Board of Supervisors' Gaza resolution criticized by Mayor Breed
SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco Mayor London Breed is condemning the Board of Supervisors' passage of a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza last week.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed the ceasefire resolution after much heated debate from members of the public as well as city supervisors themselves. The resolution calls for the release of hostages in Gaza and condemns antisemitic, anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic attacks. The public comment on the resolution took several hours, as people lined up for their one-minute speaking time.
In a statement to KTVU, Breed did not mince words: she does not agree with the passage of the resolution.
Mayor London Breed speaks during a dedication ceremony of Michael Tilson Thomas (MTT) Way, the block on Grove Street between Franklin Street and Van Ness Avenue. ((Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images))
"What happened at the Board of Supervisors during this last month did not reflect our values," she said of the debate surrounding the resolution. Breed claims the Board's process "only inflamed division and hurt."
"Many outside San Francisco do not draw the distinction between eight district supervisors and the official view of San Francisco. So let me be clear: what happened at the Board of Supervisors does not speak for or on behalf of the entire city. I don’t think any statement or resolution can do that. Our people do that. Our values do that," Breed wrote.
Breed went on to say she met with a Palestinian high school student here in San Francisco who "took it upon himself to engage with his Jewish peers." She says this is the San Francisco that she knows.
"I encourage all of us to act more like these young students, and less like their elders at the Board hearing," Breed wrote. Breed went on to condemn the alleged verbal attacks against members of the public and city representatives who shared their views.
Breed discussed her trip to Israel in 2023, where she met with leaders from Israeli and Palestinian communities. She says the ongoing and pervasive sense of war in that region affects everyone in the area and has stayed with her during this time. Breed states that she supports President Joe Biden's efforts to find peace in the region, release hostages and deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.
San Francisco is now the largest city to pass a ceasefire resolution, according to the Arab Resource and Organizing Center. A ceasefire resolution was also passed in Oakland in November. A ceasefire resolution was brought forward in Berkeley, but after several council meetings were disrupted by protesters, the resolution was dropped.
There has been some debate, including at the San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting, about whether local government has any place in this international conflict. When speaking before the San Francisco Board of Supervisors vote on the ceasefire, District 7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar mentioned the city's limitations in the conflict.
"We are local government in San Francisco. We don't have the power to control the actions of the Israeli Defense Forces, or Hamas or the U.S. Government," Melgar said. She ultimately voted yes on the resolution.