Hello everyone! It’s been quite a week. We wanted to provide a summary to the January 23rd council meeting. We are immensely disappointed in Councilmember Tammy Kim, who gave an unprompted statement refusing to support a ceasefire resolution because calling for one would be outside of her local jurisdiction. She then claimed to feel distress over many of the atrocities happening around the world, but omitted Gaza and Palestine from that list. You can watch her full statement at the link below. 

Councilmember Tammy Kim's statement: https://youtu.be/_rlWP8Fvp7Y

Alternate recording by a meeting attendee: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2d1I8hrOjO/ 

Councilmember Kim’s argument against supporting a ceasefire is in complete contradiction with her record. You can find past examples of how she’s supported Irvine’s active connection to international events and humanitarian crises here. Many of us have reiterated to her that the genocide in Gaza is a local issue. Our taxes directly fund the military weapons that Israel uses to murder civilians in Gaza. Our Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, and Jewish community members are continually put in danger from a rise in xenophobia stoked by politicians and media organizations. Cities in California including San Francisco, Oakland, Richmond, Long Beach, Cudahy, Montebello, and Pomona have formally passed ceasefire resolutions because their constituents and elected officials have made the connection that Councilmember Kim cannot.

We must continue pressuring Councilmember Kim to apologize for her irresponsible statement at the council meeting and support a ceasefire resolution. Here are ways you can get in contact with her to voice your concerns.

Email her: tammykim@cityofirvine.org (CC: EvKim@cityofirvine.org, clerk@cityofirvine.org)

Call her office: 949-724-6233, follow instructions to reach her office

These are some of the daily actions that we can take to demonstrate to Councilmember Kim that her conduct and stance at the January 23, 2024 council meeting not only endangers her constituents but does not represent us at all. She and Councilmember Treseder also once again neglected their duties and left the meeting early without staying for public comment.

In marked contrast, Mayor Farrah Khan spoke near the end of the meeting, emphasizing that her support for a ceasefire resolution does not affect her ability to conduct Irvine city council business. We would like to highlight and thank Mayor Khan, Vice Mayor Agran, and Councilmember Carroll for their commitment by staying until 1:00AM to listen to all of the public comments made by their constituents both in person and on Zoom.

Mayor Farrah Khan’s statement: https://youtu.be/CI0Y8XTZt7A

If you ever wish to watch a recording of an Irvine City Council meeting, you can always refer to the city’s ICTV website.

Thank you again for your support. Please continue sharing the petition as part of the ongoing efforts to publicly pressure the Irvine City Council to agendize and support a ceasefire resolution. We’ve demonstrated over the last 3+ months during weekly protests and actions that our strength comes from our diverse collectivity. We must hold our elected officials accountable if they refuse to represent us. If you are looking to get involved locally in Orange County, one of many great resources to find future protests, rallies, and actions is OCProtests Community Coalition.