In a stunning chapter of indifference to Aurora’s rich diversity, a slim majority of city lawmakers pushed forward a blanket resolution in support of Israel, leaving the city’s large Muslim community aghast.
Even for a city council that has become notorious for not representing the majority of people who live and work here, the gaffe Monday night was incredulous.
At issue was a resolution — which carries absolutely no real or political clout — created by Councilmember Francoise Bergan and championed by Councilperson Danielle Jurinsky, addressing the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
The resolution spells out at length how the city supports Israel in almost every way and condemns the brutal and horrific attack by Hamas, which ambushed and killed 1,400 people and kidnapped more.
It was a gruesome, terrorist attack against civilians, warranting global condemnation.
Tentatively approved by council Republicans during a study session Oct. 16 — nine days after the Hamas attack — the resolution then ignored the ghastly death of thousands of innocent Palestinian people, including thousands of children, at the hands of the Israeli military attacking Gaza.
It was not because of naivete. Four city council Democrats each tried to amend the measure earlier this month to include language condemning not just the Hamas attack, but the indiscriminate, depraved and illegal collective punishment by Israeli forces against all residents of Gaza.
Each proposed amendment was pushed back with scathing, cynical rhetoric.
“This is a moment for the Jewish people, and the state of Israel, and anything you want to amend to this, I pray that my common-sense colleagues will not allow it to happen,” Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky angrily told fellow lawmakers. “This moment right now is for the Jewish people.”
The “moment” had already clocked thousands of dead, innocent Palestinians in Gaza, many of them children.
Bergan went even further on Oct. 16.
“Hamas has violated all laws of war. I mean, what they have done is atrocious. And if that would have happened to the United States, I don’t think we would say that we were committing war crimes by defending ourselves,” Bergan said.
Thankfully, Bergan is dead wrong. The United States has on more than one occasion, infamously, inflicted collateral damage on innocents who got in the way of careless American military might.
Responsible American leaders called out our own nation for such atrocities, just as responsible Israeli leaders are demanding an end to the appearance of blood thirst.
As many Muslims and non-Muslims in Aurora, across the state, the nation and the world have pointed out, collectively punishing every person who lives in Gaza by blitzing them with bombs; depriving them of food, water and fuel; and shutting down electricity is immoral, illegal and unacceptable.
Hundreds of people flooded city council chambers Monday to weigh in on the Bergan resolution blunder and hold city lawmakers supporting the measure accountable.
The city council was clearly surprised by the uprising and unable to handle the pressure, stumbling repeatedly through the process as critics worked to make changes to the resolution.
It was for naught.
Despite impassioned pleas from Jews, Muslims and gentiles alike, condemning the Israeli military for indiscriminately killing thousands of innocent Gaza residents, including 2,055 children, Republican lawmakers refused to back down.
After hours of passionate and sometimes angry commentary and accusations from the public, council members agreed to amend the bill with tepid language saying death during war is generally a bad thing.
The disregard for military ethics is unnerving, but the bigger gaffe among council conservatives is their astonishing indifference to Muslims, and especially Middle East immigrants and their families.
The Bergan resolution is deaf to Aurora’s large and vibrant Muslim population, still deeply harmed by years of Islamophobia inflicted on them during the era of Trump, by his racist minions and supporters.
Conservative City Council resolution supporters were unaware that most of Aurora lives outside a bubble of polarized, insular politics. The people Aurora shops among, goes to school with and works alongside are almost always, literally, from across the globe. Residents deserve city leaders who are always cognizant of Aurora’s diversity and representative of it.
Instead, conservative city lawmakers did a faceplant into handling the complexity of Aurora’s diverse community.
Mayor Mike Coffman blamed it on taking up an issue that had no “nexus” in city services.
Aurora, like most large cities, has for generations weighed in on issues far beyond its borders.
It wasn’t the subject of the resolution that rained hellfire all over council chambers. It was all about a message that sells in places like Colorado Springs or Highlands Ranch. But in Aurora, it was just so much hayseed minority opinion inflicted on a sophisticated majority.
I really hope that informed Aurora residents and voters see the blind arrogance of Mayor Coffman and the conservative members of City Council. The formidable amount of public comment speakers should have opened their minds regarding this one-sided resolution. No wonder Marcano is running for mayor! And Bergan is so white that she glows!
Well written editorial.
Why, oh why, was this even a topic for city government?!?
Sentinel begs for money and then runs over itself in a partisan hack piece that doesn’t represent the readers.
It represents me and many many others.
It represents me too. There was no need to take up such a measure. It is obvious the resolution was a way to make personal statements and had no benefit to the residents of Aurora. The residents of this great city should look to leaders that represent everyone and not just a few. I hope the outcome of the upcoming election will make future representatives think again before offering such a decisive piece of legislation.
Here we go useless politics– as usual. It looks like Aurora leaders that represent the city wanted to make an international splash. Perhaps this council with their symbolic resolution were able to get a good feel of what departing from your elected duties accomplish. The citizens are more than willing to reject elected officials trying to commit to specific selective religious groups by their dangerous political statements. The backlash that council faced Monday night they and their illusory reasoning created it and deserved every bit of it for themselves. This meetings fiasco all owed to their own thinking with a fairly predictable outcome. The self imposed disorder Monday night is indeed troubling why council , despite all of the cities local issues perceive the middle east problems as a real city issue to tinker with.
With this war in the middle east, some local politicians for whatever reason are unwilling and can’t seem to keep their little city fingers out of world politics. Richmond Calif. “As Israel-Hamas war escalates, Richmond City Council passes controversial resolution” Today, this CA. city council voted exactly opposite from what Aurora decided Monday night on who their city will support in the conflict. And we wonder why these cities have local issues that are so fixable, but never seem to get there.
The Sentinel editorial Boasrd speaks of a sophisticated majority. I am guessing masny in that majority would understand the proper use of the word “incredulous”, a word misused in the subtitle to this editorial. As for the actions and words of the proponents of the resolution in question they were divisive and are likely going to have further divisive ramifications as the population, the electorate digest the matter further.
I have never attended a city council meeting and I have been an Aurora resident for 40 years! However hearing news of this one sided resolution I along with hundreds of aurora residents attended the hearing. Councilwoman Jurinsky resolution in support of Israel was tone deaf and a slap to the diverse residents of Aurora. Prior to the fire works – there was an elderly aurora resident pleading for a speed breaker in her street – someone had died and the Aurora council had ignored it after repeated requests. However the city had stationed at least 50+ police force in swat gear in anticipation of the backlash from Jurinsky resolution. The cost for the police force could have easily paid for that speed bump. What business does Jurinsky have waisting city resources with absolute nonsense resolution that serves no one (perhaps benefits her ADL donors/supporters) that live out side the city. There was an Israeli supporter who drove from Gypsum in support of the resolution! It makes you think who is pulling the strings for Jurinsky and Bergen! This Nov 23 election my vote will do the talking! Vote for Juan Marciano!!!!
First, this is not an appropriate forum for this issue. However, since the resolution was introduced then it must be discussed. There is no comparable morality between what Hamas did and what Israel is doing. Hamas is a terrorist group that killed over 1400 Israeli civilians. They beheaded babies, burned a mother and child after tying them up, went from house to house shooting mothers and fathers in front of their children and committed many other atrocious acts. Condemning this terrorist group is the right thing to do.
Israel’s attacks into Gaza are meant to root out Hamas terrorists and not to kill innocent civilians. Unfortunately, Hamas has built an underground network of tunnels where they hide and continue to launch rockets. Many of these tunnels are under schools, hospitals, etc. Hamas statistics are highly questionable, and they are known for using their own civilian population as human shields. They refuse to recognize Israel’s right to exist and encourage their followers to kill Jews and not just soldiers.
Ask yourself what would happen if Israel laid down its weapons? Then ask yourself what would happen if Hamas laid down its weapons?
The Aurora Sentinel used to be a hometown newspaper. It is now a leftist rag that presents one sided views. It’s really a leftist blog and nothing more.
Ben, I feel sorry that you have been deceived by lying and biased western media. I agree, there is no comparable morality between what Hamas did and what Israel is doing. Just for the sake of argument let’s say Hamas did kill 1400 Israelis. How did Israel react? They bombed Gaza indiscriminately hitting hospitals, mosques, churches, schools, and ambulances for almost a month and levelled entire neighborhoods. They have killed 10,000 civilians (50% of them children) so far AND counting. Israel has cut off Gazans’ access to food, water, and fuel under the claim of “self-defense.” How in the world can someone with any morality or humanity justify this type of self-defense?
Now let’s talk facts.
Fact # 1. Israeli settlers with heavy arms were shipped to Palestine 75 years ago by the colonial west to illegally occupy Palestinian land and to massacre the indigenous population. Nothing new for the white supremacists, huh? The Israeli occupying forces continue to seize Palestinians land and brutally kill or imprison anyone that objects.
Fact # 2. This is not a war between Israel and Hamas. This is a genocide of innocent civilians. It was planned by Israel, with US support, many years ago when Israel created Hamas and armed them with heavy weapons. Yes that is a fact. Look it up. Israel’s goal was to cause mass exodus of Gazans to the Sanai desert and to seize their land. This is the reason Egypt has refused to open its borders for Gazans from day 1 claiming that this would aide Israel accomplish its goal. There is a leaked document produced by Israel’s intelligence ministry recommending the ethnic cleansing of Gaza with the enclave’s 2.3 million Palestinian population expelled to Egypt’s Sinai peninsula. Hence just like 9/11 Oct 7th was an inside job. Amazing how one bully learns from another bully!
Fact # 3. The US provides $4.5bn in aide to Israel annually from your and my tax money but it can’t afford free healthcare or education for its own citizens. Do you know why? Because the US must feed its attack dog to maintain its power in the Middle East. Sadly, once again it’s all about wealth and power.
Fact # 4. While the IDF is relentlessly bombing Gaza claiming that it is destroying Hamas’ underground tunnels, in the West Bank it is raiding Palestinians’ homes, arresting innocent civilians, and shooting and bombing them. Who is the IDF fighting in the West Bank? I thought Hamas was only fighting in Gaza.
“The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people. But because of the silence of good people.” ― Napoleon