Town Council Postpones Vote on Resolution for Ceasefire in Gaza. Community Supporters Top 550

A resolution in support of a ceasefire in Gaza was scheduled to be taken up by the Town Council on Monday, February 26, but it was announced at the end of the business day on Friday that the meeting had been postponed, tentatively until Monday March 4, to allow the town time to schedule a larger space.

Amherst4Ceasefire reported that as of Friday evening (2/23), the list of community sponsors of their resolution has grown to 550 Amherst residents. The group has also been gathering organizational endorsements. They include faith-based, academic, political, and cultural groups, municipal committees, and local businesses. Some of those endorsers include: Western Mass Jewish Voice for Peace, the Hampshire Mosque, Hope Community Church, the New England Peace Pagoda, Massachusetts Peace Action, Valley Families for Palestine, and Faculty for Justice in Palestine (UMass).  The resolution has also garnered a third councilor sponsor, Mandi Jo Hanneke (at large) who joins the original councilor sponsors Pat DeAngilis (District 2) and Ellisha Walker (at large).

The text of the resolution can be found here.  An up-to-date list of the community sponsors, all of whom are Amherst residents, can be found here. Written public comments can be submitted to the Town Council here.

In view of the sudden postponement of the council meeting and vote, Amherst4Ceasefire must also postpone the February 26 rally originally planned to precede the council meeting and will announce a new date and location for both events as soon as they are available.