say
or to be open about
that because these are complicating issues that we are discussing
here. But I just feel like in some
ways this is the
first time in the year we should be talking
about how we do an example
of how we can follow rules and procedures
for the meetings and just putting
something that we haven't read that we are not going to be
informed, that the community is not going to be informed.
As I said before in my comments,
I think is an overreaching of a
really complicated political issue because this
city and this progressive council has been outspoken
about the horrific things that are happening in
Palestine. So I will be voting no on this emergency
item and I will be voting no on these resolution.
So thank you.
So, any other council members?
Council member Brown, thank you so much.
I think that when we talk about an emergency item, it's just that it's an
emergency. So we don't anticipate it. We didn't anticipate
this. I think that if you have a pulse and
you're in the city of Richmond, then you know what's transpired,
you know what's going on. So to say that
you didn't have an opportunity to read a resolution does
not negate the fact that we have
a responsibility as a council to answer to the community.
Again, this resolution is not about assigning intent
or punishment, but about acknowledging the harm
that there's a consensus on the council that harm was done.
This resolution is about restabilizing our community,
whatever side you're on. It's about restabilizing the city of Richmond being
one Richmond also, it's about, again,
fulfilling our responsibility as a council. We don't get to escape
and say we didn't have time to read or we don't
want to take out time to read the resolution. It's not really dense.
It's a quick read. So I think again, we have a responsibility
to answer to the public. We can't say that justice
can wait for people who are. Who have
expressed harm, who have expressed feeling unprotected
in our community. And as the sitting government,
we don't take heed to that or we don't rise
it to the level of seriousness. So while it may not
impact you directly. It impacts someone. And when someone
is impacted, we can't tell them how to feel, how to not feel offended,
or you need to wait to have a resolve.
So, again, I'll stop there. I will be voting yes
on this resolution. I actually called.
All right. Vice versa. Mayor Cepeda.
I wasn't. I wasn't finished. I wasn't finished. I wasn't
finished. I actually called for the mayor's resignation. However,
I think the censorship is the least that the
council can do. There's. There's no time to
go into hiding and not answer and respond to the public. You can
continue to. To put it
off. Harm doesn't go away when you impact someone
and when you impact the community. So I really think that, again,
it's our due diligence to respond as a governing body with
being entrusted by the residents of Richmond. Thank you, Vice Mayor
Cepeda.
It actually does meet the standard for an emergency item.
We have heard other items that met even less of a threshold
for that, and we've heard it because we felt that it was important for our
community. And we up here have that authority to
make making sure that we measure what is important and
what is not. So not giving this the importance,
then it shows. And this is for the people that I've read
it, and I think there should be copies around for everyone. You can
see that it's not placing. We're not censoring
the mayor from speaking. This is actually trying to help heal the
community. And now some of the actions he's already started doing, from what I understand,
he already started talking with the rabbi.
He's already started looking into how to start healing. So a lot
of that is already in there. We just want to solidify it. And as a
council, this is on us. So there's two different things
happening with the resolution. One of them is what should the mayor do?
And the other one, just as important, is what
should the council do? And do we stand
with, or do we try to move forward and try to heal the community as
we're moving forward? We'll be back on the 20th if we have to, and it
will be agendized if that's what it has to be. And everyone will come back,
but we're continuing to not help heal for the next two weeks when
we can start the healing as early as tomorrow or even as later today.
That's the purpose of this resolution,
is to try to start healing and healing now. So if
you haven't had a chance to read it, take A look at it again.
A lot of the stuff the mayor has already started doing, so it's nothing much
newer. It's just putting it into words. But that
is where it is. So thank you,
Council Member Robinson. Good evening, everybody.
So,
First want to say that I have already expressed
my feelings about the repost directly to Mayor Eduardo.
I felt like they were wrong. They were absolutely anti Semitic
and they were.
Disappointing. I think that they did cause
harm. They do feel like, make people feel unsafe.
Those particular posts were.
Were. Were wrong.
We're just wrong. And I've already
expressed that. What I'm
reading here tonight in this resolution that I just got and
I just read goes beyond acknowledging
what I just said. It includes, if I'm reading
it correctly, the Mayor taking.
Not participating, not doing his job, not participating in
regional committees, taking part of his salary
and doing other things with it, having just a bunch of other things. It also
has language in here that leans towards
criticizing political speech in a couple of the sections,
and political speech that I feel is very warranted and very
right. And we should be speaking out. About 70,000 people
murdered. So this,
to me, needs more time. I think that we do need
to say and send a clear message about what those reposts
did. I think that I wouldn't. I don't think that I'm overstepping
to say that. I think the Mayor understands this and.
I think this needs more time and we need to do it right. So I'll
be voting no on this tonight.
Councilmember Banham. Thank you.
I would like to thank everyone who has come here tonight to
express their perspective and also thank everyone
who has sent us email or came to visit us in person.
I just want to be clear that I condemn hateful language
and actions in all forms, including antisemitism
and Islamophobia. I stand firmly
against hate and intimidation directed at any
community. What the mayor said on LinkedIn was hurtful
and deeply troubling to many in our Jewish community.
The fear, pain and distress experience expressed by any
community targeted by hate must be taken seriously.
As a council member, my responsibility is
to focus on the safety,
dignity and well being of all
Richmond residents and to work towards
solutions that help heal our community rather
than deepen wounds. Because in unity,
we rise. Thank you.
I'm not going to speak to this unless it's time
to speak to it, but I will say that I am concerned about process today.
This afternoon, Vice Mayor Cepeda and
Council Member Brown came to my office to discuss
this item with me to see if we could make changes
to it before it even gets out
to the public. So I don't know if their intention
was to talk to all council members, but I had
told him that I had already talked to a council member about it, and he
kept insisting. And I had to become a broken record,
saying, I've talked to another council member, I've talked to another council
member. So I don't think process is
being taken seriously here. I'm sorry, are you talking
about the Brown act violation? Yes, I am.
And it's amazing to me
that he would come to me at the last minute to talk
about changes, and he would not talk to me at the
very beginning to find out what I thought, what I
did, what we could do together to move forward.
None of the people who put this on had any conversations
with me about that. Instead, they chose to
do something which they say is not punitive, but it is punitive.
And so because of the lack of respect and
the lack of rule of law,
I will have to vote no. So let's
roll, Paul.
Okay. And this is to add the emergency item. Council member
Brown. Yes.
Council member Bana. No. Council member Jimenez?
No. Council member Wilson? No. Council member
Robinson, No. Vice Mayor Zepeda,
yes. And Mayor Martinez? No.
Motion fails with council member.
The motion. The motion fails with council members Brown
and Vice Mayor Zepeda voting yes.
Now, I. I realize that this is a vote for
the rule of law, and. And that.
And that it will come back properly agenda
agendized. So question
to legal. Because it failed.
Can they speak to this during Open
Forum? They can make comments.
They can make comments about anything not on the agenda during Open Forum.
And since this item is not on the agenda, that's the proper place
to make comments. Okay, thank you.
There was another emergency item. Yes. Thank you.
So some of us are still saying Happy New Year to each other,
but there are families that are going through grief and trauma.
Although the city of Richmond had the lowest number
of homicides in 2025, we had five cases
of homicide and gun violence. And my emergency
item is about acknowledging the pain and trauma of the families
that are going through it and acknowledging the responsibility of the City Council
just by a few moments of silence. I'm sorry, but do
you have the agenda item? I have it, but I failed to make copies
for everyone. I'm so sorry. Should I make copies and bring it back?
It can't be properly agendized unless there's an agenda.
I sent it to the C. City clerk.
Can I propose all
I'm asking for is a few moments of silence to recognize what's
going on. So I propose.
So can I. Can I just re articulate the standard here that
we want to follow for an exception to the Brown act
because this agenda item was not properly agendized. So we want to.
Can I explain why it was delayed? Sure. But there's a two pronged step.
So the information and the
agenda item was not. Was received after the agenda was posted.
That's the first one. And then there's an immediate need to act.
I can explain or there's an emergency of some
type. The reason I think we have a moral duty
that that's what establishes the emergency. The reason why it was late.
I've been waiting for the name of the victims to say their names loud.
But first of all the police department took time and then
the city attorney mentioned me that we don't have the consent of
their families to say their names loud here in
public at the city council. And I waited until the last minute. That's why
it is late. And I'm sorry that the city could. Clerk hasn't published
it. But basically all I'm asking for just a few moments of
silence. I think it is very important to honor
the sanctity of life at the city of Richmond.
Despite all the success and gratitude to the office of Neighborhood
Safety, Police Department, nonprofit community based organizations
and volunteers to acknowledge our own role at the City
Council to reduce it to zero. We generally
do moments
of silence for people at closing.
So why can we not do it at the
time that we usually do it? This is different. This is to
remember the victims of gun violence. They did not just die or pass away.
It's. It's different from what we do for people who pass
away and we know and want to honor them. It's to honor
the sanctity of life at the City Council.
Let's take a vote and I'll be happy
to answer any questions.
Can we propose that instead of at the
end of the. Because what council bana is proposing is
a minute of silence. Can we start the meeting with
that meaning of silence saying that it's for gun violence and
instead of just like a big emergency if you. The chair can
change that and we agree that could be.
We can start. And it's not an emergency item. It's just to
start this meeting with a moment of silence for those who
we had lost in gun violence in the city. We have to do an agenda
item because we would be adding to.
So, so, so we can't Just change things. Unless it's agendized.
So does
this, does this meet the limits?
Again, I'm going to turn it. It's your decision to make. But you
know, it's unclear to me what's the action and I haven't reviewed
the agenda item. What's the recommended action? Just so
that even members of the council can understand what they're voting on.
Just hold a few moments of silence to reflect
on the loss of life, the pain felt by surviving
families and the urgency of continuing this vital
work. Okay, so the vote right now would be on whether this item
constitutes an emergency to bypass the 72 hour
notice requirements for agenda items. So I can re articulate the standard or
you all can vote.
She's made a motion. Point of order. So council member Moden
made a motion to put this on as an emergency item. Has it been seconded?
It dies from lack of second.
Okay. We'll move on to the.
Report from the city attorney for final decisions made during
closed session. Good evening, mayor and council. During tonight's
closed session, all three listed items were discussed but no final
report action was taken. Thank you.
Our next item is a report from the city manager. And this will include a
new employee report. No report this evening. Given the
number of public speakers. Thank you.
We do have a new employee report or no,
no report this evening. Ok.
Okay. Our next item is open forum. An open forum
is an opportunity to address accounts on items that remain on the consent calendar.
And As a reminder, item 03A
was continued to February 3rd.
Okay.
During open Forum dialogue between the council and speakers prohibited tonight.
We have 72 speakers in
person here. We have 50.
52 speakers in the auditorium.
And if there's anyone joining us online that would like to speak under open
forum, please raise your hand at this time.
Okay. We'll start with in person speakers and then move to the online
speakers and then move to the auditorium. When you
are called to address the council, state your name and your city of residence is
optional. Please terminate your address to the council when your
time expires. And mayor and
council, do we want to reduce the time from two minutes to one minute or
how many speakers are there? We have 72 in person
here and then we have 52 in the auditorium. And the
right now we have 39 with their hands raised online.
Well, the agenda says that if there's 25 or more, we reduce it to one
minute. Okay, so we'll reduce. Each speaker will have
one minute to address the council. Mayor, Madam Clerk.
Mayor, if I may, through the Chair. Given that it appears as though there are
approximately 160ish
public speakers, I would like to formally note that city staff
that are here under the auspices of new business may be relieved to
go home for the evening and their items will be considered at a subsequent meeting.
If we have consent with that. Thank you very much. Yes.
Okay, so each speaker will have up to two minutes to address the council.
One minute. One minute. Sorry,
almost got me. No.
Okay. The City of Richmond, we welcome your comments and request that you
present your remarks in a respectful and appropriate manner within the established
1 minute time limit. So I'm going to call groups
of 10 and please line up behind
the speakers podium so that we can move quickly through the speakers.
Zach Cohen,
Myra Collins, Mindy Pines,
Tim o', Brien,
Sophia O. I'm sorry, o'. Brien. I'm trying
to read the names. Julie Sax
Teller, Joan Peters,
Elaine S.
Lorena Riza and
Robert Bowen, please come forward.
Reduce this to one minute.
This is that. And also one person here
said that I could have their minute. Would that be all right? No, we do
not see minutes. Okay, thank you. Mr.
Mayor and members of the City Council. My name is Rob. I'm a Bay
Area resident. I'm here today to ask for the resignation of
the mayor. I don't do so lightly. I do not
have time here to debate the points of the Israel, Palestine conflict,
though I would love to do so. Nor do I have the time to
express all the ways that I consider the words and actions of the
mayor anti Semitic, although I would love to do so.
I know that there are many here who disagree with me,
but I also know that there are many, many more who feel like I do.
I would ask, if the mayor does not resign, that he and
the members of the council, at a minimum, meet with us to discuss our
concerns, listen to us, take us seriously,
hear us with an open mind and an open heart.
Thank you very much. Zach Cohen.
Hi, my name is Tim O'. Brien. Over two years ago, on October 25,
2023, Tim O', Brien,
the JCRC, condemned Mayor I.
Rodriguez for proposing a ceasefire resolution that promotes
propaganda, weaponizes historical inaccuracy, and accuses Israel of
ethnic cleansing and apartheid in Gaza.
That is your true sin, Mayor. Standing up to the Israeli lobby
for the human rights of all people, without exception. There's been a target on
your back since that day to the City Council. I will say the mayor acted
rashly and insensitively. He has apologized. We are not
a one strike and you're out society Especially when you have championed so many
community and human rights causes on behalf of black and brown and
all people over the years. Due to the Israel lobby's
intentional conflation of criticism of a rogue state with anti Semitism, that word
has lost much of its meaning today. But as recent events in Venezuela
have shown, there are other nefarious isms out there, all predicated on white
supremacy, that demand our attention.
Imperialism, colonialism, fascism,
racism, Zionism. We need to look no further
than what? Your time has expired. Okay, thank you.
There's real work to do. Don't listen to the noise.
The next speaker is Zach Cohen.
No, they're just. Okay.
Myra collins. Myra collins.
Hello. Thank you for letting me speak today. Hello,
council members and Mayor.
My name is Mara Collins. I'm a Jew living here in Berkeley. In Berkeley.
And I'm here today to express my support for Mayor Martinez.
We know the mayor's record demonstrates that he's good for Richmond,
is an asset to Richmond. We know that he has done what he said he
would do and that Richmond is better for it. Now, on the matter of this
attack on his statement,
first, I need to say, first and foremost,
the JCRC does not speak for all Jews. It certainly does not speak
for me. And we as Jews cannot call everything we don't agree with
anti Semitism. To silence and punish the mayor
is to silence and punish those who oppose genocide and who stand on the right
side of history. Harm has been done, it's true.
But let's be clear. The genocide is what is harmful.
Not the offended people who are choosing to use that
what has happened as an opportunity to uphold murderous policies of Zionism.
I know. My time's over. Thank you,
Mindy Pines. And she'll
be followed by Sophia O'. Brien. Mindy Pines.
Good evening. I'm Mindy Pines, 20 year resident of Richmond.
This isn't about Palestine or Gaza. It's about fitness
for public office and your responsibility as a governing body.
When our mayor echoes antisemitic conspiracy theories
that Jews carried out their own mass murder at a Hanukkah celebration
in Sydney, the harm is real. It lands on real people in
our community. Censor is a basic tool of accountability
available to you should the mayor not resign,
not using it signals that there are no consequences for behavior
that undermines public trust. This is not about free speech.
It is about responsible leadership. Institutions fail
not only because of those who act recklessly, but because of those who
remain silent when standards are breached. Each of you
is going on record your actions or lack thereof. Will be remembered
by our community and by history. Will you be complicit?
Sophia o'. Brien.
My name is Safiya o'. Brien.
Oh, it started. Okay. So I'm here to
express my support for Mayor Martinez and
how he represents not only the people of Richmond,
but also the progressive movement that is here and live in
the Bay Area. And Eduardo represents these values as
a staunch anti war advocate, a pivotal leader for environmental
justice, and a representative who stands with the undocumented community,
which is direly, direly needed right now in this moment.
And if we let such a small group
of residents speak louder over the majority
of the residents, it's very clear that these attacks are rooted in
their political agenda and not for the
betterment of Richmond. And the Richmond residents that so,
so direly need his support and his advocacy in
the city of Richmond, and they are not in the interest or the best interest
of these people. Time has expired.
Julie Sachs Taylor.
Julie Sachs Taylor, followed by Joan.
Peter.
Thank you. I'm pleased to be here.
I'm not pleased with the lack of listening,
but I'm pleased to be here and to be facing the council.
I'm Julie Sachs Toller. I'm the rabbi of Temple Beth Hillel, the primary
organized Jewish community of Richmond.
After the numerous posts which many
council members, as well as the mayor have acknowledged, spread antisemitism.
Mayor, you've reached out to me to meet and I will meet with you.
In Judaism, repair is called teshuvah.
It means return, and it means also answer.
And it starts with acknowledgment and
apology. And it completes with a full building
of relationship and a repair of harm done. So I hope that
our meeting will begin a real process and.
Our country is in crisis. Our world is in
crisis. Our neighbors are afraid to go out for fear of ice. Our country has
just invaded Venezuela and other countries are next. We are
in desperate need not to be divided
by anti SEM.
Joan peters.
Okay, Joan Peters. Going once.
Elaine S. Excuse me.
Excuse me. Let's.
Let's remain civil. Press the red
button. Press the red button right
There you go. My name is Joan Peters. I voted for Mayor
Martinez and I think he should not resign.
The news about mayors resigning were
intended to stop criminal activity. He's not a criminal.
He's not committed any crime of
any kind. What's going on right now is bullying.
It's not about Jewish people nor Palestine.
A hot button issue has been chosen to stop Mayor Martinez
from being mayor. This kind of bullying was used against President
Clinton to hamper his ability to function as our president.
The hot button issue used against Clinton was phone
sex. The hot button issue being used against
Mayor Martinez is the Israeli Palestinian conflict.
It's simply a power grab masquerading
as concern for the Jewish people. The bullying needs
to stop. Your time has expired. The bullying needs to stop.
Our next speaker is Elaine S.
Should be followed by Lorraine Riza.
I press this button. Okay.
Dear honorable counsel and Mayor Martinez,
I am a teacher and I come to you hoping
for a teaching moment when I teach my children about
lies that are spread throughout the classroom.
Things like lies and gossip, which are very hurtful. I take
them out to the playground and I give them a pillow, a feather pillow,
and we shake it and we spread the feathers everywhere. And I tell
them those lies that. Those gossip that you spread,
those are not retractable. I urge the kids to go
out and try and collect all the feathers, and they can't.
And social media has made the situation so much
worse. So, Mayor, you have caused great harm.
It's gone far beyond the perimeters of Richmond.
It has spread throughout the entire world. And you
need to resign.
And I implore the adults. Your time is expired.
Your time is expired, ma'. Am. You are the adults in the
room. Unfortunately, we have to.
Your. Your time is up. And.
Excuse me,
audience. Everyone.
We need to allow.
We need decorum. Decorum means. Decorum means
stopping when it's time to stop.
So. So. So if you are at
the podium and the clerk says time
expired, you need to stop speaking. Thank you. Thank you.
Our next next speaker is Lorraine Riza. And will
the following individuals please line up behind speakers podium podium.
Francisco Ortiz, Harry Weiner,
Alleg Lindstrom. David Cooper,
Stefan London, Mark Wasberg,
Robert Lipton, Vanessa Thiel,
Kate Laster and George
Marks. Lorraine,
press the red button.
There you go. I'm a proud Richmond
resident of nine years. I have been witness to how our city has improved since
Mayor Martinez has taken office. I 100% support him and urge you
to throw out the censure resolution. Groups and organizations
that are not locally based in Richmond are jumping at any chance to weaponize anti
Semitism against a progressive Latino brown mayor who's
doing so much to help me and fellow rich residents, especially our immigrant
communities. Because of the community work I do. I've personally witnessed
him in his office support free legal clinics and host a
community preparedness event to educate residents about their constitutional rights.
He helped structure our strong city ordinance and carries it out by helping to confirm
if ICE is active in our Community. He supports our own Richmond Rapid
Response Team, and he voted for a $1 million grant that's made all this possible,
which also funds the three local orgs to support these communities at risk.
He shows he actually cares. It goes without saying that restorative justice
is required. But please allow Mayor Martinez to continue doing his work and
throw out the resolution. Francisco Ortiz.
Francisco Ortiz.
Good evening, council. My name is Francisco Ortiz and I'm president of United
Teachers of Richmond. I want to begin by expressing our union sincere
appreciation for this council. During the recent educator strike, this council and
mayor showed up for Richmond students and families in real and tangible ways. You joined
educators on the picket line, spoke at rallies, and helped secure families,
ensure that families had access to resources and safe spaces during a difficult
moment. That leadership mattered to our students, our members and our community. We are
especially grateful for the mayor's efforts that helped move the strike towards a prompt resolution
so students could return to the classrooms and be reunited with their teachers.
That work made a real difference. Speaking now my personal professional capacity,
I want to acknowledge my experience working with Eduardo Martinez. As a former Richmond
educator and now as mayor, he has consistently centered student success and community empowerment.
I've seen firsthand his commitment to strengthening public education,
including his support for the community schools movement. Alongside community partners,
our students learn not from perfection, but from accountability.
Repair and curse do better. And that is a standard I hope we continue to
model as a city. Thank you, Council. Harry Weiner.
Good evening, Mayor. City Council on council, please.
My name is Harry Weiner. I live in Far East Richmond.
I'm Jewish. I was born in 1948. In that
year, the United nations was established and the document entitled the
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was
ratified by the un A document I have personally read recently.
The UN has declared the state of Israel guilty of genocide,
a grave crime against humanity. Israel has declared
that the judgment is anti Semitic and the result of worldwide
hatred for the Jewish people. Israel does not speak for me.
Today, American pro Israel genocide thugs are here
participating in a nationwide public relations campaign to
silence supporters of Palestinians rights to exist as a
people or a place. Remember, Richmond has eloquently written
in support of the dignity of Palestinians and these people are gathered
here to punish us for it. Hello.
Alega Lindstrom. Alaiga Lindstrom.
Oh, sorry. So sorry.
Hello. My name is Aliyah.
Oh, sorry. My name is Alia and I'm a teacher and I live in Richmond.
I'm here today because, well, we all know what was said and in times
of uncertainty and anger, people's safety cannot be written off or handled lightly. But the
question we are considering is what does accountability look like? I don't believe
removal is the answer when someone has acknowledged harm and remains open to meeting directly
with those who were hurt. Real accountability is about repair, not simply punishment.
Mayor Martinez cares about people in Richmond, and it's reflected in
how he's improved our city. Reducing crime, improving infrastructure, and increasing sustainability
efforts. Richmond will be best served by holding leaders accountable while giving
space for repair to happen. Through continued dialogue, we can and should demand both justice
for Palestinians and safety for our Jewish neighbors. I urge the council to choose
a path forward that keeps healing centered. Thank you.
David Cooper. David Cooper
followed by Steven London.
I'm Rabbi David Cooper. I've been a longtime supporter
and activist for Palestinian freedom, including doing protective presence
work for west bank villagers facing violence from Jewish Israeli settlers.
I do support your continued work as Richland's mayor.
Over the decades, I have done this work. Over that, I've done
this work. I know how antisemitism can affect the work we do.
Antisemitism is the water we swim in, just like racism is.
We cannot reduce racism or antisemitism to an individual characteristic.
These are systemic ideological frameworks and we absorb
them and live within them in different ways. Racism and antisemitism
serve the purpose of dividing us and setting us against each other.
If we are to support and defend the Palestinian people,
we must constantly examine how we've absorbed anti Semitic
biases. Because if we don't, we will make serious errors that can only
help AIPAC and those who support the oppression of Palestinians.
Mr. Mayor, with all respect, I feel you've made such. Your time has expired.
And that you, Stephen London, next speaker.
Stephen london.
Okay. Hello.
My name is Stephen London. I've been a resident in the Marina Bay neighborhood of
Richmond for seven years. Last summer, I learned that in a
speech, Mayor Martinez not only offered up a justification for hamas
atrocities on October 7, but he also wore a hat that bore
a slogan calling for the death of the Israeli Defense Forces. In a next door
thread, I told the Mayor how appalled I was that he had called for the
death of my Israeli family members.
Let me tell you about them. Like the Mayor, they're socialists. They're kibbutzniks who demonstrate
against Bibi Netanyahu's right wing government. But when called upon to do their
mandatory military service to defend their country, they serve.
I am curious of the over 70 other armed conflicts
taking place in the world does our mayor call for the deaths of any other
soldiers? Or is there something uniquely evil about the Jewish soldiers?
And is the mayor even remotely aware of the historical context calling
for their deaths? Has he ever heard of the medieval chance of hep, hep,
death to the Jews? Time has expired.
Mark Wasberg,
Aguado did preach hate and murder and violence.
He even bragged about he wanted to be with Hamas.
And this is what he did. See that people? He was
laughing when he was praising killing people in Israel.
And this is your mayor that took a note to the Constitution,
right? Is that what you. Is that what you are? You take a
note to the Constitution? You plead hate and violence against the world,
and you people are stupid enough to put him back into office? This is
the most stupidest thing. Take a look at it, people. He's smiling to
kill the people of Israel. The people in Richmond is going to make sure that
he's not going to be mayor. That's not a threat. It's going to be a
promise. Because people are going to remember what he have done. Because the election is
only two months away. So you better start gearing up
to get this terrorist, this son of a out of office.
Take a good look at it, people. Take a good look at it.
Take a good look at it.
Robert Lipton,
Police. Can you like.
I'd like to be able. Thank you. If.
If Mr. Walsberg continues to incite the crowd,
can you please eject him?
My name is George Marks. I live at 518 36th
street in Richmond. I'm Jewish. Israel's first Nobel laureate,
Shire Sy Agnon, was my great uncle.
I care about Jewish people. I care about Palestinian people.
I don't like hearing all this hatred.
And I want to say I've experienced
Mayor Martinez as a loving, supporting, caring person. He may have made a
mistake, he may have done things, but he's not a hateful person.
I hear a lot of hate here. We need to talk with each other
and listen to each other. And I'm open to listening to any
of you. I wrote a letter to the entire city council in the. The mayor.
I don't think I expected the hatred of anyone here. And I'm
happy to talk forward. I think censorship is ridiculous.
Caring about the genocide, and it is genocide,
is ultimately important. And we need to talk and
listen to each other and care. And I adlib this entire speech. Thank you.
Robert Lipton.
Robert Lipton. Vanessa.
Vanessa Thiel.
Hi, my name is Vanessa Till. I am a Jewish resident of Richmond.
I have a friend in Gaza I talk to every single day.
He's very sick right now and he can't access basic medicine,
warmth or food. People are still dying every day in Gaza and
in the West Bank. The Israeli government has renamed our sister city Samaria
and plans to destroy a major historical site in Sebastia
to build an amusement park there. I'm here to remind you that Zionist
grievances are hurt feelings about language. Palestinian grievances are
about living through war crimes, torture, deprivation, land seizure
and genocide. It is absurd to take direction on confronting
real antisemitism and racism from people who only consider
anti Jewish racism as worthy
of concern. JCRC does not speak for me. I am
a Richmond Jew. And,
yeah, those are my remarks. Thank you for listening.
Kate Vaster.
Hello. Hi, my name is Kate Laster.
I walked here from work. I work at Niad Art center in
Richmond. I am so happy to speak to Mayor
Martinez in gratitude not only for what you stand
up for in Palestine, but what you stand up for in Richmond.
There's a lot of talk about harm here,
but there's not a lot of talk about material solidarity,
which you have given consistently to the people of Richmond,
to the people of Palestine.
It's really important to think about the power
of standing up to Chevron, which is a material
form of not only to the people of Richmond, but to the
people of Palestine. I speak to you as a Jewish
person, as a public service provider in Richmond, as someone
who deeply cares about the moment we're in and not
the farce of conflating harm as reality.
Thank you.
Our next speaker is zoegalas.
And will the following individuals please line up behind the speakers podium.
Turno Abbott, Melvin Willis,
Mary R. Teresa A. Asha Windsor
or Nizar. Judy Greenspan and
Ryan Kazeen. Diana Ware and
Matt Reiner. Zoe?
Hi. My name is Zoe Rivka Penagopoulos.
I'm a Jewish resident of the Hilltop neighborhood here in Richmond. And I'm
here because my grandparents both survived the Holocaust. And what
that taught me is that when someone comes and takes your property,
tries to establish residence in your home and your community and kills
your family, that that is wrong and that people should stand
up for you as their neighbors. I am here to stand
up for the Palestinian members of my community here,
Arab members and Muslim members, and to let them know that
they are welcome. And Mayor Martinez, I applaud you for your
efforts to do this as well. And I fear that your resignation would lead
to a stop to that progress and could lead to some residents no longer feeling
welcome in Our neighborhood, which I do not wish to happen. So thank you
for your work for Palestine and for the members of our community impacted
by genocide. There.
Tarnow abbott.
Tarnell Abbott. I'm a resident, a longtime resident of Richmond.
Mayor Martinez is a courageous person with a big
heart. Richmond residents know
that he leads with compassion and empathy this
diverse community for those in need, with no power,
no voice. He has tried to rectify
inequalities and injustices.
That is what unites this community. For those
of you who are. Who have been hurt and are upset at his words,
I urge you to remember that there is still a genocide
going on in Gaza. 20,000 children are
dead, probably many more that
will never be counted because they're buried under the rubble. Even The Israelis
admit 80%, at least, are civilians.
Being anti genocide is not the same as being
anti Jewish.
Melvin Willis.
Good evening, Mayor. Members of the City Council. Melvin Willis here in
my capacity with Bridman Progressive Alliance.
Acknowledging one's mistakes and taking ownership for
it takes a lot of courage. I've been in these City Council chambers as a
serving council member and as a constituent, and there's been many,
many, many offensive things that have been said in this chamber
that never resulted in leading to somebody being censured, even as much as public information
being shared. We need moral leadership that's willing
to step up and admit when they're wrong and try to remedy those mistakes.
And I feel the same frustration a mayor does every time I
turn on the news and hereabouts. 72,000 people killed and over 170,000
injured. Same way I'm frustrated when I hear that our
own government sees fit to kidnap somebody else's president and run their government for their
oil. We should never be scared of speaking out against injustice.
So thank you for always speaking out against injustice and taking responsibility. Mayor Mary
R. Mary R.
Followed by Teresa A.
I'm a District 6 Richmond resident and
I support you, Mayor. We will not be forced into a manufacturer debate over
a meme. This is a transparent tactic. It's a chance for the jcrc,
a racist Zionist organization, to get involved and censor a
pro Palestinian mayor. What this shameful organization or
any Zionist at all has to say is meaningless. This is
distracting us from the real issue. The US and Israel are committing a genocide in
Palestine. Right here in Richmond, Residents paid over $6 million last
year in federal taxes that went to weapons for Israel. Imagine what
we could do for housing, schools, community services with that money.
Meanwhile, the US just approved another $8.6 billion in weapons.
Thank you for your continued work for justice in Palestine and Richmond.
You understand what it means to think globally and act locally.
The same ICE that terrorizes our people here trains alongside
the idf. The same Chevron that palooza fuels
Israel's genocide. I see your courage,
Teresa A. Press the
button, Theresa.
I'm Theresa A. I have lived on the border of El Cerrito and Richmond
for the past 10 years. And I just want to say thank you, Mayor Martinez,
for all the work that you've done for Richmond. I think I just knew a
little bit of it. And the more that I hear about everything that you've done,
that you really care about the people here, really.
And that's crazy. You really
care about people. And I know that there are others maybe in this room who
don't, but I do want to just say that the water that we swim in
is white supremacy. It is imperialism. Like, one of you did mention
that before. And we do have to address that. Like,
complaining about feelings over a repost is white supremacism.
That's white supremacy. Because these people in this
room have the safety to be able to randomly make comments like that.
They are okay. They are well fed. They are
safe. Their children can go to school. People in Gaza cannot. They are the people
who are harmed here. What happened in 1948,
remember, the Nakba.
Time is expired. All right?
We need to maintain decorum. That means people
in the audience should not be interrupting people on the
dais. So please remain silent. Otherwise you
will have to be ejected. I don't want to
do that. Next speaker is Asha Nazar.
Hello, my name is Aisha.
Hello, my name is Aisha Nazar. I'm a resident of Alameda County,
a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement, and I'm here to stand
with Mayor Martinez. As a Palestinian resident whose family was
killed during this genocide, I have rarely seen leadership that reflects the values
that I share with my community. Let's be clear. This censorship
resolution is not about good governance. It's not about Richmond. It's a
blatant act of political retaliation. It is an attempt to punish
Mayor Martinez and this city for having the consciousness to say that
genocide is wrong. And let me say one more thing, and I
want to say it very clearly. To conflate the Jewish people with the idf,
a military that has enacted a genocide of my people over the last
78 years, like the JCRC has done. That is
anti Semitism. The JCRC and its
conservative allies have targeted Mayor Martinez since Richmond became the first city
in the country to pass a ceasefire resolution. Their goal is not to correct him,
it is to make an example out of him. They seek to turn Richmond.
Thank you,
Judy Greenspan, followed by Ryan
Kazane. Is this
Judy Greenspan? I understand. I think some of these people have
to be. They're so disrespectful to all the speakers. They should. And Mark
Waltzberg. Mr. Walsberg needs to be out
of here. You.
God.
Never came. You're not going to be married. You don't vote for ass out.
You remember that.
Hey, Judy. I got away too late. I have a
loud voice, but I want to wait till they're done yelling.
There's a few more that need to go. Okay, Our next speaker is
Judy Greenspan.
Hi, everyone. My name is Judy Greenspan. I am a former Richmond
teacher and that's when I met Eduardo Martinez.
He came to my class, spoke to the students. He helped me sponsor
field trips at a school where we had absolutely no money
for field trips and really represented civic government for
my students and was very, very popular. It was before he was
mayor, when he was a city council person and Gail McLaughlin was the mayor at
the time. And they all came to my class and it was a wonderful event.
Since then, I've moved on to Oakland and I just want to say, the Oakland
Education Association. I'm on the executive board and we are in full support of
Mayor Martinez and we say we
are so impressed with everything that he has done over the
years to support teachers and to support the community. And I just want to say
one thing. Right now, teachers are being punished for talking about Palestine in
their classroom. The JCRC is one of the groups that
is doing that persecution of teachers. There is
a First Amendment problem, and JCRC is part
of the problem. Ryan Kazine.
Hi there, everybody. I'm Ryan.
I live and work here in Richmond as a public speaking coach.
And I just want to speak really quickly and say that honestly,
I'm. I'm really heartbroken by the way people have been behaving
in this room on all sides of this issue.
I stand with a free Palestine. I believe
in that with all my heart. I'm Lebanese, you know.
But we cannot rise
to the level of hatred that we're seeing in this room. And the way that
I've seen some of my siblings engage with people across
the aisle is not the way that I think things should be done. I believe
in restorative justice. I believe that we have to try to attempt to understand
each other. People are here because they
genuinely believe and they know That, I mean,
what happened in Sydney was an atrocity, but also what is happening in Gaza
is an atrocity as well. And we can acknowledge and hold both
those things to be true. Thank you.
Diana Ware,
Mayor and City Council. I speak tonight
in support of Mayor Eduardo Martinez. My name is Diana Ware
and I'm a Richmond resident and have known the Mayor for over a decade.
For years, the mayor has opposed war, valiantly supported
protection for refugees and immigrants, and championed the cause for
the Palestinian people. This last issue has sparked the
current kerfuffle, but this opposition against Mayo
Martinez is both misguided and misdirected.
He is not, nor has he been, anti Semitic.
His recent social media posts were indeed harmful and
wrong. He apologized, offered to listen,
learn and forge lines of peace in our community.
We would be well to emulate the mayor and become sources of solidarity
for those who want a lasting ceasefire,
justice and freedom for the Palestinian people.
That's who Mayor Martinez is. A stalwart
and courageous war of peace.
Our next speaker is Matt Reiner with the following individual individuals,
please come forward. Line up behind the Speaker's podium.
Susan. Beatrice. Ruth.
Kimono. M.
Dan Machanik. Michael.
Khan. Khan. Julie Solomon.
Lynn. Horseshire. Sarah Hershner.
Rocky Chow. Matt.
Council Mayor. Thank you. I want to start by appreciating you
all and recognizing the humanity and the effort that goes into dealing with these hard
issues. You all have done amazing job grappling
with this and I trust the Mayor to continue to do so. As a Jewish
parent and resident of Richmond, I want to just make it really clear
that I don't appreciate people coming from outside the city to tell us
what to do.
And I want to thank the staff of the City of Richmond and the public
servants who are here tonight keeping us safe. It is a luxury and an
honor and a pleasure to be able to be safe in this world. And I
appreciate it deeply when my heart is so open feeling for people on
all sides of these issues who are suffering, but especially those who are currently experiencing
a genocide. Thank you, Mayor Martinez, for continued leadership on
this and for how you've handled it. And to the City Council, let's keep the
eyes on the prize and get that money from Chevron allocated correctly.
Thank you.
Susan.
Susan. Susan.
Hi, my name is Susan. I live in the Bay Area.
I believe that Mayor Martinez. I believe that Mayor Martinez
must resign from his anti Semitic rhetoric and the Richmond
City Council must take action to assure the safety and well being of all
of Richmond's Jewish community. In December of 2024,
a major Jewish organization made a report called From Fear to
Women Facing Anti Semitism. The key findings that the
survey respondents felt because of anti Semitism's rise were
isolated, afraid, threatened and concealed. I can't go
into the details because time is limited, but here's my point.
We shouldn't have to feel this way. Words can make it worse or words
can make it better. We believe that community matters and kindness and
non biased speech matters, especially from elected officials. Sadly, the mayor
has not exhibited this. Let's hear a true sincere recognition by the mayor
of what his words have done. Mayors are supposed to be trusted sources of
information for their communities. Thank you very much, Viejas.
Eduardo, you and I were once friends many years ago
as fellow rebels and members of the Progressive Teachers of Richmond,
trying to improve our union. I worked hard for years
trying to improve the lives of our students. You know this,
but you didn't know me well. I lived in Jerusalem for many
years and together with my partner or had little school for young children,
both Jewish and Arab together. I'm a proud Jew and
a proud Israeli. I long for peace and have worked many years for peace.
I'm also an infidel, as are you. You have been
parroting racist ideology far more dangerous than that
of the grand wizards of the Ku Klux Klan and of all the abhorrent
supremacist groups put together.
Do you even have a clue about this? And why not? And you
supposedly taught children to be curious, to seek knowledge,
to think critically. If the people whose jihadist ideology
you have parroted had their way, you and I as would
be taken out of the expired to be shot.
Start reading real books.
I have asked for decorum. I have asked
for decorum. And decorum begins at the podium.
When your time is expired, you need to stop so
that others don't react.
Because your time is expired.
This is. This is the organism.
We have responsibilities. Your responsibility is to stop when
your time expires. Because if you don't. Because if you don't, you create
a reaction from the audience. So if you
don't want that reaction, stop when it's time to stop.
Your time is up.
Mayor. Mayor.
All right, please, I. I'm asking all of
us to be respectful.
I'm sorry I said. You asked that several
times and the same folks are still interrupting,
So. So next
time for decorum, don't just speak out, ask for you.
Ask me a question. Yeah, but. Okay, so if you didn't ask me
a question, I wouldn't have responded. Yeah, But I responded to something that you said
before. I ask the question. So you said. Excuse.
So. So go ahead. Next. Next speaker,
please. Ruth K.
Ruth K. We heard you. Your time
is up. Next speaker. Next speaker.
Ruth. Ruth. God.
You need to press the red button. Thank you.
Better. Good evening, Mayor and council members.
And a special thank you to Cesar Zepeda and Jamila
Brown for bringing the center forward. I'm here, Eduardo,
to ask for your resignation.
It's not easy to do that. I would love to be
supporting you. When friends and colleagues began reaching out to me with stories
of being bullied and harassed in our community, in schools and in
the general community, I began reaching out to public officials,
leaders in the school district as well. Every leader
I spoke with, from the California State Department of Education to
elected officials, to the school district, district office,
administration, spoke to me. And there was one exception
to this group. I sent you a message and asked to
speak to you about the adoption, potential adoption of the IHRA
definition of antisemitism, because I felt
that was a good way to start you.
Time is excellent. Told me you would talk to me about
a part. Your time is up.
Hold on.
My name is Lenny Hochschild. Good evening, Mayor. Good evening,
Councilman. Good evening, residents. I'm a Jewish resident.
I'm from Marin, and I'm a small business owner focusing on clean
energy. Until recently, I spent time here frequenting restaurants and
bars with my family and my friends. I'm here to ask
that you resign because I believe that the role of an
elected leader is to bring people together to make
all of our lives better. This man is clearly doing the opposite.
Look at the last few hours. Is that bringing us together?
Obviously not. He spends his time spreading
misinformation, and whether he realizes it or not,
as an elected official, he meaningfully contributes to the permission
structure that has led to anti Semitic acts of violence.
His actions, whether intentional or not, contributes to the
likely endgame of getting innocent Bay Area Jews hurt or killed.
Please resign. And shame on you.
Last name is.
Mayor Martinez. By using your social media platform
to spread baseless conspiracy theories regarding
the horrific Bondi massacre, you have failed your constituency.
While the Jewish community was mourning innocent lives lost to
senseless violence, you chose to amplify narratives
that dehumanize victims and fuel the fires of
antisemitism. Words are not harmless. For a community already
facing a historic rise in hate crime, your rhetoric
acts as a dog whistle that puts real lives at risk. Here in Richmond,
you have shattered the bond of trust necessary to leave this
Diverse City. We can no longer look to you for moral clarity.
The only honorable path forward is for you to step down.
For our community's sake and for the dignity of your office. We ask
for your immediate resignation.
Julie solomon.
She left.
Dan machinick.
My name is Dan. I am a homeowner in Marina Bay
for 15 years, a taxpayer and a voter. I'm sure you guys remember me from
October 23rd. You guys know me also as a comedian. I work all over
the world. I'll tell you that. When I travel around America, Richmond is
known for two things. A movie called Coach Carter, which I think we all love.
And it's known as a hotbed of anti Semitism and Jew hatred.
It's known around. Listen, I'm the one going around the country doing
podcasts, talking on tv, going on the radio, meeting with people, and they go,
where are you from? You go, richmond. Oh, that's where you have the mayor that
hates the Jews. So that's your legacy, whether you want
it or not. And, sue, you're with them, too. I'm from Marina Bay. Sue,
look at me. I'm from Marina Bay. You don't represent me, okay?
You make my skin crawl. I'm so embarrassed to have you as my rep,
but all I'm asking is, please resign. You've divided
the community. Take a look. This is your legacy. Look at this divided room.
This is what you have accomplished with your Jew hatred. I'm not trying
to be funny. Michael Hahn.
Michael Han.
Michael, Are you Michael Hahn?
Michael Hahn? Is that. Is it Sarah Kirschner? No.
Yes. Or should. Okay.
I'm a mother of a fifth grader, and I'm part of the team that built
Rise Youth center in Richmond. I'm a Jewish community organizer,
and I'm a service provider. Thank you, Mayor,
for your unwavering condemnation of Israel's
genocide against Palestinians. Now, more than ever,
we want public servants who are not complicit with genocide.
JCRC's entire job is to deflect
the genocide and Israel's deadly racism through false claims
of antisemitism and retaliate against those who speak against
it. Their attacks on political speech erode protections for those
that protected speech were intended to protect, such as
Palestinian communities here and all over the Bay Area.
Facing the loss of hundreds of family members over the
past 27 months. Being uncomfortable with the truth is not the same thing
as being unsafe. You should feel uncomfortable when you celebrate genocide.
The resolution being proposed is an outrageous weaponization of
anti Semitism, and it portrays my own Family's history of genocide.
Thank you,
Michael Hahn. Michael Hahn.
Rocky chow.
Good evening, council members. My name is Rocky Chow
and I am a Richmond resident living in District 2 of Richmond. I'm giving
public comments to show my support for Mayor Eduardo. The times I've
interacted with Mayor Eduardo, he's shown that he's nothing but a principled, kind and humble
individual who cares about his fellow humans in and outside of Richmond. It's unfortunate
to expect that a good number of politicians to take big money at their behest
from God awful entities that destroy lives, whether it is the Military Industrial
Corporation or fossil fuel industries or apac. But not Mayor Eduardo.
Mayor Eduardo ran his campaign, now serving as a progressive working
class elected official. And now he's leading the city to moving away from fossil
fuels and into a greener city, creating good
local jobs here in Richmond. This is a mayor that leads and delivers for his
constituents locally and speaking up, all the while speaking up against the genocide of
Palestinian people funded by the US Tax dollars abroad, and even taking accountability
when he makes mistakes. This is something. This is the humble leadership that.
Something to be admired and quite frankly be modeled by elected officials,
especially at the highest time, has expired.
Our next speaker is Jake Garmo.
And will the following individuals please line up behind the speaker's podium.
Yosi Fidel, Stephanie Gwyn, Ken Yale.
Marisa Segura,
Paul. Lordy.
Samuel. Sarah Teller, Marisol Cantu,
Zinab Inter.
Connor Swingo, please come forward.
Jake.
Okay, is Jake Garmo in the
chambers? Next speaker is Yassi Findale.
Hello. My name is Yossi Fandel and I am a Jewish Israeli American
living in Berkeley. President George Washington famously
made a promise to America's Jews that the United States would give to bigotry
no sanction and to persecution no assistance. Well, Mayor Martinez has
broken that promise. And for years now, his unrelenting anti Zionist bigotry
and anti Semitic prejudice have stained his office and the city he
serves. His animus toward Jews and his hatred towards
Israelis and support for Hamas have become so infamous that there are
viral social media posts denouncing him, even from Palestinians in
Gaza. Richmond, your mayor is known worldwide as a
Jew hater. And Jews have learned over the centuries that when
bigotry becomes normalized, persecution follows. With Eduardo
Martinez as mayor, Richmond is not safe for Jews. It has
been demonstrated that if the Jews of Richmond are attacked, the mayor can be relied
on to excuse the attackers and blame the Jews instead for the attacks against them.
Mayor Martinez is an unrepentant Bigot. And he must leave office immediately.
Stephanie Gwynne.
Stephanie Gwynn.
Okay. Ken Yale.
Excuse me, you need to turn the mic on.
There's a red button. Yeah,
yeah. Your time will start when you're. Yes,
I'm a retired manager of Contra Costa County Social
Services. I've lived and been based in Richmond
and I'm Jewish. And I'm calling for council
action against you, Mayor Martinez, for your documented
history. And these are not lies, as people say. It's all documented
of anti Semitic statements on social
media all over the world, including the blaming the
victims of the recent mass murder on Bodie beach of Jews
on the victims. The safety of the Jewish community is
at stake. We cannot continue to tolerate public
officials who engage in anti Semitic rhetoric.
Lots of people say you are nice man, and you may be nice for lots
of people, but you're not nice for Jews. You must reside.
It's the only alternative. And I will add that people
throwing around words like genocide and imperialism who
do not know the definitions of time is expired and that should be discussed.
You don't know the definition.
Ken Yale. Let's be civil.
My name is Ken Yale. I'm a 20 year resident of Richmond. I'm Jewish
and I support the mayor. You've heard some people today asserting that opposition to
Israel or to Zionism is anti Jewish or anti Semitic.
Please do not be fooled or intimidated by the conflation of
these terms. Judaism is a religion, Israel is a state, and Zionism
is a political ideology. And criticizing the apartheid
state of Israel or the Jewish supremacist ideology of Zionism is
in no way a slur against Judaism as a religion or the people who practice
it. And any Jewish person or organization who tries to conflate
these terms as a weapon to silence the mayor or to silence you on
the council, or who justifies Israel's barbaric genocide,
or who falsely claims to represent all Jewish people, does not
represent me, does not represent thousands of Richmond and Bay Area Jews,
and does not represent the millions of Jewish people around the world who proudly
support Palestinian human rights and a free Palestine. Please continue
supporting Mayor Martinez and Palestinian human rights so that
Richmond is not complicit in this horrific is Israeli genocide.
Marinza Segura.
Turn the mic on, please.
Do I start? Yes. Good evening, everyone.
My name is Marina. I live in Marina Bay, Richmond City.
Wilson is my council member. And I'm definitely not used to standing in
front of a microphone. I'm just someone who has lived here for years and
cares about where we're headed. I wanted to come up here tonight
to say that I support our mayor. Lately, it feels like all we hear is
this small, very loud group of people trying to push
our mayor out. But they don't represent the residents of Richmond. Most of us are
actually happy with the work being done in our neighborhoods and the direction the city
is headed. In a city like ours, we aren't always going to agree
on everything. That's just life. But a handful of people shouldn't
get to decide for the rest of us. We elected the mayor to do a
job and he's doing it. And I just wanted to add one thing, one last
thing. Jamelia Brown, you are an opportunist.
Paul. Lordy.
Paul Lorody. He'll be followed by Samuel
Sax Teller.
Ready? It's on. It's on. Ready? My name
is Paul Laroudi and I've been a proud resident of Richmond since 1980.
And I'm especially proud to have the kindest,
gentlest and most compassionate mayor in America.
Eduardo Martinez cares about the well being of all,
all who live in Richmond, but especially our poor and destitute.
He defends them against homelessness and exploitation and
against big corporations and developers who see the needy as obstacles
to their greed and ambition. And yes, Eduardo's compassion
knows no bounds. It extends to the suffering of victims in
the U.S. venezuela, Syria, Lebanon, Iran,
Israel, Gaza and all of Palestine. We must
therefore defend our city and our mayor from attacks by outside
agitators like the jcrc, who only want
to destroy and intimidate Mayor Eduardo Martinez and
the honorable people of Richmond.
Samuel Sextaler.
Hi, I'm Sam, a longtime climate justice activist
and a member of Temple Beth Hillel in Richmond. I have
admired the work this council has done on many fronts, including standing
up to Chevron for the health of all of our communities. And Mayor Martinez,
I would like to see you live up to your promise of good governance by
repairing a relationship with the Richmond Jewish community. Thank you very much,
Mayor Sal Cantu.
Hi. Thank you. My name is Marisol Cantu.
I'm a third generation Richmond resident. I'm also the co chair of the Richmond Progressive
alliance and I am here Tonight to voice
RPA's support for Mayor Martinez and to thank
him for his leadership in the moments of crisis,
in the moments of war, and for our entire community.
From shepherding the chevron settlement of 550
million, to championing the first ceasefire resolution,
to standing for human rights from Richmond
all the way to Palestine, you are our mayor.
Your leadership is never Perfect as we are never perfect.
But it's progress and it's progress that we need. And as a third generation
Richmond resident, I speak and I am never more proud to be here to
support you, to be a D6 resident, and to continue the progress for Richmond
Our next speaker is Zaniyah Interim Intar
Zenaya. Sorry. Hello.
Hello. My name is Zainab. I'm from Alameda County.
I want to support everything. Oops, sorry.
I'm here to defend the mayor and stand with him in every capacity and stand
with him in every capacity as mayor of Richmond. One in five Palestinians
have been killed and one in five of Palestinians have been children that have been
killed. People are in Gaza right now with flooded tents, starving and
freezing. This is what we should be worried about.
There's people that who voted to agendize this item and give it legitimacy are going
to be the first and are going to be ready to concede to AIPAC and
trust Trump when the time comes. Shame on you. Shame on you for siding with
baby killers. Zionism will fall. Free Palestine. Thank you.
Our next speaker is Connor Swingo. And will the following individuals
please come forward. Line up behind the speaker's podium. Seth Morrison.
Cordell Hendler. Kathleen Weimer.
Ziva Trey. David Schoenholtz.
Daniel. Nathan Hess. Aaron Middleshone.
Yolanda Walker. Cassandra Savoy.
Connor. Hello. My name is Connor
Swingle. I'm a member of the Alameda County Peace and Freedom Party.
I'm here today to speak in support of Mayor Martinez.
Richmond becoming the first city to pass a ceasefire resolution was
vital in paving the way for more cities to pass ceasefire resolution solutions.
The genocide in Palestine is only possible with the
support of the United States. So when Richmond was the first siege to take a
stand, it mattered. So let's be clear. The attacks on Mayor Martinez are
about attacking the progressive anti war values that make Richmond
and Mayor Martinez leaders. It's about attacking the very
idea that a city like Richmond should condemn the genocide in Gaza. It's about
attacking the movement for free Palestine. Public opinion is
not going back to support Israel. But desperate acts like this
will be tried and attempted to turn back the clock.
But I implore the city council to stand behind
the anti war and anti genocide positions that this city supports
and this world needs. Thank you. Seth Morrison.
Seth Morrison.
I heard you called Jake Garmo. I called Seth Morrison.
Next in the list. In the list. Okay,
Seth. I'm representing
Jewish Voice for Peace Bay area. We work
for a free Palestine and oppose anti Semitism,
Jewish safety lies in solidarity with all
at risk communities. Mayor Martinez
and Richmond have an impressive record of supporting
Palestinians. The mayor's reports
were hurtful and minimizing the
loss of life and promoting tropes of an
Israeli conspiracy. We appreciate the mayor's
apology and openness to address these concerns.
The attack by the JCRC is mainly due to
his support for Palestine. We reject the call for
him to resign or be censored. The antidote to anti Semitism
is education, not cancellation.
The JCRC time has expired.
Cordell Hindler.
I usually have a two minute speech, but at
this time, so I'll keep it short. So. Good evening, Mayor Martinez.
Counselor. For the record, I am Cordell Henlon. I'm a rich
resident, so I do have some items that I'm bringing forward. So women
in the workplace, they are overworked because they are trying
to put together together like, you know, an agenda report. So it's hard because they
have, like two weeks and that's not enough time to get their item heard.
So they have to wait till the next available agenda for
their item to be heard. So that's one. And then number two, I do appreciate
Mayor Martinez for inviting Jesse Ardegain to speak to us last month. I thought
his presentation was very helpful because I really learned a lot about,
like, you know, legislative bills and all that stuff. But as
I said before, Mayor Martinez, you have done a wonderful job. And I don't
know if people remember there was a cartoon that said, there's no need to fear.
Instead of underdog is here, it's gonna be Mayor Martinez is here. Dun,
dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun. So he ain't going nowhere.
That's sad.
Kathleen Weimer.
Captain Weimer.
Hello. Do I
do something? Oh, okay. Happy New Year.
Nice to see all of you. I have known
eduardo Martinez for 15 years,
and I know that he is a person of character and
that he holds values that most
of us share, certainly most of us progressives.
And I'm proud to have him as the Mayor
of Richmond. I think he made a mistake with the post that he put
up and that he's acknowledged it was a mistake and will
meet with the people who have been offended by that and
do what he can to make reparation.
And that's good enough for me. Thank you very much.
Ziva. Trey.
Okay. David schoenholtz,
Press the red button, please.
My name is David and I am a Jewish resident of the East Bay.
Most mayors are not bigots. Most mayors are not liars. Most mayors are
not Hypocrites. Mayor Martinez is all of these things. Can you imagine
if after the Pulse nightclub shooting, a local elected official shared a post calling
it a false flag perpetrated by the queer community? That person would
be called out immediately, as they should be. It is such a no brainer to
not share hateful conspiracy theories. But when it comes to the Jewish community,
the mayor just cannot help himself. Mayor Martinez is not sorry
for what he did. He's sorry he got caught doing it. The insincere apology
he offered showed no recognition of having caused any harm or
hurt. When friends of mine, Jewish or otherwise, think about moving to
the East Bay, I will continue to warn them to steer clear of Richmond until
Mayor Martinez is out of office. Richmond calls itself the city of pride and purpose.
Instead of pride, the mayor has brought shame on his city. I hope the council
members have enough pride themselves to censure the mayor and join for the call
for him to resign. Thank you, Daniel. Nathan Hess.
Hello, everyone. A lot
of people have stolen my lines tonight, so instead of reading something
fiery and passionate that you all know me to be, I'll speak from the
heart. My wife's the smartest person in the world and she always says I speak
better when I speak from the heart. So someone came
up and spoke earlier and said that we shouldn't feel comfortable celebrating genocide.
Right? We shouldn't. But I also don't want to feel
uncomfortable putting menorah in my window. Because when the language that you use,
Mayor Martinez, makes me feel uncomfortable to do that, I'm afraid
that someone's going to drive by my, my house in Richmond on a major thoroughfare
and throw a brick through my window. And I, I, I don't want that for
my wife. I don't want that for my family. I'm coming here
as a resident, not as any other person. I just
don't like the way that you have conducted yourself on social media. I mean,
LinkedIn. Come on, dude. Like, at least use Twitter or X or whatever.
Mayor Martinez, I'll just simply say this and then I know my time is up.
Time is expensive. Fire. I'll just say one last thing. There are a lot of
Jews who are doctors. Time is up.
Aaron nicholson.
My name is Aaron Mendelson. I'm a resident of Richmond and of District 5.
And I'm here to speak about Mayor Martinez's social media posts.
The mayor reposted to LinkedIn a post that seemed to offer a justification
for the Bondi beach shootings. It said that the public displays of the Jewish
religion were, quote, performative assertions of dominance and, quote,
spatial conquest through symbolism, which, again quoting, were deeply
provocative. He found this insightful. This is
an attack on the very idea of pluralism, tolerance and the promise
of America that no matter where you come from, whatever your race or religion,
you are part of our great community. That we can not only tolerate one's differences,
but learn from and celebrate them. And that we can be better for
it. That in America, no person should have to hide their religion to remain safe.
I don't believe someone who rejects these ideals is fit for public service.
And I call on you to resign.
Yolanda Walker, followed by Cassandra Savoy.
And I just press the button here. Okay.
My name is Yolanda Walker and I stay in the city of Richmond with
my mom. I would like to see more police presence in
District 1. Mayor, you do not live
in District 1. We do. Respectfully. Are you helping District 1?
Are you wanting to help District 1? My mother has been
a victim of car vandalism. I have experienced neighborhood
billing intimidation regarding public street parking.
Suspicious people in our neighborhoods, in our homes.
The lack of police presence creates a community to
live in constant fear of being a. Being a victim
of a crime. Crime. I truly hope that we have not forgotten about
the well being of our communities. I don't like that my mother
has to live in her home as a prisoner. I live in trauma
with my mother. My mother's welfare is important to me. I beg
you, I beg you for extra police patrol
for that area, please.
Cassandra Saboy.
That is my daughter. Good afternoon, City council members and the
mayor of Richmond as well. That was my daughter. I think she said
most of the concerns we were here to address.
But yes, there has been some
very suspicious activity in my district. I want
to thank Councilmember Jamila Brown for responding
to all of the emails my daughter and I sent
to her. We got some of the trash removed from the public
sidewalks and street. I mean, what is going on? I get
tired of looking at all that nastiness around me.
My house is very clean in my surrounding. The people
that are living in that neighborhood are really just giving
you guys disrespect in a way, you know, But I care for my.
My neighborhood and I want to see it clean. Pick up this
nastiness off our streets when I come off the freeway.
Barrett is really clean. But when you get to District one, time is
expired. Please help us. We need police patrol.
Time is expired. Our next speaker
is Jake Garmo. Will the following speakers please line
up behind the Speakers podium Jake Joseph Puglio Natalie Reyes Max
Flint Barbara Schick LPW
Suzanne DeWitt, Tayo Garner Candice
Scott or Shot Karen Franklin
Annie Pinnell BK Williams and
our last in person speaker will be Jamie Purcell. Jake hi,
my name is Jake Garmo. I am a resident of Albany and I am
coming in support of the mayor because an attack on you, Mr.
Mayor, is an attack on working people across California.
I had the privilege of seeing the working class power that
has been built in Richmond when I participated in supporting the United
Teachers of Richmond strike that went on last month.
This city faces a lot of the same problems that cities across
the state have been facing. We have seen a ramp up in attacks on
our immigrant community from ice. We are seeing an affordability
crisis and of course we are seeing a lack
of moral clarity on the issue of Palestine. And on
all of these issues, the people of Richmond and your mayorship
have stood in in fir firm support of all of those issues.
The work the working class in this country doesn't
just need you, it needs the people of Richmond, the people that support you.
And I urge everyone to continue supporting you.
Joseph Pugl.
Which button it's ready any.
Hi, I'm Joe Pulio. Richmond Residence Everyone
in this room, everyone had said
or done something in their past that they regret.
Not everyone in this room has had character to
apologize as Eduardo has. However, this controversy
isn't really about Eduardo's unfortunate Facebook
reposting. It's about the upcoming municipal election
where reactionaries hope to overturn the progress
made in Richmond by any means, including defamation
of the mayor. They would have you ignore the $550
million or obtained from Chevron. They would have you ignore
the $98 million saved by dumping
the credit default swaps.
They would like to end police reform and they would like to get rid of
rent control. Don't be an accessory to
the reactionaries trying to defame the mayor.
Natalie Reyes Natalie
Reyes hello,
my name is Natalie Reyes. I grew up in Richmond. I am a Richmond resident
and I'm also a Richmond business owner.
As a Richmond resident, which I'm sure some people attending this
meeting are not, in which case, respectfully or disrespectfully, go home.
Richmond needs progressive leaders like Mayor Eduardo who
know what it's like to live in Richmond and
in the mayor's case, teach someone who knows what the city and
its constituents need. We need more people who care about Richmond the
way that you do. Those calling for resignation, aside from
not living in Richmond, have never done anything positive for our community.
And those council members calling for said resignation or extreme punishment
over reposts should focus on their districts. From 23rd
street down, it is becoming. It's short
of becoming a trash heap. And the needs of their constituents
who are struggling to pay rent and pay groceries. That should be
your focus. Max Flint.
Max Flint.
It's on. Okay. My name is Max.
I would like to voice my support for the mayor.
The JCRC is a Zionist organization that has used
bigotry throughout the night, has called members of the community Islamists,
terrorists, jihadists, has used a multitude
of offensive, racist and bigoted terms.
And it's a hypocrisy for them to claim that the mayor
is somehow a bigoted person when he has stood up for so many people.
And I would like to voice my support for the mayor. And I would also
like to say that it's important that you listen to an entire community of
Jewish residents and not just the ones who support the genocide in Gaza and proudly
wear dog tags and talk about the IDF and their families. The same people
who are killing children in Gaza. Thank you, Barbara Schick.
I am Dr. Barbara Schick, an East Bay resident who
patronizes stores in Richmond. When untruths,
especially those with negative agendas, are told enough times,
people start to think they are true. For over 2000
years, and antisemitism,
for different reasons, has been used to scapegoat and
dehumanize Jews. In the past, this has resulted in discrimination,
death and genocide against Jews.
In a democracy, antisemitism coming from public officials
is unacceptable. There should be some mechanism
to prevent and at least condemn unexpected, acceptable behavior by public officials.
Thank you, lpw.
I've heard many people say that the mayor has apologized.
It's a completely inadequate apology when you blame being
sick instead of taking real accountability.
When you claim that you didn't read correctly what you reposted,
but you've had years of similar posts. When you paint yourself as
a victim without acknowledging harm, when you do not disavow
the content or remove your posts.
You don't distinguish anti Zionism from anti Semitism,
but you're perfectly fine with trafficking in classic antisemitic
conspiracy theories. Finally, the next speaker
went through the real Holocaust. There are people in this
room who've been extremely disrespectful, maybe on both sides. I ask
for genuine decency in this room while she says her piece.
Susan DeWitt,
Mayor Martinez and Richmond City Council.
My name is Suzanne DeWitt. I was born in 1934
in Nazi Germany. In Munich during my
early years, we heard the same kind of remarks that
the mayor made with respect to the Bondi
massacre. These remarks are dangerous.
They stimulate hatred. As you can see. This evening,
I've heard shocking, shocking statements.
They are falsehoods. They are libels.
They are smears. And I really, really upset
and very angry that the mayor has made such statements.
Thank you very much. Taylor Garner.
Tal Garner, followed by Candace Shot.
Hello. My name is Tal, and I'm a proud American Israeli
from the East Bay with family living in Richmond. I'm here because it is absolutely
unbelievable that an elected official can be so blatantly
anti Semitic, such as Mayor Martinez right here. Let's not pretend
that this is anything else other than straight up anti Semitism. We know
history repeats itself. And as the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor,
this feels all too familiar and really quite terrifying.
It is 2026, these types of posts,
and this behavior would never be accepted if it were
against any other minority. Let me ask you. Because it's
against Jewish people, it's somehow okay? Simply put,
nobody should be allowed to represent or lead a city with
such hatred running through their veins. Mayor Martinez,
you have crossed the line one too many times. Please resign.
Thank you, Candace.
Candice Shot. I said I
didn't want to speak. Okay. Karen Franklin.
Hello, everyone. My name's. Am I on. Yeah.
Karen Franklin. I'm a longtime Richmond resident in the Panhandle Annex.
My grandfather was a very prescient man. He was one of
the few Jews holding local public office in Brooklyn way back in the day.
And he was part of a mass movement of American Jews back then who
were vocally opposed to Zionism because they recognized it as a supremacy
ideology that would ultimately harm not just Palestinians,
but Jews as well, because. And it would increase global
anti Semitism. And look, here we are. So he's prescient,
right? The mayor's social media posts were insensitive and false.
But I want to just be clear. The JCRC group, as others have said,
that sent that letter, set off this whole hullabaloo,
is not a voice of local Jews here in Richmond. In fact, it's not
even a membership organization at all. It's just a Zionist front group with a
mission to silence all opposition to Israelis Israel's
continuing genocide. And I'm appalled at the opportunism
of you two over here.
Be aware of who lives. And your time has expired.
Sorry. Annie Pinel.
Hello. My name is Annie Pinnell. I'm a proud resident of Richmond, and over the
last five years I've watched Mr. Martinez advance systems of care in our city through
dedicated work on the City Council. When I look around and I see decisions being
made by governments around the state and the country, it's hard not to feel scared
and hopeless. But I am comfort and comforted in knowing that I'm a Richmond
resident because of meetings that happen in this very room, because my representatives
bravely make decisions and stand up for the most vulnerable residents of the city.
Richmond had the lowest ever recorded homicide last year.
That's the result of hard, intentional work from many civil servants and
community members across the city to address root causes to prevent crime.
And Mayor Martinez's stewardship of the community and public safety programs
that will serve all Richmond residents was an integral part of pushing this work forward.
I hope that he has given the opportunity to make amends and learn from this
mistake, because this city needs him, and it needs him to operate fully.
I respectfully request that the council not invoke further harm
on Richmond by restricting the functions of the mayor, because this center amendment would harm
the city. Again, thank representation.
BK Williams,
Press the button. Thank you.
This room is much more peaceful than the room I spent the last two hours
in. My name is bk and I am a member of the
Richmond Progressive alliance, the rpa. You will
make mistakes, all of you. And I think the question
is, what do you do to repair those mistakes once you've made
them? And I hope that you all remember this when it's your time to.
When you've made a mistake or done something that you need to apologize for.
However, Mayor Eduardo, I want to say to you that,
as you know, your actions have caused some harm,
and I think that the ask here.
Well, I can't talk about that because it's not on the agenda. But I do
want to say that I appreciate the fact that you have apologized, but the apology
is not. To me, the community that you've harmed is the
one who needs to hear your apology and accept it. And I've heard from
some folks that. That they do accept your apology. And so for that,
I am grateful. And you should be. Also. It is the task of
the unharmed, of the harmed to accept your apology. And so I want.
Your time has expired. Thank you, Jamin Purcell.
Jamie Purcell, Richmond RESIDENT I'm a progressive, and because of that, I believe in
accountability and that it matters. To be clear, this on the. On this is not
about Palestine. This is about leadership, responsibility, and the real harm that occurs under
the title of the mayor. And if you choose to weigh in on complex issues.
You come with care, but you come correct. The post conflated
Jewish people with the actions of the State of Israel. That's wrong. Jewish identity
is not interchangeable with Israeli government actions. And the kind of conflation fuels
anti Semitism and undermines legitimate advocacy for Palestinian human
rights. When residents raise issue with acknowledged
antisemitism and are dismissed as Zionists by community activists,
that's not accountability. It creates the imagined enemy to avoid responsibility
and divides our own community by othering people. And when the rhetoric drifts towards conspiracy
adjacent tropes about shadow influence and AIPAC money, it's not radical, it's dangerous.
Progressives should know this pattern. It's the same logic that
conservatives have used to weaponize identity against LGBT people,
minorities and and Major, I'm.
I got Time is expired. Expired.
Time is expired.
That was our last in person speaker. Now we'll move to the
overflow. There are 30 speakers.
Okay, we. We will be calling speakers in groups
of 10. If you could directly line up behind the mic.
As a reminder, you will have one minute to speak. Please keep your comments
during your time and please keep your comments respectful.
There are children in the room. The first group of speakers are Michael
Devine, Nagin Masaid, David Mandel,
Faiza Ayad, Dana Rios,
Carolina Avalar, Michael Leedy, Sarah Cohen,
Ellen Brodsky and Eve Hirschaupt.
Michael Devine, you will have one minute
to speak. Hi, my name is Michael Devine.
I'm Jewish. I'm actually a resident of Alameda.
I am impacted by the hate, so I feel I have a right to be
here and speak. Imagine waking up the morning after
Richmond's juneteenth celebration on June 21st in Richmond's Nickel park
to the news. The two Ku Klux Klansmen shot and killed 15 African Americans
celebrating Juneteenth. Imagine the minister of St. Luke Missionary Baptist
Church was shot in the head and the minister of Antioch Baptist Church was shot
in the heart. And imagine then an 87 year old lynching survivor was killed
and a 10 year old child was killed too. Now imagine
the Richmond mayor saying the Juneteenth celebration wasn't a neutral space.
That celebrating Juneteenth in a public park is an assertion of power
and dominance. Imagine the mayor going on to say
the two Klansmen were actually two Black Lives Matter activists in Klan's robes.
This is exactly what the mayor said. Sharing is saying
it. That's how social media works. He must resign. Thank you.
The next speaker is Nagin Mesaid.
Thank you to the speaker that just left. That's a lot of imagining,
and that is hard to do. And come up with the conclusion that
you came up with. I am here to
support Eduardo Martinez. I'm coming from the city of Berkeley. I am
the previous Berkeley Tenant Union chair.
Mayor Martinez has helped tenants all over
the state because Richmond was one of the cities that
after 30 years, passed the first rent control
ordinance. And Mayor Martinez was hard at work
at that. These are the jobs of a person who cares about his
community. A working class supporting mayor who is always there
for his people in the classrooms, at the strike
lines, with the tenants, with the people of Richmond. This is what we
need to be concerned about. Not a retweet. That could mean anything.
It could mean. Just consider this. All of this has
been conflated. Your time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is David
Mandel. David Mandel.
Okay, I don't see David. So. The next speaker is Faiza.
Ayat.
Salaam alaikum, everyone. My name.
Walaikum salam. Rahmatullah Barakatuh. My name is Faiza. I'm here
to support the mayor and I wanted to say something.
What's going on in Richmond,
it's something we need to recognize.
Racism is.
It's all over the world and it's enrichment,
too. And also I wanted to say we've been victim.
Eyes and now
everything out on the open. I support you,
Mr. Martinez, for standing up for
the right of humanity on
this earth. We lost it, and now it's
time to gain it back. Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Dana Rios. Dana Rios.
Okay, looks like Dan is not here. So the next speaker is Carolina Avalar.
Good evening. My name is Carolina. I have been a Richmond resident since
2022, and I remember Mayor Martinez going door to door that
summer, reaching out to Richmond residents as part of his campaign. I am proud to
have voted for Mayor Martinez then, and I am proud to have him as a
mayor now. His leadership and the leadership of the City Council is one
of the many reasons why I am proud to be a Richmond resident. And as
a Richmond resident who exercised their Democratic right to vote, I very much resent
an outside group's attempt to influence how this city is run. If the
JCRC is defined in part by community relations, and they have
done a pretty poor job of it since in my three and a half years
of living in Richmond, I have yet to see them do the work of community
relationship building here. In fact, the only impression they
have left is that of an outside group that comes in when it benefits them
to advocate against the wishes of the people of Richmond. The people
of Richmond elected Mayor Martinez and we support his continued leadership and advocacy.
Thank you. The next speaker is Michael Leedy.
Michael Leedy. Hey.
Looks like Michael's not here, so. The next speaker is Sarah Cohen.
Sarah Cohen. Looks like Sarah's
not here either. The next speaker is Ellen Brodsky.
Hi. My name is Ellen Brodsky and I'm Jewish. And I'm here to
support the mayor. Just as the State of Israel
falsely claims to act to the name of all Jews,
the Jewish Community Relations Council falsely claims to speak
for all Jews. You can see from the Jews who have spoken here tonight
that this is not true at all. It is shameful
that the JCRC continues to orchestrate an attack on Mayor Martinez
for posts that he has apologized for. It hurts
the Jewish community when a major pro Israel advocacy organization
like the JCRC uses the COVID of criticizing antisemitism
to attack elected officials who have the
courage to oppose Israel's genocide and apartheid.
Judaism is not Zionism and criticism of Israel and
Zionism is not anti Semitism. All power to the
people of Richmond and to the City Council for your support for
the Palestinian people. Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker
is Eve Hershop. And the following group of 10 speakers after that are
Michael Tao, Linda Ovara, Frank Runninghorse,
Jack Cruel, Taylor De Rosado,
Carlos Juarez, Rashi, Eric Bergman,
Sheila Judenfriend, and Sonia Decker. If you
could line up behind the mic. Eve Hershop, you're the next
speaker. Looks like Eve's not
here. The next speaker is Michael Tao.
Good evening. Thank you.
Can what I said to my fellow Jews here. Thank you.
What I said to my fellow Jews here is that this is a real Holocaust.
This is another Holocaust. That is how history is going to remember
it. Just the same way we all know what Germans
did to us. Now the whole world knows. And we're
going to have to reckon with what we did to Palestine, which will be freed.
Bezrat Hashem. Palestine will be freed in our lifetime.
In our lifetime. We are going to walk Richmond
for rpa for Mayor Eduardo. Thank you, Mayor Eduardo, for being a social
justice visionary. We're going to walk Richmond until we have holes in
our shoes to make sure that you get reelected and that you continue leading Richmond
in this direction. Thank you. Time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Linda
Olvera. Linda Olvera.
Looks like Linda's not here. The next speaker is Frank Runninghorse.
Not here. Thank you. The next speaker is Jack Crisil.
Not here. The next speaker is Taylor De Rosado.
All right, well, how. How do I get this started?
I'm on. All right. Well, hell. Well, hello, everybody.
I've been a Richmond resident my whole life. I'm been.
I'm homeless right now. I've been homeless for seven years. What I need help
with today is that there's a problem. This is an
umbrella. You know, we. You know, we get
shelter from it. It's a symbol. It's a sign. It shows us,
it protects us. Well, well, today's problem is the
things don't really stand for what they stand for. I'm third
generation American, quarter German,
and the rest is Filipino. So I
stand up for all sides wherever they may come from. This is
the land of the home and the free. Homeless people are like our
pinky toes and they're stressed out. This is how
we help. We stand all on all 10 and make sure we get that
help. I've been selling this newspaper for advocacy.
I. I hope this is a difference between panhandling,
because this is. Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Carlos Juarez.
Good evening, council members. My name is Carlos Juarez and
I'm a Richmond resident. And I want to be clear. Anti anti Semitic
is unacceptable, is unacceptable, and Jewish residents
deserve to feel safe and protected in our city. Harm must be named and
addressed. I also believe accountability should be proportional and constructive.
Mayor Martinez has acknowledged the harm caused by his actions and has
taken steps towards repair. His leadership has also retained resulted
in tangible progress, community oversight of police crisis response
alternatives, and thoughtful handling of immigrant safety issues.
A formal censure is a serious action.
I asked the council to reflect on whether this step strengthens trust and healing or
whether it risks overshadowing important work and growth already underway.
Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Rashi.
Rashi. It looks like Rashi's not here. The next speaker
is Eric Bergman.
Mike is on. You can go ahead and start.
Mr. Martinez. Most of the other speakers here have come across
to me like defense attorneys and prosecuting
attorneys. People who've criticized you, have supported retributive
justice, focusing on punishing you. The people who've
defended you have denied that you recently posted negative Lies
about Jews. In contrast, I support restorative
justice. For instance, for you to arrange a meeting where you
and the other attendees would focus on exploring
how to reduce people's anger and fear in ways which
would feel doable for both you and others. I hope
that what I've Said has come across to you and
some others here as encouraging honesty,
kindness and reconciliation.
Thank you. The next group of speakers will be
Sheila Udenfran, Sonia Decker, Courtney Cummings,
Nikki Ralston, Martha Kim
F. Ina Silva, Walt Miller, Steve Cassell,
Ramsey Robinson, Carol Sanders and Cindy
Shambin. Sheila Udenfriend. You can go ahead and start.
It should be on. Is it on? Yeah.
Okay, thank you. My granddaughter, first of all, I'm sorry. I wanted to
mention that I am a resident of Richmond, as is my
granddaughter. She is a high school senior who is afraid
to wear a Jewish star necklace to school because she fears
crude anti Semitic remarks from other students.
Our children learn from adults.
If our leaders can't set a good example of
respecting all ethnicities, how can we expect the kids to
be any better? Passing along hateful conspiracy
based posts on social media is
not something that helps to create and foster a healthy community
with mutual respect for for all groups.
This is especially important for the leaders of our
community such as the mayor. My hope is that my granddaughter
can begin to wear her Jewish star in school without fear
of verbal abuse and that adults in our community will
avoid giving empire to prejudice. The next
speaker is Sonia Decker.
Hello. I am a Jewish Richmond resident
and I am here to speak in support of Mayor Eduardo Martinez.
I have seen all the work that you've done to support the Richmond community.
I've heard many people speak about that tonight, including ways you've
shown up for rent control, environmental justice. I want to
add police reform and creating real safety that is rooted
in care and decriminalization in Richmond. And my Judaism has taught me
to stand up for liberation and justice and that all of our well being is
connected. And I fear that this censure is
weaponizing fear around antisemitism to undermine really
important progressive changes and politics that is
really important in this city. And I'm hearing that there's a need
for repair. I'm hearing that you're engaging in that repair. And. And let's not
go beyond into punishment that undermines all
of our safety and well being here in Richmond. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Courtney Cummings.
Okay, it's on. Good evening everyone. My name
is Courtney Cummings, known as Courtney Bear Quiver
now. And on behalf of American Indian movement that is
nationwide, statewide and citywide, we are here in support of
Mr. Eduardo Martinez as mayor.
I am Native American. I am Northern Cheyenne, Arica,
Muscogee Creek enrolled member of three affiliated tribes of North
Dakota. When I was afraid and my children were
afraid to be Native Americans here in our city. I walked alongside
Mr. Eduardo, and he has, on behalf of him, before he
was City Council has always supported us and many minorities who
have not had the highlight on them.
So, Mary, Eduardo, be strong. Know that
you have people supporting you. It's all political. People are looking to get
you out for their own reasons, not because you are
not that person. You. I forgive you. You ask for forgiveness,
so we should all forgive you.
The next speaker is Nikki Ralston.
Hi. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Good evening. Ladies and gentlemen of
the Richmond City Council. The only legitimate purpose of government is to protect
and promote the welfare of its citizens. The good people of Richmond
are no exception. I repeat, the good people of Richmond are
no exception. They deserve leaders who obsess over
how to serve them and who best and who promote their best interests
with all their vigor. Not a leader who obsesses over
Jew hatred and promotes racist conspiracy theories and
violence against minorities. Therefore, I call on Mayor
Martinez to resign so that a worthy leader can take the helm and lead
this city towards the brighter future that it deserves.
Racism, conspiracy theories and violence have no place in public leadership.
The people of Richmond deserve better. Thank you.
Thank you. The next speaker is Martha Gruel.
Hello. My name is Martha Gruel. I'm a resident
of Richmond. And in this complicated world,
a couple of things are fairly clear. One is that the State
of Israel is committing genocide against the people of Gaza. And second,
that Eduardo Martinez is not an anti Semite.
Now, it is reasonable, it is justified to feel anger at
the carelessness that led to the reposting of those anti Semitic messages.
However, the mayor has apologized explicitly and
clearly and is working at making amends. That will not happen instantaneously
and it will not happen by a council vote.
Someone who acknowledges and apologizes for their unintentional
harm to Jews is not a Jew hater. And it seems to bear
repeating that criticizing the actions of the Israeli government is not
anti Semitism. Mayor Martinez has made grave errors.
Thank you. The next speaker is Kim F.
Kim F.
Mayor and council members, I live in the Bay Area and stand in front of
you this evening. Given the extremely concerning circumstances, I come
to demand, Mayor Martinez, that you resign.
Myself, along with countless community members, including over 80
of your locally elected peers across the Bay Area are alarmed
by your repeated anti Semitic activity, including the conspiracy theories
you have spread. Mayor Martinez, you are entitled to your personal
opinions. However, as a civic leader, your number one responsibility
is to protect your constituents. Mayor, you have failed.
Your vitriol has made your own community feel Less safe and has
put Jews and the general public across the Bay Area at risk of
physical harm. You are clearly aware of recent anti Semitic
violence, including Bondi beach, as you despicably posted that Jews
staged their own murder, including that of 10 year old Matilda,
featured here. Your actions are utterly irresponsible.
As a civic leader, I urge you to resign and let Bay Area rebuild.
Your time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Ina Silva.
Silva. Silva.
Okay. Ina's not here. The next speaker is Walt Miller.
Not here. Thank you. The next speaker is Steve Cassell.
Excuse me.
My name is Steve Castle. I am a resident of South San
Francisco and I am a candidate for City Council in
South San Francisco precisely because of people
like the mayor. I don't accuse him of anti Semitism. I don't
use that word. I do believe he is a vile Jew hater and a terrorist.
And the reason I say that is the things he says cause Jews
to be killed. It's very simple. I am a Zionist.
I am a proud donor to aipac. I am a proud
former member of the JCRC board. And the things that
people have said here tonight about JCRC are despicable.
They are not an Israeli organization. It's not
a pro Israel organization. They are pro Jewish organization who works
on one thing and one thing only, to make sure that people that hate Jews
are called to account. Let me tell you something. Right now, the city of Richmond
has some major problems, and we're seeing it here tonight. Thank you very
much. Thank you. The next speaker is Ramsey Robinson.
Ramsey Robinson, it's very
important that when we talk about harm being done, we never forget the tens of
thousands of Palestinians innocent that won't open their eyes
tomorrow morning. My name is Ramsey Robinson. I'm a member of the Peace
and Freedom Party. I'm also a clinical social worker in the Bayview neighborhood
of San Francisco, which has very strong parallels with Richmond.
Bayview suffers from environmental racism, lack of jobs
and homelessness. And these are issues that I understand, Mayor Martinez, that you are
fighting proactively against. We also understand that you are anti
war and pro Palestinian and that you're being attacked because of
this. So we ask that these attacks stop so you can continue
to do the good work that you're doing. And we stand with
you, and we stand with Palestine like we always will do. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Carol Sanders and the following group,
if you could line up behind the mic, will be Cindy Shambon,
Rebecca Sparks, Abdul Fattah Dubuan,
Kathleen Irwin, Kalina Preforce.
Henry Levy, Bill Barish.
Seth Morrison, Juliet Lee,
Elena A. And Sophie Rife.
Carol Sanders. You can go ahead and step to the mic if
you're here. No. Okay. The next speaker is Cindy
Schambun.
Okay. The next speaker is Rebecca Sparks.
My name is Rebecca Sparks and I'm a Richmond resident. I'm here
today to join over 80 current and former elected officials from
across the region and calling for the resignation of Mayor Eduardo Martinez.
In addition, we are calling on you, the City Council, to formally censure
Mayor Martinez for his anti Semitic posts and to publicly affirm
that anti Semitism in all its forms has no place in Richmond.
The behavior of the mayor stokes the flames of antisemitism in
this community, and it cannot be tolerated. His actions of reposting anti Semitic
conspiracy theories on social media has a profound effect on the safety of Jews
everywhere, including his constituents. If he wants to go down an
Internet rabbit hole and repost lies in his own time, he is entitled to do
so as a private citizen of the United States. But as an elected representative
of this community, it is entirely inappropriate and dangerous to the Jewish
community writ large. I call on the mayor to resign immediately and for City
Council to formally censure him for his gross negligence only. This Will Reform
has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Abdul Fattah
Dewan. Abdul Fattah Dewan.
Okay, they're not here. The next speaker is Kathleen Irwin.
Good evening. My name is Kathleen Irwin. I'm a longtime Richmond
resident and voter from the Panhandle Annex. And I
want to state very firmly that I do feel the posting, the reposting that
you did, Mayor Martinez, was an anti Semitic act,
and it was very harmful. And I have heard your apology,
and I want to acknowledge that, because we have to
start with that. If we can think about repair. If we
think about repair, it means bringing the community back together. And for that,
I want to shine a light on today about who is really speaking,
splitting this community, and point to Cesar Zepeda,
who brought forward this and. And another council member who brought
forward this censorship without the proper process and
who include and misrepresented it in his opening remarks.
And it took another council member,
Doria Robinson, to point that out in her comments.
And I want to just say I have one second left, but your time has
expired. Thank you. The next. The late, great Jim McMillan.
Your time expired. Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Kalina Preforce.
Mayor Martinez, my brother, you know me as council Member Klima
Priforce of Emeryville. A Democratic socialist, a Democratic
party delegate in Alameda county, and the first Haitian American elected official
in California. I know what it is to be censored and sanctioned for fighting
for working people, just as they tried tonight. So congratulations,
Mayor. If they're coming for you, you must be doing something right.
Let us be clear. This isn't about which side you fall on when a euro
apartheid state genocides brown people. It's about disciplining elected
officials during an election year and sending a warning to every future Zora Mamdani
in the Bay Area to fall in line. But who controls our cities?
Our cities belong to working people, immigrants, tenants, labor and families
demanding dignity. Not donors, not lobbyists, not fear of the other.
We run as Democratic socialists. We govern as Democratic socialists.
I stand with Mayor Martinez. And let's vote these corporate centrists
out of office. Thank you.
The next speaker is Henry Levy. Henry Levy.
Levi. My name is Henry Levy.
I am the elected treasurer, Tax collector,
Alameda County. I am Jewish.
I am here to support my friend, Eduardo Martinez.
Mayor, I met you six years ago when you were a fairly new council member
and interested in the efforts to create an East Bay public bank.
I make community financial investment. I wouldn't
have known about your opinions about Israel and Palestine,
but I heard about it from the JCRC and the Jewish News.
The JCRC informed me quickly about your reposts. You and
I have talked about these for the last few weeks. You have heard my opinions,
of which I have plenty. I don't feel any
remarks I can make tonight will change those substantially. Affiliated with
the jcrc. They made swift judgment of you,
wanting to elect you to Bay Area, Anti Semite
of the Year, and even making threats against you.
I believe the voters of Richmond should be the ones to judge you. Your time
has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Bill Barish. Bill Barish,
Good evening. I was born into a Jewish
family. I've been in Israel. I have seen with my
own eyes how Palestinians are treated.
I have known the mayor for, I don't know,
10 years now. I've worked on his last three campaigns.
And if I thought that he was anti Semitic in
any way, I would not have come close to that.
As a matter of fact, I would have been the first one to get in
his face. I am sure, in fact, that the mayor is not nearly as
virulently anti Israel and anti Zionist
as I am. But in this moment,
I will say he made a mistake. He copped
to it, he apologized for it, and I consider
him a friend and I will be happy
to be working on his next re election campaign.
Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Seth Morrison.
I'm sorry, Mr. Mayor, I hardly can hear it.
Can you have the volume raised a little? Put.
That's right, yeah. We just need
to. Can we instruct the speakers to speak closer
to the mic? And Mayor, if I may, through you as the chair, we have
increased the volume and it is more challenging given
the multiple settings, but staff is doing their best. That volume has
been adjusted. I realize that. That's why I said the speakers need to step closer
to the M. Okay.
The next speaker is Seth Morrison. If Seth Morrison is here.
Not. Okay, thank you. The next speaker is Juliet
Lee.
Hi. I'm Jewish.
I live in Richmond, District 6. It's an awesome
city. It's an awesome district, full of really beautiful, sweet people.
I love my neighbors. I got to meet my representative
last night. She's awesome. We have a lot
of things going on in the city,
but this is not what we should be focusing our attention on.
We have my friend here behind me. He doesn't have
a place to live. Right. We have neighbors
talking about trash. We have people. Our schools are
struggling. Our teachers need to get supported more. And we're
pouring millions of our tax dollars, billions of our tax
dollars into the war machine that is just bombing children,
families, destroying an entire civilization.
And that's what we need to be focusing on. There are children,
prisoners of war, hostages, Children,
thousands of them. This is what we need to be focusing on.
And your time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker
is Elena A. And if you can step closer to the mic.
Yeah. Hi. Good evening, everyone.
My name is Ilana Auerbach and I am Jewish.
I was raised a fourth generation Zionist.
And I know from the inside Zionism is
not Judaism. Zionism is an ideology. Zionism is
a supremacist ideology. It cannot exist without racism.
And so I am here in support of the mayor.
And I am here to say that there is a revolution happening
here in Richmond because the people of Richmond and the leaders of
Richmond have the moral courage and the moral fortitude to
call it what it is. I am proud to be
living in the East Bay, and the leaders of Richmond represent me
much more aligned with my values than the leaders of Berkeley,
where I live. And so I support you, Mayor. Keep up the strength.
Keep telling the truth, keep calling out the genocide and keep
liberation for all beings. That is what we're here for.
The next speaker is Sophie Rife.
And the last group of speakers after that are Gail Ierweiss,
Jocelyn D. Eva Chrysanthem,
Ian Alaid, Steve Greaves,
Marie Anyam, Sarah Lamnan,
Shahar Shukran Maiza, Mirar,
Monadil Herzala and Ayman Khalil.
Sophie Rice, you can go ahead and step to the mic if you are
present. Just. Sophie's not
here. The next speaker is Gail Iarweiss. If you're
here, Gail.
Hey, Gail is not here. The next speaker is Jocelyn D.
Hi, I'm Jocelyn. I'm a Jewish American of conscience. And hey, good,
I'm glad this guy's still here because I just really want to say I'm
going to jump to the end here wearing a scarf, a keffiyeh analog
scarf emblazoned with the colors
of the flag and the symbols of the flag that is committing genocide.
I don't see how you can come here and complain about a hat that says
death to the idf. The chutzpah, the gall, the nerve.
I'm embarrassed. So the JCRC and people who
would come in here being so offensive doing that definitely do
not speak for me. Anyway,
I believe the mayor did make a misstep, made a misjudgment.
I believe he's sincere in his wish
to make amends and repair. And I do appreciate Treasurer
Levy and the rabbi who came in here in the spirit of Tikkun
Olam with the invitation for healing and restorative
justice. And I do believe that inspired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Ian Adai,
or, I'm sorry, Eva. Chris Chrisian.
Thank you. Eva Khrusanti. I just really want to briefly
point out that the reason we're all here today is because
the JCRC made a big fuss about the mayor reposting
some material. This is a huge waste of
time. But I want to point out that for the last two
years and two months, I've been investigating, researching and
reporting on the various bizarre activities
of the jcrc, specifically its full frontal assault
on the First Amendment here in the Bay Area. And you
know, there are a lot of activist groups that now have, because of my reporting,
they have the ability to file all sorts of legal complaints.
They, you know, they haven't done. So I urge them to do
so because we're going to have to keep coming back here and sitting
in packed rooms to give testimonials to a mayor if
we don't address the jcrc, we need to take it
on. Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Ian
Adair. Ian Adair, you're present.
No, Ian is not here. The Next speaker is Steve Greaves.
My name is Steve Greaves. I had the honor of working
almost in the next classroom from Eduardo Martinez
when he was a teacher in this school district here. I had
the honor of being a citizen of the city for 15,
well, a teacher for 15 years and living here for
seven years. And I'm thrilled that he's
the mayor and I support him wholeheartedly. And I'm
pleased that he's also supporter of equality
and human rights across the board, which JCRC
is not. JCRC is a front organization for
the state of Israel, as are many so called Jewish agencies
around the country. And Israel would
not even exist were it not for the hundreds of billions of
dollars of American taxpayer dollars that have been weapon
welfare warfare for them. And I'm fed up with it.
Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Marie Anya.
I'm Marie, the mama of Lydia, a 4 year old special needs
student at TK stage at Stiege Elementary. Thank you for quickly responding
to my email. I truly appreciate the police department speaking with me
and hope a safety plan is made with the district. The same graffiti
was cited on our block today. As a mother, it's stressful and scary
having students attend a school with facilities that are not updated.
Stage continues to lack a canopy for the big play yard for the students
to rest under. We don't have a TK playground structure,
unpainted TK yard, inappropriate height, sinks,
lacks a security officer and security cameras due to the rising
activity in the neighborhood. Our black and brown students deserve
the same resources and safety measures as other schools. We are families
with feelings, dreams and futures. It's the students and Lydia who are
the victims in this. Please continue helping us. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Sarah Lamnan.
Good evening. Thank you for your time. My name is Sarah Lamnan.
I'm an elected Jewish local official. And I'm not here to
defend the Mayor's posts or to call for his resignation.
I'm here because there is another way. I appreciate
the Mayor's willingness to engage with the local Jewish community to listen to
why blanket condemnation of Israel and the spread of conspiracy theories
are dangerous and divisive. And I hope those long awaited conversations lead
to deeper understanding and collaboration. I'm here to work with you as well.
I came tonight to ask all of us to work together to
begin the healing that Vice Mayor Zepeda spoke about. We need to
stop fighting in council chambers. We need to start learning from
each other. We must acknowledge that extremes on both sides are harmful
and inaccurate. Whether it's claiming that all Jews or Israelis support
human rights abuses or insist that even saying Palestine is unacceptable.
There is another way that affirms the humanity
of all people, and I urge us to do so. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Shahar Shakran.
Hello. I didn't prepare a speech, so I'll try to keep it for, like,
under a minute. I'm a resident of Richmond,
I think District 33. I've been in
the city for a while, and I've been
meaning to speak about what's going on as far as politics in the city.
I'm not here with JCRC or any other organization. I'm here as
a former Israeli who's been living in the city, who's been
thinking twice before putting a NORA on his window ledge,
who's been unable to speak to my, you know,
shopkeepers who are Muslims because
of this sentiments of hate that's been raging around the city ever
since the condemnation of the Israel. And I've been re. I want to reinforce what's
been said here. It's time for healing. It's time to focus
criticism on this, on the government of Israel and not on
the Jewish people or the state of Israel, who's been through enough.
And we, as your
time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Maa Morar.
Miza Marara, if you're here. No. The next
speaker is Monadale Herzala.
Herzala. Oh, thank you. And the last
speaker is Iman Khalil. Iman Khalil.
Okay. Well, there are no more public speakers in the auditorium,
so now we'll move to the online speakers. We have 45
speakers. The first group of speakers online are
Eileen Lee, Dorit Hillary, Judy Weatherly, Michael Gilson,
Marilyn Langlois, Paul and Levine, Oren R.
Amber Hartfield and Michael Harris.
Eileen. Excuse me. Please unmute yourself. You'll have one minute, and you may begin.
Hi. My name is Eileen Lee. I've lived in the bay area for
30 years. Thank you for this opportunity
to gather and think together about how to respond to the
mayor's endorsement of hatred and violence against Jews.
As we've heard tonight, the mayor is a beloved role model
for many here. Sadly, his example
teaches the next generation to hate Jews.
Thank you, council members. Cesare's at the PETA, and Jamelia
Brown, for your courageous leadership in condemning Mayor
Martinez's actions. Richmond deserves a better
mayor, one who is committed to the safety of all its citizens,
not one who spreads lies, empowers extremists,
and inflames hatred. Each of you
council members has the power to take action. Please act
to stop the mayor from grooming the next generation to
hate. Thank you.
The next speaker is Dorit. Please state your first and last name for the record.
And you may begin. Hi, my name
is Dorit and I'm been in Bay area resident for over 40 years.
I think the mayor made a big mistake and what he's done
is used the.
What is. What's happened is he's working against pluralistic
democracy. I think we have to keep that in mind very clearly. A pluralistic democracy
and a leader of one. Mayor Martinez should
be very aware that when you target a minority,
you are not representing all of the people in a community.
And when people hear conflate fighting antisemitism
with being against liberal politics for LGBTQ
and black people and women rights. We are not
people who are against all of those things. We fight for those things
as well. But we are Jewish people who want protection from our government.
And now you're not even listening to what I'm saying,
so I don't really believe you when you say you
apologize because you've. Your time has expired. The next
speaker is Hillary. Hillary, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hillary, please unmute yourself.
Hello, can you hear me? Yes. Please state your last name for the record.
Yeah. My name is Hillary Kilimnick. I am a Berkeley
resident, member of the Jewish community, parents to three Jewish
kids, and I'm here tonight to urge Mayor Martinez to resign over
his anti Semitic rhetoric and conspiracy theories that he's
promoted on social media. He reposted claims that the
ISIS inspired massacre of Jews celebrating Hanukkah on Bondi
beach was an Israeli false flag. This is not an isolated incident.
It's part of a disturbing pattern of anti Semitic statements.
This is not about politics. I'm not a lobbyist.
I'm a person. I'm a community member. It's about basic human decency.
Discriminatory statements toward any minority community endanger all minority
communities. I want to thank the city Council for taking this matter
seriously. Richmond deserves better. The Bay Area deserves
better. Please do the right thing. A mayor
that spreads dangerous falsehoods needs to take responsibility for
his actions and resign. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Judy Weatherly. Please unmute yourself and you may
Hi. My name is Judy Weatherly. I'm 75 years old.
I've been a social racial justice activist
for much of my adult life. And after this meeting tonight,
I have never felt the kind of fear living in Richmond that I feel
right now. The amount of hatred in this room has been caused
by you, Mayor. By you. This is just ridiculous that
we should have to be putting up with this kind of hatred that has
been going on for hours now. I, I, I can't even believe it.
And I can't believe that I am afraid. I have lived in so many different
places. I grew up in poverty. This is just
ridiculous that you do sit there.
It's just, it's, it's pretty amazing.
You know, I'm actually pretty disgusted with most of the council right
now. And I assure you that your anti Semitism that
has come out tonight and that has been flagrant
in this audience is just disgusting. Thank you.
Your the next speaker is Michael Gilkson. Please unmute yourself and you may
begin. Thank you. My name is Michael Glickson.
I am a resident of Richmond. I want to express my strong support for Mayor
Eduardo Martinez. I will admit that as a Jew, I was disappointed at what
Eduardo posted. Antisemitism is pernicious and has
been for millennia. But because I know Eduardo, I do not expect that was
his intention and I want to hear more from him also as I'm
a Jew who supports the rights of Palestinians to law, life and liberty.
Unfortunately, showing public support for Palestinians has
become dangerous in this country and Eduardo has become a target of
national pressure campaigns. Finally, Eduardo is a very successful
mayor and he is up for re election this year. His opponents are using this
issue to cast shade on Eduardo's numerous accomplishments,
including vastly improving the city's financial condition
as a testament to by the state of California and
the lowest homicide rate in Richmond's history. Thank you.
Thank you. Next speaker is Marilyn Langlois. Please unmute
yourself and you may begin. My name is Marilyn Langloise
and I'm a 24 year Richmond resident. I fully support Mayor
Eduardo Martinez. He had the fortitude to publicly admit
he made a mistake and has apologized. Mayor Martinez
denounces violence in all its forms and supports people of all
religions. He recognizes the distinction between Judaism
and the Zionist ideology that has placed Palestinians under
brutal occupation for the last 77 years.
Mayor Martinez empathizes with the underdog.
Growing up in Texas as a poor Mexican American kid with
a skill stutter, he was likely bullied at school and thus
recognizes the urge to retaliate that stems from such humiliation.
But rather than act on that urge, he has devoted his
life to fairness, non violence and uplifting the oppressed.
I hope he remains at the helm of our city for a second term.
Thank You. Thank you. The next speaker is Paula Levine.
Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hello. Oh, is it. Is my time starting?
Yes, you may begin. Okay. My name is Paul Levine.
I am a 35 year or more plus resident of Richmond.
I'm in Cesar Zepedas district and I am
here to ask Mayor Eduardo
Martinez to resign.
I am, as you can see, I'm very shaken up by what I've
heard tonight and I'm upset by the
fact that this was even an issue because it shouldn't
have been. Anyhow, I hope you take
advantage of the offers to meet with
Rabbi Julia Sacks. Tyler,
I think that I haven't heard your apology, so I'd
like to hear that. And you could apologize to me personally. I would appreciate that.
So thank you very much. Thank you. The next speaker is
Oren R. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hi. Good evening. My name is Oren. Thank you to Councilmembers
Brown and Vice Mayor Sapita for showing integrity and leadership tonight.
For consideration on the emergency agenda item, Mayor.
Gloating over mass murder, the ISIS shooting attack of Australians,
Jews, police and crackpot conspiracy theories
about Bangi massacre is reprehensible and insane. And you're
unfit to serve as mayor and you should resign because of that. Here are some
of the mayors and vice mayors of the various cities that have called for your
resignations, plus dozens of others. San Pablo, El Cerrito,
Canoli, Hercules, Albany, Berkeley, Orinda,
Martinez, San Rafael, Corta, Madera, San Anselmo,
Tiburon, Pleasant Hill, Concord, Walnut Creek, Pittsburgh, Oakley,
Brentwood, Livermore, Belmont, Los Alto, Santa Rosa and Cloverdale.
I'd also like to say that the Bandai beach hero, Ahmed Ahmed
prayed today at the Rebbe's grave in New York.
Mayor, you are no Ahmed Al Ahmed.
Resign. The next speaker is
Amber Hatfield. Please unmute yourself and you may begin. Good evening.
My name is Amber Hatfield and I'm a Richmond resident in District 3.
I'd like to speak in opposition to the resolution centering
Mayor Martinez on the basis of personal social media posts
that he has already rescinded and for which he has already apologized.
This should be a teaching moment for all of us about how to listen to
one another, not a politically motivated smear campaign.
Mayor Martinez has been a role model for leading the city
of Richmond with compassion for the most vulnerable people.
Removing him from committees on which he is doing real work on
important issues would harm all Richmond residents.
Punishing him by docking his pay is not going to repair
harm done. It will only benefit Those who are running against him in
the coming primaries. I urge Councilmember Brown and Vice
Mayor Cepeda to reconsider bringing this divisive and detrimental resolution.
Follow the mayor's lead and get back to work on real problems.
Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Michael
Harris, followed by Kate Bolton Schmuckler, Kevin Wilk,
Sarah Theise, Juan Canham, Deborah John,
and OG Strogets. Michael, please unmute yourself and
you may begin. Good evening, council members.
I'm a 40 year resident of the Bay Area. There isn't time tonight to
rebut all the lies that have been spoken here. So let's focus on what this
is about. The mayor, who was the perpetrator and not the victim here,
accused Jews of staging the Bandai beach massacre to gain sympathy.
That's just the latest in a series of posts of sordid Jew
hate that he has shared. This isn't criticism of Israel. Israel, as much as some
want to classify all hate speech against Jews downward into that we
all know had the mayor made similar hateful statements about black people
after the massacre at the church in Charleston in 2015 or the massacre
of LGBTQ people in Orlando in 2016, he would
have been censured and forced to resign in short order. But against one
and only one group, his progressive credentials are considered acceptable
enough to. To allow him to incite hate in the name of the greater good.
The council needs to censure him and Mayor Martinez. You need to resign so
the council can get back to the actual needs of the city of Richmond instead
of spending more meetings dealing with this fallout. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Kate Bolton. Schmuckler.
Looks like she dropped her hand. The next speaker is Mayor Wilk. Please unmute
yourself and you may begin. Hi,
my name is Kevin Wilk. I'm the mayor of Walnut Creek and the only Jewish
mayor in Contra Costa County. One major responsibility in a mayor's role
in leading the city is to keep people safe and not spread more unwarranted division.
As an elected official, I stand up against all hate. Not just anti
Semitism, but against racism and hate speech of all kinds. This is
what should be expected of our elected officials. Amplifying anti Semitism or
any hate speech doesn't just hurt that targeted group, it hurts all
of us. This is why there has been tremendous condemnation of
Mayor Martinez's anti Semitic postings all across the East Bay.
And beyond. A mayor's words, whether they be on camera, print, or social media,
carry weight. Anti Semitism is An attack on
a race and ethnicity, a religion, no different than an attack on
one's skin color or heritage. Criticizing the Israeli government is not anti Semitism.
Speaking out and condemning a business, a group, or an event because
they are Jewish is anti Semitism.
Thank you. The next speaker is Sarah Theise. Please unmute
yourself and you may begin.
Sarah? All right,
we're going to move on to the next speaker, Juan Canham. Please unmute yourself and
you may begin. Hi, I'm Juan. I'm an
Oakland resident. None of this Bay Area nonsense. I'm clear about where I'm
from, which I don't think can be said for the vast majority of speakers that
want to overrule the votes of Richmond residents. I do follow Richmond
closely because it's a shining beacon we can all learn from,
especially when it comes to reducing crime by investing in
people, taking millions from corporations and using them to improve working people's
lives. But I'm mostly calling in support of listening to the people of Richmond.
Given how easy it is for outsiders, including myself, to weigh in,
I do hope the mayor has productive conversations to repair the harm caused
with the Richmond rabbi that spoke earlier. That's what matters here.
Not jcrc's take, JCRC takes,
nor my own. And I look forward to hearing
about the productive conversations with the
community that's been harmed, not this kind of political spectacle
that has been caused. Thank you. Thank you. Now we'll go back to
Sarah Thes. Sarah, please unmute yourself and you may
Sarah.
Okay, we will move on and go back to Sarah.
Deborah, please unmute yourself. State your last name for the record and you may begin.
Deborah, please unmute yourself. You may begin.
Okay, we will move on to John.
John, please unmute yourself. State your last name for the record. You may begin.
This has nothing to do with anti Semitism.
It has everything to do with the system of whiteness and white white culture
and white supremacy. We live on stolen land stolen by Europeans who
classify themselves as white people.
Thank you. Those same white people stolen land
in what is called Israel. They have
now practiced genocide upon those people.
They do what they always do. Deny, deny, deny. They've even
co opted the term Semite.
Most or many inhabitants of the world are classified
as Semitic. But these white people have
stolen the term Deny,
deny, deny. The same people who
have claimed suicide. Excuse me. The same people who have claimed
genocide are now practicing genocide
upon another group of people with whom land
they've stolen.
Thank you. The next speaker is og stratz,
followed by zoom user, carla schick, carrie. Hillis,
nancy, maddie, sarah c. River and
barry, toronto. Og strogatz,
please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Can you hear me? Yes. Thank you. I'm OG
Strogatz. I'm a Jew and a
Walnut Creek resident. My heart aches every
day for the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis over
so many years. Our elected and appointed leaders
at every level of government, regardless, regardless of where they govern, are responsible
for modeling great citizenship for all of us.
Regrettably, by spreading false information about the massacre
of Jews in Australia and about the sources of anti Semitism,
Mayor Martinez has fallen short of the honest,
wise, responsible conduct we need from our leaders.
I ask that the City Council censure Mayor Martinez and that
he resigned.
The next speaker is Carla. Carla, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Okay. As a Jewish American, I am deeply grieved by the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
As a Bay Area resident, I feel represented by resolutions and actions
taken by Bay Area municipalities to stop the genocide.
As a teacher, I have witnessed that the path to healing comes through education
and conversation and not by punitive actions or the
silencing of political speech. This is also a Jewish value.
Retribution and hatred against leaders like Mayor Martinez who support
Palestinians and their struggles for justice have no place in our political discussions
or policies. I support Mayor Martinez's leadership
in affirming Palestinian life. For decades, Palestinians have
been demonized by the mainstream to to justify whatever brutal acts are done
against them. I am proud of our Bay Area City's leadership, and in particular
Richmond City Council, in affirming that we have the power to stop
and challenge policies enabling the genocide against Palestinians.
Despite the so called ceasefire, our work must continue.
And as labor says, an injury to one is an injury
to all. Thank you. Your time has expired. The next speaker
is Deborah. Deborah, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Yes, can you hear me now? Yes, I can.
Okay. Thank you so much. So, yes, My name is Deborah
Small. I'm a Richmond resident, former chair
of the Richmond Community Public Safety Task Force,
and I just want to speak in support of Mayor Martinez.
I have never been more proud of him than I am tonight.
Not because I agreed with the posting. I think
most of us admit that that was a mistake. But for the level of
grace that he has shown tonight, for the level of leadership
that he has demonstrated and what it means to be a public official
that actually listens to the public, that does things that
support democracy, and he never ran as
a perfect person. He hasn't governed as a perfect person,
but what he has shown us is what it means to be a
regular person serving the public. With that I thank
you and I hope that my grandson can grow up to be
the kind of person and leader that you are. Thank you.
The next speaker is has the device named Zoom user.
Please state your first and last name for the record and you may begin.
Hi, my name is Diane Duran and my husband's next to me. I'm actually Jewish.
A lot of people that Martinez headlines as not
Jewish and they're anti Semites. Obviously he's the
leader of the anti Semite people in this room. I'm from Ukraine and I know
what anti Semitism look like. And Edward Martinez is extremely anti Semitic and
should not be mayor. My husband will speak for the remainder of the time.
Hi, I'm Juan Duran and actually we
are the people facing tough times right now and we the people, we really want
peace and positiveness in on society. Our major daughter
Martinez needs to change his personal comments or
resign perhaps.
We the people cannot support negative influence.
This is America. Major D Did you came to America
to express hate on Jews? That is my question to Eduardo our major.
I'm a Latino myself and I came here for peace to
support the community. Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Carrie Hillis. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Thank you. My name is Kerry Hillis and I am the mayor of the town
of Moraga, California. As a fellow elect official,
I do not take lightly making critical remarks
at other council council's meeting. Especially when they are regarding
the presiding officer. Put plainly Mayor Martinez,
your actions and your failure to proactively commit to
full restorative justice created all of the division you see
before you here tonight. As mayor you should have
known the damage you would do to your community when you shared clearly anti
Semitic and horrific social media posts claiming
that the massacre of Jews celebrating Hanukkah in Sydney was a false
flag operation. Mayor Hernandez, your clearly Trump like
spreading of hateful disinformation is deplorable.
You are doing real harm and you can see it here in your council
chambers tonight. While I am not Jewish, my family
is and they live in Richmond. I am here speaking on their behalf
as they are afraid of you. Thank you. The next speaker is Nancy.
Nancy, please unmute yourself. State your last name for the record. You may begin.
My name is Nancy Burke. I've been a resident of Richmond for
over 30 years and I'm Jewish and I am shaking tonight.
The hatred in the room where all of you are is
just I just have felt it all night tonight.
And the hatred that I felt. Eduardo, when you posted
those posts on Hanukkah when we were all grieving, what had
happened in Australia was just awful.
And I feel so unsafe as a Jew in my own community.
And I really need you to hear that.
I need you to hear how unsafe Jews
are feeling here in Richmond. That's the whole point. It's not about jcrc.
It's not about you running for anything. This is not political. This is about
feeling unsafe in Richmond as a Jew.
So I really need you to do something about that.
I need to see something change.
Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is
Maddie Marty. Please unmute yourself, state your last name for the record and you may
begin. Hello, my name is Maddie Pinyetti. I am
a Berkeley resident and a volunteer with the Peace and Freedom Party. And I'm
calling because I support Mayor Martinez. I care about the city of Richmond and
I appreciate the work the Mayor has done over the past two years to improve
the city. And Richmond was the first US city to pass a ceasefire resolution
under Mayor Martinez. We really can't lose sight of what is happening in Gaza and
the thousands and thousands of Palestinian lives out have been lost in this genocide.
The Mayor's outspoken positions on Gaza and Palestinian human rights have
made him a target. And this moment is being used to try to silence a
political voice that challenges the status quo. We've seen similar attacks play out all
across this country and we can't allow this to happen here in East Bay as
well. With the increasing attacks on our immigrant communities here in Richmond and
the US war machine escalating attacks abroad, now is the time we need leadership.
Like Mayor Martinez's, political attacks do not strengthen Richmond.
I would like to call on the City Council to act with consistency and fairness.
The future of Richmond depends on it and we want to move forward with healing
and accountability, not repression. Thank you. And the next speaker
is Cheryl De Vila. Cheryl, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Thank you for taking my hand because somebody put it down and it
wasn't me and I kept and raising it and then it kept getting
lowered. So, yes, Eduardo Martinez.
Honorable Mayor Eduardo Martinez has been the best mayor
for Richmond for quite some time. I've been a 44 year
resident of Berkeley and I'm a former council member in the
City of Berkeley and mayor, before he was mayor, he was
a council member and working with me side by side on climate and all
these different issues. He's been so great for Richmond and JCRC
is a Zionist organization. Zionism equals
hate, equals racism. And don't believe
the hype from all these people that are telling you lies,
because JCRC is paid to do what they're doing,
to take down progressive,
anti Zionist elected officials
and anybody that speaks against. It's not real.
Thank you. Your time has expired. The next speaker is Sarah C. Followed by
River, Barry Taranto, Robbie Cat Davis,
Mark Salomons, Ally Soccer, and Diana
Honig. Sarah, please mute yourself.
State your last name for the record and you may begin.
Hi. My name is Sarah Cantor. I am a Jewish resident
of Richmond. I want to talk about the difference between
antisemitism and anti Zionism.
They're not the same thing as many speakers tonight have said.
I was also horrified by Mayor
Martinez's posts, and they are an example of anti
Semitism. The things that he posted were not about
criticizing the genocidal actions of Israel,
and that is an example of anti Semitism.
The rest of his actions, supporting the
people of Palestine and actually calling into account the genocidal
actions of Israel are not anti Semitism, that is anti Zionism.
The things that people have said tonight criticizing Zionism,
criticizing Israel, criticizing the idf, that is anti Zionism.
And I think that it's really important that we keep those things straight.
There has been no anti Semitism or Jew hatred in this room tonight. Thank you.
Thank you. Our next speaker is River.
River, please unmute yourself. State your last name for the record, please.
River. Hi, my name is River Allen and I
am a Richmond resident. The post that Mayor Martinez reposted
was a mistake, and I hope he continues to take steps of accountability for
its impact. However, I hope this upsetting act
by the mayor doesn't distract from the importance of defending Palestinian liberation
and speaking strongly against the ongoing US And Israeli genocide
of the Palestinian people. We must eradicate antisemitism and
free Palestine. Living and working in Richmond.
I'm perpetually grateful for the progressive leaders on my council who are
attentive to what Richmond residents need, like rent
control, accountability from Chevron, and solidarity
with Palestine. Because my own well being and liberation is tightly intertwined
with the liberation of Palestine. Thank you, Richmond City Council members,
for the work you do. And I stand in support of Mayor Martinez today.
Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Barry Taranto.
Please unmute yourself and you may begin. Yes.
Good evening. I appreciate the patience of all of the City
Council members for taking the time to listen to everyone's
words. I'm very much concerned that
an elected leader of a major
East Bay City decided that it was okay
to accuse Jews on wanting to kill themselves.
I don't understand it. We're celebrating Hanukkah just like Christians
celebrate Christmas and
then African Americans celebrate Kwanzaa. I don't understand why that's
okay. For an elected leader to think that
that is okay. I hope that. That the mayor can take
the time to figure out how to do resort of justice and
to understand the. That his words kill. That it's not so
much him. But now I'm afraid to come to Richmond. I live in San Rafael,
but I'm not sure I'm going to want to stop in Richmond anymore because
I. Your time has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Katt Davies.
Please unmute yourself and you may begin. Can you hear me? Yes.
Thank you. My name is Rabbi Kat Zavis of Bait Tun and
I have members in Richmond. I oppose the call for the mayor's residence, resignation and
censorship. Sometimes even those of us with the best intentions miss the
mark. Mayor Martinez's posts were hurtful and perpetrated
anti Semitic tropes. Mayor Martinez and I have spoke a few times
since then. I have found him to be genuinely concerned and apologetic.
He has expressed interest in learning and making amends, or as we call it in
Judaism, doing teshuva. We will only attain the liberated, caring,
beloved community we all seek by working together and repairing harm when
needed. The mayor is engaging in that work. As the mayor embarks on this
journey, it is our job to open our hearts to accept the repair. I'm available
to answer questions, provide guidance and support you on this journey. Thank you.
Thank you. The next speaker is Mark
Solomons. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Mark solomons.
Okay, we'll come back to Mark. The next
speaker is Ali Sakar. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hi, I'm Ali Saker, a Bay Area resident.
Israel has killed at least 20,000 Palestinian children since October
2023. The International association of Genocide Scott Scholars has
concluded that Israel is committing genocide. Some on the other side in this discussion
have mentioned that we should not repeat history. And we're right.
Which is why we should not cave to groups like jcrc.
Groups who look to intimidate, leaders who stand up for their community,
and groups that are trying to erase from history the Israeli genocide
of Palestinians. Our country and our world need more
leaders who stand against Chevron, stand for tenants and stand for a free Palestine.
Voters remember leaders who stand for the right thing and who uplift.
And I'd like to sincerely thank Mayor Eduardo Martinez, for being one who does.
Thank you. Thank you.
Next speaker is. Let's try Mark Solomons again.
Mark, please unmute yourself. You may begin.
Okay, looks like we maybe have some difficulty here. Let's go ahead and move on
to the next speaker, Diane Hoenig. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hi. Diana Honig. I'm a Jewish resident in
Contra Costa county, and yes, anti Semitism
travels across our county, so it's not even relevant which particular city
I'm from. I'm almost
unable to speak because I'm so incredibly sad.
And it's been an incredibly painful process to sit through the amount of hate that
I've seen tonight. Once again, the Richmond City Council Chamber has
become a forum for folks to spew anti Jewish hate,
and it's because of the actions of the Richmond mayor.
I'm saddened that the response of those who
continue to just dismiss out of hand Jewish pain
and fears by saying that those of us who are trying to speak
up against particular anti Semitic posts
are doing so for political reasons or for political speech.
This is not political, and it's absolutely not about Gaza.
Do we want leaders who. Your time
has expired. Thank you. Next speaker has a Device ending
with 5324. Please state your last, first and last name
for the record. You may begin.
Speaker with the phone number ending in 5324.
Please unmute yourself. You may begin.
Okay, we're going to move on to the next speaker, which is Shayna Kills,
followed by Paolo Laverde, followed by Heather Michelle
Levine and Idamar Landu.
Shayna, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Hi, my name is Shana Keels. I'm a Jewish resident of Richmond, and I deeply
appreciate our mayor's commitment to all of the people of this city.
Having been targeted myself by anti Semitic violence and having lost family members in
the German Holocaust, I feel most safe with leadership that denounces genocide and
fights against imperial violence. Criticism of the IDF is not the
same as criticism of the Jewish people. Indeed, the assumption that critique
of Israel is the same as critique of Jewish people is what's most interesting,
dangerous. I see the mayor's outreach to Jewish residents of Richmond and his
desire for repair. And I also, more importantly, see his steadfast support for
our communities who are targeted by ice, whose families have been impacted by colonialist violence,
and who have been impacted by environmental racism. I am proud
to live in a city led by someone with a deep commitment to life and
community and proud of the work of our Mayor, the Jewish community is diverse and
GCRC does not speak for me. Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Paola Laverde. Please unmute yourself
and you may begin. Good evening,
City Council and Mayor Martinez. My name is Paola and I'm calling from
Berkeley because three of my City Council members thought they were speaking for me
when they signed over that. They signed that petition demanding that the mayor
resign over a repost. Over a repost on social media.
And the only reason we know about this issue is because the JCRC
has blown it up. I full throatly support Mayor Martinez and I'm glad
he applied apologized for his blunder. This effort against Mayor Martinez
is a racist smear campaign sponsored by a Zionist organization
and endorsed by politicians who have gone to Israel on JCRC's
dime. They want to get rid of a successful community leader who has not
only made a positive difference in the lives of Rich Richmond's residence, but stood
up against the status quo. I hope the citizens of Richmond keep this
in mind. And the real dangers to Jews everywhere is the Zionist
Israeli government and its genocide against the Palestinian people.
All power to the people and all power to the people in Richmond.
Thank you. The next speaker is Holly Theer. Please unmute yourself and you
may begin. Hi, this is Holly Theer.
Just finished being mayor of Tiburon. And you know, being mayor is a position of
great respect and great responsibility.
The comments that were made on social media were anti Semitic.
These comments accused Israel of the terror
attacks at Bondi beach and other things. And I
want to say that Eduardo Martinez
should at minimum be censored. But I believe he should resign because words
matter and he has made his residents,
the residents, feel unsafe and unwelcome and
living in fear. It's not okay to make residents live in fear when you're mayor.
Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker is Idamar Land. Sorry, Michelle Levin. Please unmute
yourself and you may begin.
Michelle.
Okay, we'll go to the next speaker.
That is going to be Adamar Landu. Please unmute yourself and you may
begin. Hello, my name is Itamar Landau.
I'm speaking on behalf of the Jewish Coalition of Berkeley, an organization of about
500 Berkeley and Bay Area residents,
including about 20 Richmond residents. I really appreciate the small
fraction of the mayor supporters who sincerely acknowledged how bad his recent
posts were and called for true repair. But the
mayor's current apology is nowhere near commensurate with even just the one,
most outrageous Bondi beach post. And the real problem is that post was
not A mistake or a blunder. It's part of a pattern of social media behavior
that goes well beyond legitimate concern for the suffering of Palestinians,
well beyond even an obsessive focus on some real Israeli
crimes. The series of posts going back years cross clearly
into the realm of conspiratorial anti Semitism, where the left stops being
progressive and shakes hands with the radical right. With anti Semites like Candace Owens
and Nick Fuentes. Those posts include a 25 claim that
the Iranian bombing of an Israeli hospital is a false flag. A 24 post that
107 itself was engineered and manufactured by Israel to kill their own.
Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker is Carol Singer. Carol, please unmute yourself and you
may begin. Can you hear me?
Yes. Okay, great. Thank you.
I am a Jewish resident of Richmond. For over
47 years, I have always thought so safe in my community. But as
a Jew, that sense has been shattered. Right now I'm
here to request that the council sanction the mayor.
Consider myself on the far left and
I do not support Israel's actions, but I cannot. But I can
hold the complexities of the conflict. Mayor Martinez cannot.
It is unacceptable that an elected official spread
conspiracy theories, foster hate,
conflate Zionism with Judaism, and blaming
the Jews in Australia for Gaza. And in my opinion,
as an elected official, to wear a keffiyeh or a hat
that promotes death is showing
very poor leadership. And he no longer has
my trust or my faith that he can lead with dignity and humanity.
And frankly, thank you. Your time has expired. The next speaker
is Rochelle. Rochelle. Please unmute yourself. State your last name for the record and you
may begin. Hi. Last name is Betone.
I'm not involved with jcrc.
I am just calling here to voice
that I feel a lot of empathy
for every council member sitting on this board at this moment
because Mayor Martinez has put
your dignity and your career in jeopardy. Obviously,
this is a pretty embarrassing behavior for an elected official,
let alone a mayor. I've just taken a two hour training
course in my work in which, if I did that at my work,
I would not be keeping my job. And I don't know many elected
jobs in which this is an oopsie. You know, I appreciate
that there's been an apology, but we have to hold ourselves responsible for our
actions. And it is time for him to be responsible for this
really embarrassing outward display of anti Semitism.
Thank you. The next speaker is Rafael
Minas. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Good evening. Can you hear me? Yes.
My name is Rafael Menace. And I'm a resident of Pinal.
I'm not a Jewish person, but I'm speaking tonight
because we've been conflating categories. We've been saying,
effectively speaking, if we're progressive,
we can't call out anti Semitism,
or that if we're calling out anti Semitism, that we can't
also be anti Zionist. I feel
as though Mayor Martinez's social media posts undermined
the work that he did to draw attention to the genocide that Israel
is carrying out in Gaza. They made his community feel
less safe and they undermine
the progressive values that he and
I both hold. I urge him to continue
to seek forgiveness and to apologize more thoroughly
and to consider why people are afraid. Thank.
Thank you. The next speaker is Sanai Crigel
Armstrong. Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Can you hear me? Yes. Okay. Sinai is my son name.
So I'm going to say my name is Tamal Kriegel and I'm actually a member
from Humboldt County. I'm a proud Zionist.
I'm also proud of being on the peace camp between Israelis
and Palestinian. Anyone that commit blood libel
against Jews must resign. For the record,
Zionism is simply the right of the Jews to self
determine in their ancestral homeland. This is especially
true for elected officials. They have an extra responsibility
to lead the community with dignity and respect. I urge
you to recognize the hateful action of the mayor and
please resign. This is disgusting.
Thank you. The next speaker. We'll go back to Mark
Solomons one last time. Mark, please unmute yourself. You may begin.
Okay. Okay. I think I'm unmuting. Yes,
thank you. Thank you very much. I'm sorry I missed before,
but I'm ready. Mark Solomons. I'm from Noah Marin. Name.
Oppose and abolish hate. I agree with Councilmember Carlos
Cepeda to censor the mayor. The mayor blamed Jews
for a terrorist attack in Sydney. Unacceptable from
any public official. And his apology? Deeply regretting my actions
committing to do better. He said, I want to sincerely apologize
to those who are hurt. That was never my intention. But intent
does not erase impact. Council members of Beta said he
only apologized for reposting content rather than acknowledging the
harm. The apology does not erase harm.
His response focused on post is too quickly.
It fails to take acknowledge or take responsibility
for spreading unfounded antisemitic conspiracy.
We hear he should be forgiven. Is this post from LinkedIn
also a mistake? Your time
has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Arlette and Kira
Lee. Please unmute yourself. Arlette, you may begin.
Hi My name is Arlette. My statement will actually be in
Spanish. The SCIU
1021. Bengo en Apoyo del alcale
Martinez y sulideraz Go. Gracias por lideras.
Progresista y sutrajo en crichment.
Gracias. Thank you.
The next speaker is Kira. Kira, please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Kira, good evening. Can you hear me?
Yes. Beautiful Kyra le proud servant
of the city of Richmond. I actually wasn't going to speak tonight, but I do
want to greet all of City Council. You all
have had a really long night and I do want to say I'm sorry for
that. I can see your faces. The only thing that I understand
to be on the agenda tonight is whether diminishing
murder in another country of
people is something that an elected official on their
job should be joking about. And I would say no. I think
that it is representative of all of the comments that we have
heard tonight that Councilman
and Vice Mayor Cesar Zepeda and Councilwoman Jamila Brown did the
right thing to give us the option to weigh in, because this is the
largest number of comments I've heard in the last 12 months.
I do want to point out,
Mayor Martinez, that the only person that you corrected
publicly tonight without actually Councilwoman Brown, a black woman.
And that's the reason that I decided to give a comment. Because while
someone is repenting for one mistake,
it's interesting how we're speaking to someone else. Your time
has expired. Thank you. The next speaker is Chang.
Please unmute yourself, state your first and last name for the record and
you may begin. You hear me? Yes.
Thank you. I'm Alan Mayer, a resident of Contra Costa county
living in the town of Kensington. I call on
Mayor Martinez to take responsibility for his actions. Actions by
resigning, the hateful and harmful nature of your
posts would have been obvious to any rational,
unbiased person. Yet that did not deter you from
posting them. Your apology lacks a forthright acknowledgment of
the harm your posts have done and how wrong they were.
This underscores your lack of concern for the well being of the Jewish citizens
of Richmond and our greater community in the Bay Area.
You have betrayed your role as mayor of all the people and must
resign.
Thank you. The next speaker is Jan Corant.
Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Good evening, Council. I am
a Jewish resident of Richmond
and I have waited these
long hours just as you to
say that although I was dismayed,
but by what I read of this post
that Mayor Martinez put in
his social media, I having to assume it was hasty
or careless. I am satisfied
with his public apology and like others,
hope that he continues his efforts to make
amends, or what the rabbi called teshuvah to the
Jewish community to promote understanding and healing.
I've known Eduardo. I have worked to see
him elected in the 12 years I've lived here. So it was.
It was difficult. Your time has expired. Thank you.
The next speaker has a device ending with the phone number 2014.
Please state your first and last name for the record. You may begin.
Hi. My name is Noor Delano. I'm Oakland resident.
I just want to express that I've
heard a lot of hatred in this call and this meeting.
And I think it's really important for there
to be accountability for hosting conspiracy
theories that are not just about,
I'm devastated by the genocide in Gaza. But when
elected officials are posting conspiracy theories or reposting conspiracy
theories on LinkedIn, there needs to be more than an apology and there
needs to be accountability for his actions.
Thank you. Thank you.
The next speaker has a device ending with the phone number 5324 4.
Please unmute yourself and you may begin.
Please state your first and last name for the record, please. This is.
This is Sal Letterman. I speak tonight against hate
in our community, specifically anti Zionism.
Unfortunately, this hate has spread to Richmond's highest ranks, including its
mayor. I welcome debate over controversial issues, including Israel
and Palestine. But confusion about Israel's existence should not be
seeping its way into our community. Mayor Martinez is doing
just this with his long documented history of anti Semitic and anti
Zionist statements. Just as Arab and Muslim are not bad words,
Zionist is not a bad word either. The citizens
of Richmond should not be getting the message that it is, especially from their
own mayor. We are all getting this message each day that he remains
in office. Many have lost sight of basic historical facts
and do not understand the situation many valuable Israeli and Zionist community members
are in. Many of us have lost friends and family to anti Semitism,
including terrorist attacks. We are being bombarded
with messages from media, hateful graffiti.
Your time has expired. Thank you. And that appears to be our last speaker.
No. Because this is just public comment. Yes. Okay, I think it's time
for the consent calendar.
Okay. Our next item is approval of the consent calendar.
And as a reminder, item 03A, that's a contract with
Liftech Consultants and Inc. For planning and design services
for the relocation of the SS Red Oak. Victory has
been continued to February 3rd.
So we need a motion. Okay. A Motion. I'll make
the motion to approve the consent calendar. I second.
Motion by me, the Mayor. And seconded by Council
member Jimenez. Jimenez. Council member Brown?
Yes. Council member Bona. Council member Jimenez?
Yes. Council member Wilson? Yes. Council member Robinson?
Yes. Council member Vice Mayor Cepeda. Yes. And Mayor
Martinez? Yes. The motion passes.
Okay. Okay. Since we've sent staff home,
we will go to reports of officers, referrals to staff.
Sorry, there is one item. Item P3.
You don't need staff for that. P3. I believe our
fire chief is here to answer questions about this
item. I sponsored
this item and I believe. Let me introduce the item, if I may, Mayor,
through you as the chair. This item requires additional
staff. Besides fire, the way that the municipal code works, it would also involve
planning, community development staff. And as we noted earlier this evening, those personnel
were released for the evening. And so we are not prepared to discuss this
item at this time. I'm sorry, but this is to direct
the staff to come up with an ordinance.
I'm not. I'm stating that the staff personnel
that would be assisting. Wait, the item. Are no longer in
the audience because they've been released. It is not only within the purview of Chief
Osario, it would also involve planning, community development staff
who are no longer with us this evening. Okay.
All right, so back to item Q.
Reports of officers, referrals to staff and general reports,
including AB 1234 reports.
Do we have any?
Go ahead. Thank you. So, as the liaison
with the West Contra Costa County School
I'm trying to.
I'm going to have a meeting with the new superintendent and I'm going to
invite her for presentation about the status of our schools. Also,
I'm glad to report that the city staff
and the school are working on school safety and I hope that we
will have a report about it soon.
Anyone else?
Well, if. If there are not, then it's
time for adjournment and I will allow.
Council member Bana. Thank you, I appreciate it.
So, as I mentioned, last few
weeks of the year were especially.
Three. Shaking and rattling and sad
because we had some homicides. Although the number of homicides,
all due to gun violence, has been substantially
reduced. I mean, the City of Richmond should be proud of
having reduced it from like 50, 60 per year to 5 last year
in 2025. And I would like to sincerely thank Office
of Neighborhood Safety, our police department, many community based
organizations and volunteers working on that. Still,
five is too many. We need to reduce it even more.
I would have liked us to say their names loud,
all the city council members to emphasize
and affirm our commitment to reduce
it, minimize it even further. And also our commitment to
respect the sanctity of life. That's very important.
That's basic human right. And it's
important to renew that commitment and honor the grief
and trauma that many families are going through. Just to acknowledge it
and try to work towards that, put it on top of our policy
or whatever it takes the city to work even harder on
reducing in gun violence. We don't have the permission
from the families to say their names loudly.
So I'm just asking everyone please to acknowledge
the loss of life due to gun violence,
five homicides in 2025,
to acknowledge the pain, trauma that we all should work to
reduce as much as possible. Let's have a few
moments of silence.
Thank you very much. And I would like to ask the city
attorney to have permission from the families in the future to
say their names loud, too. Thank you very much.
Okay, with that, we are adjourned.