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On February 2, 2024 Press TV (Iran) aired a report about the Chicago City Council's vote approving a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Press TV's Chicago correspondent Ramin Mazaheri reported from Chicago City Hall, interviewing several participants in a rally, coordinated by the Coalition for Justice in Palestine – CJP, in support of the decision. Mazaheri said that this vote proves to Washington that its "unwavering support for Israel isn't shared across the country."
Deanna Othman of the Chicago chapter of American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) told Mazaheri that this decision will put pressure on the American government. Hatem Abudayyeh of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network said that one would wish that people in positions of power would do the right things because these are the moral things to do. Nasreen Hasa of the Arab-American Center at the University of Illinois-Chicago said that the ceasefire vote was not just for Palestinians, but for all communities. Chicago's City Council approved the ceasefire resolution on January 31, 2024.
Reporter: "Local city councils of various US states have passed ceasefire resolutions in solidarity with Palestine amid Washington's unequivocal support for the Israeli regime. Press TV's Ramin Mazaheri has more from Chicago."
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Ramin Mazaheri: "Across the United States local governments are passing resolutions demanding a ceasefire in Gaza as pro-Zionism sentiment continues its historic crumbling under the wake of daily Israeli war crimes. The third largest city in the United States, Chicago, also has the nation's largest Palestinian community, which was thrilled to see their city council pass a resolution demanding a permanent ceasefire."
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Deanna Othman: "We were on edge, honestly, for a while and the fact that it was passed is just an amazing show of solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Palestine. We know that it does not necessarily change anything for them on the ground, but I think that this will definitely put pressure on our government to hear the will of its people in one of the largest cities of America and hopefully this will influence some of their policies and we will get a permanent ceasefire soon."
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Mazaheri: " Ceasefire demands have been approved from major cities like San Francisco, Detroit, and Atlanta, just suburbs and small towns insisting on taking a moral stand. Words like 'Apartheid' and 'ethnic cleansing', which were once heavily censored in public life are now being voted into the public record."
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Hatem Abudayyeh: "An you would wish that people in positions of power do things, do the right things, because they are the right things, because there the moral thing to do. That doesn't always happen, but in Chicago it's a little bit different."
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Mazaheri: "The United States was the only member on the United Nations Security Council to vote against a ceasefire and they have paralyzed the Security Council on the issue of the genocide in Gaza. As congressmen in Washington reportedly refused to even engage Palestinian Activists, city councils have become the primary place with political power, which will discuss the issue and reflect the historic shift in public sentiment towards Palestine."
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Nasreen Hasa: "It really shows that when you vote for progressive politicians, progress does happen. We not only saw a vote for a ceasefire, but we saw a vote for solidarity and community building as well. The ceasefire vote is not only for the Palestinian people, it's for all communities"
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Mazaheri: "The local resolutions are mainly symbolic, but they aren't so local. They show support to Palestine and their allies around the world and they prove to Washington that their unshakable support for Israel isn't shared across the country. Ramin Mazaheri, Press TV Chicago."
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