Free Palestine Coalition continues to demand St. Paul ceasefire resolution
St. Paul, MN – For the fourth week in a row, residents of Saint Paul and members of the Free Palestine Coalition packed the Saint Paul city council meeting on February 28 to demand they pass a ceasefire resolution or at the very least, have a public hearing about it. And for the fourth week in a row, City Council President Mitra Jalalai, who wields the power and controls the agenda, refused to let a resolution be introduced.
In a heavy handed move, Jalalai quickly adjourned the meeting, ignoring Councilwoman Nelsie Yang’s motion to waive the rules and have a public hearing. Supporters of the ceasefire resolution erupted and all the councilwomen with the exception of Yang quickly left the room. Community members called them out for refusing to join the growing number of cities taking action against the horrific U.S.-supported Israeli genocide in Gaza which is now causing mass starvation.
Supporters then left the council chamber and marched through City Hall chanting “There is only one solution! Ceasefire resolution!” and “City council you can’t hide! Take a stand against genocide!” They vowed to return next week and continue to build the momentum for the resolution.
Kent Mori, a member of the Climate Justice Committee and a Saint Paul resident stated, “The Saint Paul city council is demonstrating the desperation of the U.S. government at all levels. The empire is collapsing, and the Israeli regime is using starvation as a tool of genocide, yet the city council refused consider a ceasefire resolution. We should recognize their desperation, channel our anger into mobilizing and organizing to exert more pressure.”