Councilor At-Large Morris Bergman’s resolution calling on the city to “condemn the recent barbaric and inhuman taking of hostages in Israel” generated discussion and outbursts from the public during Tuesday night’s meeting.
WORCESTER – Worcester City Council touched on several topics during its five-hour long meeting Tuesday night, including one over which members of the public questioned its jurisdiction.
Councilor At-Large Morris Bergman’s resolution calling on the city to “condemn the recent barbaric and inhuman taking of hostages in Israel” generated the most discussion and outbursts from the public.
On Oct. 7, Hamas militants crossed into Southern Israel, killing at least 1,400 Israelis and kidnapping others, multiple outlets reported. Since the attack, Israel has launched an aerial assault on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 2,800 Palestinians. The resolution’s failure to mention the latter was a point of contention for some members of the public and councilors.
The council ultimately voted 8 to 2 to pass the resolution, with Councilor At-Large Thu Nguyen and District 5 Councilor Etel Haxhiaj voting against it and District 4 Councilor Sarai Rivera recusing herself from the vote.
The resolution’s use of the words “barbaric” and “inhuman” drew particular attention, with a Worcester resident who simply identified herself as Sarah saying their use in the resolution was objectionable because it could be used to justify attacks against Palestinians.
“My family did not flee antisemitism in Lithuania for my American city councilors to promote dehumanizing rhetoric among my neighbors,” Sarah said.
Greg Weiner, president of Congregation Beth Israel, asked: “Why must we qualify the simple statement that the act of kidnapping infants and the elderly is barbaric and inhumane?…If we lack the moral courage to defend Jewish lives without qualification, who are we?”
David Coyne stood to appeal to the clerk, despite saying he may lose friendships he’s had for 30 years and his place of worship, asking him to consult with the city solicitor to determine why it was permissible for the item to be on a council agenda “when it is not in any way under the control of the city of Worcester or the council.” Coyne said it is up to the clerk to determine if an item belongs on a council agenda.
Haxhiaj stood up to leave the room during parts of the discussion, saying her heart had been shattered by the events in the Middle East and she had been taken back to her own memories of living in a country at war, facing displacement, explosions, guns, losing friends, and never feeling safe anywhere anytime.
“This resolution asks me to act with half of my humanity. I am incapable of segmenting my love for human life,” Haxhiaj said, urging everyone to reject any acts of Islamophobia and antisemitism and calling for an end to the war.
In response, Bergman said he worded his resolution very carefully “in order to avoid any conversation about issues other than children and elderly innocently kidnapped.”
“They were kidnapped; that’s all this is about,” Bergman said.
Kiernan Dunlop is an award-winning journalist who has spent the past five years reporting in Worcester, New Bedford and Antigua and Barbuda. She’s been published in Bloomberg, USA Today, Canary Media, MassLive, and the New Bedford Standard Times, among other outlets. She can be contacted at kdunlop@theworcesterguardian.org
