Pro-Palestine protesters pack Columbus council again, demand call for Israeli ceasefire

Four weeks after hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters shut down a Columbus City Council meeting over Israeli bombing after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and a social media post by a campaign staffer of the council president, a large group returned Monday demanding that councilmembers call for a ceasefire in Gaza and break U.S. ties with Israel.

About 150 protesters filled the chamber — many with their hands dyed red to simulate the blood of Palestinian civilians being killed in Gaza — waiting for a chance to speak. Unlike the Oct. 16 meeting, however, City Council completed its regular business agenda and waited until before the start of a second meeting on zoning issues before allowing the public to address nonagenda issues.

"We were promised by City Council a joint statement condemning the genocide and (calling for) a ceasefire, but we still have not received that," Hani Ali, 24, a recent Ohio State University graduate in communications, told The Dispatch in comments similar to those he made publicly before council.

"We've had private conversations with them. They've promised us in private that they would release a statement," he said.

Just before the meeting, two councilmembers, Shayla Favor and Lourdes Barroso de Padilla released a statement on Instagram citing "the humanitarian crisis in Palestine" and calling for "an immediate ceasefire."

"Our City, which upholds the principles of free speech, must ensure that every resident feels secure in voicing their opinions, advocating for themselves, and standing up for others. It is reprehensible that individuals in our community are being targeted for advocating for issues and causes that touch their lives so deeply. The principles of justice and equality are not confined to distant lands but resonate deeply within our own vibrant community and the diaspora here," the statement reads.

"Our commitment to the safety of all Columbus residents is unwavering; therefore, we call for an immediate ceasefire and vehemently condemn any behavior in the City of Columbus that can be attributed to Islamophobia, antisemitism, or any form of hate. We stand firm in our support for our Palestinian and Israeli brothers and sisters as both are equally entitled to living freely and safely."

The two councilmembers said they "stand against injustice, and will continue to work towards a Columbus that advocates for the safety, dignity, and freedom of expression of all residents."

Khaled Abou El Fadl, a law professor at UCLA who studies Islam and human rights, told the council that the Hamas-Israel conflict was creating "an extremely dangerous world for all of us," and that the world must demand that the rules against war crimes be followed. He said those rules are in place not because fighting sides like each other, but because they hate each other, which can lead to terrible things, especially for civilians.

At the Oct. 16 meeting, the group of protesters had condemned a social media post of a campaign staffer for Hardin who had reportedly said Hamas had started the latest round of violence, but that Israel would "finish it."

Hardin told the group Monday that the staffer "does not work for me any longer, and he will not be working for me in the future."

But Hardin declined the group's demand to issue a statement on behalf of the entire City Council calling for a ceasefire, eventually leading the protestors to loudly chant "ceasefire now."

Although a security guard tried unsuccessfully to prevent it, a banner was unfurled from the balcony in council chambers that read, in part: "End the occupation now! Stand with Palestine!"

Last month, Hardin had been criticized by the protesters for saying on social media that "acts of terror have no place in our world," that he stood in solidarity with Israel in "this difficult time" and was "praying for the victims of this unprovoked attack and for a peaceful resolution" to the longstanding conflict.

The Monday protest went on for over an hour with some people allowed to address council for longer than the normal time allotment, delaying the start of the second meeting on zoning issues. Complaints included that some council members had traveled to Israel.

But just like last month, the protest suddenly ended, and the protesters quickly filed out of the building. Ali attributed the departure to Hardin having delivered a message that he would issue a statement on the ceasefire topic.

Hardin's office said after the meeting that the council president had informed the group, he would review Favor and Barroso de Padilla's statement released just before the start of the meeting, which included a call for a ceasefire. Hardin will issue his own statement in the coming days — perhaps as soon as Tuesday. But exactly what that statement would say was yet to be determined.

Jewish Columbus issued a statement Monday night saying it greatly appreciated Hardin "for his voice against antisemitism" while criticizing Favor and Barroso de Padilla's statement.

"The statement by the two councilmembers overlooks crucial facts and is disheartening, dismissive and offensive to Jewish constituents," JewishColumbus said.

JewishColumbus joined with Ohio State University Hillel and the Schottenstein Chabad House to help fund sending Jewish students by charter buses to the March for Israel on Tuesday in Washington. The event is in support of Israel in its war against Hamas, to urge the release of all hostages, and against antisemitism.

The Associated Press reported Monday that more than 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed when Hamas fighters launched the surprise terrorist attack from Gaza on Israeli border settlements on Oct. 7. Nearly 240 people — including children and elderly — remain captive in Gaza, according to Israeli officials.

Israel’s war to “destroy” Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 11,000 people, the AP reported, attributing the figure to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, which doesn't differentiate between civilians and fighters. U.S. officials say thousands of women and children are among that death toll.

Although the previous protest at City Council was led by Students for Justice in Palestine chapter at Ohio State, a new group introduced on social media as the Palestinian Liberation Movement — Justice Unity & Social Transformation had urged pro-Palestine supporters to go to Monday's meeting. PLM-Just's stated mission, according to its post, is "to combat the systematic oppression of Palestinians and dismantle the Israeli occupation" as well as "challenging the dominant zionist narrative that often monopolizes American discourse." Members of Columbus DSA (Democratic Socialists of America) also indicated they were in attendance.

City secures extra winter storm help, other council action

In other business Monday, the council approved a plan by the city Public Service Department to bring in up to 24 private pickup trucks equipped with snowplows and/or road salt spreaders as needed to help clear city side streets this winter.

Rocky Fork Company, a landscaping and fence contractor firm that operates around central Ohio, could get up to $100,000 to provide 18-20 pickups outfitted with plows for snowfalls of 4 or more inches, with the rest of the trucks equipped only to spread salt.

"If those services aren’t needed, the city isn’t obligated to use the contract," said Deborah Briner, a spokeswoman for the Public Service Department. "Depending on the type of winter we have, we will use and pay the contractor as needed."

The city's own plow team is essentially fully staffed for this winter, with extra city employees trained as auxiliary plow drivers to operate city pickup plows in residential areas, following a pilot program established last winter.

"We also have plow drivers from other city departments who assist if snowfall amounts warrant their service," Briner said in an email before the meeting. "So our city snow operations are in good shape for this winter."

A Dispatch review in February 2022, when the city was hit with heavy snow and residents complained about untouched or impassable streets in some neighborhoods, that compared to other Franklin County municipalities, Columbus snowplow drivers were stretched thin across Ohio's largest city.

Each of the Columbus drivers — referred to by the city as "snow warriors" — is responsible for clearing multiple times the lane mileage than their counterparts in the suburbs, which often left city streets appearing ice covered compared to clear and dry suburban roads.

On another matter, the council approved a "memorandum of understanding" with Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge No. 9, the union representing Columbus police officers, to provide fully-paid family leave of up to 12 weeks for the birth of a child, placement of a child for adoption or foster care, and to care for a covered family member with a serious health condition.

The city in September approved ordinances creating a similar arrangement with other union and nonunion city workers across numerous departments. Previously, the city offered six weeks of paid parental leave and four weeks of paid caregiver after a two-week unpaid waiting period, then paid leave at 70% of a worker’s salary.

wbush@gannett.com

@ReporterBush

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Protesters pack City Council a second time demanding ceasefire support