Hundreds of emails flooded the inboxes of Cleveland City Council members and Mayor Justin Bibb’s administration Monday urging them to oppose a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The messages came as a surprise. The email writers appeared to have missed the news that council had no plans to pass such a resolution.
“We are reaching out in opposition to a ceasefire resolution that will be proposed at your meeting,” one email reads. “While this appears to be a resolution in favor of peace, in fact it is a propaganda move to incite anti-Democracy, anti-Israel, and anti-Jewish sentiments. We urge you to refuse to even consider the resolution.”
It’s not certain what caused the email flurry. One theory inside City Hall was that the confusion stemmed from a misreading of a social media post promoting a pro-ceasefire event.
Pro-Palestinian activists counterprogrammed the Monday night City Council meeting by holding a “People’s Council” in which they voiced support for a ceasefire document of their own. The Instagram post promoting the action reworked Cleveland City Council’s logo so that it read, “The People’s City Council.”
The activists first gathered in the City Hall rotunda, a floor below the council chambers, before police told them to take it outside.
Health and human services levy campaign raises big money
The campaign for Cuyahoga County’s health and human services levy is flush with cash. The county is asking voters to renew the levy by voting for Issue 26 on the March 19 primary ballot.
The 4.8-mill levy generates almost $137 million annually for county social services. The renewal won’t increase taxes for homeowners, meaning it should have a relatively easy path to passage this month.
But supporters aren’t taking chances. The pro-levy political action committee raised more than $777,000 for the campaign. Big donations include $200,000 from the Cleveland Foundation, $150,000 from Medical Mutual and $15,000 from the Jewish Federation of Cleveland.
This story has been updated to note that the Jewish Federation of Cleveland gave $15,000 to the HHS levy campaign. The County Action Committee unaudited financial report listed the donation as $50,000.