As a Waco resident, we urge you to take immediate action to demand the city council pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Add your name to this petition to endorse the below resolution.

Being that the U.S. is funding Israel's genocidal campaign through the exploitation of taxpayer dollars, is supplying Israel with weapons and heavy machine equipment, is protecting Israel from international intervention amidst this genocide, and is perpetuating Antisemitic and Islamaphobic narratives by equating Zionism to Judaism and Terrorism to Islam - as Waco residents we acknowledge the direct support coming from our city and that silence at any level of our government is complicity. 

Every year a minimum of $3.8 billion in federal U.S. tax dollars are paid to Israel. Waco’s tax dollars are estimated to make up $1,865,537 of that yearly sum. 

In addition, Waco has branches of L3 Harris Technologies, a surveillance weapons manufacturer, and Caterpillar, a manufacturer of construction and mining equipment. L3 Harris Technologies is partnered with Israel Aerospace Industries’ ELTA Systems Group in developing Airborne surveillance and control technologies. Caterpillar bulldozers have been documented as being used by the Israeli military in multiple civilian deaths and human rights violations. 

Not only are Waco tax dollars and local businesses complicit in this ongoing genocide, but the silence of our municipal leadership directly affects community members. Our Jewish and Muslim neighbors deserve a community that ensures their safety and protection. Therefore, we, the Waco community, condemn all antisemitic, anti-Palestinian, Islamophobic, and xenophobic rhetoric.

We should expect our most local representatives, our most immediate connection to government, to use their platforms as their constituents demand. We call for the Waco city council to join other local governments across the U.S. in uplifting the humanitarian call for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine, which is the only path towards peace for all people involved.

Below is the resolution we demand from Waco City Council. 

 

Resolution 

Resolution calling for a sustained ceasefire in Gaza, humanitarian aid, release of hostages, and condemning antisemitic, anti-Palestinian, and lslamophobic rhetoric and attacks. 

WHEREAS, the United Nations adopted Resolution 377 known as “Uniting for Peace”, which states that the United Nations General Assembly shall act if the Security Council, “because of a lack of unanimity of the permanent members, fails to exercise its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security in any case where there appears to be a threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression;” and

WHEREAS, after implementing Resolution 377, on December 12, 2023, the UN General Assembly convened an emergency meeting in which 153 out of 186 member nations voted in favor of adopting a resolution demanding “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza; and

WHEREAS, the United States has vetoed five ceasefire resolutions at the United Nations Security Council, and

WHEREAS, Israel has rejected a twelfth ceasefire agreement as of June 1, 2024, and 

WHEREAS, at least 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023, including more than 17,000 children, and more than 111,000 Palestinians have been injured in that same period; and 

WHEREAS, more than 90% of the population of Gaza, nearly 1.9 million people, have been displaced since Israeli bombardments began on early October 7, 2023; and

WHEREAS, entire neighborhoods, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, and places of worship have been destroyed contributing to the erasure of Palestinian communities and culture; and

WHEREAS, a March 2024 poll conducted by Gallup found that 55% of Americans disapprove of Israeli Military actions in Gaza; and 

WHEREAS, a February 2024 poll conducted by Data for Progress found that 67% of likely voters support a permanent ceasefire and de-escalation of violence in Gaza and 74% of likely voters support a permanent ceasefire that included the release of all hostages; and

WHEREAS, as of March 2024, over 100 localities, including Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; Lawrence, Kansas; Albany, New York; and Carrboro, North Carolina; and Oakland, California have passed a ceasefire resolution

WHEREAS, a lasting ceasefire is critical to the survival and release of Israeli and Palestinian hostages; and

WHEREAS, international organizations like Amnesty International, the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the International Rescue Committee, and many others have made a call for a ceasefire in order to prevent the further loss of life of civilians and to be in accordance with international humanitarian law; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council calls for an immediate, permanent ceasefire, provision of life-saving humanitarian aid in Gaza, and the release of all hostages; and, be it 

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council urges the Trump Administration and Congress to call for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and the release of all hostages; and, be it 

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council condemns Antisemitic, anti-Palestinian, lslamophobic, and xenophobic rhetoric and attacks; and, be it 

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council condemns the unnecessary and unwarranted deaths of civilians; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council believes that a just and lasting peace between the people requires leadership on both sides to have a willingness and commitment to negotiate in good faith; and, be it 

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Waco City Council urges the international community to work with Palestinian and Israeli people to find a just and lasting peace, and to conduct a full and independent investigation of the conduct of all parties in this conflict and hold all parties and individuals who have overseen or engaged in war crimes and international human rights violations - including but not limited to gender-based violence and killing of children - accountable.