Arrests made, chambers cleared during Sacramento City Council discussion of Gaza ceasefire resolution

[Pelican Press 0]

Arrests made, chambers cleared during Sacramento City Council discussion of Gaza ceasefire resolution

SACRAMENTO – Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg cleared the council chambers over outbursts during a debate over his proposed ceasefire resolution in Gaza Tuesday night. Multiple people were arrested.

The decision to clear the chamber of the public during Tuesday night’s meeting came after he delivered several warnings from the dias.

The Sacramento Police Department said this happened at around 9 p.m. but around a dozen people remained in the chambers hoping they would exit on their own accord. Around a dozen arrests were made due to people refusing to disperse, but police were still working to finalize that number. The chambers were completely cleared by around 11 p.m. and the meeting resumed just before 11:30 p.m.

Supporters and opponents of the resolution packed the city council chambers to capacity, often erupting in chants and shouts with signs of solidarity and extra police.

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inside Sacramento council chambers protesters refusing to leave and chanting. Council has left and waiting for people to clear. They plan to vote on the Gaza ceasefire tonight with only media allowed inside.

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— stevelarge (@largesteven)

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Mayor Steinberg’s resolution attempts to approach the war in what his office calls a “balanced” manner. Steinberg says he recognizes the sovereignty of ******* and an independent Palestine state but also calls for the condemnation of the Oct. 7 attacks.  

He’s also asking for the release of all hostages, notes the tens of thousands of Palestinians ******* in *******’s military response in Gaza, and calls for a stop to the rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia across the nation.

One after another supporters and opponents spoke their minds to the city council. Raymond Lee is opposed to the resolution. He was pleased with the dialogue before the chambers were cleared.

“I think it’s going as well as to be expected given the tumultuous situation,” Lee said. “And this is a volatile situation. We all know that.”

Scott Anglim supports the resolution.

“I think everyone’s here with the common understanding that every human is entitled to peace dignity and freedom, and they’re vocalizing it as such,” Anglim said.

The mayor says the ceasefire resolution aims to bridge a divide in Sacramento’s interfaith community. He presented the resolution alongside a coalition of interfaith leaders including Sacramento’s Council on ********* Islamic Relations.

The ******* Federation of Sacramento opposes it.

“Nothing in this resolution that we will present tonight, that I will present tonight, pretends to solve the war in the Middle East,” Steinberg said earlier in the day. “This is about Sacramento.”

Ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Councilmember Lisa Kaplan issued a lengthy statement against the resolution.

“It is best when we stand together as leaders in Sacramento and focus on issues that we can control and not on conflict in the Middle East for which this resolution will have no impact,” Kaplan wrote. “With that said, I fundamentally do not believe it is within the Council’s purview to weigh in on international conflict.  However, as the resolution is before us, I believe in supporting and backing a resolution where leaders from both sides have come together in agreement. Sadly, such a resolution is not before the Council tonight.”

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*******, Sacramento, Gaza Strip, Darrell Steinberg
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